23. Seth

Chapter Twenty-Three

SETH

When Seth strolled through the Hungry Pig’s front door, a hush fell over the diner. He ignored it. Over the past few weeks, he'd been making a concerted effort to come into town whenever Tessa or Aiden prompted. It grew easier with each trip down the mountain. The sideways looks and stilted conversation ebbed with each new interaction.

It's exposure therapy, Aiden told him after Tina Mendoza shocked herself by laughing at a joke he'd made in the grocery checkout line. They just need to remember why they all loved you.

They hadn't loved him, of course. Not really. They'd been awed by his father's legacy as one of the smartest, toughest ranchers in three counties, and they'd transferred that hero worship to him when he was young. It wasn't anything like friendship or loyalty, or they wouldn’t have reacted with such scandalous glee when he stumbled. Not all of them, though. Maybe he'd painted too many people with the same judgmental brush they'd used on him.

The diner was buzzing with the midday rush, filled with the hum of voices and clinking silverware. The air smelled of grease and charred burgers. It was a punishingly cold afternoon, but the cheery diner was boiling from so many bodies crammed into its vinyl booths. Every wall was cluttered with pig décor: pigs in chef hats, hula skirts, astronaut costumes. The branded coffee mugs were emblazoned with the logo of a smiling pink pig. It had been this way since long before Seth was born, and it would stay this way so long as Mable Stockton was alive to run it.

Aiden had already snagged a booth near the window. His hat rested beside his elbow on the table, and his head was bent, his familiar blond curls still streaked with red. Tessa had easily covered her mistake with a box of brown dye the morning after her date, but Aiden's fair hair was left bearing the evidence unless he wanted a buzz cut.

He looked unusually subdued, staring wearily into his coffee cup and ignoring the family that waved as they passed his table, but he brightened as soon as Seth slid in beside him.

Seth still couldn't get used to Aiden looking at him like that, with his whole heart shining in his eyes, and yet…it wasn't entirely different from how he used to look at him when they were young. The difference was inside Seth. He understood now that the way Aiden had flirted with him back then was different from how he treated others. Aiden’s nature was playful and affectionate, but he didn’t expect anyone to take it seriously. He was wholly, enthusiastically interested in Seth. If Seth hadn't been so afraid of making a move, Marla Hatch's breasts would never have stood a chance.

"You're a sight for sore eyes," Aiden declared, curling his hand around Seth's waist in a brief hug.

"They do look sore," Seth replied, touching the purple shadows beneath Aiden's eyes with the edge of his thumb.

Aiden looked worn and exhausted. His jaw was unshaven, his eyes puffy from lack of sleep, and when Seth rested a hand on his back, large tension knots shifted beneath his palm.

"Here's to our one chance to see each other this week," Seth said, lifting Aiden's coffee cup and taking a sip in a mock toast. "Next time, let's try for somewhere quieter."

"I told you, it's exposure therapy." Aiden's grin barely reached his bloodshot eyes. "But I've got to admit, a deserted island sounds pretty good right now. No cell phones, no side jobs. Just you and a bottle of tequila."

"How about the back porch and a bottle of wine?" Seth suggested, resting his hand on Aiden's denim-clad thigh and giving it a squeeze. "You're burning the candle at both ends. You need to slow down.

"Naw," Aiden said, stretching out in the booth and deflecting with his good ol' boy grin. "I've got energy for days, ol' son. I can't afford to turn down work right now. Mom's roof isn't going to fix itself."

"It's not broken," Seth pointed out.

Aiden was too busy gulping down the rest of his coffee to reply, but he waved the point away as if it didn't matter. Maybe it didn't. Aiden's mother wasn't concerned with practicality; she was forever searching for the magic improvement that would make her feel satisfied with life. Once the roof was upgraded, she'd move on to the next project, and Aiden would be busting his ass over something else. Family was complicated. Seth understood that better than most; he wouldn't be the one who pressured Aiden into turning his back on the only kin he had.

"How's Bandit?" he asked, changing the topic.

Aiden's shoulders instantly relaxed. He smiled, then twisted his face into an expression of theatrical frustration and complained, "I took him for a trail ride the other day after I finished replacing the belt on Mom's washer. He's getting barn sour. Wouldn't stop trying to nip at every clump of sagebrush we passed."

"He just needs to be ridden more."

"Yeah." Aiden sighed. "It's tough, you know? The more I stop by Mom's place, the more chances she's got to screw with me. I've got to keep my distance. I just wish…"

He trailed off, but he didn't need to finish his sentence. Seth knew how much he loved that horse; he felt a flash of guilt whenever he thought of how lonely Aiden must have been over the years. He'd lost Seth, Bandit, and his second home at the Double Jay in one fell swoop as soon as he turned eighteen. The impact must have left him reeling. He hid it well—no one would guess there was much going on behind that flashy grin—but Seth knew that all Aiden wanted was a home and family of his own. Seth had been so mired in guilt and loneliness over the years that he'd never stopped to think about how much Aiden was suffering.

A bell jingled over the door, tugging him from the morose twist of his thoughts, and Tessa walked in with the Jensen kid all over her. Riley bolted to attention like a little toy soldier the second he laid eyes on Seth. Tessa lit up when she spotted them, waving enthusiastically as she made her way to their booth.

"Hey, double date!" Tessa exclaimed, sliding into the booth opposite Aiden without waiting for an invitation. Riley slid in beside her, practically on her ass, and Seth's eyes narrowed in annoyance.

The only thing that kept him from knocking the kid around a little was the way Tessa beamed with happiness. She was like her own sun these past few weeks, filling every space she entered with infectious warmth. So much like Aiden. Maybe that was what love did to a person. Seth itched to take out his camera phone and flip it around to see if his own face was stamped with the same happiness. It had to be. He was happier than he could remember. With Aiden at his side, the world felt right .

"Hi," Riley said, giving them a nervous nod before abruptly averting his gaze. Seth was tempted to let him squirm, but Aiden read his mind and jabbed an elbow hard into his ribs.

"Hey," he grumbled reluctantly.

"Don't mind him," Aiden said, rolling his eyes. "It's just that he can't piss all over his territory, so his only option is a bad attitude. He thinks he's doing us a favor."

Riley chuckled awkwardly. "Ned acts the same way around our little sister. I guess maybe I do, too."

"Yeah, but she's fifteen," Tessa protested. "I'm a grown woman."

Seth had been trying to behave himself once he realized how serious his sister was about this guy, but he couldn't resist a condescending snort. It just slipped out. She glared and opened her mouth, but before she could start up the same old argument, their waitress appeared with a pen already poised above her pad.

"The usual, Aiden?" Miranda asked, snapping a wad of bubblegum and writing down the order before Aiden even had time to nod. She glanced at Riley next, sizing him up immediately, and asked, "You work today?"

"Yeah," Riley said, adjusting his ballcap as if he was embarrassed. "Double shift."

"So, you want the platter?"

He nodded. "Extra bacon, extra guac, extra?—"

"Oh, I know, sweetheart," Miranda interrupted, flicking her fingers at him to shut him up. She was a plain woman a few years younger than Seth, and she'd been waitressing at the diner since she was just a skinny girl with braces. Her lively humor was as much a draw for the diner as the pancake stacks and chicken fried steak. "You've been coming here five days a week since graduating. It's a burger and fries with a chocolate shake on your days off. After work, it's the cowboy platter with all the extras. You think I can't keep that straight?"

"I might change my mind someday," Riley said with a bashful grin.

"Not many folks around here do," Miranda said wryly before raising an eyebrow and turning to Seth. "Except maybe you. I haven't seen that delicious backside of yours in one of my booths in years. It was sorely missed, I must say."

She clucked her tongue, running her gaze down his chest and then tilting her head as if trying to see beneath the table. She would be able to see Seth's hand resting on Aiden's thigh, but he felt no urge to remove it. Even if he'd wanted to, he couldn't once Aiden latched onto him and threaded their fingers together. Seth looked down at their twined fingers and then up into a pair of summer blue eyes. He smiled faintly.

Miranda watched their interplay and sighed. "I should've known," she said forlornly. "Every guy I ever had a crush on turned out to be batting for the other team. I sure can pick 'em."

"You had a crush on Seth?" Tessa asked, leaning forward eagerly. Her expression was both gleeful and disgusted. "But… why?"

"Thanks, Tess," Seth said, nudging her foot with his boot.

"Plenty of girls did," Miranda said with a laugh. "He has that tall, dark, and handsome thing going for him. Plus, he always seemed so old-fashioned, like a real gentleman. Getting a stud like him down to his boxers always seemed like it'd be a real thrill."

"Can't say I disagree," Aiden said, scratching his chin thoughtfully. His eyes took on a distant expression, and for a moment, an awkward silence fell over the group. Then he cleared his throat and laughed. "Lucky for me, I was quicker on the draw than the rest of you."

Seth ducked his head, staring at Aiden's hand clasping his and wishing they could finish their order and move on. He'd always felt embarrassed by overzealous attention. It was one thing he didn't miss after the bankruptcy.

"I might've made a play if he hadn't stopped coming in," Miranda rejoined, giving Seth a playful whack on the shoulder with her notepad. "I'm not the type to be swayed by gossip, so I never believed that scandal nonsense for a second. Seth's always been the real deal. The closest thing to cowboys my granddaddy used to tell stories about when I was a little girl. He'd never make a mistake like that."

Tessa's eyes flickered knowingly between Seth and Aiden, and a worried frown bloomed across her face. Before anyone else could speak, she jumped in to ask, "Can I get a bacon cheeseburger, Miranda?"

"Sure thing, honey." Miranda tossed her a wink. "How about a slice of pie to sweeten your day?"

After that, the conversation moved to lighter topics, and the tension dissipated. Seth relaxed and stretched his arm across the back of the booth, enjoying how Aiden's body subtly leaned into his side. Tessa had only been joking, but it seemed like a date to him—what he remembered of them, anyway. Slowly, Aiden was reminding him what simple fun felt like.

"So, what's on the agenda after this?" Tessa asked, reaching for an onion ring from Aiden's plate.

Aiden swatted her hand away with a mock scowl. "Get your own, squirt."

Tessa ignored him and popped the ring in her mouth, chewing loudly and obnoxiously. "I mean, are you coming up to the Double Jay tonight? I need to know how many mouths I'm feeding. You eat like a freaking horse."

Aiden sighed and leaned back, rubbing his eyes. "I wish I could, but I picked up some extra hours running the backhoe at the Triple M. We've got to dig out some busted irrigation pipes before the ground freezes again."

Seth frowned at the strain in Aiden’s face. He recognized the look of a man running on fumes. It was the same expression he'd seen reflected in the mirror for years. Aiden's extra pair of hands to help with his backlog of chores had felt like a vacation, but the toll it was taking on Aiden was impossible to ignore.

"You look beat," Seth said, rubbing a knot from Aiden's neck with his thumb. "Why don't you let me handle it?"

"Naw, it's my job," Aiden said, but he offered Seth a slow, grateful smile that made his heart clench.

"Any fool can run a backhoe," Seth said, eyes narrowing. "Whittaker's got no beef with me, and it's not like he'd be letting me close to his animals."

"That's got nothing to do with it," Aiden protested furiously. His spine stiffened, and he turned in the booth to face Seth head-on, jabbing a finger into his chest to make a point. "You can out-cowboy anybody I know, including Whit, but that's not the point. You've got enough on your plate. I took the job, so it's my responsibility."

"I'm used to a crazy workload," Seth pointed out. "A few hours on my butt running some controls is practically a vacation, and you need the breather. Stop by your mom's place and visit Bandit. It'll do you good."

Aiden hesitated, looking tempted. Seth could see the intense longing in his expression, so he took a different tact. He leaned in close and set his mouth against the shell of Aiden's ear, speaking in a voice too low for Tessa and Riley to overhear. "You can wait for me at your trailer when you're done. Naked, prepped, and ass-up in your bed. That's always been a fantasy of mine. Do it for me."

Aiden's breath caught, and Seth felt a deep, visceral sense of satisfaction. There had always been two secrets to getting Aiden to cooperate: trick him into thinking he was helping someone else and make it fun. His good, simple heart was easy to predict, and as Seth watched him think it over, he felt a swell of pride and affection.

"Okay," Aiden acquiesced, licking his lips in anticipation. "I'll call Whit and tell him the change of plans."

"Just make sure you're waiting for me," Seth reminded him.

The happiness in Aiden's laughter warmed his chest. "I've been wondering what the hell you see in me," he joked, eyes sparkling, "but now I know you just want me for my body."

Seth couldn't resist dropping a quick kiss on his grinning mouth. "Damn right," he said fiercely.