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After a few minutes, Richard slid the boot box and socks onto the counter next to me with a mumbled thanks before turning around and busying himself with a nearby rack of fly masks. I paid Shirley and thanked her for everything before stacking the purchases under my arm and following Richard out of the store. We hopped in the truck to drive the few blocks to the feed store, but before I could even put the truck in reverse, Richard was asking more questions.
“Why do they sell BDSM stuff in there?”
It took me a minute for his words to hit my brain, and then I damned near backed into Oliver Jacobs’s plumbing van. “Shit,” I said, slamming on the brakes before shifting into drive and moving out onto the street. “Not all leather strapping is BDSM gear. Around these parts, I’d imagine most of it’s horse tack, especially when you’re in a tack store.”
He pursed his lips. “If that’s what you people wanna call it, that’s cool, but I know a puppy-play mask when I see one.”
“Those were fly masks. For horses. They’re meant to keep the flies from—” I broke off when Richard doubled over with laughter that said he’d been putting me on.
“Oh, god, the look on your face, Boone,” he crowed, wiping tears from his eyes.
I didn’t find it particularly funny. “You’re a child.”
“No, sir. I’m twenty-nine. But that doesn’t mean I can’t also appreciate a good joke. You should try it sometime. Laughter is good for you.” Then he added under his breath, “Orgasms are even better.”
Just the word out of his mouth made my dick perk up and take notice. I cleared my throat and pretended I hadn’t heard it. Maybe changing the subject would help. “So, how do you know Oscar?”
Richard’s smile dropped. “Long story.”
We pulled into the feed store, which gave him a temporary reprieve, but when we got back in the truck after loading it down with the necessary supplies from town, I turned to him again.
“Is thirty minutes on a lonely highway enough time for your long story?”
Richard leaned his seat back and got comfortable, closing his eyes like he was going to actually nap this time. “Fine, but I’m going to need an iced coffee for this. Can you swing me through a Starbucks?”
I hit the blinker and made my way to the McDonald’s drive-thru. When the woman’s voice came over the speaker, Richard opened his eyes, saw where we were, and sighed again.
“Better add chocolate chip cookies if I’m going to lower myself to eat at McDonald’s.”
I gritted my teeth against snapping at this selfish, entitled, snobby bastard.
And then I ordered him the damned cookies.
6
RICHARD
Boone Hammond was everything I’d never, ever wanted…
So why the hell was I attracted to his every grunt and grumble?
I decided it had to be a side effect of exhaustion, so I took a sip of the iced mocha and let the cool sweetness slide down my throat. I hoped the caffeine would perk my brain up and calm my dick down.
“You were going to tell me about how you knew Oscar,” Boone prompted. “He mentioned you dated one of his exes.”
“Yep.” I took another sip of coffee. “I dated his friend James.”
Boone turned to me in surprise. “You? You dated James Allen? The straight-laced attorney who… wait.” He frowned. “Isn’t James around my age?”
I tilted my head at him, my eyes sweeping over his face. That he was older than me was obvious, but his exact age was difficult to pinpoint. His features were rugged, likely from years spent outside in the sun without proper skin protection. There were laugh lines in the corners of his eyes and a dusting of gray in the hair along his temples. My gut cramped with want, but I ignored it. “Depends. How old are you?”
He made a noise of discontent and refrained from responding.
I shrugged. “I guess he’s around your age. Fifty-two,” I said casually, glancing out the window.
From the corner of my eye, I saw his mouth drop open before he spluttered, “I’m forty-one, for god’s sake. And what the hell… wait. James isn’t fifty-two.”
“No, I guess not,” I said with a sniff. “Shame. Men under fifty are so immature.”
Boone clenched his jaw. Late-day stubble bristled, making my fingers itch to touch it. I could just imagine the rough scrape of it on my skin, followed by the soothing caress of his lips. I traced the line of his jaw with my eyes, down the corded muscle of his neck to the tantalizing hint of paler skin exposed by the vee of his shirt. I wanted to reach across and flick open the buttons of his shirt, revealing more of him to feast my eyes upon.
I blinked and tried not to mentally undress my employer. “Anyway, yes. James and I didn’t have much in common in the end, but…” I let out a breath. “But I really liked him. He was steady and calm and kind. Thoughtful and…” I remembered where I was and the fact I didn’t know Boone at all. He was friends with Oscar, which meant everything I said would probably get back to the man. “And really fucking good in bed. But I digress. The point is I dated him.”
