Page 59 of Nate

“I love all animals.”

“It’s a good thing considering you’re a vet.”

Markie laughed when Nate winked at her.

After they finished eating, they cleaned up, and Markie went to the bedroom to get her swimsuit, then walked back toward the kitchen. Nate was squatted down in front of the stereo system. He looked at her over his shoulder, then got to his feet.

“This thing is amazing. Where did you get it?”

“My aunt. She got it from her mother. It holds thirty-two CDs and will never repeat a song when it’s on shuffle. I have all her CDs. I still have them just because of that stereo system.” Markie pointed to a shelf on the wall. “All of those albums belonged to her too, and I bet none of them have a single scratch. The cassettes were hers too. When she moved into an apartment, she didn’t have room for it and offered it to me. There was no way I could turn it down.”

“It’s great. I bet it sounds good too.” He walked to the shelves holding albums. “Damn, there are a lot of The Beatles albums. Abbey Road. The White Album.” He reached for one and pulled it out. “Holy hell, this is the first album they released,” he said in a shocked voice.

“She loved them. She definitely got me into them and Elvis. There are a lot of his there too.”

Nate nodded as he ran his hand over one of the speakers, then looked at the swimsuit in her hand and raised an eyebrow.

“A one piece? No bikini?”

“I like this one.”

“I’m just teasing you. I’m sure it will look great. If you’re ready, we can go.”

“I am.”

Markie locked the door behind them, then they walked down the steps to his truck. He opened the door for her and held her hand in his to help her get inside. He closed the door and walked to the driver’s side. After he closed the door, he started the truck and drove out of the alley.

****

Nate pulled the truck to a stop in front of his home and shut it off. He looked at Markie and saw her staring at the house, then she looked at him and smiled.

“It’s beautiful.”

“Thanks.”

“Have you lived here since you started working here?”

“No. When I first started working here, I was twenty-five. I’ve been here eighteen years.”

“Where did you work before here?”

“I worked at my parents’ ranch until they sold it, then I worked at the Flynn ranch. It’s a big ranch too. When Beau offered me the manager position here, I jumped on it.”

“Was the Flynn ranch upset with you for leaving?”

“Not at all. I knew it would be a long time before I’d get a higher position than a ranch hand, so they understood why I wanted to leave. I see Liam Flynn all the time. He’s a good friend.”

“Oh, I love the name Liam.” Markie grinned.

“Yeah, okay.” He shook his head and grinned. “Let’s head in out of this heat. You can tell June is getting close.” He opened his door and started around the front, but Markie had already gotten out.

He reached for her hand, then they walked to the porch, and Nate opened the door.

“You don’t lock it?”

“No. No one comes around. I have ten acres that go with the cabin. I built a small barn where I keep a couple of horses, and a trailer for them. The area is fenced, and the men know not to bother me on the weekends unless there’s an emergency, but they’d call or text, not show up.” He looked at her. “So, you can swim nude if you want.” He kissed her lips. “I know I want you to.”

She shook her head. “Nope.”

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