“Nah.” I gently sponged him off with the towel I’d stashed. “Got at least three episodes to catch up on and that pie you stole to eat. Reckon you’ll be here awhile.”

  “Good.” He stretched to give me a fast kiss on the cheek. Funny how I’d had my tongue near down his throat in the hottest fuck of my life, yet that sweet little kiss made me shudder, wobblier than an old fence post.

  Chapter Twenty

  Adler

  “You’re looking pretty comfortable up there.” Kat entered the arena as Pepperjack and I made our final loop around.

  “Thanks.” I grinned over at her. “And thanks for asking for my help exercising the horses. Best afternoon I’ve had all week.”

  Luckily, Kat had missed the part where Pepperjack had been none too pleased that I wasn’t Willow. Before Pepperjack, I’d exercised and groomed Magnolia, Adzuki, and Cinder, who was my more usual ride. It was December in Colorado, and the horses were as stir crazy as the humans in the lingering cold snap.

  “Well, with the girls gone, the horses are pining for them. Figured it would do them good to get some attention.” Kat smiled back. It was a bit of a weird week all around with Maverick and Hannah in Arizona for Faith’s graduation from a ninety-day treatment program. Colt and Willow were in Denver on a holiday gifts and wedding shopping trip and would then pick up the three others from the airport for a night in Denver before returning home.

  “Happy to do it.” I brought Pepperjack around and easily dismounted next to Kat. She was right in that I was way more comfortable now than two months ago, even with horses that weren’t on my usual rotation for stall mucking and grooming.

  “I’ll help you put away Pepperjack, so we can make it on time for supper.” Kat followed me to Pepperjack’s stall.

  “Thanks.” I grabbed the muck cart and rake while Kat took over unsaddling the horse. “It’s easy to lose track of time while riding.”

  “Don’t I know it.” Kat chuckled. She was a similar age to Maverick and Colt and had been a barrel racer at local rodeos growing up, much like Colt’s daughter Willow. Now, as stable manager, she was in charge of most of the quarter horse operation on the ranch, but when she smiled and flipped her long dark braid, I could see traces of the horse-mad teen she must have been. “How are you coping without Maverick?”

  “Fine. Lately, my work has been more with the other hands anyway.” I didn’t want people thinking I had special privileges as Maverick’s friend. “We’re waiting to start most of the dude ranch plans until after the wedding. And after Faith’s return. Having her back will be another adjustment.”

  “I’m sure. How’s she doing?” Kat asked as she brushed Pepperjack. “I sent a few cards to the address Maverick gave me. Hope the program went well for her.”

  “Me too.” Having been on my own sobriety journey, I had a great deal of empathy for Faith despite not knowing her very well. “I’ve reached out to share meeting schedules for when she’s back, but she hasn’t said much to me directly either. Maverick says she seems subdued but overall positive about the program.”

  “That’s good.” Kat nodded before checking the feed and water. “You planning anything to welcome her back, or do you think that might be too much?”

  “I don’t want to overwhelm Faith.” Parties might be my jam, but celebrating the completion of a court-ordered rehab was delicate business. “Maverick wanted to wait to decorate the Christmas tree with her back, so I’ve planned cookies and a hot chocolate buffet for this weekend, but no welcome home party or anything like that.”

  “Probably smart.” Kat moved so I could finish mucking, and we both exited the stall.

  “Oh, and there will be extra cookies and hot chocolate for the bunkhouse tree decorating too.”

  “We’re getting a tree?” Kat blinked as she stopped by her office. “That’s a first. Can’t believe Gray said yes to that.”

  “I might have skipped asking permission.” I adopted an airy tone and matching smile, but internally, I had no such confidence. Grayson might have softened a bit toward me in private since Thanksgiving, but he didn’t share my enthusiasm for the season.

  “Not surprised.” Kat picked her scarf and heavier coat off the desk chair, only to reveal a small stack of rainbow candy canes. “And what do we have here?” She gave a girlish laugh as she offered one to me. “My Secret Santa strikes again. I’ve got more Christmas candy than I know what to do with.”

  “Whose name did you draw?” I’d put names of those who wanted to participate in a paper bag and let folks draw rather than making a spreadsheet, so I didn’t know who all had each other. It was more fun that way.

  “Not telling, but I better crochet faster.” She waggled her eyebrows. I counted her obvious pleasure as another success for my Secret Santa project. “Month’s getting away from us all.”

  December was indeed moving along at a too-fast clip, the holiday and wedding both bearing down on us. However, at the bunkhouse, the more pressing concern was dinner and Grayson’s absence. Casey made the call to start without him, but I kept glancing at the side door.

  “Wow. This is amazing.” Kat dug into her bowl of chicken and dumplings. Even in my distraction, I had to nod because Casey was outdoing himself lately with tasty offerings.

  “Thank my Secret Santa.” Casey offered a shy grin. “A new cookbook appeared right before grocery day.”

  “That’s handy.” Chips kept his eyes squarely on his bowl, but I didn’t miss the sly smile tugging at the corners of his mouth.

  “There’s a nice-looking beefy queso recipe in the book too.” Casey’s good mood was infectious, and the whole table seemed lighter tonight, even friendlier than usual. “Thought that might be nice for when we decorate the tree.”

  “What tree?” Grayson appeared in the doorway, stamping off his boots.

  “You’re late. Grab a bowl.” Casey indicated the stack next to the pot of chicken and dumplings. “And the bunkhouse tree decorating thing. Maverick said he’s getting trees for the main house and bunkhouse. Adler’s making cookies. Thought you knew.”

  Grayson gave me an impossible-to-miss pointed look. “Must have forgot.”

  “What are we using for decorations for the tree anyway?” Reindeer asked as he helped himself to more food.

  “I nabbed some lights on sale, and we’re going old-fashioned with homemade decorations.” I carefully didn’t glance in Grayson’s direction as I gestured with my hands. “Casey’s doing some salt dough shapes, and we’ll have other craft options.”

  “Sounds like summer camp.” Motley pursed his lips. I didn’t need to look over at Grayson to know he was likely nodding. Let them scoff. My plan was a good one.

  “It’s good practice for when we have guests.” I kept my voice patient. “This is the sort of thing folks would love to be a part of.”

  “Chow’s decent, Casey.” Grayson’s tone said he was done talking about tree decorating. A prickle raced up my spine. I had a feeling I’d hear his real opinion later.

  “There’s fudge for dessert, thanks to Reindeer’s Secret Santa.” Casey pointed at a platter on the counter near the massive bunkhouse fridge.

  “It’s more than I can eat alone.” A pink flush spread across Reindeer’s cheeks.

  “You complaining?” Motley glared at him, and I had to suppress a laugh.

  “Nah.” Reindeer waved his fork. “Nice of Adler to set up the Secret Santa exchange. Kinda fun.”

  A murmur of agreement swept around the table, and I beamed.

  “See? The start of another new tradition.” Happiness bubbled in my chest, a feeling that lasted through cleanup. Grayson ducked out with the trash before I could ask if he needed help with the dogs tonight. Needing a quick excuse, I grabbed the bathroom trash and headed for the coat rack to grab my jacket.

  However, a black cowboy hat sat on my hook, blocking access to my coat.

  “What’s this?” I held up the hat, spinning it on my index finger. “Whose hat is on my hook?”

  “Not mine.” Reindeer strode over to peer at the hat. “Looks new.”

  “Got a name on the tag?” Motley asked in a bored tone. I flipped the hat over to see a little white tag inside the brim where a person might put a name and phone number if the hat were lost. My name was written in blocky letters.

  “It says my name.” I couldn’t keep the wonder out of my voice.

  “Seems like your Secret Santa got tired of your beanie collection.” Kat chuckled. “Not that there’s anything wrong with handknits.”

  “But I didn’t…” I trailed off because now would be the worst time to reveal that I hadn’t put my own name in the Secret Santa bag. Instead, I glanced around like my Secret Santa might be nearby. “Thanks.”

  I knew exactly who to really thank, though, but when I finally made it outside, Grayson was nowhere to be seen. My thank you might have to wait, but he wasn’t getting away with this sneaky gesture.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Grayson

  “How are the patients?” Adler strode into my trailer as if he lived here. Which he most assuredly did not, despite coming by more evenings than not since Thanksgiving. Tonight, he wore his new cowboy hat, which fit as perfectly as I’d expected. In fact, he hadn’t been without the darn thing since I’d snuck it onto his hook.

  The dogs were all over him before he could get his hat and coat off. So much for resting after their spaying earlier in the week.

  “Pretty much back to normal, exactly how Jude predicted.” Other than the neck cones to prevent them from messing with the stitches, they were as bouncy as ever. They danced around as Adler revealed a bag of treats from one coat pocket. I groaned. “See you brought them extra treats anyway.”

  “Dogs deserve get-well gifts too,” Adler said archly before setting his coat and hat on the loveseat, same as always. I both loved and hated our little routine.

  “Uh-huh.” I strode over to my dining table, pointing at a snow globe. “Don’t suppose you know anything about this. Appeared on my desk in the barn. Funny that.”

  Inside the snow globe was a scene with a cowboy by a campfire, horse at the ready, and a sign that read Happy Trails. Probably the only one Adler had been able to find with a horse. And I knew perfectly well it had been him. Anyone else would know I didn’t decorate for the holidays. Heck, I was barely tolerating the tree and decorations all over the bunkhouse this year.

  “Nope. No clue.” Adler shrugged, all fake innocence. “Maybe it’s the same Santa who left my hat.”

  “Maybe.” I picked up the globe. It had a nice weight to it. I moved it to the center of my coffee table. “Guess I’ll hang on to this. Pretty.”

  “Good.” Adler grinned.

  I wagged a finger at him. “You’re a terrible liar.”

  “I’ll have you know we played poker at the bunkhouse the other night, and I won a few hands.” He made fast work of checking the dogs’ food and water dishes.

  I let out a long groan at his confident tone.

  “You wouldn’t be the first green worker Motley spotted a few hands of cards only to wax later. Guard your cash.”

  “We were mainly playing for chores.” Adler didn’t sound the least bit concerned by my warning.

  “Huh.” I huffed as I stalked over to my chair. “That’s a new one.”

  “It was my idea.” With the dogs handled and happily munching on their new treat sticks, Adler followed me to my chair.

  “Of course it was.” Also, unsurprising was the way Adler pounced on me, landing in my lap. We were both fully clothed, but the memory of other sexier times in this chair hung over us. Wouldn’t take much to ramp me up, and I made a grumpy noise.

  “Saw Faith watching the girls ride today.” We needed a change in subject, and I grasped at the least sexy topic I could think of with my brain cells in short supply. “She looked…healthy.”

  “I think she is.” Adler scooted around, getting all comfortable. “She hasn’t talked much since her return, but she seems more centered.”

  “More centered than Maverick.” I whistled low. I considered Maverick something of a friend as well as my boss, and as both his employee and his friend, I was concerned about the way the wedding prep seemed to have him in a constant tizzy. “Lord. He’s not gonna make New Year’s Eve at this rate.”

  “Weddings tend to make everyone a little nuts.” Adler laughed lightly. “He’s not even the worst groomzilla I’ve seen.”

  “Reckon you saw plenty working at the hotel.” I could concede that maybe there was less cause for alarm than I thought, but I continued to frown. “Myself? I stay far away from most weddings. Suppose I can’t avoid this one though.”

  “Nope. They’d both notice if you skipped.” Adler twisted around to glare at me. “As would I.”

  “I’ll make an appearance,” I said mildly. “Might even iron a shirt.”

  “Gonna save me a dance?” His tone was flirty, not demanding, but I groaned nonetheless.

  “Adler…”

  Uncowed, he batted his eyes at me. “Ever since Thanksgiving, you haven’t been pushing me away as much.”

  “I should.” Notably, I didn’t shove him off my lap, and my tone was more resigned than mean. “Don’t go getting pie-in-the-sky dreams.”

  “I’m not.” Adler was lying. One hat and a whole lot of evenings spent pretending to watch the dogs and Jeopardy, and he was ready to forget all the reasons we couldn’t be public. “One dance. Most people won’t even notice.”

  “Most.” I snorted. “Trust me, not much else to talk about in the dead of winter around here. Folks will notice.”

  “Are you worried people might think you’re into guys?” Adler peered intently at me.

  “Not in the way you think.” I waved a hand. The remote lay on the table next to me, taunting me with an escape from this conversation. “Don’t want gossip. It’s not about my sexuality.”

  Adler cocked his head like he wasn’t so sure. “Am I really the first guy you’ve been into?”

  “First I’ve let under my skin,” I admitted. And it wasn’t like he didn’t know exactly what he did to me. “Not sure how you got to me, but you did, right from the start.”

  “Thank you, but that didn’t answer the question.” Adler straightened his spine, prim set to his jaw.

  I exhaled hard. I’d spent a fair bit of time since August thinking about this very question. My attraction to Adler had seemingly come out of left field, but I hadn’t been nearly as shocked as one might expect. Also, I wasn’t dumb enough to think Adler had a magic dick capable of turning straight guys. Likely, I’d always been some flavor of queer.

  “Suppose there may have been moments when I noticed someone’s scent or eyes or ass, but it wasn’t something I dwelled on.” I splayed a hand against his stomach, letting the warmth of his body seep into mine. “Wasn’t like I could act on it.”

  “Why not?” Adler’s tone was all reasonable.

  I quirked my mouth as I thought back on my younger years. “Not much place on the rodeo circuit for fooling around. Too close a circle for many secrets.”

  “But back on the ranch?” Adler pressed. “Maverick’s been out for years.”

  “And gone for most of those.” I made a frustrated noise, glancing longingly at the blank TV screen. “Told you. As foreman, I can’t be playin’ favorites.”

  “You haven’t always been foreman.”

  “True.” I kept my gaze on the TV, not his face. “After my mom left and that whole mess, it was just my dad and me and Ol’ Blue. I can’t say as we shared all our opinions. Guess wanting to keep the peace at home might have kept my eyes from wandering. Who knows?”

  “That’s sad.” Adler rubbed my shoulder like I’d confessed some sort of tragedy.

  “Wasn’t like I was pining.” I resisted the urge to flinch away from his kind touch. I neither deserved nor desired his sympathy. “If I had an itch, I went into Durango, found something easy for the night. Never really considered crossing the street, so to speak.” I forced a laugh, lightening my tone. “And there’s no point in ruminating on the past. Not like I’m about to go bar hopping. You’re the only guy I want at the moment.”

  “Good.” Adler gave a happy wriggle. “You’re the only guy I want as well. Is it so bad to want one dance together?”

  I’d walked right into that trap, and all I could do was sigh. “I can’t be what you need.”

  “You’re all I need right now,” Adler said brightly, but his guarded eyes gave him away. No matter what he said, he was no poker player. He liked me far too much. I was likely to break his heart. And mine too, much as I wanted to pretend it was made of stone. The kindest thing would be to push him off my lap, send him back to the bunkhouse, and end this nonsense. Not flip on the show, snuggle him more securely against me, and breathe deeply, memorizing his scent, but that was exactly what I ended up doing.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Adler

  “I can’t believe it’s Christmas Eve.” Faith pulled her wool coat closer around her narrow shoulders despite the heater on full blast in Maverick’s truck. As predicted, my little car was no match for slick and icy roads. An upgrade was in order, but that would have to wait until I rebuilt my savings. In the meantime, Maverick was happy to loan me the truck for twelve-step meetings, such as the Christmas Eve one Faith and I were on our way back from. These days, I mainly did online meetings, but I’d figured Faith might need extra support with the holiday, and I didn’t mind the excuse for in-person fellowship.

  “December went fast,” I agreed. I kept my eyes on the road because the early evening twilight was liable to bring out deer and other hazards. The early darkness had taken some getting used to, and I was actually grateful for the speed with which the shorter days were passing. “And it’s only a week until the wedding.”