Grant turned around and tipped his black cowboy hat up. “Well, look what the barn cat dragged in. Jace Austin. Coming to the muck out the stalls for me?”
Jace sniffed. “I’m not even sure I know what mucking stalls means, but I think I’ll pass on anything with the word muck involved.”
“Smart man,” Charli said, giving the pretty brown mare she’d been trying to saddle a pat.
Jace leaned against the low fence. “Sorry to interrupt. I didn’t realize y’all were in the middle of pony play.”
“Now there’s an idea,” Grant said, sending Charli a lazy grin. “Maybe the best way to show you how to saddle a horse is to saddle you.”
She gave Grant the same look Evan had given Jace this morning when he’d asked her to stay home from work and rest. “Just try it, cowboy. See who ends up wearing a saddle and a tail.”
Grant chuckled and adjusted his hat. “Freckles, you know I’d let you ride me anywhere, anytime.”
Charli snorted but Jace didn’t miss the flirty humor in her eyes. She turned back to the horse and rubbed her flank. “Come on, Molly, you’ve suffered enough of my attempts today. Let’s go find some carrots.”
The horse chuffed as if she fully understood and let Charli lead her toward the stables. Grant watched them go with a smile, then turned back to Jace. “So what’s going on? I know you didn’t come out here for riding lessons.”
“Nah, not today. I brought a box of sample items from Wicked for you and the other members to try out. Our newest location has a lot more floor space for inventory, but I don’t want to order new things without getting some feedback first.”
Grant crossed his arms over his chest. “You don’t want to test them out with Evan and Andre?”
“Oh, I kept my own box,” he said, laughing. “But there are some things that aren’t really in our wheelhouse. And I like to get multiple opinions. There’s also a flogger from this new artisan I’ve been working with. His stuff seems very high quality, but I want to make sure it’s durable after regular use. So I got one for me and I put one in there for you to test out—deer hide, really thick falls, solid handle. Should give a nice, thuddy feel.”
“Excellent. Thanks.”
“Yeah, no problem. Let me know what you think once you take it for a few test runs.”
Because he had no doubt Grant would. The Ranch was one of the biggest clients of Jace’s adult store, Wicked, but Grant’s large orders weren’t just for the resort. The man liked his toys now that he had the lovely Charli to play with.
“Any pony gear in that box?” Grant asked, wryness in his tone.
“No, but I could send some stuff over. There’s a real pretty tail with a vibrating plug.”
Grant glanced toward the stables and smiled. “Do. She knows when she says no way to something, that’s just going to make me more interested in doing it.”
Jace laughed. “Sadist.”
“Mmm,” he said in agreement. “So what else are you out here for? You look like a man on a mission.”
Jace propped his foot on the lowest cross plank of the fence. “I’m here for a favor.”
Unlike most people who had that initial wary reaction when anyone asked for a favor, Grant didn’t even blink at the request. “Shoot.”
“You still have that cabin up in Tahoe?”
He nodded. “I do.”
“Is it rented out? I know it’s the start of ski season, so if it’s taken, no worries. But if it’s not, I wanted to see if I could rent it for a week. Evan’s been working way too much and both Andre and I have had a busy few months, too, so I think we could all use the getaway.”
And he knew Grant’s cabin would be equipped with everything they could need for a fun, relaxing, and kinky vacation.
“Yeah, sure. It’s all yours. And don’t worry about paying for it. I don’t rent it out. I only use it for myself or lend it out to trusted friends.”
Jace smiled. “Awesome. Then the box o’ pony kink is definitely on the house.”
Grant shook his head and rubbed his scruffy jaw. “Hell, she’s going to fucking kill me.”
Jace clapped the big cowboy on his shoulder. “Yee haw.”
Grant sniffed and walked over to the fence. He planted a boot on the wood and vaulted over it. “Come on, the key to the cabin is in my office. I’ll walk you up there. Charli will be brushing down Molly for a while anyway. She’s still a nervous rider, but she loves spending time with the animals.”
“Sounds good.”
And it would give Jace the chance to talk to Grant about the even bigger favor he needed. Andre had gotten him thinking last night, and now an idea wouldn’t let go of him.
He smiled to himself. Evan and Andre would never see this one coming.
***
Evan rubbed her eyes before she went back to clicking through the filters in her photo editing program, trying to shake off the afternoon slump. The shots from the wedding had come out great, but the processing was where the magic happened. She’d been working her way through the photos for the last couple of days and only had a few left. She selected a pale yellow filter for the shot of the flower girl coming down the aisle and tossing petals straight up above her head. The ceremony had been held in the botanical gardens and the filter nudged the picture from pretty to sun-kissed and straight-up gorgeous.
Evan smiled at the pure exuberance on the little girl’s face and felt a pang in her chest. The long blond hair and bright eyes reminded her of a picture she’d received in the mail many years ago of her own daughter playing in a wildflower field. Dahlia was twelve now and happily living in Oklahoma with her adoptive parents, which was for the best. When Evan had gotten unexpectedly pregnant as a teen, she’d been in no condition to raise a baby. But it didn’t mean she didn’t still get that knocking in her chest when she thought of her, especially now that she was back together with Jace, Dahlia’s father.
She and Jace had visited Dahlia a few months ago. It’d been Jace’s first time seeing his daughter, and Evan teared up anytime she thought about it too long. The guilt she felt about never having told Jace about Dahlia until last year sat heavy on her still. She and Jace had been pulled apart before she’d ever known she was pregnant, but she could’ve worked harder to get the information to him. She’d wanted to spare him. She’d thought it would ruin his life. But it hadn’t been her call to make. And when she’d seen Jace, the guy always quick with a joke or a smile, break down and weep after seeing Dahlia, Evan had felt like she’d personally ripped his heart out again.
“Hey, whoa, what’s wrong?”
Evan looked up, finding her assistant Finn staring down at her with big, concerned eyes. “Huh?”
He glanced at the photo on her screen then back to her and touched his cheek. “You’re crying, hon.”
She put her hands to her face and, sure enough, her cheeks were wet. “Dammit.”
Finn reached over to pull a tissue from the box on her desk and handed it to her. “Everything all right?”
She dabbed at the tears and waved a dismissive hand. “Yeah, I’m fine. I’m not sure what’s wrong with me. I’ve been so sleepy all day, and I think continuing to stare at this screen is making my eyes water.”
Finn frowned and pushed his shoulder-length black hair behind his ears. “You need to tell those hot men of yours to give you a night off and let you get some rest. Though, I can’t say I blame you for being unable to turn them down. You know, if you want me