Page 11 of For the Love of the Broken Man

“What do you mean Matt doesn’t want you there?” Savannah had asked.

“Vanna, I don’t know why, but the man doesn’t like me. Hell, they shipped me off to live with Tim’s aunt and uncle, which is okay, but when I go to the Circle C, Matt watches me like I’m a common criminal. Tim taught me the computer programs he designed for the ranch, and I’m able to do the maintenance from the Katydid as long as somebody sends me the numbers, but they don’t do it every day. Let’s chalk it up as a failure, okay?” Savannah had been nail-spitting mad, and Jase loved her for it.

Fortunately, a few days later, Miss Katie suggested Jase might be happier working at Wonderland Farm, where Mickey Warren and Jon Wells owned a successful horse farm outside of Richmond. They had the same automated farm management system in place, and Jase might be better at keeping up with it than Mickey, or so Miss Katie had told him.

Jase had jumped at the chance to go anywhere other than Holloway because he knew Matt Collins had it in for him, along with a lot of the other people around the ranch. It was ultimately a blessing.

As he packed his duffel, including a pair of rubber muck boots Josh Simmons had given him, Jase realized yet another good reason to get away from Holloway—the gorgeous Danny Johnson. The way Jase figured it, Matt and Tim had their own shit to figure out because apparently, Matt Collins was jealous of Jason for reasons the teen couldn’t begin to understand.

It didn’t have anything to do with Jase, as he saw it’ It was a lack of trust between the men. He wished them luck because they seemed to be great guys, and their little boys were fun to hang out with. Both boys depended on their fathers, it was clear, and Jase was happy for them. Everyone needed someone to depend upon.

What bothered Jase was the way he caught Danny Johnson staring at him with a smile one minute but ignoring him the next. It was driving him to madness.

To Jase, the handsome sandy-blond man was an incredible guy, most of the time. The other guys at both ranches seemed to respect Dan, and no one ever seemed to question his decisions. Jase could tell the man had a pretty good sense of humor when he’d let down his guard, which was rare, and he wished they could get to know each other under different circumstances.

Then, there was adorable little Kayley, who he’d miss a lot. She’d lifted his spirits every time Dan brought her to the ranch when Jase was working. She liked to tell him about the places she went with the day camp she attended, and she’d drawn him pictures to decorate his room, which he had taken down to take with him. Yes, he’d miss Kayley Johnson a lot.

It seemed to Jase the other hands didn’t accept him because he wasn’t out in the barns cleaning stalls, feeding animals, or fixing fence like all the hands did on a daily basis. Jase would have done it if anyone had asked and was willing to show him how to do the tasks properly.

In the end, the cold shoulder he’d received was too much, and Jase had asked if he could work at the Katydid and take care of the books from there. Josh and Katie agreed, but the hands at the Katydid didn’t like him any better than the hands at the Circle C, though they never showed it in front of Josh Simmons or Heath Sachs.

Jase really didn’t have high hopes for his time with Mickey Warren, who he’d never met, but he was willing to try. I must fit in somewhere, right?

“I’m ready,” Jase announced two hours later when he reentered the kitchen from taking a walk to kill time while Dan had gone home to pack and collect his daughter, who he was bringing with them to Dillwyn. Kayley was packing cookies into a plastic bin, and Danny watched the girl and Miss Katie interact. Jase knew he’d miss all of them.

Katie walked over to him, smiling brightly as she took his hand. “You listen to me, young man. This is your home now, and you’re always welcome here. I’ll handle this business around here, but Mickey and Jon will be good for ya. You call on Sundays, ya hear?”

Jase smiled. “Yes, ma’am. I appreciate you taking me in. I’m sorry…” he trailed off because his emotions overtook him. Katie Simmons reminded him of his mother, and Josh reminded him of a father he’d never had.

“Hush now. You did nothin’ wrong.” Miss Katie wiped her thumbs over his cheeks, drying tears Jase didn’t know he was crying.

“I’ll see you in a few months.” She kissed his cheek before she left the kitchen.

“We need to get on the road. It’ll take us a few hours, as it is.” Danny grabbed Jase’s duffel and carried it out to the driveway.

Jase squatted in front of Kayley. “You got enough cookies?”

She pushed hair behind her ears and smiled. “Yep.” She hopped off the stool and pointed to the lid. Jase secured it and took her hand, leading her out to the truck on the driveway. There was an empty horse trailer behind it which surprised him.

“It’s empty.” Jase pointed to the stainless trailer before helping Kayley into her booster in the back seat of the double cab pickup.

“Yeah, and I hope I don’t have to use it.” The handsome sandy-blond man started the truck and drove down the driveway of the Katydid. Jase had no idea what the man meant by his comment, but he could wait for answers. He had so many questions in his head it was all he could do—wait.

“Jason, you’re supposed to kiss me back.” Jase was with Claire Haskell outside the gym after Prom.

Their moms were coworkers at the Post Office. Claire’s mother had asked Jase to take her daughter to the dance because with her smarter-than-everyone temperament, she hadn’t been asked by anyone else. Of course, he was the queer guy nobody knew about, who didn’t have a date either, so he’d done as his mother asked and took the girl to prom. He’d been miserable the whole night.

“I don’t like to kiss, Claire.” Jase had hoped to put her off.

“Oh, it’s the braces. I’m sorry. I just…” She began crying, covering her mouth which was full of wire braces. Jase’s guilt was nearly all-consuming.

“Who’s hungry?” A voice registered in Jase’s mind, waking him from a nap. He looked around and was appreciative of two things: he wasn’t still in high school, and he wasn’t trying to explain himself to Claire Haskell without outing his orientation or hurting her fragile feelings.

That night had turned south as soon as they walked out of the gym and she’d jumped him, but he was able to calm her enough to take her home without tears. His mother never mentioned anything to him, so he hoped Claire’s mother had kept it to herself if Claire had spilled the beans. His first kiss wasn’t going to be with a girl. Case closed.

Jase opened his eyes to see a family restaurant, and as if on cue his stomach rumbled bringing a giggle from the little girl in the back. He looked out the front window at the establishment. “I could eat.”

He glanced at Danny and saw the sexy smile he’d hoped to avoid. He felt the blood flow south, so he hopped out and pulled down his T-shirt to cover his jeans. It was embarrassing as all hell.

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