Page 23 of Haunted Spurs

The hat.

The mask in the shadows.

Those sweat-slicked abs.

Ron.

I inhale, running a hand through my hair, fighting not to give myself away.

“Mhm-hm?” she singsongs through the phone. She knows she caught me.

I let out a long, defeated sigh.

“Listen, cut it out,” she continues, her voice suddenly much softer and sincere. “Enjoy the moment, Selene. Soak up as much inspiration as you can. Feel alive again. Not all men are certified assholes out to screw you over, you know?”

Here we go again. Could she have spared me the psychological monologue? Of course not.

I don’t answer. I just let a low, annoyed groan slip from my throat, pacing the room again.

“Anyway, all jokes aside, what you wrote is really, really good. The atmosphere is insanely thick. It totally brings back your Lord Duke, Take My Soul era. Something truly great could come out of this if you keep going like this.”

Well… at least that’s something.

As I process the compliment, I suddenly feel my shoulders relax. I stop in front of the window, only now realizing how tense they’d been.

I thank her, promise to send her more material as soon as I write it, and hang up, collapsing heavily onto my bed.

I wake my phone back up. There’s a notification waiting in my chat with Ron.

It’s a video.

I open it, and the shaky image of Ollie pops up on the screen. The Labrador is sitting on the floor, wagging his tail. And clamped firmly in his mouth is his walking harness, offering it up to the camera with a look of pure canine adoration.

New-cowboy: See? He misses you.

I can’t remember the last time someone managed to cheer me up. Is it really any wonder that this damn new-cowboy and his relentless optimism can actually make me smile?

8

One Grump and Two Hunks

Ron

I grab the rough twine wrapped around the hay bale, bend my knees, and with one fluid motion, heft the golden bale and chuck it into the bed of Levi's pickup. A drop of sweat slides down my temple, disappearing under the collar of my gray t-shirt, which is already darkened with sweat.

"Keeping in shape?" Levi teases, leaning against the tailgate. The sleeves of his flannel are rolled up, showing off his toned arms.

I wipe my forehead with the back of my hand, grinning. "Hey, I just became a cowboy. I can't afford to lose my edge already."

Levi bursts out laughing.

A few feet away from us, Grant lets out one of his trademark, deeply disapproving grunts as he shifts a bale to line it up with the others.

We are quite the group.

Since I've been temporarily evicted from my own ranch, I came over to give Levi a hand with the hay.

I turn to Grant, planting my hands on my hips. "Hey, grumpy, just so you know, we didn't actually ask you to come help us," I poke at him.