Home > Nowhere to Hide (Nowhere to Ride #2)(3)

Nowhere to Hide (Nowhere to Ride #2)(3)
Author: Andrew Grey

“We do need to do something about the smell, though,” Sinclair said as he walked down the one end, fanning his hands in front of his face. “What the hell is that?”

“The muck pile. It’s about ten feet on the other side of that wall.” If that didn’t disabuse him of the idea of using the shed, then nothing would.

Sinclair turned back and strode in his direction, hips swaying, taking in all of it. “The space is good, and it has the country charm you want,” he told Lilly.

“I like the idea of being married out here. My daddy is gone, so I thought that Ky would give me away. He could lead me to the wedding on horseback. Both Ben and I love horses, and I want them to be part of the ceremony and our lives. We couldn’t do that with the hall in town, but using this space would be a whole lot of work.” She seemed torn, and Dawson wished he had some magic answer so he could get them to go away and leave him to his work. Not that he didn’t like Lilly—he did, and he wanted her to be happy. But he didn’t need all the disruption that a wedding was going to cause. It was also a ridiculous notion to have a wedding in the equipment shed as far as he was concerned.

“Well, we can think about it.” Sinclair said, though he seemed less keen on it. “Is there any place else on this farm that we can see?” He turned his head imperiously.

“It’s a ranch, not a farm,” Dawson said.

Sinclair didn’t seem to notice his tone. “What’s the difference? You all have animals and you grow things. Po-ta-to, pa-tah-to as far as I’m concerned.” He shrugged.

“A farm grows crops or produces a product, such as milk. A ranch primarily raises cattle, usually for slaughter.” Lilly winked. “Besides, ranches have cowboys, and Dawson here is most definitely a cowboy.” She began heading back, but Sinclair’s gaze raked over Dawson shamelessly.

“There’s no doubt about that whatsoever,” Sinclair drolled.

“Are you coming?” Lilly asked, and Sinclair seemed to pull away his attention. For that Dawson was grateful—he was starting to feel stripped naked before Sinclair’s eyes.

“Go on. I have work to do,” he snapped. “And I’m sure you and Lilly have other places to scout out for the wedding.” There was no way in hell that Dawson was going to let Sinclair know how easily the man got under his skin.

Sinclair headed back toward the car, and Dawson went to check on the horses. Truthfully, he didn’t need to. The men were well versed in their responsibilities, and all of them were there because they knew their jobs backward and forward. Still, he needed an excuse to get away.

At the barn door, he turned just as Sinclair stretched his elegant jeans-clad legs to get into the car. Before he could turn away, Sinclair flashed him a smile, and Dawson swore as he went into the barn. There was no way in hell he was going to stand there and watch them go. On top of that, he was pissed off that Sinclair had seen him looking. Not that it mattered anyway. They were going to search elsewhere for the wedding location, and he wasn’t going to have to see the man again. That idea was just fine as far as he was concerned.

“Dawson,” one of the men said as he approached.

He pulled his attention back to where it should be, but not before he could wonder why he felt like he was walking around a patch of quicksand half a mile wide as far as Sinclair Llewelling was concerned.

 

 

Chapter Two

 

 

“You did that on purpose,” Lilly said once he got his car out of that mud pit and back onto the road. He was going to have to wash it to get God knows what was in that dirt off it. “And don’t you dare deny it.”

“What?” Sinclair said as innocently as he could.

“Please. You had Dawson flapping in the breeze and he didn’t have a clue why. The poor man.” She turned to him as he headed to town. Sinclair had promised Lilly that he’d help plan her wedding, but he was anxious as anything to get away from the dirt and mud. Though he had to admit, ruggedly gorgeous cowboys with jet-black hair and piercing brown eyes certainly didn’t cross his path every day. Though sometimes they did pass through town.

“You have to let me have some fun.” Picking on Dawson had been a hoot, and the fact that he had been interested was a bonus. When he first saw him, Sinclair had expected a homophobic shitkicker who didn’t know his butt from a hole in the ground. Instead… well, he’d noticed the furtive looks, and his hand still zinged from when they touched. Not that he believed there was really anything to that sort of thing. Still, Dawson was stunning, and Sinclair would be lying to himself if he said he wasn’t attracted. But closet-case cowboys were not his cup of tea.

“I’ve known Dawson since we were kids, and that is one man who rarely has fun. He works damned hard, and he’s a good guy.”

Sinclair rolled his eyes. “If being snide and obstructionist is being a good guy, then yeah, that’s exactly what he is.” Though Sinclair had to admit that some of that could have been a reaction to him. He did come on strong sometimes and could be over the top. “Besides, picking on the guy was great fun. It was so easy, and did you see the way his eyes grew as big as saucers?”

Lilly snorted inelegantly. “What I did see was how you looked at him like he was a lollipop and you wanted to lick him all over. Good luck with that, because you’re barking up the wrong tree. And don’t get coy with me. I know things like that.” Her tone and expression said that he wasn’t going to get anywhere.

Sinclair laughed and decided to ignore the attitude. “You didn’t used to. Remember when I told you I liked boys instead of girls? You thought I had gone crazy and offered to find someplace to fix me.” His smile melted away.

Lilly’s expression grew dark. “I came around, and I’ve learned a lot since then and you know it. It took me a little longer than it did for you to throw off the shackles, that’s all.” She leaned back with a slight sigh. “Anyway, you need to be nicer to Dawson, especially if we do have the wedding at Rita’s.”

“Me? I’d say Dawson was as prickly as a porcupine, and he sure as heck didn’t want a wedding there.” Sinclair pulled to a stop since there was no one around.

“That’s just how Dawson is. He’s always been all about work,” Lilly explained, but Sinclair wasn’t buying it.

“That man rolled out the unwelcome mat the minute I got there. But I suppose it hardly matters, since Rita already agreed to whatever you want. But what I don’t understand is how you got her to agree in the first place.”

“That was Ben’s doing,” Lilly explained. “He works for Ky, who is going to be Rita’s heir. They’re working to combine the two ranching operations, so Ky talked to Rita, and the deal was done. She’s a real nice Christian lady.”

Sinclair couldn’t help shuddering. “Oh Lord. Does that mean I’m going to be dodging arrows laced with bible verses the entire time I’m here? Because I think home is calling.”

“Don’t you dare. You said you’d help.” She seemed panicked. “I don’t have a lot of time to plan this whole thing, and you promised. Also, Rita isn’t one of those people—at least not any more. She used to be, though.” Lilly fanned herself. “But Ky, Brodie, and Brodie’s baby sister, Emily, have worked their magic on her. I think she’s come to realize that not everything the minister spouted from the pulpit is her cup of tea.”

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