Love Means Courage - Andrew Grey

gave the good girl a brush down. “You ride really well.” Cliff and Geoff peered over the stall door as Len finished up. “Maybe we could go riding in the morning?” “I’d like that, but who’s going to watch Geoff?” He leaned over and tickled the little one in question.
    Cliff shifted Geoff and blew a raspberry on his tummy. “Aunt Mari’s coming over tomorrow morning; she needs some time away from Aunt Janelle.” He spoke to Geoff in that sing-songy voice, but the words were for Len.

    “Speaking of Janelle, she and I are going to the musical at the high school on Friday. Would you and Geoffy here want to go along?” he asked, as he tickled that little belly and earned a giggle.

    Len finished with Misty and left the stall, closing the door behind him. “I’m just meeting her at the school for the play.” Cliff gave him a funny look. “Cliff, we’re just friends, nothing more.”

“Oh, I believe you. It’s her thoughts on the subject I’m worried about.” Len knew that Cliff was making more out of his friendship with Janelle than there was. “It would be fun to get out of the house for a while.”
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Len couldn’t keep the smile off his face, no matter how hard he tried. “Good.” Len didn’t want to turn away but knew he had to. There was work to be done, and it wasn’t going to get done on its own.
“I’m trying to put together some projects for the farm, and I was wondering if you’d be willing to go over them with me.
Hopefully I’ll have them done today. I could sure use your help making sure I haven’t forgotten anything.”
    “Be happy to. Maybe after our ride tomorrow?” He felt his stomach doing little flip-flops. Maybe they’d get to do more than look at the accounts. His attention zeroed in on Cliff’s lips. God, he wanted to taste them again. He could remember every detail of the kiss in the hayloft the day before, and he really wanted a repeat, maybe on the ride tomorrow. Len suppressed a quiver of excitement.
    Maybe they’d do more during their ride tomorrow.
    “Sure.” They stood in the barn, smiling at each other like idiots, neither of them breaking eye contact. Brisk footsteps at the door broke the spell, and they both turned to see Fred striding in the barn. Cliff’s expression shifted quickly, and to Len he looked like a kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar. Without a word to either of them, he quickly left the barn.
    “You about done for the day?”
“Yeah.” Len saw Fred’s knowing expression and tried to wipe the hopeful expectation off his face.
    “Randy and I are as well. We thought we’d head into town for a beer. Wanna join us? Randy mentioned Steve’s, which means Shell’s working and he wants to see her.”

    “Sounds good. I’ll just need to stop back here on the way home so I can bring in the horses. It’s supposed to get cool tonight, and I don’t want them out.”
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“Then you can ride with me, and I’ll drop you off later.” Len nodded and did one last visual inspection before following Fred to his truck.
    LEN arrived at the farm, extra early. The sun was barely peeking over the horizon when he opened the barn door. The morning was chilly, but according to the radio, it was going to be a sunny day.

    Len let the horses out into the pastures, leaving Misty and Thunder in the barn. Fred had told him discreetly at the bar the night before that Thunder was the horse that Cliff liked to ride. After spot-cleaning the stalls, he emptied the wheelbarrow and began brushing the horses. As he was getting the saddles ready, he heard a car pull into the drive and figured it was Nicole. A few minutes later, he heard heavy footsteps approaching. “Cliff?”
    “Yeah, it’s me.”
Len felt the excited flutter he’d been keeping under control flare to life. “I’ve got Thunder brushed; you just need to saddle him.”
    “Thanks.” Len saw Cliff walk by Misty’s stall, glancing inside on his way to the tack room, returning with an armload of tack. Len finished brushing Misty and left the stall to get her tack.
    It didn’t take long for him to get her saddled and ready, and Len walked Misty out of the barn, meeting Cliff and Thunder in the yard. “Did you have a place in mind for our ride?” Len patted Misty as he looked over at Cliff, who was already mounting Thunder, and Len got an eyeful of a tight butt encased in a pair of jeans.
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“Yeah. There’s a place I’d