All About the Cowboy Box Set

A Cowboy For Keeps-3

Fifteen minutes later, the stew was done and ready to be served when Daniel walked into the kitchen. Apparently, he had at least a change of clothing in his backpack. He wore an old white T-shirt that molded to his sleek chest, sweatpants that hung from his hips, and his lovely, large feet were bare. Daniel’s hair was wet and combed. He definitely cleaned up well, though he still looked like the walking wounded. Definitely needs someone to take care of him, I thought. Out loud, I said, “Have a seat, Daniel.”

“Thanks,” he replied quietly. “And you can call me Danny, if you like.” He sat in the chair next to Ret. I placed some pain pills beside his bowl, along with a bottle of water. He gave me a tired smile as a thank you. Roscoe introduced himself and they shook hands across the table. Danny wasn’t as skittish as before about being touched. That was an improvement, at least.

“All right, folks. Dig in,” I said. That’s as close to a prayer as we ever got in this household.

While we ate, Ret gave us an update on the ranch in general. Then Roscoe mentioned the need for some household supplies. I’d have to make a run into town again soon. While I listened with one ear, I observed Danny as he inhaled his food in mere minutes. Seemed he hadn’t eaten in a while. He ate heartily, consuming at least two steaming bowls of stew and four rolls slathered with butter. Good thing Roscoe always made enough food for a herd.

Throughout the meal, Ret and Roscoe would feed each other—and sometimes me—and touch affectionately. They were definitely a couple, though I was always welcome as a part of their circle. I took full advantage of that, too. Danny watched the interplay between us with amusement, but didn’t say anything.

After a few complimentary burps to the cook, we all leaned back in our chairs, drinking beer and water.

Roscoe looked over at Danny. “Have we scared you off yet, man?” he asked with a friendly grin.

“Hardly,” Danny replied. “Were you trying to?”

“Nah. Just being ourselves. We’ve had people stay over who thought we were looney. They weren’t here long. I can see you’re a bird of a very pink feather.”

Danny snorted, water spraying everywhere. After he wiped his nose and mouth, he said, “I don’t advertise, but yeah.”

“Good to know,” Ret said with a leer.

“Ret.” I gave him a warning glance.

He just shrugged and blew me a kiss.

Now that we had eaten and Danny had relaxed around us, I was curious to see if he was ready to talk about how he’d ended up bruised and dusty on a sidewalk in town.

“You wanna tell us what happened to you, Danny?” I asked.

The relaxed smile he’d worn disappeared, and now he stared down at the bottle in his hand instead of us.

I hadn’t meant to upset him, so I tried another tack. “Hey, Roscoe? Tell Danny here how you ended up at this ranch.”

Danny looked up at me, then Roscoe, a little less tense now that the attention was away from him. Good call on my part, it appeared.

“Oh God. I was a train wreck.” Roscoe placed his beer bottle on the table and leaned on his elbows, rubbing his face with his hands.

Ret, who sat on Roscoe’s left, leaned in and pecked his cheek. “It’s okay, honey. We’re here for you, always.”

“I know, baby. Thank you.” Roscoe grabbed Ret’s chin and gave him a quick, hard kiss on the mouth. “So, a few years ago, I worked at a five star restaurant. Had a great job, boyfriend, the works. One day, I got home late—nothing unusual about that since I always worked long hours—and I found a note on the refrigerator from Brad. It said that he’d found somebody else who would put his needs first, and give him the attention he deserved. Guess he got tired of my work schedule, though he’d known what was up from the get go. I was real cut up about it, having given ten years of my life to that ungrateful bastard. I even hired a P.I. to find him, since he left town, and I wasn’t ready to let him go. In the end, the whole thing messed me up so bad, I lost my job, my house, and I became a drifter.

“A year ago, I happened to be hitchhiking ten miles from here, when Slim picked me up on the side of the road. Asked me where I was going. I said ‘nowhere.’ He took me back to this place, found out I could cook, and that was the end of it. He and Ret helped me through some tough times and drew me into their circle. I was real lucky he found me.” Roscoe reached out a hand to cover mine on the table.

I pulled his hand to my mouth and kissed the back of it.

“Your boyfriend left you because you weren’t around to fawn over him every waking minute? Sounds like a selfish prick to me,” Danny said.

I stared at Danny, surprised he contributed anything at all to the conversation.

“I agree with you, but it took me a long time to believe that,” Roscoe said.

“I, on the other hand, was hired by Slim to take care of the ranch some years ago.” Ret gave me a sly smile. “He looked like a stray when he came into town, wandering around the feed store, trying to figure out what to buy for horses and cows. He’d just bought this place from a couple looking to retire in Florida, and didn’t know the first thing about ranching. I thought he was earnest, clueless, and cute. I needed a new place to be, and greenhorn here needed a keeper.”

“I wasn’t that bad,” I complained.

“Yeah, sweetie, you were. But we love you all the same,” Ret teased.

“I’m not feeling much love at the moment, son.”

“I’ll make it up to you soon, don’t you worry.” Ret gave me a wicked smile and licked his lips.

“Ignore him,” I said to Danny. “He’s just showing off ‘cause we got company.” Danny glanced at each of us in turn, then took a deep breath. “…listening to you all makes me…” He sighed and shook his head.

“Makes you what, hon?” I prodded.

“I haven’t had anything like this—camaraderie, I guess—ever. I’ve lived in homeless shelters and halfway houses for years, worked odd jobs when I could. The last place I stayed, I got into a fight with couple of guys over some dumb s**t, and I decided I was tired of it all. I started walking. Got some rides along the way, paid with blowjobs, mostly. The last ride I got, guy tossed me out while I was sleeping as the pickup truck moved down the road near the town where Slim found me.”

“Jesus, man,” Roscoe said, aghast.

“Yup,” Danny replied, and gulped down the rest of his water.

“I know you have bruises on your face and arms. Anywhere else? Do you need a hospital?” I should have thought of that before.

“No, no. Just some down time. Once I’m feeling better, maybe I can do something around the ranch, pay you back for all you’ve done for me.”

“Don’t you worry about that,” I said. “You have a safe place to heal, if you want it. Take all the time you need, right, guys?”

“Absolutely!” Ret said.

“Yup,” Roscoe chimed in.

“See? We want you here.” I smiled at Danny. “And it helps that you like men, since we get real affectionate with each other, day or night, inside the house or in the barn. Just a heads up.”

That surprised a laugh out of Danny, and it made him look relaxed and carefree underneath all that wear and tear. “I think I can handle it. I’ve seen a lot of things in my time. There isn’t much that surprises me anymore. I even danced at a gay strip club, once upon a time.”

Roscoe and Ret whistled, hooted, and hollered until I told them to shut it.

“Sorry about them. They forget their home training at the first hint of s*x,” I said.

“Nothing I can’t handle. Though s*x for me won’t be anytime soon. I like to watch, though,” Danny added, with a wink.

My c**k perked up at that. “Do you, now?” Oh, this had possibilities.

“Indeed I do. All three of you can have your way with each other wherever and whenever you please. I’m content to just enjoy the show.”

“Hear that, boys?” I asked. “He wants a show! Best clean up and get the dishes done, quick.”