Right Move--A Gay Cowboy Romance

by A. M. Arthur

  And that hug. That hug.

  He hadn’t expected George to agree to more than a handshake goodbye, but the instant that slender body pressed into his? Levi had wanted to hold on and never let go. To take George with him back to his tiny house, their three cats, and a wonderful, happy life together. But life wasn’t that sort of fairy tale and they both knew it. They each had their lives to return to and they would remain in contact. Remain friends.

  A friend Levi kind of wanted to kiss until they were both breathless.

  Ginger yowled in the passenger seat, and he tried to keep his fingers inside the carrier for her to rub against. She hated being confined more than the other two, even for brief trips to the vet, so he imagined this past week had been horrible for her. But she was healing and that’s what counted. In a few more days, she’d be free to wander again with her siblings. Small price to pay when the injuries from falling from a tree could have been catastrophic.

  Hopefully, she’d be more cautious where she climbed in the future.

  “You’ll be okay, baby girl. We’ll be home soon.”

  Her chirp sounded strangely annoyed but he didn’t blame her. Levi couldn’t imagine being caged for an entire week. The closest he’d ever come to being imprisoned had been detox and rehab, and even those situations had come with their own set of freedoms. He, like his kitties, was meant to wander, not remain trapped in one place.

  More and more, he considered uprooting his tiny home and hitting the road again. Taking the ghost town closure as a chance to travel and wander for a while, maybe find some new, exciting blog material. But every time he considered uprooting his life, even temporarily, his thoughts wandered back to George. To not seeing him again for weeks on end, when this entire past week of visits meant the world to Levi.

  He drove up the familiar, pitted dirt road and the familiar split. Going straight led to Clean Slate Ranch. The left road ended at the ghost town, and Levi turned that way. Went down the long driveway to Mack and Wes’s place, and then onto a grass track that his tires had begun wearing into the earth. He’d already promised Mack he’d reseed any areas where his truck or home caused real damage.

  Baby was sleeping in the sun near the house when Levi parked, and she barely twitched when he opened and shut his truck door. Then Ginger began yowling, and Baby surged to her feet. Sporty came racing out from beneath the house, and they were both winding around his ankles, chirping for their littermate. Levi gently lifted the carrier out and, since it was sunny and not too chilly, he put the carrier down in a sunspot. The siblings sniffed and chirped, and Ginger reached out with one paw to swat at Sporty.

  Levi closed his eyes and sent positive energy out to the universe, thanking her for bringing his girl home safely.

  His phone dinged with a text.

  Robin: You back yet?

  Levi sent back an affirmative, and less than fifteen minutes later, he and Robin were sitting out on deck chairs together, each holding a cold bottle of cream soda from a local soda maker Robin knew he loved. The cats had all settled together around the carrier, and Levi had never seen a sweeter sight.

  Except maybe George’s smile.

  “Now that the family’s back together,” Robin said, “you give any more thought to traveling during our break?”

  “Some. I might wait until January, though, so I’m here for Christmas.” Levi needed to be there with Robin on the four-year anniversary of Xander’s death. “Plus, Ginger has just spent the last week cooped up. I don’t want to coop her up in the house right away.”

  “Good point.” Robin pulled from his bottle, and Levi noticed the way his lips kept twitching.

  “What?” Levi knew Robin’s tells. “You’re hiding something.”

  “Just wanted to celebrate the good news with you in person.” He broke out into a full-on smile. “The seller finally accepted our offer on the house.”

  “That’s fantastic.” He hauled Robin up into a hug, mindful of their sodas. “I’m thrilled for you and Shawn. I mean it.”

  “Shawn is over the moon. From living in his car to a homeowner in a year’s time.”

  “Things are working out for you both exactly as they’re supposed to.”

  Robin gently clinked the lip of his cream soda to Levi’s. “For us both. I’m not sure if I’ve really said it this bluntly before, but having this past year with both Shawn and you in my life has been...a blessing. I never thought I’d be this happy again.”

  “That’s all I want. And Xander would want it, too.”

  “I know.” Robin’s eyes went briefly sad. “I’ll always miss him. But this is my life now and exactly where I want to be.”

  “Same, brother.” Only now, a tiny piece of his heart was tugging back in the direction of San Francisco. How had George gotten under his skin in a week? Then again, he’d heard of folks who hooked up one night as perfect strangers and were living together days later. Stranger things had happened—just not to Levi.

  Then again, he hadn’t been the guy who wanted to settle down. He’d fucked his way through his twenties, probably breaking hearts along the rodeo circuit, but he hadn’t cared. Not back then. Not until he lost his baby brother and nearly lost his own life. But George was so young and inexperienced, and Levi didn’t know if George was even into Levi, or if Levi was simply a convenient person to explore his sexuality with. Sometimes Levi wondered if George even knew what he wanted, deep down.

  They settled in their chairs again, and Levi tried to enjoy his soda and the company of his best friend. Robin nattered on about Shawn’s plan for the house for a while before he caught on that Levi wasn’t completely paying attention. “How do you feel about a zebra print couch in the living room?” Robin asked.

  “Sounds good.”

  “Okay, man, what is it? You’re miles away right now.”

  Levi tapped a fingernail against his glass bottle. “Truth?”

  “Always.”

  He didn’t have to ask Robin to keep this a secret and not tell Shawn, or anyone else. Truth always was their shorthand. “I think I’ve got feelings for George Thompson.”

  Robin’s eyebrows crept up. “The shy twin who just babysat your cat for a week?”

  “Yes.”

  “Are you sure those feelings aren’t just a lot of gratitude for him rescuing Ginger and taking care of her for you?”

  “I don’t know. I think that’s part of it, yes, but there something about him that I find appealing. Maybe it’s his vulnerability, maybe it’s his kindness. Both? I like how I feel when I’m around him, and I’ve really loved our lunch dates. I definitely want to see him again.”

  “Lunch dates, huh?” Robin wiggled his eyebrows. “Does George know they were dates?”

  “You know what I mean.”

  “I know, sorry. Then hang out with him more. Get a better read on the guy. Is he gay? Bi?”

  “Not my place to say.” George had confided in him and Levi wouldn’t crap on that trust by outing him. “There have been moments where I thought he was looking at my lips, and he let me hug him today. I’m probably the first new person he’s hugged in years. He’s been so sheltered, Robin.”

  “You worried you’ve got too much experience, or something?”

  “Maybe. I did some really questionable things at the tail end of my...spiral. Stuff I barely talked about in rehab. I can’t imagine openin’ up to someone like George about all that ugly.”

  Robin thumped his knee. “Hey, I bet you and me have some similar ugly in our pasts. And for all intents and purposes, Shawn was pretty damned sheltered when we first got together. He listened when I talked. He accepted the stuff I’d done once, and he knew who I was in the present. If there’s something real between you and George? He’ll do the same thing.”

  “Maybe.” Levi didn’t usually doubt himself like this but something about George made him want t
o be as gentle and kind as possible.

  “You can tell me to fuck off, but man, did you catch something?”

  Levi shook his head. “I was lucky. Had a bad scare in the hospital while waiting for test results, but no. It’s not about that, I just...can’t explain it.”

  “Then maybe you should pursue it. See if there’s something between you.”

  “How? Bring him another sandwich with no real excuse other than I want to see him again?”

  Robin stared at him for several long moments before a smile spread across his face. “So don’t take him a sandwich. Take him something else that will help him test his comfort zones.”

  “Dude, I am not going over there for a booty call. He’d slam the door in my face.”

  “So not what I meant.”

  Curious what his friend had in mind, Levi leaned in closer. “Okay, good. Then what?”

  Chapter Seven

  George tried to work after Levi and Ginger left, but all he could do was stare at the indented carpet where the crate had once been. He already missed his coworker and it had been less than an hour. Part of him wanted to leave the apartment door open just to see if Lucky would wander inside, but he couldn’t do that and work in his bedroom. And the terms of the lease prevented him from adopting a cat of his own.

  One week. How had his life changed so dramatically in one week? He wanted a cat and couldn’t stop thinking about Levi and that hug. His smiles and odd mannerisms. His unique way of looking at the world.

  When Orry texted that he was on his way home with Chinese takeout for dinner, George realized he’d been staring into space for most of the afternoon. Since he’d accomplished nothing productive, he gave up. Shut down his program and went into the living room to read on his phone. Orry looked exhausted when he finally got home. He dumped his keys and the food on the coffee table and thumped down on the futon next to George.

  “Cat gone?”

  George grunted and reached for the bag of food, stomach already rumbling from the familiar scents. “Yeah, a few hours ago. Levi was thrilled to take her home.”

  “Excellent. Now I can sleep again.”

  “Her yowling wasn’t that bad.”

  “You wear noise canceling headphones all the time. Hand me the pot stickers.”

  George found the labeled carton and passed it over, along with a plastic cutlery set. He could manage with chopsticks but Orry had never bothered to try. George had wanted to learn when he was younger so he could catch flies with them like Mr. Miyagi in those old karate movies, and while he’d never caught a fly, he could eat fried rice with them. He found a carton of Black Pepper Chicken and went to town on it.

  “Where did you work today?” George asked between bites.

  “Ride share job. Might have to get the car checked soon. The engine is making a weird rattle sometimes and I don’t want it to affect my customer rating.”

  “Okay. You off the rest of the night?”

  “Nah, got a bartending shift that starts at eight.”

  “Oh.” Intellectually, George understood his brother worked all the time to help pay rent here, keep the car maintained, and cover any additional expenses their grandparents might have, but he also missed his brother. This was the first meal they’d shared in days.

  And he still hadn’t asked Orry about that mysterious shift on Thanksgiving night.

  “You know you can talk to me about anything, right?” George asked.

  Orry paused with a pot sticker right in front of his mouth. “Duh.” Then he shoved the whole thing in.

  “I just... I guess I feel like we don’t really talk much anymore.”

  “If I had anything interesting to share, I’d share. I mean, I could probably come up with some funny customer stories but I’m exhausted. After I eat, I’m going to power nap.”

  “Okay.” Disappointment swamped George, and he pushed it aside in favor of stealing a pot sticker out of Orry’s carton.

  Orry pretended to stab at his hand with his fork. “Thief!”

  “We always have joint custody of the pot stickers. You don’t get to hog them all.”

  “You’re annoying when you’re right.”

  They had a joint account for household expenses like rent, utility bills and food, and George insisted takeout fell under the food category. They both ate it, after all, so why should one or the other pay for it out of their personal money? The only time it didn’t count was if Orry was working and grabbed a solo meal. So far, the system had worked well for them for years.

  After they ate their fill, George volunteered to store the scant leftovers and sent Orry to take a nap. George tidied up, then stood in Orry’s bedroom doorway and watched his brother sleep. He didn’t completely buy that nothing was up, but it was also possible George was overthinking everything—as he often did—and that Orry was simply overworked and stressed out. Orry was so used to being the one who took care of George, and for too many years, George had relied on that. It was far beyond time that George step beyond his comfort zones and do more for his brother.

  He went back to his room, put on his headphones, and got to work.

  * * *

  The next day, George was deeply focused on transcribing a three-way fisting scene when he thought he heard the faintest of noises. Maybe the front doorbell, but he wasn’t expecting anyone, so he paid closer attention to the words coming out of the mouth of the guy who was punching his fist in and out of the bottom’s ass. Mostly words of pleasure and praise, but the bottom’s response was harder to decipher. George had a list of noise words to use from this particular studio, but none seemed quite appropriate for the sounds the poor bottom made.

  Orry was home—napping, George was pretty sure—and a bit later Orry filled his doorway. George paused the video and took off his headphones. “What?”

  “Door’s for you,” Orry said. “Your boyfriend’s back.”

  George blinked dumbly at him for several seconds.

  “It’s Levi,” Orry finally said. “He says he has something for you.”

  George nearly overturned his desk chair in his haste to stand, shocked to his core that Levi was back after only a day. Was something wrong with Ginger? Had he done something wrong? Forgotten the bag of treats?

  “Dude, relax,” Orry said, hands up. “He’s calm and I’m here. Go talk to him. Your porn can wait.”

  Annoyance burbled up inside George at the porn dig. It wasn’t as if he sat there and masturbated all day to the videos he transcribed. It was his freaking job. Whatever. George turned his computer screen off—just in case—then gently pushed past his brother and walked into the living room, his insides jumping all over the place the instant he set eyes on Levi.

  Levi stood a few feet beyond the front door, his familiar smile in place, and an envelope of some sort in his hand. George tried to downplay how happy he was to see Levi again and probably failed miserably. “Hi,” George said.

  “Hey.” Levi’s smile brightened. “I know it’s kind of soon, but I think I figured out a way to thank you and your brother for being so kind to Ginger this past week.”

  Of course, it’s about the cat.

  “Um, okay.” George beckoned Levi toward the futon, where Levi perched on one end; George did the same. “I volunteered. You don’t owe us anything.”

  “Yes, I do. When people do me favors I like to pay it forward somehow. Do something kind. Usually for someone else but I really wanted to do something for you.”

  Levi seemed intent on doing this something, so George nodded. “Okay.”

  “Here.” Levi handed him the envelope. No name on the front but it had Clean Slate Ranch’s logo on the upper left corner.

  Intrigued, George lifted the unsealed flap and pulled out two rectangles of paper. It took him a moment to understand what he was looking at. Two paid-for vouchers for a week’s vacation
at the ranch. His insides shook and his pulse raced. George pushed the vouchers at Levi. “No, I can’t. It’s too expensive.” And in his experience, expensive gifts led to bad things.

  “I got the family discount, and the regular rates aren’t as high as you think. It’s also winter and the business gets slow, so they drop the prices anyway. There will also be fewer other guests to interact with.”

  George met Levi’s gaze, impressed by how well Levi had read him again. He did want to experience the ranch and its amenities, and he’d never ridden a horse in his life. Or been camping or any of the other things he’d read about on their website. “I, um, I’m still not sure.” He glanced over his shoulder, unsurprised to see Orry hovering in the hall. “What do you think? He’s giving us a ranch vacation.”

  “I can’t,” Orry said flatly, the tone annoying George when Levi was being this generous. “I have to work. We can’t afford both of us not working for a whole week.”

  “I apologize if I overstepped,” Levi replied. “I didn’t even think about you being able to take time off work.”

  “That’s life, huh? If George wants to go, I can’t stop him. He’s a grown man. Thanks for the offer, dude, but I can’t go.”

  “Heard and understood. I’ll repay your patience and kindness another way.”

  “Whatever.” Orry rolled his eyes and disappeared down the hallway.

  “I’m sorry he was rude to you,” George said, a little embarrassed by his brother’s behavior when Levi was only being nice.

  “I’ve dealt with ruder tourists, it’s fine,” Levi replied. “Is there someone you want to give the second voucher to? Maybe one of your downstairs neighbors? I bet Slater would get a kick out of being a guest at the ranch, instead of one of the horsemen.”

  George smiled but he wasn’t sure about a vacation with Slater and a bunch of strangers. Besides, Slater probably wouldn’t want to do it. Dez might. Then the solution hit him solidly in the heart, and he knew exactly who would make him comfortable all week at the ranch. “You come with me.”