Earth and Sky

probably Hunter’s biggest competition in the area. “The owner’s a big rodeo fan, and Delco said that the wrangler put the moves on me in front of him. That’s all it took.”

    Grant sighed. “Phew. Why do you stay with a guy like that, Izzie?”

    Izzie shrugged. “Any boyfriend is better than no boyfriend?”

    Grant wrapped an arm around Izzie’s slender shoulders. “But you deserve better.”

    Izzie smiled shyly. “I guess if it hadn’t been for Hugh getting Lisa pregnant, all of us Krauses would still be bachelors.”

    “You’re practically on your own anyway, with Delco being away ten months out of the year,” Grant said as he closed the door behind him and they made their way back toward the stables.

    Izzie chuckled. “Yeah, and that’s just the way I like it!” She turned to Grant. “Do you see yourself living with someone for the rest of your life?”

    Grant pulled a doubtful face. “Haven’t met anyone I’d want to live with. Let alone for the rest of my life.”

    “Gable?” she asked quietly.

    “Not really,” Grant answered truthfully. “I guess in some ways we were compatible, but in others…. He’s not an easy man to live with, Izzie. Of course, I’m no prize either, so I don’t want to use that excuse, but to answer your question, no, I don’t believe in love ever after.” Grant set a determined pace, feeling uncomfortable talking about his private life with anyone, let alone a woman. On the one hand, it felt good to actually talk about Gable with her; on the other hand, he still didn’t know whether he could really trust her. After all, he was working for her family, and she could easily get him fired, although he was pretty sure that Izzie knew about his sexual preference. He’d been without a steady job for a while, though, and right now he needed the fixed income, so he didn’t want to run the risk of losing it again.

    They were nearly back at the stable when Izzie briefly took Grant’s hand and squeezed it. “Thanks for taking my side with Delco.”

    “I didn’t take sides,” Grant answered. “I just don’t bother with guys who have slightly inflated egos.”

    “Slightly?” Izzie’s snort was very unladylike. “You’re right, you know. I should cut him loose. I just like giving guys a second chance.” She moved a little closer. “And thanks for not losing your temper. Hugh has in the past, and it only made things worse.”

    “Hugh lost his temper?” Grant asked, although he now knew from experience it took a lot of self-control not to when Delco was involved.

    Izzie nodded amusedly.

    They finished their work with the horses, and once they were all back in the stables, the troop parted ways. The Krause family returned to the big house, and the wranglers and stable boys who lived on the ranch returned to their own quarters, where a hearty meal—prepared by Lisa and Beth—and a free evening was waiting for them.

    Although after dinner most of the men ended up in the living room in front of the TV, Grant preferred to stay by himself. He didn’t really fit into the group, which had clearly been living together for a while, and he could frankly do without the usual questions that were posed to the new guy.

    The other wranglers had tried to find out more about Grant, but he had ignored their questions or given them some smart-ass answer, especially when they probed deeper into his personal life, asking him whether he’d ever been married or if he had kids. He really didn’t feel like sharing the answers to those questions with anyone he barely knew. In any case, some of his answers wouldn’t have been too well received, so he preferred to stay vague.

    The place that housed the crew quarters was like a big ranch house, complete with a kitchen, shower block, and a porch all around. Grant liked sitting at the back, where he missed the sunset but could read his book in silence without anyone bothering him. Looking out over the field to where the earth and the sky met meant more to him than catching the late evening sun. The nice view was one thing, but from time to time, he’d catch Hunter taking his unruly horse out for a late ride. Although he knew better than to let the sight of Hunter on horseback entice him, he couldn’t help looking up from the pages of his book whenever he heard the tall man mutter and curse at his horse.

    Grant had often thought that if he and Hunter had a more amicable relationship, he’d offer to show