Page 114 of Nate

Nate picked up his coffee cup to hide a grin. “Sure.”

“Fuck you, Jefferson. You want me to compete? Alright, I’ll compete, and you’ll be eating my dust,” Rafe challenged.

Nate burst out laughing. “I have no doubt.”

Rafe shook his head. “Son of a bitch, you pulled me right in.”

When the bell jingled again, signaling someone entering or leaving the diner. Both men turned to see Maggie Lancaster walking in. Her light brown hair cascaded down around her shoulders in loose waves, and her dark eyes sparkled as she smiled when she saw Nate, but it faltered when she spotted Rafe beside him.

“Hi, Maggie,” Nate greeted her warmly.

“Hi, Nate. Rafe.”

“Maggie.” Rafe nodded curtly before taking a sip of his coffee.

“You both have a nice day,” she said politely before making her way to a stool further down.

“You, too,” Nate said with a small smile before turning to stare at Rafe, who was clearly not happy about the encounter.

“Just shut the fuck up,” Rafe murmured with a scowl, causing Nate to laugh.

“I didn’t say a word.”

Rafe looked at him. “Like you had to.”

After finishing their meal and chatting for a while on the sidewalk outside, Nate headed toward the animal hospital. Since he was already in town, he decided to stop by and say hi to Markie. He pushed open the glass door and stepped inside, immediately greeted by the scent of antiseptic and animals. He noticed the waiting area was empty. The young woman behind the front desk smiled at him.

“Hi, is there something I can help you with?” she asked.

“Is Markie busy?” Nate inquired.

“I’ll check,” she replied before picking up the phone to make a quick call. “She’ll be right out.”

“Thank you,” Nate said before taking a seat in one of the chairs in the waiting area.

When Markie entered, he got to his feet, smiled, then kissed her lips.

“Hi, baby,” he said against them.

“Hi. What are you doing here?”

“I had lunch with Rafe, then decided to stop in and see you before heading back to the ranch.”

“Well, I’m glad you did.”

“I talked Rafe into competing in the race,” Nate said with a grin.

“Really? Well, that’s going to make it a real competition then, isn’t it?”

“So, me racing doesn’t do that?”

Markie laughed. “You’re the one who said Rafe’s horse could probably beat Warren’s horse.”

“Yeah, I did, but you have to want me to win, not Rafe.”

“Of course.” She wrapped her arms around his waist. “You’re a winner in my book.”

“That is one of the cheesiest things you’ve ever said to me.”

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