Page 8 of Keep You Safe
“I am a concierge in between jobs.” I took a stab at playing hard to get so I didn’t reek of desperation. “I suppose I could consider moving out to help.”
“Would you miss LA? Your support system there?” Maverick asked. Oops. Maybe I’d sold the whole disinterest thing a little too well.
“Honestly, I think I’m due a break from arrogant LA tourists and friends who liked me better when I was using.” I used a more humble tone.
“Fair enough.” Maverick nodded at me, eyes more cautious than when he’d first come into the room. My mention of sobriety was likely to blame, but it was a part of me now. I was done pretending I wasn’t an addict, even if it meant Maverick adopting a more measured tone. “We can work out more of the details after I’m back from the hospital. I need to run the idea by Faith.”
“Good luck.” I waved him on, but it wasn’t long until I was bored with the house to myself. I made a fresh batch of coffee for the fridge, cleaned the coffee maker, and marinated some chicken so we could grill tonight. The girls had eaten all of my prior batch of cookies, so I whipped up some lemon crinkles that seemed to match the hot weather.
After I set the cookies on cooling racks, the midday sun tempted me to go swimming again. But the chances of getting lucky twice were slim, and it was a long, hot hike to the pond. However, getting out of the house might do me well. If Kat, the stable manager, was at the horse barn, maybe I could brush Magnolia or give her a treat. What I was decidedly not doing was hunting down Grayson.
However, he found me anyway, standing beside the pasture closest to the horse barn, daydreaming about my ride the night before. Kat hadn’t been at the barn, and Magnolia was in this paddock with some of her fellow horse friends.
“Thought I told you no petting the horses.” Grayson ambled up beside me, limp more pronounced than on some days. He had on a black cowboy hat and sunglasses, likely in deference to the blazing sun, not fashion, but the sight alone was almost enough to get me half-hard.
“I know when to keep my hands to myself.” I held up my hands, prickles of frustration making their way into my tone. Why I could be perfectly charming with the rest of the world and struggle with this man, I had no clue.
“Do you?” Grayson gave me a pointed look that only made me that much more determined to get a rise out of him.
“Ask me nicely, though, and I’ll put them anywhere you want,” I purred at him.
“Adler…” Grayson shut his eyes and rubbed the bridge of his nose before opening them to blink wearily at me. “I done told you.”
“Yep.” I gave him my best unrepentant grin. “You did.”
Grayson’s hand flexed like maybe he was tempted to throw me over his shoulder again. A boy could dream. Grayson sighed heavily and shifted his weight from foot to foot.
“You the one who put this whole dude ranch idea into Maverick’s head?”
“Nope, he had that brainstorm all on his own.” Thank God. I was delighted at the prospect, but it wouldn’t do for Grayson to think I was that eager for a second chance at his cock. “I’m happy to help.”
“You wanna leave your fancy LA life for this?” He narrowed his gaze at me. Maverick must have moved fast if Grayson already knew about him asking me to stay on.
“You mean my SIM-card tiny apartment? My lack of job prospects? Friends waiting for me to fall off the wagon?” I glared at him, frustrated more with myself for losing my cool than at him for the question. “Absolutely. I’m ready for a change. I’ll need to go back to pack, but if Maverick wants me, I’m excited to be part of this venture.”
“Suit yourself.” The way Grayson pursed his mouth made it clear he had lots more to say.
“If you want to ask me not to move here because it might be awkward between us, you need to use your words, not just glower and hope I’ll guess.” Wow. Look at me being all direct. My therapist would be so proud, even if it took the most confounding man on the planet to get me there.
“I’m not worried about awkward.” Grayson waved a hand as he scoffed. “Just don’t go idealizing Colorado living. I’ve seen plenty of people out here struggle with sobriety. Not just an LA problem. Long, cold, lonely winters get to a person. And as for the other, I told you, one-time deal.”
“So you did.” I regarded him coolly, unmoved by his concern for my sobriety. “And I’m not sticking around for you. Don’t flatter yourself. I want to help Maverick make his idea a huge success.”
“A bunch of tourists tromping all over the ranch is a recipe for disaster.” Grayson shook his head at me hard enough that his cowboy hat dipped. He shoved it back in place. “How in the heck are we supposed to do our jobs and entertain them at the same time?”
“You put them to work.” I grinned, trying to find my usual charm. “Let them experience the fun of working on a ranch.”
“This ain’t a theme park.” Grayson was anything other than charmed. “Sooner you realize that, the happier we’ll all be.”
“One person’s work is another’s delight. Sooner you gain perspective, the happier you might be,” I shot right back. So much for being charming.
“It’s all fun until it’s three a.m. in freezing temps with a complicated breech foal, vet can’t make it, and you gotta be ready in two hours for feeding the hands and assigning chores, no matter what happens.” Grayson dropped each word like a barbell hitting the gym floor, weighty with memories, and he snapped his jaw shut as he finished to glower at me.
“Wow.” I wasn’t going to admit that he might have a point about me idealizing cowboy life. New Jersey got snow, too, but the only times I’d seen three a.m., work had definitely not been involved.
“Look, you don’t choose this way of life. It chooses you.” Grayson’s sharp eyes seemed determined to poke me in every small, soft, secret spot. “You and Maverick wanna have your rich friends come play rancher, that’s on you, but at least have a little respect.”
“I’ll try.” I made my voice as grave as his, but he merely snorted, sounding exactly like one of the nearby horses. “I will. You’ll see.”
