Colton
The dog had gone out, the coffee was brewing, and Colton rooted through the fridge to figure out breakfast. He couldn’t speak for Zach, but he’d worked up a helluva appetite last night.
Good Lord, that boy was a tornado in bed. If a man could die from too much fucking, Colton might end up with that on his tombstone. As much fun as it would be killing himself, he’d always hoped for something more heroic than ‘fucked himself to death with the hottest little ass in Montana.’
He was still laughing at his joke when Zach walked into the kitchen in just his boxers. Lord help him, if Zach wanted to do it again, Colton might have to raise the white flag and admit Zach had worn him out.
“Hey, handsome,” Zach winked and sat gingerly on the folding chair. “I might have been a bit overambitious last night.”
Colton liked the way Zach called him handsome, and he didn’t sound too upset. “Well, I’m not too proud to admit you wore me out good. I’m gonna need a day off to recover from that night.” They laughed, and an easy silence filled the kitchen.
The chair creaked as Zach pushed himself up. “I’m going to shower, but I came down to thank you for the most amazingnight of my life.” He threw his arms around Colton’s neck, leaned up and kissed him gently on the lips.
This wasn’t a prelude to getting it on again, it was a soft, beautiful moment between two people who cared about each other. “The first of many,” Colton said.
“God I hope so,” Zach said with so much conviction. He smiled, nicked a last peck, and moved that amazing ass off to get a shower.
Lord have mercy, Colton was hooked but good.
He ended up admitting defeat on the breakfast front and making a PB and J, leaving the ingredients out for Zach to do the same, and then he went to sit out on his front porch and watch Barley hunt grasshoppers. There was precious little that was funnier than watching that beast pounce and bite, chomping down and getting wings stuck in his teeth.
He plopped his butt down on the rickety chair, shaking his head. Lord, he was going to get him one of them fancy-assed cushioned seat things. He grinned. Well, he’d have to get it for Zach’s poor butt.
He checked his phone, sent Ted and Greg an all-is-well text, and then peeked at the weather. Looked like a decent day—hot, humid, and sunny. Must be summertime.
Damn.
A plume of dust, too close to be actually in the distance made him frown. What the actual fuck? It wasn’t that dry, so someone was moving fast and with purpose.
He stood up, frowning as the dust devil came closer and closer. His gut told him something was up. Colton trusted his gut.
He grabbed his coffee cup and headed inside, locking the door and sprinting upstairs for a better vantage point. Peering down from the big window at the top of the stairs, he could tell it was mechanical, fast, and heading for them. Dammit.
“Get your shit together, man. Now.” He grabbed the rifle from the corner and got a bead on the side-by-sides, and the armed assholes coming at them.
Fuck, that big bay window cost him a fortune. He went into the second bedroom, grabbed the nine millimeter he’d put in the room and set it beside him. Cracking the window, he lined up a shot and laid down a line of warning fire where the assholes would see it.
Then his damn phone started ringing. “Dammit, Zach! Come on!” He slapped at his phone. “What?”
“You got company coming, Scrap!” Greg said, sounding almost as scared as Colton felt. “You need to get the hell out of Dodge.”
Like he didn’t fucking know it. He went with a second warning spray, and the little fuckers didn’t care. Dammit, he didn’t want to shoot them, but this was his home, his land, and he would defend it. “Too late. Already shooting. Get your ass over here with the guys, would you?”
“I’m coming, Scrap. Don’t get your ass shot, you hear?” The rev of a motorcycle drowned out the rest of Greg’s words.
The cavalry was coming, but it wasn’t going to make it in time. “Don’t plan on getting any part of me shot.”
The line went dead, and Zach burst in the room. “Colton?”
Colton picked up the pistol and held it out. “I need you to take this and hide in the other small bedroom.”
“No way. This is my fight too.”
Oh, no. Don’t go getting stubborn on me. “Honey, I love you, I truly do, but you can’t help me. I got this, and I got help on the way.” All he needed to do was hold them off long enough for them to arrive. No small ask. “You keep your head down and wait for me to say all clear. If you hear me say anything else, it means trouble is coming and you need to be ready.”
“What?”
“Trust me. It’s code. All clear and nothing else, you got it?”
