13. Rowdy

13

ROWDY

Sky and I walked back to the cabin in silence. As we hit the front porch, he turned to me.

“Look, I know you’re mad at me for letting the cat out of the bag, but you were in over your head.”

“I’m not in over my head,” I groused.

“Really?” Skylar put his hands on his hips. “Based on Kess’s reaction, you were considering a nuclear option without realizing it was a nuclear option.”

I ran my hand through my hair. “You’re...not wrong. But you didn’t need to tell him about the volunteer work.”

“Why wouldn’t you want him to know that you help people?” Sky asked as Kit’s truck made it up the drive.

I slipped a rubber band from my pocket and tied my hair back. “It kinda blows my cover.”

“Oh, the one where you try to act like a shameless ho?”

“Could you just...not?” I snipped as Kit make a wide turn into the circular drive and pulled to a stop in front of us.

Sky went quiet and when I searched his face, he seemed taken aback.

“I’m sorry, Rowd. I—I’ll stop.”

“Thank you,” I said, waving to Kit as he gingerly exited the truck, then began hobbling his way over to us.

Kit was a quiet, rugged type of handsome, and I didn’t think I’d ever seen him not wearing his old cowboy hat. He was stern and stubborn and secretly kind all in one go, and I was half convinced that if you looked up the word manly in the dictionary, you’d see his picture.

You’d be forgiven for thinking he wasn’t down with the queer, especially after his wife Cynthia realized she was a lesbian and divorced him. But that wasn’t how Kit’s operating system functioned. He was supportive of her new relationship, and they co-parented better than any divorced couple I’d ever seen.

Still, after everything shook out, there was a permanent sadness that settled in around his eyes. He was like one of those animals who mated for life, destined to be single since his swan flew away.

Before I could nag him about not getting his knee looked at, Sky stepped forward.

“Hey, I’m Skylar. I’m an orthopedic nurse practitioner, and that limp looks awfully painful. Would you mind if I took a look?”

Kit removed his hat—by the crown, because he was nothing if not traditional—but his face retained its stoic expression. “That’s kind of you, but I don’t need no help, and if’n I did, I don’t got no time for it. Got a schedule to keep,” he said, pointing to the horse trailer.

He put his hat back on, then winced and was forced to grab the handrail by my steps, looking like he was about to hurl into my bushes. Sky dramatically—as only Sky could—crossed his arms over his chest.

“What?” Kit spat out.

“All you are is leather and wire, cowboy. And you still can’t bear your own weight.”

Kit swayed, gripping the banister until his cracked knuckles went white. “It looks worse than it is. I torqued it a few weeks ago and then pissed it off again this morning. I’ll ice it when I get home. It’s fine.”

“Shut up and sit down,” he said, flicking his long, hot pink manicure toward the steps.

My eyes widened. Not only had I never heard Skylar talk like that to anyone, I’d never heard anyone dare talk like that to Kit .

Kit thinned his lips, and I braced for a fight. But...huh. Cursing up a blue streak, he limped over and sat down on a step.

“Rowd, be a doll. Go grab me some Vicks and an Ace bandage.”

I slipped by them and opened the door to the cabin; afraid any delay would set Kit off all over again.

“Plus two Advil with two Tylenol, if you have them.”

“You got it, boss.”

I quickly gathered the supplies and filled a glass of water. By the time I made it outside, Sky had Kit’s jeans rolled up to past his knee and was examining it while Kit sat there, trying very hard to look like he was not at all in excruciating pain.

“Okay, I’m just gonna palpate the tendons and bones,” Skylar said, uncharacteristically gentle.

Kit lifted his chin, and Skylar continued his examination. Kit’s jaw tensed even under the lightest pressure, and his breathing went shallow. After a few moments of that, Skylar pulled his hands away, concern in his eyes.

“What’s the verdict?” Kit asked, his voice gravelly from lack of use.

“Look, it’s not terrible,” Sky said softly. “I do wish your knee were more stable, but the bandage will help with that. And I’d rather you go to the doctor and get some imaging done, but I’m not one for tilting at windmills.” Sky raised his brow, and Kit had the good sense to seem embarrassed.

“Well, look at that. You’re smarter than you appear,” Kit joked, his chest hitching through the pain.

“Got ourselves a cowboy comedian,” Skylar threw back as he knuckled out a dollop of Vicks, then warmed it between his palms.

Kit almost smiled, something I hadn’t seen him do in a long, long time. He gestured at Sky’s hands. “Say, why’re you using Vicks on me?”

Skylar didn’t answer him immediately and instead focused on rubbing the area around the swollen knee. Despite Sky’s claws, Kit seemed to appreciate the attention.

Finally, Sky answered. “Because you’re the kind of stubborn cuss who’d say that the more advanced options weren’t any better, which means you probably have a big, fat tub of this at home, along with massive jars of Wal-Mart brand ibuprofen and acetaminophen.” He took the Ace bandage and began crisscrossing it over the joint. “Just a guess.”

I turned my face and put my hand over my mouth. Sky had—with one hundred percent accuracy—just read Kit for filth.

Kit huffed out a laugh, then relaxed as he straightened and bent his leg. “H-E-B brand, actually. And I got a whole jar of Tiger Balm at home, thankyouverymuch.”

“Well, ain’t that something.” Sky stood and reached over, sliding a hank of hair off Kit’s forehead with a bejeweled nail. “You’ll notice I didn’t go after your knee directly because it’s too painful.”

Kit dipped his chin. “I do appreciate that.”

Was that a blush?

“I went after the big muscles upstream and downstream because they were so tight, they were pulling on the already inflamed joint. If you can release the muscles between baling hay and your next rodeo event, that’ll alleviate some of the pain, and the meds will help with the rest.”

“Ain’t ridden a bull in twenty years, pretty man, and I pay people to bale my hay.”

“Fancy,” Skylar said, looking at his palms. Kit reached for his back pocket and pulled out a bandana, then handed it to Sky.

Sky winked at him and wiped off the ointment. “I’m gonna give Rowdy a list of exercises to text over to you. I doubt you’ll do them, just like I’m not even gonna bother telling you to stay off that knee, but I’ve gotta do my due diligence.”

Sky returned the bandana to Kit, who stuffed it in his back pocket. “I’ll...I’ll give it a look.”

“Good. And, if I can convince you to get one of those hinged knee braces—just get whatever’s on sale on Amazon—then that’ll support you while you continue to batter your poor body.”

I laughed out loud this time. “God, Sky—you sounded just like Cynthia then.”

As soon as the words left my mouth, I smacked my forehead and sent Kit an apologetic look. “Sorry, man. I didn’t mean any?—”

He held up his hand, and his pained smile seemed genuine. “Cynthia is still a very good friend of mine, and I don’t mind bringing her up.” He rubbed his chest. “And you’re not wrong. This one sounded just like ’er for a second.”

“Is this Cynthia person cute, smart, and mouthy like me?” Skylar said, hand on his hip.

“My ex-wife is all of those things and more.” Kit put on his cowboy hat and ignored Sky’s outstretched hand as he stood up. “You’ve got her beat with that manicure, though.”

Shaking his head—likely at Kit’s stubbornness, which was evergreen—Sky smiled and said, “Then, if nothing else, know that you have good taste.”

“Well, that’s one thing goin’ for me,” he retorted with a tight smile. “And I just hired myself a new land manager, so I should be able to take it a little easier than I have been.”

Damn. I’d really hoped he’d have something for Sadie and Jax. But good on him for finally hiring out that position.

Before things got too awkward between him and Sky, I whistled for Bandit. Besides being our shared pet, Bandit was also the preserve’s official round-up dog. He came racing up the hill seconds later, doing figure-eights between my legs three times before sitting and waiting for his command.

“ Axis ,” I ordered, and he took off like a shot.

We watched through the trees as he found the two Axis deer and got them moving in our direction. I got out the deer treats and clicked my tongue, bringing them in the rest of the way. Kit tried to help me lead them into the trailer, and Sky glared at him until he stepped back. I couldn’t tell what impressed me more—the fact that Sky got Kit to back down, or that he opened the back of the horse trailer without chipping a single nail.

“ Sika number two .”

Bandit took off again, and minutes later he came running up alongside the Sika, who was a bit more stubborn about getting into the trailer. Bandit, however, was on top of it, barking and gently nipping at its heels until it escaped into the safety of the trailer.

“That’s a neat trick,” Kit said, scratching his chin. “Think your cousin might be willing to train another dog?”

“To help you out? Yeah, I think he would.”

“I don’t need no help.”

“Clearly,” Sky snarked, gesturing at his bent form. “You’re the picture of self-sufficiency.”

Kit grinned—actually grinned—as he shook his head. “I swear, I don’t let no one talk to me like that, but my knee feels so much better, I hafta allow it.”

“Damn skippy.” Sky fluffed his sculptured quiff. “And if I hear you’re not taking care of that knee, I’m not above showing up at this dude ranch of yours and bullying you into a brace.”

Kit narrowed his eyes at me. “Don’t know anyone who’d rat me out.”

I held up my hands, and we all laughed. I swear, it was magical.

Kit walked a little straighter, quickly reaching his truck. “These animals look fantastic, Rowdy. Let me know what y’all’re feedin’ ’em.”

“Will do, Kit,” I promised. “I’ll send that over with Sky’s instructions.”

He chuckled and heaved himself into the driver’s side. “You do that. I don’t want that pretty man with the glitter makeup comin’ after me.”

Skylar flexed his expensively trained arms. “Don’t mess with ortho, or we will fuck your shit up.”

Laughing, I shut the driver-side door and knocked on the side panel. “You’re good to go, my friend.”

Kit tipped his hat at us and took off, bumping down the road.

After he was gone from view, I fell against Sky, giggling.

“Dude, I hadn’t seen him smile since Cynthia left. That was fucking brilliant.”

Sky’s expression fell a little. “I feel so bad for him. He obviously loved her a whole lot.”

I nodded. “He did. Does. And I’ve gotta imagine there’s some gal who will convince him that there’s more than one person out there for him.”

“I hope so.”

We went back inside and resumed our update of the interior. Sky said he had something going for my headboard, so we cleaned, rearranged, and refreshed everything else. By the end, the walls were painted a pretty, deep-but-not-too-deep blue set off with white bedding, white cabinets, and white furniture. Sky found a wall-mounted guitar holder that made my baby look like a work of art. The flat-screen TV looked sharp, and bright rugs lit up the dull wood floors.

As we were tidying up, the sound of horse hooves alerted us to the arrival of my cousin. I opened the door and let Woody in to see all the changes.

“Jesus, Rowd,” he said, patting my back. “Look at what you’ve done with the place. I hardly recognize it.”

“This was all Sky’s doing,” I said, grinning at my friend.

“So,” Woody said, looking Sky up and down. “Who’re you?”

Sky snorted at Woody’s sharp tone. “I’m Rowdy’s very best friend in the entire world.”

We hadn’t ever really said that to each other before today, but it was true. Sky was my very best friend too.

Woody didn’t look convinced, but that didn’t stop him from opening his trap. “Well, at least Rowdy won’t have to go into town to get laid anymore. This here is a bona fide sex den.”

Sky gave me a look, but I simply nodded along. I didn’t need yet another person on this compound to know what I did—or didn’t do—with my time. Woody couldn’t stay long since they had to get up early in the morning to take Stevie to a barrel racing competition, so we hugged and I wished them luck.

As soon as he’d ridden off on Shadow, Sky turned to me. “So...he really has no idea.”

“Nope.”

He looked around, pride tipping up his lips. “But maybe you’ll at least feel more comfortable exploring your sexuality here, you think?”

I shrugged, not wanting to think about it.

Sky sighed, though I doubted he was really disappointed. “Too bad. This is the perfect little country sugar baby setup—you could easily find a man out here, and he can come and go as he pleases.”

“Yeah...no,” I said, suddenly green around the gills.

Sky chuckled. “What I love about us is that neither of us really understands how the other operates. Like, I think you just need to find the right spark with one man, and I don’t think that you judge me for?—”

“I don’t,” I was quick to say. “If I shudder, it’s because I’m trying to put myself in your place. I can’t say what’s good or bad for you, but that setup would be awful for me.”

Sky shrugged. “I’ve been lucky, I think. The sugar baby life has been a pretty sweet deal for me. It’s just the endings that suck.”

“Because you fall in love with them?” I asked, knowing the answer.

“A hazard of the job,” he confirmed, his eyes a little sad.

“But that’s why you still keep hours at that orthopedist’s office, right? So you can leave when you need to?”

“Sorta.” He held out his hand, tipping it from side to side. “I actually love the work I do. I tend to see people right at the beginning, when they’ve just suffered a bad accident or finally can no longer ignore the pain, like your buddy Kit. I get to be the person who shows them that there is a way to get better, even if it means accepting a new normal.”

“I can tell you’re good at it,” I said sincerely.

“Thanks, bestie.” He grinned, then took in a breath. “We should keep the windows open for a bit longer and let the paint fumes air out.”

“Agreed. Mind eating dinner on the front porch? I can heat up the brisket from lunch.”

As we made our way to the small table in the front, Skylar pointed at my guitar.

“Can you play something for us after we eat?”

I nodded. After polishing off the delicious leftovers, I took the guitar and started playing the familiar tune I’d been picking out over the weeks. If it made me think of Kess, then no one needed to know that but me.

“You’re a great guitar player, Rowd,” Sky said, looking up at the stars.

“Thanks, Sky.”