Clouds and Rain

I don‟t see a ranch owner and one of his ranch hands doing that if they barely know each other.”
    “When you round up horses or cattle, you gesture to each other.
    You get to know each other pretty well working together. How did you think Grant and I… you know…? With Grant refusing to admit he likes to fuck guys, it wasn‟t like he was the one putting the moves on me, at least not directly. But tell me, why would they come here to…?” Flynn waited for Gable to finish, but the fact that Grant was involved clearly didn‟t make that easy. “I don‟t know. They like the idea they could get caught?”
    “They‟d probably have a better chance of that at Hunter‟s ranch, and then it would be the boss and one of his employees fucking,” Gable suggested. “Not to mention the women there have eyes in the back of their heads.”
    “I rest my case,” Flynn giggled.

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    Clouds and Rain

    Chapter 21

    GABLE‟S walking steadily improved to the point where he could make his way to the barn every day with just one crutch to support himself.
    Although he started taking on more work, from cleaning and mending saddles and bridles to mucking out stalls and sweeping floors, he still hadn‟t ridden a horse yet.
    From time to time Flynn would suggest giving it a try, but Gable always found an excuse not to. As the summer slowly came to an end, the weather was getting worse, and Flynn knew it would be better to move the horses to the lower paddocks, where it would be warmer. He just couldn‟t do it alone. Although their herd wasn‟t anywhere near as big as Hunter‟s or any of their other neighbors‟, two people was the minimum if you wanted to move more than a few horses.
    “So do I need to ask Hunter for a horse wrangler to help me out or can you?” Flynn asked over breakfast one morning.
    “It‟s too early,” Gable answered. “We don‟t have enough hay to add to their feed and the higher paddocks still have good grass.” Flynn knew it was just another excuse, but he didn‟t argue. He‟d learned the hard way that he could only push Gable so far before he stopped talking to him, and since they had a good thing going, he stopped just short of Gable‟s breaking point.
    The following morning, Flynn woke up alone, and he instantly sensed something unusual was going on. He rushed to get dressed and ran down the stairs. The kitchen table was empty and there were no dishes in the sink, so he figured wherever Gable was, he hadn‟t had breakfast. The house was eerily quiet. A quick look out the window assured Flynn that the truck was still parked out front. So Gable hadn‟t left the ranch. He wasn‟t anywhere inside, so Flynn quickly put together a few sandwiches and made his way to the barn.

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    Zahra Owens

    The saddles were all in place, but T.C.‟s tack was missing and so was T.C. A few bales of hay were stacked to the side, and just in front of them he spotted Gable‟s prosthesis. Flynn couldn‟t help but chuckle at the sight of the orphaned limb. He smiled as he saddled Brenner, put the sandwiches in the saddlebag, and strapped the prosthesis to the back before rushing outside.
    It was still early and already fairly cold for the time of year, with a low mist hanging over the paddock. All Flynn could see were legless horses‟ backs sticking up out of the gray blanket of fog. Here and there, a head would pop up, only to lower again, but one of the horses had a rider. Flynn slowly walked Brenner over to where he could make out Gable on the back of the paint horse. The image reminded him of the moment he fell in love with Gable, as the man slowly made his way among the herd, the horses flocking to him as if they were welcoming a long-lost son. Gable greeted each of them with a gentle pat on the back, a stroke up their flank, and a click of his tongue. Some of the horses came to nuzzle Gable as if they needed to reacquaint themselves with him, and Flynn stayed back to watch the scene and give them time to do just that.
    Suddenly Gable spotted Flynn and he smiled. Flynn felt all warm inside. He’s back in the saddle, literally and figuratively , he thought.
    “So are you checking whether you‟re up to helping me move the horses?” Flynn asked.
    “I told you we still had time. They have more grass up here than we have down there,” Gable answered. “Give it a few more days.” Flynn knew Gable wasn‟t asking for a few more days until the weather got colder; he wanted a few more days to get