Naming the Cowboy Page 2

  Jake stared at him for a long moment before he said, “Okay…” He looked away from Stu’s expectant gaze and Stu knew exactly what was coming. “There is a guy, but that doesn’t mean I don’t want to keep on seeing you. You’re hot, Stu, you know that. I love your body, so hard and tight and―”

  “Get to the ’but’, Jake,” Stu snapped.

  “Your butt is great too, exceptional, I’d―”

  Stu didn’t know whether to laugh at Jake’s stupid remark or just walk away. He chose the latter, wrenching his arm free when Jake grabbed it to try to stop him from leaving. At the exit, he turned to look back in time to see Jake talking with some skinny, dark-haired guy who was all up in Jake’s personal space, and from the expression on Jake’s face, he was loving it.

  So that’s the ‘other guy’? Did Jake plan on introducing us to each other? Planning a three-way maybe? Shaking his head, Stu hit the door and walked out into the cool evening air, taking deep breaths as he strolled across the parking lot toward his Chevy truck. It was a beautiful night and for a moment he stopped to admire the star-studded sky, craning his neck for a glimpse of Orion. His first foster father―the only one who had treated Stu like a real son―had been keen on studying the stars and had taken a very young Stu out into the countryside away from the city lights for some serious star-gazing. A melancholy fell over him as he remembered Dan and Amy Forbes. They’d looked after him so well, then they’d died and he’d been sent to another home, which had been a traumatic shock he’d taken a long time to recover from.

  Once inside the cab, he sat there for a while, thinking about the direction his life had taken recently and just where in hell he thought it was going. The last three years had been the best. Living and working at the Seven Plus Ranch had been a boon. He loved working there, loved the guys he worked with, loved his bosses, Royce and Parker. A man couldn’t ask for a better environment to help him get over the shit his life had been prior to Parker hiring him. Now he had good friends—Seth, Tim, Ryan, Clint, Jordan…all supportive of one another at work, keeping the ranch running smoothly… The sudden rapping on the truck’s window he was half-way resting his head on startled him.

  A smiling face gazed back at him when he turned fast to see who the hell it was. Oh, the blond who bought me a beer…what was his name? Brody…Barry…no, Bailey, that was it. He lowered the window. “Hi, what’re you up to?”

  Bailey grinned. “I saw you leave in a hurry, so I thought maybe you and I could go for a drink someplace else. I didn’t tell you, but I’m a sucker for guys with green eyes and full lips, and you fit the bill to a tee. So whatdya say to a drink some other place? I’m buying.”

  Not a bad idea. Get me outta this funk I’ve put myself in… “Okay, hop in, or d’you want to follow me in your car?”

  Bailey’s answer was to run around the front of Stu’s truck and jump in alongside him. All smiles, he said, “I’m at your mercy, cowboy.”

  Stu groaned mentally, but put the truck in gear and drove out of the parking lot. “There’s a place I like farther into town. Mostly leather guys, but they’re cool if you’re in civvies, like we are.”

  “Anywhere is fine with me,” Bailey said, stroking Stu’s thigh.

  Uh, oh… Bailey thinks it’s gonna be more than just a drink together. Well, not tonight, pal. One drink is all it’s gonna be. Damn. I should’ve insisted he take his own car. Now I’m gonna have to drive him back to the Spurs and Chaps.

  The Harness, the leather bar, was also packed, but with a whole different type of clientele from Spurs and Chaps. Beside him, Bailey gasped at the sight of so many men in various stages of leather garb—some in pants, jackets and caps showing next to no skin. Others in leather jockstraps or backless chaps, their asses out there for everyone to see and admire…or not, as the case might be.

  “Holy mother,” Bailey muttered. “Eye candy for days.”

  “Yeah, it rocks most nights. C’mon, I’ll buy you a drink.”

  Stu recognized the bartender on duty, Chaz, who gave him a big smile when he and Bailey succeeded in making their way through the press of bodies at the bar. “Hey, Stu, long time no see. You been avoiding me?”

  “Not a chance. Just busy, y’know.” He glanced at Bailey, whose gaze was fixed on Chaz’s naked, hairy chest, which was covered in a fine sheen of sweat and myriad tattoos. “What’ll it be, Bailey?”

  Bailey managed to tear his eyes away from the hot bartender long enough to say, “Uh, a really cold Stella on tap, thanks.”

  Stu chuckled. “Chaz, this is Bailey from Los Angeles.”

  “Please to meetcha.” Chaz turned his smile on Bailey and held out his hand. Bailey grabbed it as if it was a lifeline and Chaz laughed as he tried to free his hand from Bailey’s. “Hold on there, guy. I need the hand for pullin’ pints.”

  “Oh, yeah, sorry…” Bailey gripped Stu’s shoulder. “Let me get the drinks. I want to tip him real good.”

  “He’ll appreciate that,” Stu said.

  “You think he’d go out with me?”

  “No harm in askin’.” Well, looks like Bailey’s a sucker for guys with tats. He sure switches affections real fast. Just as well, he wasn’t gonna get any from me anyway. When Chaz delivered the drinks, Stu said, “I’ll leave you two to get acquainted. I won’t go far, Bailey. Let me know when you’re ready to leave.”

  “Okay,” Bailey replied, barely glancing at Stu.

  He walked away, chuckling to himself. Tossed aside like an old shoe. And I only knew him for an hour or so.

  “Hey, Stu!” He turned to see who was yelling at him. Two young guys in leather chaps and little else wrapped him up in hugs. Rory and Jax. He’d dated both of them a couple of years ago, and had introduced them to each other when the dating game was through. They’d connected real fast and were still together by the looks of things. They enjoyed an open relationship and Stu had joined them for some fun on a couple of occasions.

  “Good to see you, guys,” he said, breathing in the scents of leather and the boys’ clean sweat. “Lookin’ good, the pair of you.”

  “You too,” Jax exclaimed, kissing Stu’s cheek. “You always look so damned fine.” He squeezed Stu’s trim waist. “Not an ounce of fat on that body of yours.”

  “Must be all that steer rasslin,” Rory said, stroking Stu’s chest and abs.

  Stu chuckled. “Don’t do so much of that these days, but workin’ the ranch keeps me busy.” He stopped Rory’s hand from inching any lower. “You guys’re still horny as hell, I see.”

  “Thought you might want to play,” Jax said, pouting sexily.

  “Not tonight, but I’ll take a raincheck.” He nodded over to where Bailey was still yacking up a storm with Chaz. “I might have to see him home safe and sound.”

  “Oh, okay, but don’t forget all about us,” Rory told him. They left after giving him some more kisses on his cheeks and lips. He watched them go, a wry smile lifting the corner of his mouth. There had been a time when he would have jumped at the chance of a three-way with the cute twosome…but lately he’d found that he wanted more from life than just the one-night stands he’d indulged in over the years. His friend Tim, back at the ranch, called him ‘a serial dater’.

  Guilty as charged. Time for a change…

  Chapter Two

  “Have fun last night, Stu?” Seth Archer asked while they were brushing down Misty and Bonney, two of the horses that were to be ridden by a couple of new guests that day.

  “I guess,” Stu replied.

  “You guess? What does that mean? You have a good time or not?”

  Stu sighed. He knew where this was leading. Seth had married Mike Henry, their veterinarian, a year ago, and ever since then it had been like he was on a mission to see all his friends at the Seven Plus hitched in one way or another. He’d worked on Tim, acting like he was the owner of a gay eHarmony, nagging Tim about not having a boyfriend, not going out to meet guys until Tim was close to slugging him just to shut him up.

  The best thing that happened was when Parker had hired Ryan Horton. He and Tim had seemed to hit it off right away without any help or interference from Seth. Now that they were a happy couple, Seth would be turning his sights on Stu, and he could’ve bitten his tongue with his less-than-stellar reply to Seth’s query about last night in Sacramento.

  “Uh, I had a good enough time, it’s just that…” He trailed off, not knowing if he should tell Seth of his misgivings about the way his life was going. Seth was a good friend, but he was a bit of a busybody and he just might make it his mission in life to ensure Stu’s future included meeting ‘the right man’.

  “Thought you were meeting Jake. Was he a no-show?”

  “Oh, he showed all right. Full of hot air as usual, then he said he’d met a guy, but he still wanted to see me, so I left. This guy I’d been talkin’ to chased me out to my truck, wanted to go have a drink someplace else. I took him to The Harness and he fell in love with Chaz, so I left again. End of story.”

  “Man…” Seth grimaced. “It was so not your night.”

  “Tell me.” Stu stroked Misty’s muzzle gently. “I did get an offer to join Jax and Rory for some fun, but you know what? I’ve been thinking a lot about stuff recently…where I’m goin’ in life, what I’ve been doing up to this point, and apart from workin’ here at the Seven Plus, I don’t have a whole lotta shit goin’ for me.”

  “You have a job and friends, Stu. That’s more than some folks have.”

  “I know, and I appreciate everyone…you and all the guys here. It’s like having a family, really.” He grinned. “I don’t know if Parker and Royce would like hearin’ me say this, but they’re more like parents than bosses. Maybe big brothers. They’re not old enough to be my dads, but sometimes when I’m
talkin’ to them, they just seem so much more mature. I feel like I can tell or ask them anything and I won’t get some clichéd response, you know?”

  Seth nodded. “They’re the best bosses I ever had, that’s for sure.”

  “Anyway, what I was sayin’ is I have to make some changes, Seth. I’m tired of playin’ around, dating a hundred guys a year.”

  Seth choked. “There’s that many? Shit, I know Tim calls you a serial dater, but I didn’t think it was in the hundreds.”

  Stu ducked his head. “Well, maybe not that many, but it’s a lot…too many, really, and I’ve gotta slow down, find somethin’ else to do with my nights. Go to school, maybe. Be a lawyer like Royce or a teacher like Blake, Jordan’s husband.”

  “That’s mighty ambitious, but it takes years to become a lawyer―and you’re already a damn fine teacher. I see you with the newbies. You’re the most patient of all of us…even Clint, who, when I first started here, I thought was practically the god of patience. But you’ve got even him beat.”

  Stu sighed. “Thanks. I love it here, you know that…it’s just that I feel somethin’s missing.”

  “A steady guy is what you need. Someone you can talk to…like Mike.”

  Stu chuckled. “You’re offerin’ me your husband?”

  “Hell no…someone like Mike. Dependable…and hot at the same time!”

  They were chuckling when Parker came into the stable accompanied by two guys. It was obvious from the way they were staring around them in apparent awe at the horses and the tack hanging on the stall walls that these were the new guests. One was a tall and lanky African American with a ready smile, while the other was shorter and muscled, his biceps straining the sleeves of his white T-shirt.

  “’Mornin’, men,” Parker said, smiling. “Meet Lane and Carson. You’ll be showin’ them the ropes this morning. Lane and Carson, this here’s Seth and Stu.” They all said hi and shook hands as Parker continued, “You’re in good hands with these two. They’ll start by showing you how to saddle up and then take you down to the corral for some ridin’ practice. Okay, I’m gonna leave you to it. I have a meeting with some construction guys in a couple of minutes. I’ll check in with you later, see how you’re doin’.”

  “So, Lane…” Stu drew him closer to Bonney. “You a first-timer, or have you ridden before?”

  Lane’s smile was wide and his white teeth were a beautiful contrast to his ebony skin. “No, never ridden before. This was all Carson’s idea, but I’m kinda looking forward to at least trying it.”

  “Well, Bonney’s real gentle,” Stu told him. “We’ll start out with the two of you gettin’ to know each other…”

  * * * *

  Parker greeted the two men waiting for him outside the ranch house. “Hey, Thomas, sorry to keep you waitin’. Had to get a couple of new guests settled.”

  “No problem, Parker. I know this place keeps you busy.” Thomas Masterson, owner of Masterson’s Construction, gestured to the tall young man at his side. “Like you to meet my new foreman, Cole Cassidy. He’ll be in charge of the new construction once you’ve approved the plans.”

  “Good to meet you,” Parker said, shaking the handsome blond man’s hand.

  “Likewise. Nice spread you have here.”

  “Thanks.” Parker opened the house door and waved the two men inside. “You ride, Cole?”

  “’Fraid not. But working on this ranch might give me the inspiration to try.”

  “You’re certainly welcome to take a few lessons from one of my trainers in your spare time.”

  Cole followed Parker into the living room then through to the office where Royce had left the plans spread out on his desk.

  “So we’re lookin’ at a couple of changes here.” Parker pointed to the area he and Royce had discussed the night before. “We need some more space between the new cabin and the existing ones…we’d like a bit more privacy for the guests if possible.”

  Cole stared at the penciled-in shape Royce had drawn. “Yeah, that’s possible all right. Face it more toward the corner of the pool rather than straight on, right?”

  “Right, that’s what Royce wants. Now, I need to ask. How soon can you start on the stable? Sooner the better, far as we’re concerned.”

  Cole looked at Thomas briefly—for guidance, Parker figured. “Well, we need to order the timber for the framing, but once we get that we can start straight away. Boss?”

  Thomas nodded. “We know you’re in a hurry, Parker, so we’ll give this project top priority. Let’s take a walk outside so Cole can see the site for the stable extension.”

  They left through the French doors and walked across the patio and out toward the stable. “We’ve only got enough space for a single row of stalls, but it can go the length of the original stable, so we’re thinking six stalls. That’ll give us accommodation for the two mares we have on order, a couple of stalls for employees’ horses and room if we decide to go forward with Royce’s plan for even more expanding.”

  “Easy to see why you named the place the Seven Plus,” Cole remarked. “You definitely had an eye on the future.”

  He produced a camera from his jacket pocket and started taking pictures of the existing stable and the vacant land next to it. “Can we go see the site for the new cabin after this?”

  “Sure thing.” Parker was aware of Cole hesitating at his side when Stu and Seth exited the stable leading Misty and Bonney, accompanied by the new guests.

  “What’re the chances?” Cole muttered under his breath.

  Parker glanced at him. “You okay?”

  “Oh, yeah. Just thought I recognized one of the guys there. Must be mistaken. Can we check out the cabin site now?”

  Parker nodded and set off around the other buildings to where the guest cabins were situated, Cole and Thomas at his heels.

  Cole couldn’t get over seeing Stuart Reynolds again after all these years. For a moment he’d thought he’d been mistaken. After all, it’d been close to ten years, but no, he was sure it was him—and damn, he looked good. He’d grown taller, and that once skinny frame was now lean, with whipcord muscles nicely displayed under the thin cotton of his T-shirt, along with one fine ass. Stuart had been a beacon of light in Cole’s dark and dismal world, until… He was glad Stuart hadn’t glanced his way. What could he have said to him after all these years…other than sorry? Luckily, Stuart had been concentrating on whatever the tall black guy at his side was saying to him.

  “So…” At the sound of Parker’s voice, Cole dragged his mind back to the business at hand. “See what I mean about the way the plan was drawn up? It’d put the cabin within about a foot away from this one on the end. Wouldn’t give whoever was in the two cabins much privacy…somethin’ Royce is adamant about. The guests’ comfort is paramount…his word, not mine.”

  Cole walked the distance from the existing cabin to where Royce had suggested the new one be built. “We’d have to take that tree out to give us enough perimeter around the cabin, but you could always plant another one over there.” He pointed to a spot near the boundary wall. “It’d give some shade on the side porch I see your other cabins have.”

  “That’s doable,” Parker said, rubbing his hand over his jaw. “Don’t think we had much love for that old tree anyway. Sheds its leaves like a son of a bitch.”

  Cole took some more photos, then they walked back toward the ranch house. He strained to see if he could catch another glimpse of Stuart. Yeah, there he is over in the corral. Even from here I can see that sweet ass of his. He lifted his camera and took another shot. If either Parker or Thomas asked, he’d just say he wanted a long view of the ranch. No one asked, and after a few more pleasantries and Thomas’ promise ‘to get right on the project’, they said goodbye to Parker then went over to their respective vehicles.

  Driving back to the construction office, Cole still found it hard to believe that he’d almost walked into Stuart Reynolds. He wondered what the man’s reaction would have been if he’d seen him. Their parting had been bad, but he could still see the hurt and apprehension on the boy’s face when Cole had told him that now he was eighteen, he was leaving the foster home and no one could stop him.