Lips pressed into a thin line, Daisy stares over at me with a ‘you gotta be joking’ expression on her face. “Because it’s you,” she replies plainly. “You don’t do anything unless you gain something out of it, and you certainly don’t do continuous hook-ups with the same person.”
I mean…she’s not wrong. At least, not usually.
“I don’t have an angle, Daisy. We’re two guys having fun on the road. That’s all.”
She opens her mouth, only to snap it closed a moment later. Taking a drink of her coffee, she stares out into the yard. Conrad is going in and out of the barn in the distance. Finally, she says, “It may be just having fun for you, but please just be careful with him. He’s… inexperienced.”
My eyebrows knit together at that. “I figured he was kind of inexperienced, but it’s fine, Daisy. You act like what we’re doing is nonconsensual or something. Relax. He’s a grown man. He can take care of himself, sis.”
She’s being fucking weird, and I don’t know if it’s the hangover or her tone that’s pissing me off, but the longer I sit here with her, the more irritated I become.
Letting out a disgruntled sigh, Daisy says, “You’re such a hard-headed jackass sometimes, you know that?”
“And you’re a nosy fucking bitch sometimes,” I toss back, giving her the finger.
She throws her hands up in the air, rolling her eyes as she raises off the chair. “I don’t know why I even bother. It’s not like you give a shit about anybody but yourself.”
Laughter bubbles out of me as I watch her storm back into the house. She’s so fucking dramatic, I swear to God. I light upanother cigarette, smoking it while I finish the rest of my coffee. A boiling hot shower and a change of clothes sounds nice, but I’m pretty sure Whit went home last night, and he was my ride, so I need to find another way home.
Could’ve asked Daisy, but now I’d rather not.
Standing up out of the rocking chair, I raise my arms over my head, loving the feeling of my tired, achy muscles stretching. I step off the porch and cross the yard, heading toward the barn. Conrad is loading something in the back of his pickup truck, but I can’t make out what.
He glances up when he hears me walk over. “Good morning, Shooter.”
“Morning,” I grumble, rubbing a hand over my head. “Working on a Saturday?”
“The ranch don’t slow down for weekends,” he states matter-of-factly as he shuts the tailgate. “Animals gotta eat, chores gotta get done, no matter what day of the week it is.”
“Fair enough. You heading into town any time soon?”
He folds his arms over his chest. “In about twenty minutes. Why, need a ride?”
“Yeah. Whit drove me here, but he left last night.”
Conrad gives me a terse nod. “Give me a bit to finish what I’m doing. I’ll come get you when I’m ready to leave.”
“Cool. Thanks, man.”
I head back inside, in search of some more coffee and maybe something to eat to help soak up this fucking hangover. Stepping through the backdoor, I find Cope in the kitchen, frying some bacon and eggs. He’s in a pair of black boxers and a wife beater, barefoot, with a headband holding his curly hair out of his face, looking like he owns the place.
Glancing over as I walk in, a grin splits his face. “Hey, man. Hungry?”
“Starving,” I reply. “And you look fucking ridiculous, man.”
Laughing, he shoulder checks me as I pass him to get to the coffeepot. “And why’s that?”
Using my hand to gesture over his body, I say, “Who walks around in somebody else’s house, with a house full of people, in their underwear?”
Cope glances down, like he’s just taking in the state of his undress for the first time. “Why not? The fly on my boxers is buttoned, so it’s not like anyone’s going to see my dick.”
“Whatever you say, man.” I laugh, taking a sip of the hot coffee. “You seen Sterling?”
“Uh, yeah, last I saw him, he was on the front porch with Daisy.”
Of course, he was.
I’d like to be able to talk to him at least a little bit before I go home since he practically ran out on me last night, and I haven’t seen him since.
