Page 18 of Affair
Would he be okay?
Absolutely not.
Gamble already knew there was no way he’d survive walking away.
His gut told him so, and his gut…it was always on point.
Beside them, Rufus barked, getting their attention.
“Not you, Rufus. Him,” he said.
Then, Poe went there.
“Tell me that you’re taking that menace with you when you leave,” Poe said, keeping it light even though he was sick about watching this man walk away. He wanted to keep him here forever.
Selfishly.
Only, he had to do it for Gamble.
Gamble didn’t miss a single, solitary beat. He didn’t mince words.
Oh, he loved Rufus, and he would take himIFhe left the farm.
“I think Rufus wants to stay,” he admitted. “He loves you,” he stated. “You can tell. Look at how he lingers around you,” he added. “He arrived here and never left. That should tell you everything, Poe.”
Maybe the man might figure out that he was like Rufus. He came here mangy and broken, and now he was whole.
Gamble belonged here.
Poe didn’t read into it. This man was big, gorgeous, and a war hero. He was just a doctor who spent more time reading books than having an adventure.
There wouldn’t be anything between them because Gamble was out of his league.
AND.
A.
PATIENT.
Why the hell couldn’t he get that to sink into his own head?
So, he brushed that off.
“Yeah, he’d love to bite me and give me rabies,” he admitted. “He’s definitely not attached to me. He’s attached to you.”
With that, Poe moved back around the horse, and they went back to taking care of Honey.
When Gamble saw he was facing away from him, he squirted Poe with the hose, playfully.
It made him gasp.
“Oops,” he said, trying not to laugh. “My bad, Doctor. My finger slipped on the hose trigger. I’m a menace,” he said, “Like Rufus,” he added, trying to get the man to understand what he was offering up.
HIMSELF.
When Poe turned, he stared at him.
“Did you just spray me on purpose Captain Holloway?” he asked with his British accent out. “Because I insulted Rufus?”
