Read Cattle Valley 27 - Alone in a Crowd for Free Online

to haunt him.
    With luck, their day of playing hooky would continue to be pleasant. Rio really wanted to confess to Ryan that he’d removed the box of pictures and letters from the trash and had hidden them in the garage storage cabinet. The urge to open one of the letters had been an ongoing battle, but he knew he’d never be forgiven for such an act.
    When he reached the gravel driveway leading up to the ranch, Rio pulled Charlie to a stop and waited for Nate and Ryan to catch up. They were about a quarter of a mile behind him, so they must’ve stopped their horses long enough to kiss and hug or something. Hopefully, that meant Nate wasn’t harbouring hard feelings about being kept in the dark for so long.
    The closer they came, the easier it was to see the toll the conversation had taken on both men. Ryan looked completely wrung out, while Nate’s eyes were red-rimmed and swollen. Yeah, Rio had a good idea how Nate felt. He’d spent days in his office at The Gym thinking about Ryan. It still hurt that Ryan felt so ashamed of his past that he’d go to Oklahoma without telling Rio and Nate the truth as to why he was going.
“Everything okay?” Rio asked when they joined him.
Ryan nodded. “Mr Softy wants to feel sorry for me, but I’m not having it.” “He’s such a bastard,” Nate grumbled. “He’s mistaking compassion for pity, typical.” Rio tried not to smile. Although it sounded like the two most important men in his life
were fighting, Rio knew it was their way of caring for each other. “Well, now that that’s settled, let’s go talk to Oggie.”
    They rode up the drive together, Rio between Nate and Ryan. It wasn’t that he was trying to separate the two men, but he wanted to offer both of them as much comfort as they would allow.
    Oggie was leading a bay mare out to the nearby corral when Rio brought Charlie to a stop. He climbed down and led the horse to one of the troughs, loosely tying the reins to a nearby hitching post. “Pretty horse.”
    Oggie shut the gate, taking time to make sure it was latched before turning towards Rio. “Stella’s my pride and joy.”
“I can see why.” Rio loosened Charlie’s cinch straps.
Ryan and Nate also dismounted and led their horses to the water. “Where’s Smokey?” Nate asked, a level of distrust in his voice.
“Checking the old fence lines in the far pasture. The plan is to buy a few more head of cattle, but not until we get the land ready.” Oggie moved to stand in the shade and Nate, Ryan and Rio joined him.
“How’s he working out?” Ryan asked.
“Excellent. I know he’s having a lot of trouble with his hands, but you wouldn’t know it by the amount of work he does around here.”
Rio glanced at Nate, hoping Oggie’s praise would lessen his worries about Smokey. When no one spoke, Oggie continued. “I know he’s not the most popular guy in town because of what happened in the past, but that’s why he’s a perfect fit here. We’re all just looking for a second chance in life. Some just need that chance later than others.”
Rio couldn’t have put it more perfectly if he’d tried. He draped his arm over Nate’s shoulder and kissed his temple. “I think you’re right. Most of us are already living our second chances.”
“Amen,” Ryan added.
* * * *
    Smokey took a moment to slap on a light aftershave before donning his customary cowboy hat. It had surprised him when Elliott invited him to Taco Tuesday at O’Brien’s. He wasn’t sure how he’d be received at the pub, but Smokey wasn’t about to turn down the dinner invitation.
    Since moving back into the garage apartment, Smokey had seen very little of Elliott, and he was beginning to think he’d never get another chance to get to know the man. There wasn’t a day that went by that he didn’t kick himself for the way he’d acted right after he’d been thrown off the EZ Does It.
    Why he’d spent years pining for Ezra when Elliott was right under his nose the whole