Page 11 of Road to a Cowboy

“I date,” Cal said, avoiding Las’s gaze.

“No, you don’t.”

Well... that was true. Dating was somewhere below waxing his balls on his to-do list.

And it wasn’t just because there was only one person who’d ever caught his eye—it was also because dating was terrible. He had no desire to sit across from a stranger and make small talk.

“It wasn’t my idea, okay?” he admitted, burying his phone back in his pocket where Las couldn’t get to it. “I forgot my phone in your mom’s office the other day. Your sister swiped it and downloaded this app. Made a profile for me and everything.”

He should’ve deleted the app. Didn’t know why he hadn’t.

Las cocked his head. “Why isn’t your phone password-protected?”

“It’s inconvenient.”

“But safer.”

“What part of your project did you need me for, exactly?” Cal asked, inelegantly plodding his way through a subject change.

“Let me see your profile.”

Cal sighed. “I don’t?—”

“Let me see.”

“I don’t want?—”

“Come on, hand it over.”

“Oh, for the love of...” Giving in—mostly to shut Las up—Cal opened the app and passed the phone over. Las and his sister had always been like the younger siblings Cal had never had—and sometimes it was easier to give them what they wanted.

Las gave his profile a quick read and whistled softly. “She put you down as pansexual. Bold, considering how conservative this state is.”

Cal shrugged and crossed his arms. “Windsor’s progressive. Hell, so is most of Teton County.”

“Not so much the rest of the state,” Las muttered. “I’m fixing your settings to a fifty-mile radius. Unless you’re willing to go farther than that to meet your date?”

“I’m not sure I’m willing to go even that far,” Cal muttered.

Las nodded. “Twenty miles then. Actually, you know what? You should just delete the app.”

“Give that back.” Cal stole his phone and shoved it in his pocket.

“Have you been on any dates yet?” Las asked. “Were they any good? I bet they were terrible, weren’t they?”

Cal stared at him. “Do you want them to be terrible?”

“No.” Las dragged the word out. He pulled at the string of his hoodie. “No, of course not. But... isn’t there someone you already know that you’re interested in?”

“What?” Did Las somehow know about Cal’s feelings for Austin? Impossible.

“Friends often make the best lovers,” Las added, a knowing smirk on his face. But what did he actually know?

“Why do I feel like you’re speaking in code?” Cal asked.

Harriet, Las’s horse, stuck her head out of her stall and nosed at Las’s shoulder. Cal reached over to rub her muzzle, but she tossed her head with a whinny, dodging him.

“Why must you hate everyone?” Cal muttered.

---