“Dammit, Ms. Cluck, can you stop pooping for one minute!” A shout rang out.
We turned our heads toward the porch. Opie had one hand on his hip, his brows scrunched in reproach as he wagged a finger at a hen.
“What in the world is going on?” Ozzie whispered.
“Ms. Cluck is Opie’s pet.” I took Ozzie by the arm. Nothing was wrong with that, right? It was just a casual touch, except I rubbed his skin with my finger.
“A hen as a pet?”
“Yup. That hen is the one thing he and Lawson fight about, even though I think Law has softened about that too.” I climbed the steps, keeping Ozzie behind me because the crazy hen could sometimes go into attack mode. She must have seen me two dozen times but still flew straight at me whenever her pea-sized brain registered my presence.
Sure enough, Ms. Cluck turned her beady eyes on us, fluffing her feathers as she clucked indignantly. Ozzie stared at the hen warily as I extended my hand to help him up the last step.
“Don’t worry, guys. She’s in a good mood today,” Opie said with a grin, ruffling her feathers. “Aren’t you, girl?”
“Opie, the last time you said that, I went home covered in pecks.”
“Hah!” Opie snorted. “Wasn’t that the time that rodeo cowboy Warren King rode into town? From my recollection, you would have been fine with the hen pecking you to within an inch of your life just to have King put ointment on your body.”
“I keep telling you King and I are just friends. Nobody wants to believe me.”
“Ozzie, I’ll ask you.” Opie slid his arm through Ozzie’s and walked him to the door. “If two men are friends, but they occasionally fuck. What do you call that?”
“Fuck buddies?”
“Exactly! I’m so glad you’re around to take my side, Ozzie. Please tell me you’ll stay forever.”
Ozzie’s laugh was high-pitched. “I wish I could. I love what I’ve seen of the town already.”
Opie waved a hand at me. “Gray, grab a beer from the fridge. Law’s out back fixing the chicken coop. He got mad I snuckMs. Cluck in last night and she ended up waking him in our bed. Don’t ask me how she did that, but just between us, it was messy.”
From his grin, I could hazard a guess. Normally, I was quick to find Lawson, but my feet seemed stuck to the ground. Would Ozzie feel comfortable with me leaving him alone?
“Jeez, Gray, I won’t be corrupting your son-in-law.” Opie rolled his eyes. “Just go on already.”
Ozzie nodded, his smile reassuring me he was at ease. “I’m looking forward to talking to Opie. I’ll be fine.”
“Yup, we need to discuss his wedding, and you ranchers are never interested in how we get to the altar as long as we get there, but don’t worry, Ozzie. You got me!”
As they entered the living room together, the tension released from my shoulders. Opie was a good person. Having him as a friend was exactly what Ozzie needed. Maybe if they spent enough time together, Opie might convince Ozzie how happy he was here, even though he grew up in the city.
Not that any of that mattered. Ozzie wasn’t mine. This was all pretend, and it would last just for the night.
I found Lawson in the backyard, hammer in hand and sweat soaking his shirt. He didn’t look up, too focused on the wooden structure that was steadily taking shape.
“Hey, Law,” I called out. He straightened up and wiped the sweat from his brow with the back of his hand.
“Gray, what’s up?”
“Thought I’d check on how things are.” And take Ozzie out while I was at it.
“We decided it was best to put down the affected cattle rather than to wait and see if it spreads to the others.”
“Man, I was hoping it wouldn’t come to that.”
“But better to lose a couple than the entire herd.”
“Well, if there’s anything I can do, let me know.”
