Page 25 of The Earl's Wrangler
“Yeah,” Randall breathed and tugged him closer.“And there’s bugger all you can do about it.”He yawned.“Have you heard anything from anyone?”
“No.Alan has been silent, and I figured if someone had showed up, he’d have said something.But I keep wondering if something’s wrong and they aren’t telling me.”
“I doubt that.And I get the feeling that if there had been a lot of drama, Chip would have let you know, if no one else.He doesn’t seem like the type to keep news to himself.”
“That’s true.”Still, Sawyer wondered what his father was going to pull.It wasn’t like him to just give up, especially when his own skin was on the line.He would be out to try to find a way to get the heat off and shift it to someone else.“We’ll find out tomorrow either way.”He snuggled closer to Randall and did his best to let the soft sound of the rain lull him to sleep.It didn’t work at first, but eventually he drifted off, only to wake with the sun the way he always did.It was the cowboy in him.
Randall was sound asleep, so he slipped out of bed and used the bathroom as quietly as he could.When he came out, Randall was sitting up, Sawyer’s cowboy hat plopped on his head.“I was just trying it on for size.What do you think?”
Sawyer strode over lifted the hat off him and plopped it on his own head.
Randall grinned.“Looks better on you.”He tugged Sawyer down into a kiss.Sawyer lifted the hat off his head to place it aside.“Leave it on,” Randall growled, pulling him down into a steamy kiss.
AFTER LEAVINGthe cabin in the woods behind, Sawyer missed it.The last few days and nights had been magical, having Randall all to himself without the push and pull of the rest of the ranch and the world.Largely they had been by themselves, and now Sawyer was going to have to share Randall again, and he didn’t want to.Sawyer was a cowboy, and his life was close to the land, with the horses.He wasn’t someone who longed to be part of the great big world.His own piece of it was just fine with him.And now that they were returning, Sawyer knew that the rest of the world was going to call Randall away.
He couldn’t stay here and just be with Sawyer any more than George could have stayed with Alan.The two of them lived in England, and from all indications Alan had a great life.But Alan Justice was one of those men who could make a life for himself anywhere.He was personable, smart, and people liked him… most of the time.Sawyer wasn’t like that.He was quiet and preferred to have his life the same way.He didn’t long for adventure, and he wasn’t interested in shaking everything up.Besides, he could see Alan in England charming the locals.He wasn’t going to be able to do that.
“You’ve been quiet for quite a while.What’s bothering you?”Randall asked.
“Nothing important,” he told him, because there was no need dumping his stupidness on Randall.They came from two different worlds, and Randall was part of something that he would never fit into.Heck, he’d probably embarrass Randall the first time he had to sit down at one of those fancy dinners he probably had to attend.No, as much as Sawyer might let himself dream, at the end of the week, Alan, George, and Randall would be going back to England, and he’d still be here.
Sawyer had always known that would happen.He thought he had accepted it, but after getting close to Randall, he had known the separation was going to come at a cost.Sawyer also knew that if he’d been given the choice, he wouldn’t change anything.The time he got with Randall was a gift, and he was going to be happy with it.
“You can stop brooding,” Randall told him.“I know what you’re doing.We’re going back, and now that our time alone is gone, you’re wondering about what’s next.”
Sawyer sighed.“I know you have to go back home.”There was nothing more to say.Facts were what they were, and it was futile to fight against it.That was the very definition of making yourself unhappy: wanting something you couldn’t have.No matter how much he might wish for something, that didn’t change reality.
“Yes, I do.I have responsibilities there, and as much as my father only did what he felt he wanted to, I have to do better.The people on the estate deserve that.They put up with a lot over the years, and I have to….”He paused and grew quiet.
“What?”
“I have to be the earl they deserve.My father was the kind of person who only liked the noblesse part of our role.But I have an obligation to them.I haven’t lived up to that very well.At least until now.”Sawyer turned to glance at Randall, who looked back at him with determination.“I mean, I’ve spent a lot of my time away from the estate.I take the money it brings in and use it to live the kind of life I want, like my dad did, but….”He paused again.“I don’t want to turn into him.”
“Then don’t,” Sawyer told him.“It’s not that hard.Just figure out what your father would have done… and do something different.You know he was an ass and self-centered, so don’t be that way.”It seemed simple enough to him.
“It’s not that easy.”Randall looked at him like he was dumb, and Sawyer gripped the wheel more tightly.
“Yes, it is.You can be whoever you want to be.So if you truly want to be different from your father, then you will.But if you are only saying that you want to be different and you really want the same kind of easy life he had, then you’ll do that.People say they want to change all the time, but what they really mean is that they want others to think they’ve changed so they can do the same things they always have.”
Randall ran a hand through his hair.“Is that what you really think of me?”His eyes grew wider.“You really can be an ass sometimes.”
Sawyer shrugged.“It goes with the job, I guess.Living out here, we don’t have time for the niceties or beating around the bush.We get to it and talk straight.But think about it.You worked hard on the ranch, and you did all the shit jobs I gave you.I know you lost a bet, but you did them anyway.You aren’t afraid of hard work.So no, I don’t think that.But what I think isn’t what’s important.It’s what you think about yourself.That’s what counts.”
“Huh?”
“Yeah.You worked hard.So if you work as hard for yourself and for the people who depend on you, then you’ll be a success.On a ranch it’s all about what you put into it.Claude, and Mrs.Justice are all really successful, and they work hard every day to help bring that about.So you do the same and see if things don’t change back home.And when you do leave, you can call me if you want and I’ll always tell you the truth.”It hurt to talk about him going, but it was just a matter of days.He was going to have to get used to it.
THE RANCHcame into sight a few hours later.Sawyer was excited to be home and pulled into the yard.He didn’t know what to expect when they returned, but the place was quiet—unusually so.“Where is everyone?”Randall asked.
“I have no idea,” Sawyer said as he opened his door.“I’m going to check the barn.You go inside the house and see if anyone is around.”He climbed out and hurried into the barn.The horses inside the barn greeted him from their stalls.They all had hay and water.Sawyer checked the ones out in the paddocks, and they all seemed fine.The colts greeted him, looking for treats.
Nothing seemed out of place, and yet he got the feeling that something wasn’t right.He returned to the inside of the barn and found a strange man standing in the center.
“We’ve been looking for you.”
“What do you want?”Sawyer asked, already tensing at the intimidation the man exuded.He was about six feet, over two hundred pounds, with a crooked nose and eyes as cold as January.He was most definitely not the kind of guy you’d want to meet in a deserted alley—or a stable for that matter.
“Your family owes us a lot of money, and I’m here to collect,” he said as levelly as if he were giving the weather report on television.
