Play It Safe(107)

“Keep calm, Gray,” Lenny whispered.

“Fuck calm!” Gray suddenly exploded and I got closer to him as Lenny’s officers got closer to Lenny. “Did you not f**kin’ hear me?” Gray asked. “Half the goddamned barn collapsed with me and Ivey in it!”

“I hear you son, but let me do my work,” Lenny replied.

“Yeah, you do your work,” Gray shot back. “You got one last f**kin’ chance to do your f**kin’ work.”

As he was saying this, headlights bounced up the drive and all eyes turned to look.

Earlier, even though they had motion sensors, I had run into the house to turn on all the outside lights. We were on a ranch in the middle of nowhere but Cody men weren’t stupid. The middle of nowhere could still hold dangers, evidenced by a now destroyed barn. There were a lot of outside lights that shown all around the house so the space close to the house and then some was brightly illuminated. Therefore, as the shiny, long-cab pickup stopped close and the engine died, I saw it.

I also saw a man get out of it and I knew instantly he was a rancher seeing as it was the dead of night and he was still in a western-style shirt, Wranglers, cowboy boots with his own tattered baseball hat on his head.

“Fuck me,” Lenny muttered and the officers and him all moved fast as I belatedly felt the vibes rolling off Gray.

Really bad vibes had been rolling off him but now they burned so hot they scorched.

I got closer, took his hand and the minute I did his fingers closed around mine tight. It could be they did this because he was glad I had fingers to hold onto. It could be, from what I was getting from him, he did this because he needed to hold onto me so he didn’t wail on the newcomer.

“Who’s that?” I whispered, getting closer and pressing to his side.

“Jeb Sharp,” Gray answered tersely, I sucked in breath and I saw Lenny get up close to Jeb Sharp as the remaining three officers staggered themselves between Sharp and Gray, preparing, should Gray lose it, to lock him down.

Lenny and Sharp had words I couldn’t hear even if they weren’t that far away. Lenny shook his head then moved his body as if to block Sharp but Sharp shook his head too and rounded Lenny.

“Not a good idea, Jeb,” Lenny called after him as Sharp approached Gray and me.

Gray, already tense, went so solid I feared touching him would make him shatter. Still, I curled into him and put my other hand on his abs.

Sharp, astutely, stopped outside arm’s reach.

He was like his son, good-looking. But he was that way in the way Gray was. He’d be that way until he died. There were lines on his face that came from hard work in the sun and hard laughing often in his life. There was a burn in his eyes that came from not a small amount of anger and a hint of shame he couldn’t quite hide but he was trying. I knew he was Buddy’s Dad and, one look at him, I still couldn’t help but like him.

Then he announced, “I’ll deal with this, son.”

“Time for that’s passed, Jeb. Got seven dead horses and no barn,” Gray returned.

“You’re smart, you’ll let me take care ‘a this,” Jeb said quietly.

“He’s been gunnin’ for me since junior high and tonight he put my woman in danger. Not feelin’ like bein’ smart right about now,” Gray replied.

Jeb’s eyes came to me, his hand went to the bill of his baseball cap for a second before it dropped and he muttered, “Ma’am.”

I lifted my chin to him but no more and he looked back at Gray.

“Ask you one more time, Grayson, let me deal with this.”

“You do what you gotta do. Len’ll do what he’s gotta do. And I’ll do what I gotta do,” Gray stated.

Jeb Sharp held my man’s eyes.

Then he whispered, “Fair enough.” Then his eyes went to the barn and he kept whispering when he said, “Cryin’ shame.”

He was not wrong about that.

I pressed closer to Gray and Gray’s hand squeezed mine tighter.

Sharp looked through me and back to Gray.

“You need help cleanin’ up and buildin’, you call on me. I’ll send some boys,” he offered.

When Gray made no reply, I had a mind to suggest he didn’t hold his breath but I kept my tongue.

“Right,” Sharp muttered, knowing exactly what Gray’s non-response meant then he looked to me. “Mizz Larue, wish we’d met under more auspicious circumstances.”

“Me too,” I whispered.

He nodded. Then he looked at Gray. Then he sighed deeply. Finally he turned and walked away.

That was when I sighed.

Jeb Sharp got in his truck, turned it around and drove down the lane.

I felt some of the tension leave Gray’s body and he turned us to face the destruction.

Wood barn, it went up like tinder, came down in no time flat.

“I’m gonna go make coffee for the firemen, honey,” I whispered.

“Good idea, baby,” Gray murmured, his eyes never leaving the barn.

I squeezed his hand. He squeezed mine back but he did it not looking away from his loss.

I let him go, took two steps away then turned and took two back.

Pressing again to his side, I lifted up until I was as close as I could get to his ear and whispered, “Say you love me, Gray.”