Page 5 of Cowboy Seeks Husband
“Oh. It feels pretty good, I guess.” He glanced at Andy, who was now making frantic hand motions that either meant Walker had to do better or he was being attacked by mosquitos. It could really have gone either way this time of year when the mosquito eggs started hatching. “I mean, yeah, it feels like a great opportunity. One that doesn’t come around every day?”
“Is that a question?” Luke asked, a bit harshly.
“No.”
“Luke, stay on point,” Andy said. “Molly!”
She stepped closer again. “What we’re looking for here, Walker, is that you’re excited to be on the show and eager to find the love of your life amongst our hunky and handsome contestants.”
“Do I have to say exactly that?”
“Pretty much. Yes.”
“Oh, God.”
“I believe in you.” She patted his arm and then it was go time again.
“I’m thrilled to be the first bachelor forQueer Seeks Spouse. It’s going to be the adventure of a lifetime, and I’m eager to meet the handsome man I might share the rest of my life with.” He felt a little dirty lying like that, but Reed Ranch was worth it, and Tessa had said it was okay for him to fib. Hadn’t she? She certainly hadn’t told him not to participate in the show after Marlon had secretly applied and Andy’s team had initially reached out. She’d said, “Life isn’t black and white, baby. You do what’s right for you.”
Luke smiled winningly again. “Why don’t you tell us a little bit about yourself, Walker?”
“Right.” God, this was torture. He ducked his head and rubbed the back of his neck, tipping his hat a little more over his eyes as he straightened. They’d brought him an awful fake cowboy hat he wouldn’t be seen dead in, so instead he’d worn one of his own. “Well, like I said, my name is Walker Reed. I’m thirty-six years old, and I run Reed Ranch. It used to belong to Joe Reed, my father, but he passed it on to me two years ago.”
“How exciting,” Luke said. Walker raised an eyebrow at him. “It’s been eye-opening already, filming on a ranch. Can you tell us a little bit about what you’re going to expect from a potential partner? I know our eager contestants would like to know what you need in a husband. They all want to be the best for you.”
Sweet Jesus. He expected to fake his way through this damn show and then send home whoever was left at the end with a pat on the back, half the prize money, and hearty best wishes for a good life. The best he’d hoped for was that he’d actually like one of the guys as a person, a pal, he supposed, but he hadn’t really even let himself think that far ahead. Now he had to talk about what he wanted in a life mate, and he needed to make it sound good.
He squirmed in his chair until Molly cleared her throat. It was fine. This was fine. He could do this.
“Living on a ranch is hard work, obviously.” He glanced at Andy again, then jerked his eyes away and tried to smile at Luke. He at least needed to act like he wanted to be here. “We’ve got about three hundred and seventy acres of land. We raise cattle for beef and at our peak have about 200 heads.”
“So your future man needs to be okay with you coming home dirty, smelling like hard work and sweat?” Luke joked.
Walker’s throat went dry. He rubbed at his mouth and pushed his hat back again. Despite it being early, the sun was already beating down on their heads. Sweat slipped down the side of his face. The wind kicked up, and the scent of cut grass hit him, reminding him of the endgame. “He would. Yes.” Then he tried a sly grin. It must have worked because Luke relaxed incrementally.
“What does an average day on the ranch look like?”
Walker wiped his palms on his jeans. “There’s no such thing as an average day on a cattle ranch,” he said. “There’s always something unexpected we have to deal with. Anything from cattle tearing through fences to frolic on the highway, so that we have to abandon everything else to round them up, to a calf getting stuck out in the middle of a mudhole post-hurricane. But we do have regular chores. For instance, the cattle have to be checked several times a week. In calving season, we inspect them multiple times a day. In the spring and summer, we perform health exam measures, cut and bail the hay, do pasture maintenance. Then in the fall, we work the hayfields, plant winter forages, and in winter, calving season begins again. Around this time of year we also purchase more heifers, which we eventually breed—”
“Okay, hold up.” Andy pinched the bridge of his nose. “Keep running,” he said to the cameramen. “Molly!”
She walked up with a serious expression. “Look, I’m sure this is all really fascinating when you’re actually, you know, into farming. But our audience watches this show for the romance, babe. Talking about breeding heifers is not romantic. Can we have something a little more ‘cowboy in the saddle at sundown’ or something?”
“You do realize,” Walker drawled, “that a real cowboy’s been in the saddle since sunup. Working.”
Molly raised a brow, and she went from looking seventeen to looking terrifying.
He gulped.
“Yeah, whatever. No more talk about heifers.” She gave him a reassuring smile that felt like a manipulation, but it was better than that eyebrow so he’d take it.
After she was back behind the cameras again, Luke sent Walker a little apologetic glance, and Walker studied the man for a second. He was fake-tanned, with fake teeth and a pretentious haircut, and Walker had judged him accordingly. But maybe he’d judged him too fast. He took a deep breath and smiled back.
“Okay, Walker, how about you tell us a little bit about what you want in a partner?”
Walker let a silent breath escape his mouth. Everyone he worked with knew he was gay, and either didn’t care or had walked away when he came out as a teen. That didn’t mean he found the idea of talking about what he liked in a man on national TV all that appealing.
“As a person,” Luke prompted. “What would they be like?”
