Page 32 of The Outlaw and the Heir

"Go from there," he repeated with a snort. "You make it sound so simple."

"Nah. First, you make sure they're like that, especially making sure they know they're like that and aren't going to deck you for bringing it up in the first place. Then you figure out if they're even into you and willing to risk someone else finding out by doing things with you and if they know what they're doing in the first place. Trust me, I know it's not as easy as I made it sound, but that doesn't mean I'm not going to try."

He stared at me for a moment before letting out a soft snort. “Alright, I guess you know what you're talking about. Suppose I shouldn't be too surprised."

I raised a brow. “I'm trying to figure out if I should be offended by what you're insinuating or grateful you said something that could be taken as a compliment. That all depends on how you meant it."

To my surprise, one corner of his mouth turned up in a pleased smirk. “Well, would you look at that? I finally managed to stump you with something. I reckon miracles do still happen."

"Well," I began, not sure if I should be annoyed that he managed to get me good or impressed that he had it in him. "Maybe you should talk with whatever power controls miracles in your life. Because if it's just going to give you the occasional win in a battle of wits, then it probably doesn't like you very much."

He rolled his eyes. “And I guess my victory was short-lived."

I chuckled. “So...what about you?"

"Whataboutme?"

"Well, you've already made it clear that I've had my fair share of time with other men...what about yourself?"

His jaw tightened slightly, and I watched his eyes dart around. A wariness in his eyes made my chest hurt because I knew exactly what he was doing. It was the very nature of beingwhat we were that we had to be forever aware of where we were and who might see or hear something that could get us into trouble. There were parts of the country, few and far between as they were, where people would ignore that sort of thing so long as you had the brains to be discreet. There were plenty of places that wouldn't ignore it and plenty of people eager to root it out if they caught wind, and if discovered, the best you could hope for was jail time or being run out of town. The worst was a slow and humiliating death at the hands of an indignant, righteous mob.

His eyes met mine again, and I saw a flicker of something else I knew all too well: guilt and shame. "There...ain't much to talk about. I've done it a couple of times."

"Just a couple of times?" I asked with a quiet whistle. "I can't expect you've had too many opportunities living all the way out here. Was it...with someone on the crew?"

"No," he said quickly, eyes going wide in horror. "No, no. There's...I wouldn't do that. The chances of gettin' caught is...no. And it was a couple of people, not a couple of times...definitely more than a couple of times."

At that, my brow shot up. “Oh?Definitelymore than a couple of times? Was this in a short time period, or extended?"

He sighed. “Why do you care?"

"Because I'm curious, nosy, and I'm trying to figure out if you're just exceptionally horny when you finally have the chance to nail someone to a bed or wall...or are the one being nailed. Or if you had the leisure of taking your time."

His eyes narrowed. “Two weeks."

"How many times?"

"I didn't keep count."

I knew my delight had to show on my face when I saw him give a big sigh. “Ohreally now? My my my, I might have begun to truly believe you were a good little boy who did what he was supposed to all the time with maybe a little misbehaving. Youshacked up with someone for two weeks and didn't leave the bed the whole time?"

"We...left the bed," he grumbled as he looked away, which did nothing to conceal the color flooding his cheeks. "Not like we had a choice. Things had to be done, alright? Leave me alone."

I watched him for a moment, hearing the tension in his voice in a way I’d never heard before. Clearing my throat, I waited until he looked at me, then smiled at him. “There's nothing wrong with it. That you...enjoyed yourself and enjoyed him. There's a lot of horrible things in this world, but two people enjoying time together in a way that doesn't hurt anyone else isn't one of them."

His gaze swept back to my face, searching it with an expression I couldn't explain, but that still managed to cause a tug in my chest. For a moment, I could almost picture him as a small boy, a time when he’d probably frowned less and perhaps smiled more. A time when he would look up at one of his parents with wide eyes in the hope that they had the answers and could assuage whatever worry or fear was plaguing him.

Then it was gone, and the innocent boy was replaced by a wary, grown man whose face was drawn and tired. "Is that how you look at it? Must be nice."

It was my turn to roll my eyes. “So far, I've not found anything to prove me wrong. Maybe the bible thumpers and moralists are right about people like us, or maybe they're not. But the only time any of us is going to find out is when we die, and I don't know about you, but I'm in no rush to reach that point anytime soon."

His lips twitched. “No, I guess I ain't either."

"I'd say that's something we have in common, but that's a pretty common thing for people to feel," I snorted.

He glanced over at me, his hands still in his lap, but his shoulders didn't seem as tight as before. "What about you?"

"What about me?"

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