Chapter 20

Chapter Twenty

The next time they met was Monday, on something Nate called "the horse run."

Nate had explained to Jay that the horses he'd had been introduced to so far were only a small part of the total herd at Crooked Tree.

"But you have a lot of horses," Jay had said worriedly. Was Crooked Tree paying him to do their marketing only to blow money they didn't have on horses they didn't need? Was Nate just too soft and hadn't wanted to get rid of any horses when the ranch hit bad times?

Nate laughed that soft, low, sexy growl of a laugh that had excitement curling in Jay's belly. "We have six families booked in. On average mom, dad, and two kids, a minimum of twenty-four horses for them plus pack beasts to carry clothes, equipment, bags, and additional mounts for the inevitable strains and lameness."

"The riders hurt the horses?" Jay hated that thought.

"They don't mean to, but inexperienced riders are more likely to put horses off-balance. Add in that if you're successful with what you're doing for us and things go according to what we're planning we'll have all the cabins full, then we need to be able to cover the horses required. We schedule and plan as much as we can, but at the end of the day, along with the fishing and hiking, we have the horses as our selling point. So we have a big remuda tucked away up near the canyon where the cattle are kept, and it's shared with a couple other places."

Jay wasn't sure what he thought about that. Everyone rode the horses stabled there? "So who else rides the ones in the stables, like Diablo and Juno? Do the guests?"

"No one, 'cept the family and now you."

"So, when do you bring the horses here?"

And that question was what had led to today. The annual "bring the horses back to Crooked Tree ride," as Jay called it. Jay was on Diablo, utterly sure that this would be the end of his ass. He was already tender from the night before last and faced an hour in the saddle there and another hour back.

"You going to be okay?" Nate asked him seriously.

Jay raised a single eyebrow to indicate he was perfectly fine and that Nate should not draw attention to what they had done. Although the fact he and Nate were lovers wasn't a secret. He'd told Kirsten, and though Gabe had been more than aware, Nate had apparently talked at length about it to his brother on their way to Helena to sign contracts for the coming year.

Part of Jay wished that he and Nate had woken in each other's arms and somehow spent yesterday together. They couldn't, and Jay immediately assumed everything would be awkward.

It wasn't.

They met for dinner at nine, Nate exhausted from driving the two-hundred-mile round trip on just a few hours' sleep, and Jay equally tired from all his worrying about what things would be like. They fell into bed in each other's arms as soon as their heads hit the pillow.

Then it was morning and this ride was happening and Jay was abruptly thrust into the whole horses and roundup issue. Ashley was meeting them with the kids at the remuda, which could be reached by Jeep, but Jay was way too proud to join them that way. I will do this.

The roundup was a sight to behold. Most of the mounts were happy to see them. The wrangler up there, a man who must be close to retirement, named Duncan, helped them to cut out the Crooked Tree horses to take them back down. The action, the lassoing, and the general cowboy goings-on were more than Jay could take on many occasions. What with the ache in his ass and an erection that refused to die, he wondered if his zipper would hold.

Ashley arrived with the kids, and Gabe lifted Josh up to sit in front of him on Lightning. Josh didn't hesitate, but Jay waited for Ashley to freak out. She didn't. She stared at Gabe with a look of naked longing written in her expression.

Is that how I look at Nate?

She clearly trusted Gabe with her youngest child. Even Kirsten was up on a horse.

Luke had been giving Kirsten pointers, and the two youngsters were practicing figure eights by the corral. Luke would stop every so often and take photos of the horses, of his brothers, of Jay, the kids, and a lot of Kirsten. Not for the first time did Jay consider what Luke saw in his lens when he looked at Kirsten, Was it an attraction? Friendship? Fascination? As for Kirsten, she often looked at Luke with hero worship.

"Look, Uncle Jay, I'm a real cowboy!" Josh called out.

Jay looked over and smiled at Josh, who was gripping hard to the reins and helping Gabe guide Lightning in his work.

They made it back to Crooked Tree as dusk began to darken the sky. Josh had insisted on riding the whole way back with Gabe, and he spent the whole time chatting about what he would need to do to become a full-time cowboy. Jay shook his head as he thought about what Josh's dad would say to that idea. Lewis was all about his boy being a tough lawyer like he said he was himself. Not that Lewis was a lawyer, given he'd been disbarred after doing jail time for a felony.

There was no way Josh was ending up anything like his father. Not if it was the last thing Jay did in this life.

Jay dismounted, and everyone encouraged the returning horses into the large corral that spread out behind Branches and up to the Todd house.

"You know, we should have a viewing area cut into the corral for casual visitors."

"That would cost money," Marcus said immediately. He'd been pretty quiet since they came back from the roundup. He hadn't gone with them, and he wore a permanent expression of worry.

"Not much," Jay insisted. "We'd cut away some of the existing fences, make a path from Branches, and build some kind of area where people from the restaurant could pat the horses."

"Pat the horses," Marcus spluttered. "They're not dogs."

"Not sure how that would work," Gabe added his dissent, although it was quieter and more reasoned. "We wouldn't want strangers here for the day feeding the horses from their plates."

Jay frowned. Gabe had a point—a valid point—but Marcus jumped on it with enough venom for Jay to turn scarlet in embarrassment.

"Jesus, kid," Marcus snapped. "You don't know nothing about horses! Look at you, all twisted and sore from two hours' riding, and you want strangers mauling the stock?"

"No, I?—"

"It won't work. Just stick to computerin'."

Nate chose that moment to walk around from where he'd been tending to the horses. He stopped as he realized he'd evidently ended up in the middle of some kind of Marcus meltdown. "What?" he asked, looking first at Gabe, then Jay, then pointedly at Marcus.

"Me 'n' Gabe think City here should stick to his computerin'."

"I never said that," Gabe defended.

"What's wrong, Marcus?" Nate looked directly at Marcus and was using that placating, I-understand-everything tone.

Marcus huffed and turned his back. "Knows nothing about people or horses," he muttered.

"Jay?" Nate asked.

Jay was still open-mouthed in shock at the vitriolic attack and realized he wasn't talking, thankful when Gabe did it for him.

"Jay came up with the neat idea of building a viewing platform so casual visitors could see the horses. Go on, Jay."

Nate turned to Jay and waited.

"Well, we could make a path, cut away some of the fences, build a small platform, and close off the fence again."

Silence. Everyone stared at Nate and waited. Marcus had turned back with a confident smile on his face.

"That's a really good idea," Nate said finally. "Long as we put signs up warning not to feed them, or maybe offer feed specifically to give to the horses. We could check the insurance, and think about whether the horses could end up nippy and pushy."

"City'll—"

Nate interrupted Marcus. "I think City has a point. I'll cost it up and see if I can get a volunteer or two to help."

"Me," Gabe offered.

"And me," Luke said.

"I'll paint," Josh said.

"I'll make the signs," Ashley added.

Marcus looked from Nate to Jay and back again, shrugged. "I was just worried about the horses," he said to Jay and held out his hand in apology.

Jay shook it. "The horses are our priority."

After a while, everyone cleared out until it was Nate and Jay left in the horse barn, leaning with their boots on the first rung of Diablo's stall.

"Thanks," Jay murmured.

"It's a good idea. I have been listening to you, y'know."

"I don't want you agreeing to something if it's only because we… y'know."

"Slept in the same bed? Made love?" Nate offered in a matter-of-fact fashion.

Jay loved that his cowboy was so direct. Still, it didn't stop his blushing. "Yeah."

"As I told you, it's a good idea and a way to bring in some more business. You could maybe build up some words on the website about Branches, offer coffee and things like that, alongside the idea of seeing the horses in action."

"Changing the subject, you think Marcus is okay? He seemed off today."

Nate shrugged. "We're not long for Justin's birthday, or what would have been, or what is. I don't know how to explain that. He's on edge, is all."

"Losing a son must be awful." Jay didn't have the words to explain how he felt.

"Yes, it was, and it is. He's not a healthy man either. Said there's something wrong with his blood, I don't know what that means, but some days he looks pale."

"You should maybe ask him if he's okay?"

Nate nodded. "I know. I think maybe I'm scared to know there's anything wrong. What if he dies? What if… I'm left here?"

"I'm sorry, Nate."

"It is what it is." Nate straightened his shoulders. "I'll talk to Marcus or Sophie, get a real feel for what is happening to Marcus."

They stood in silence for a while, and then Jay wanted to talk about the other part of today: the horses.

Jay turned to face Nate and winced as he did so. "That was fun today."

Nate leaned in and whispered, "Doesn't look like it was fun for your ass."

Jay pressed a quick kiss to Nate's nose. "Maybe it needs a kiss to make it better," he deadpanned.

Nate drew him up for a heated kiss, grabbing handfuls of ass and jeans. "I can do that," he promised with heat. "Let's start now."