Earth and Sky

look that made him blush.

    Hunter wished he could take back his words, or at least make them less open for interpretation. He was happy Grant didn’t say anything, but there was no doubt about what he was thinking. Hunter thought it too: that Grant had shown just how talented his hands were when he’d made Hunter come the night before. Hunter’s pants were growing tight just remembering those hands.

    Grant broke the tension by purposely bumping into Hunter and handing him one side of a folding measure. “Hold that so we can get accurate measurements.”

    Although Hunter was usually the organized one, now he was glad Grant knew what he was doing too.

    Grant pulled out a piece of paper and a pencil and jotted down the numbers. “I think I saw a few pieces of wood in the worker’s shed that will do nicely for this.”

    Hunter shook his head to stop daydreaming and looked up at Grant. “Yeah, I suppose. You’re the man. I trust your judgment.” He was going to have to pull himself together and start acting like the boss again, before Grant started taking advantage of him. For now, the big guy just gave him an understanding look, and that was good, but Grant was still staff.

    Hunter knew he was going to have to make a decision on a new foreman soon. Although Grant had only been with them for a short time, Hunter knew that Grant had all the qualities to make a good foreman. The only problem was that he’d been the last one hired, and the other wranglers might object to seeing Grant rise through the ranks. And then there was the obvious attraction, of course. Were these feelings Hunter had for Grant clouding his judgment? Not to mention they’d have to work pretty closely together. With Hugh, that had never been a problem. Hugh was his brother-in-law and one of his best friends since childhood. They could pretty much read each other’s minds. But now, with Hugh gone, was Grant really his best choice?

    “Okay, I’m all done. Do we need to ride anywhere else before I go get the wood for this?”

    Hunter shook his head. Grant was smiling at him, and Hunter felt his knees go weak. He was really going to have to stop acting like a girl.

    “Okay, let’s go. I’ll race you home.”

    Hunter turned around, hoping to find Davenport waiting for him, but the only horse peacefully grazing nearby was Raven, Grant’s mount.

    “Guess you’re walking!” Grant laughed as he mounted his horse and turned it around. “I’ll go see where he is.”

    Hunter leaned against the gatepost that was least rotten and waited, shaking his head. He was going to have to stop Davenport from embarrassing him even more.

    It took Grant forever to return and Hunter eventually sat down on a tree trunk. “Guess he gave you a hard time?”

    Grant nodded and then shrugged. “I still think he needs to learn who’s boss around here, and it isn’t him.”

    “Well, you can make it your pet project. I’m taking Hugh’s horse, starting this afternoon.”

    Grant chuckled. “Best decision you’ve made all day, if you ask me.”

    They rode back to the house, handed their horses to the stable boys, and walked to the workers’ shed to get the wood. As Grant had predicted, they found what they needed, and Hunter felt like a ranch hand as he took instruction from Grant on how to hold what where. Grant cranked up the big circular saw to cut a rather large beam to size. Despite the storm the night before, the temperature outside was picking up and with the high humidity, they were both sweating in no time.

    After the large pieces were sawn to size, Grant used a handsaw to cut a few smaller support planks. Since he didn’t seem to need an extra hand, Hunter walked outside to get them some water to drink. When he returned, Grant had taken his shirt off, and Hunter swallowed away the lump in his throat the sight caused.

    “That looks heavenly,” Grant said, straightening his back and holding out his hand toward the cup Hunter was holding. Hunter handed it to him and watched Grant gulp it down, his Adam’s apple bobbing up and down as he swallowed. Just like the night before, lust boiled up inside Hunter, and he realized he wanted to kiss Grant’s neck. He couldn’t, though. Not again.

    “Are you going to drink yours? Because the cool water felt really good,” Grant asked, pointing at the other cup. When Hunter didn’t immediately answer, Grant came closer. “Or shall I wrestle you for it?”

    Hunter swallowed hard as he