by Day, Xondra
“I never knew you were so big on education,” said Jay.
“It’s a fast growing world. It’s not like when I was growing up. Back then school wasn’t regarded for very much. At a certain age, we had to work. I had to help bring money in to feed my brothers and sisters. If I didn’t, we would have starved. My father was useless. He ran off and I went to work.”
“That’s understandable. I can respect that. You did what you had to do.”
“Enough of this chit-chat,” snapped Cal. “You best get on to the mess hall before Tuck closes it down for the night. That‘s one hell of a testy man.”
Jay nodded. He had a hankering for something filling, and a hot cup of coffee.
Chapter Five
“There isn’t much left. Just a bit of stew and biscuits.” Tuck was busy cleaning up when he strolled in. “You should have been here an hour ago when the rest were.”
“I apologise. I was at the new teacher’s house, doing repairs. I didn’t take note of the time until it was too late. Anything you have left would be good and much appreciated.”
“Go sit,” said Tuck. “I’ll bring you a plate. It’s a good thing I consider you a friend, otherwise you would be plum out of luck.”
Just as he had thought. The old man wasn’t as grizzled as he let on to be.
“And here you go. Enjoy.” Tuck placed a heaping plate on the table in front of him.
Jay’s stomach growled at the sight of it. When Tuck returned with a cup of steaming coffee, he thanked him.
“If you need anything else, just holler,” said Tuck, disappearing into the kitchen. “I’ll be washing up.”
After he finished, he ported the plate and mug back to the kitchen, and now all he wanted was the bed.
His leg throbbed on the way to the bunkhouse, but only once did he stop to rest it.
“You’re back.” It was Mark, looking mighty sexy with his shirt unbuttoned, revealing his smooth chest, his open shirt blowing slightly in the slight warm breeze which flowed over and around them.
“Only just.”
“I missed you at supper. I guessed you were busy.” He kicked at the dirt, stirring dust. “You wanna take a stroll before bed?”
“My leg, it’s busted. I fell through the roof today at the teacher’s house in town. The dang thing is rotted, much more than I first thought.”
A look of disappointment fell across Mark’s face. “Oh…okay. I just thought it would be nice to chat and stuff.”
Jay let out a sigh. How could he refuse? “Sure, but I can’t go far.”
Mark lit up like a firecracker. “Great. So, tell me what the new teacher’s like.”
“He’s nice.” They strolled together with no particular destination in mind. “But different from most of the men around these parts.”
“How do you mean? Like all smart and stuff?” asked Mark, appearing eager to know more.
“More than that. It’s the way he acts, carries himself. I think he might have come from money. You know how those folks are, with their manners and breeding.”
“If only I were so lucky. I would not be working my ass off here.”
“I don’t mind it. It’s not for everyone. You’ve been here for a little under a year now, right?”
Mark nodded. “Just about. I came here a month after my father died. The bastard left us penniless and in debt. We lost the farm, the livestock, everything.” Mark raised his voice, his cheeks turning crimson. “My mother went to live with my aunt, her sister. So, here I am.”
“I’m sorry, I didn’t know.” They stopped walking. “If there’s anything I can do, just let me know.”
Mark grabbed his hand and placed it around his waist. “This is what I want, this is what I like. This makes me feel good. But I can’t have it, not the way I want it. I could easily love you, Jay. I could love you more than anyone else in the world.”
Love. The word was foreign to him. No one had ever said it to him before. It was odd hearing it directed at him. Mark was just a kid, a kid who was not only desperate to fit in, but also extremely confused.
“Love is a very strong word. Are you sure you know what it really means and entails?”
“Jay, when I see you, I light up inside. All day, I waited for you to get back. That tells me it’s right.” Mark pressed against him.
“It can’t happen. You and I know it. Not here, not at Buckshot. They’d lynch us if they knew. That won’t ever change.” It was a hard reality to face. But every word he spoke rang with unabashed truth.
“Then we can leave, together,” suggested Mark. “I need you.”
“This isn’t right.” Jay pushed him away. “It isn’t because I don’t like you. But you run the risk of getting me fired. I need this job. It may mean nothing to you but it’s all I have. I can’t allow you to put that in jeopardy.”
“Be damned with them all,” cursed Mark. “I’m sick of letting the thoughts and morals of others ruin my life. Is it so bad to love? Is it so bad to want to be loved, even if it’s by another man?”
“No! I don’t know, and that’s totally not what I’m saying. I’m just telling you the reality of it all, Mark. You’re young. You have your whole life ahead of you and you have the right to do whatever you want with it. You do have to realise that there can be certain consequences to your actions. Maybe in a hundred years or so, things will change. We can all hope for that, but for now, we have to face what we have right here and now, in front of us.”
“I’m not that young. I’m not a kid. Hell, I was doing a man’s work when I was twelve.”
Jay leant back against the railing of a fence. Two mares raced inside the corral. “I’m ten years older than you. I think of you highly, as a friend. You’re a good guy but—”
“You don’t see me as anything more than a fuck,” finished Mark. “I’m not mad, just disappointed. I was hoping to find something with you. It’s so damned hard being this way. With you, all the loneliness went away and it was great finding someone like myself.”
“Bud, I’m not going anywhere. We can still talk and hang out.”
“I guess. Yet, it’s different now. It might be best if we both moved on. Buckshot isn’t for me, I don’t want this life. I want more and that isn’t happening if I remain here.”
“Then go for it. Where will you go?” asked Jay.
“The city. I’ve heard some good things about Dawson’s Ridge. One of the other guys said there is lots of work to be had if you want it. Who knows, I might actually meet that someone special. There has to be more of us out there.”
“I wish you the best of luck. I hope you find everything you want.” Jay looked to the horses. This was always the way, hiding. He hated it and silently cursed the heavens for allowing him to be born this way. Maybe he really was damned by Satan. His father certainly seemed to think so.
“Come on, it’s late and we both need some sleep.” Jay placed his arms around Mark. “You’re going to have to help me back. My leg has gone ahead and stiffened on me. It hurts like a son of a bitch.”
“You’re a good man, Jay. I want you to know that. And thank you for caring.”
* * * *
He had made a mess of things now. Will lay in bed and attempted to read, but the words didn’t interest him.
“Fool,” he muttered. “How could you be so darned stupid?”
Not even here a week, and already he crossed a line that he swore he would never cross again.
Jay was so hard to resist laying there naked, vulnerable and looking hotter than sin. Now he couldn’t erase the hot cowboy from his thoughts. Just thinking about him made his cock stiff, yet there was more to it than he wanted to admit.
The sensible thing to do would be to forget what had happened, to forget everything that had occurred between them and go back to the rules he’d enforced upon himself. In the morning when Jay came, he’d tell him it was a one-time thing and it would never happen again. In fact, he’d apologise for his appalling behaviour. Chances
were, Jay would go right along with him and all would be forgiven and forgotten. At least, that was his hope.
Chapter Six
Steven sat in his office listening to the private detective he’d hired to search for Will, each word the man spoke sinking in slowly.
“Mr Jon is located in a small town west of here. I’ve jotted all the needed information down that you requested.” The detective slid an envelope across his desk.
“Thanks.” He handed the detective another envelope, payment for services rendered. “Your fee. And thanks for being fast.”
The man nodded and left.
Steven thumbed through the contents and silently admonished himself for placing Will and himself in this terrible situation.
Tomorrow, he’d catch the next stage out and find Will to tell him how much he loved him and that he wanted him to come back to him and the academy. He needed Will and it wasn’t until he’d gone that Steven had truly realised that.
Marrying a woman had been an unfortunate, stupid mistake. It had all been done in haste and now he found himself attached to someone he had no desire for in a most awkward situation.
Jane was pleasant enough and attractive. But it wasn’t enough. They were more like friends than husband and wife. And when she’d shown little interest in anything physical between them, he’d been relieved.
A divorce. That’s what he needed. It just might remedy everything that had gone wrong from his bad choices.
Again his mind went to Will. No, sir. This time he wasn’t letting go. No matter the consequences.
* * * *
Will rose with the rising sun. It was another day and time to start anew. The stress from the night before had subsided, and now he wanted to get on with the repairs to the house.
A knock pounded against the front door just as he was about to take a sip from his first cup of coffee. Even before answering, he knew it was Jay. He inhaled deep, opening it.
“You’re early,” he said, greeting the man.
“Yeah. I figured since there is so much to be done that I would get an early start. With the bummed leg, I’m going to be somewhat slow.” Jay shuffled awkwardly from side to side.
“Forgive me for being so rude, please, come in. I just made coffee. Would you like a cup?”
Jay nodded. “Thanks.”
They sat in the kitchen at the small table and respectively sipped their coffees. Each stealing little glances at the other.
“I’ve done some thinking,” said Will, starting the conversation. “What we did yesterday, I’m sorry to have put you in that situation. Things happen, and it’s easy to get caught within the moment.”
“You regret it, is that what you’re saying?” asked Jay. “Did I do something wrong? Did I put you off?”
“You didn’t do anything. I just can’t complicate my life right now. I came here for a fresh start, and some mistakes cannot bear repeating.”
“I see. I’m a mistake.” Jay stood. “I’ll be up on the roof if you need me.” He strode out of the house, slamming the door behind him.
Will started to follow him but stopped. He’d best leave it alone.
* * * *
If Jay could have kicked himself in the ass, he would have done it right then and there.
He had no regrets about what they did. He liked Will, a lot. And as mad as he was at this time, he still didn’t hold any malice towards him.
By noon, he had removed all of the old rotted wood and started in on the replacement areas.
Will hadn’t ventured outside and when he took a break from working to eat his lunch, he figured he’d be the bigger man and extend his hand back in a gesture of friendship.
Two knocks and Will answered.
“I’m sorry for storming out earlier,” he muttered, his eyes cast down on his boots.
“It’s okay.” Will stepped out from the house beside him.
“No, it’s not. I’m truly sorry.”
Jay felt Will’s hand slip to the small of his back. “I accept your apology, but only if you accept mine. I’m rather messed up and I’m not sure if I know what I’m saying or feeling half the time.”
“You have nothing to be sorry about.”
“Maybe…but we’re friends, or I would like to think we are. Friends treat each other with a certain amount of respect.”
“And honesty,” added Jay. “I liked what we did. When I look at you, I feel something. Right now, I want to take you inside that door and do it all over again.” He waited for Will’s response and reaction. “I know you want it too. I see the way you’re looking at me now. It’s still there, that same feeling. You want me, don’t deny it. You want me just as much as I want you.” Jay reached for his hand. “Come inside.”
* * * *
Will shuddered when Jay’s tongue connected with his right nipple. Shirtless, he looked like a God—a God from some book on ancient mythology. And now in bed together, they embraced.
“How could you ever say that this was a mistake?” asked Jay, looking at him, a wry grin adorning his lips. “This could never be a mistake, not in this lifetime.”
Will gasped as Jay snaked his tongue across his torso then further down, found him throbbing and waiting. He guided Jay along, gripping his firm shoulders.
Jay was correct. Try as he might, he couldn’t deny the chemistry between them. It felt right. They had something, something he’d never felt with Steven.
Pulling away, Will slid onto his stomach, arching his butt in the air. Jay licked the back of his neck and he shivered with anticipation.
“Tell me you want me,” said Jay. “Tell me how much you want me doing naughty things to you.”
“I want you,” he replied.
“How much?”
“More than anyone…ever.” It was true, he ached for Jay.
“You’re my boy.”
He yelped when Jay pushed inside his ass. “Yes, I’m yours. Do me, please, with that big cock.”
“Beg.”
“Please, fuck me hard. Give it to me, I need it.” Jay quickened his pace, while Will’s tight hole clamped around the slab of manhood filling him.
“Turn over.” Jay grabbed him by the hips, flipping him over. “I want to see you while I fuck you.”
Face to face, they kissed.
Jay went deeper and something inside him let loose. In a hot burst of molten fire, he exploded, his orgasm rocking him, causing him to cry out.
“Fuck,” yelled Jay. “You’re making me come.” He grunted then yelled again. “That’s it baby. Take it, take every inch of me.”
“Wow, just wow!” said Will. “I don’t smoke, but I swear, if I had one right now I would.”
“You’re cute when you get that look.”
“What look?” asked Will.
“That ‘thinking’ look. That line crosses your forehead, and, well…it’s cute.”
“Don’t be silly. You’re just saying that.”
Jay kissed him, hard. “I always mean every word I say.”
* * * *
Steven detested travelling, and this stagecoach was proving to be the most uncomfortable ride of his life.
Shut up, his mind screamed, as the woman who sat across from him tried to start a conversation. He had no interest in learning anything about her or her soon-to-be-married daughter. Perhaps if he closed his eyes and pretended to sleep, she’d give up.
“Oh dear,” she sputtered, bringing a white handkerchief to her nose. “The dust always gets to me. I must be boring you with my chatter.”
He nodded and smiled through gritted teeth. Sometimes it was better to say nothing.
When he reached his final destination, he was more than ready to step back into the world again.
“And here you are, sir,” said the driver, tossing his bags to the ground.
“Be careful with that! Is this it?” he asked, looking around at the dust bowl that masqueraded as a town.
The driver responded with a smirk then drove off, leaving
him standing in the middle of what he guessed was a road.
“Are you lost?” An elderly man approached him.
“Yes and no. I need a place to stay for a couple days.”
“Mrs O’neil just up yonder. She rents rooms.” The elderly man pointed with one bony finger. “Down that way. The yellow house with the rose bushes. You can’t miss it.”
“Thanks,” Steven replied with a nod, grabbed his bags and headed off in the direction the man had indicated.
* * * *
At six he was done for the day. Not a bad day’s work for someone who had been side-tracked. Jay snickered to himself and looked up at the cloudy evening sky. Rain. He could smell it in the air. He gathered his tools and knocked on the front door to tell Will he was heading back to the ranch.
“All done?” asked Will.
“For today. There’s going to be rain, but you should do okay.” He grabbed Will and moved in to kiss him. “I never tire of this. If only I didn’t have to go. I’d take you to bed right away.”
“Really?” scoffed Will. “What makes you think I’d go so easily?”
“Don’t be coy, mister. I know what you like.”
“I’m easy…easy to read.”
“Like a book.” It was a smart retort. He hugged Will. “I’ll see you in the morning.”
“You can count on it. I’ll have coffee waiting when you get here.”
They kissed one last time then he was off to Buckshot.
* * * *
It was just a little after nine when Will decided to go to bed. He started to unbutton his shirt when a knock on the door interrupted him. Who would come calling at this hour? It wasn’t Jay, and he knew no one else.
He fell back in disbelief when he opened the door. Steven.
