Chapter One

Outlaw Vices

Third installment in ‘The Crane Gang’ series

Chapter One

Craig’s arms hurt. His legs hurt. His back hurt. Somehow, even his hurt seemed to hurt. Working on a ranch was the most physically challenging thing he’d ever done. But it was better than the alternative.

      The alternative involved a lot of whiskey, a lot of beer, quite a few whores, too much gambling, saying far too many hurtful things to those he cared about and causing pain for his family....Craig sure as hell didn't want to do that anymore. 

      He had to keep himself busy in order to avoid his demons. He couldn't explain why he felt such an urge to self-destruct. He'd always been one of the irresponsible members of the gang He and Willie—they'd caused more than a few headaches for Jeb, Billy, Jane and Wyatt. 

      But Willie was gone now and so was Billy. Hell, so was the gang for that matter. Jeb was settled down with Gill and Preston. Jane had Pete and Little Willie. Even Wyatt had found his happily ever after with Zachariah. 

      It seemed everyone had gotten over the past, moved on from the way things used to be and settled into their new lives. 

      Where the hell did that leave Craig? He felt as if he were lost somewhere in the water. It was dark, he could barely keep his head above the surface and he was getting tired of swimming. 

      "The boss ain't payin' you to daydream, Craig!" the foreman growled, riding close and nudging Craig with his horse. "Get moving." 

      "I'm done," Craig snapped, glaring up at the jackass of a man. "Everybody's done. The work's over so get off my ass." 

      Something flickered in the other man's gaze as he stared down hard at Craig. "When I'm on your ass, you'll know it. Trust me." 

      With that the arrogant Ezekiel Marks rode off toward the stable. 

      Craig hated that man. He worked hard. Hell, he'd just spent the day separating cattle while being bumped, jostled, stepped on and ran over. But nothing he ever did was good enough to satisfy Ezekiel. 

      The foreman was a mean, hard, arrogant, impossible jackass of a man who seemed to aim all his hostility and hate toward Craig. 

      Everyone else on the ranch 

loved Ezekiel. Craid had been here nearly a month and all he’d heard was what a respected and fair man Ezekiel was.

      He snorted. He'd believe that when he saw it. 

      "Hey Craig! It's our night off. You comin' to town?" 

      Craig smiled as he turned to face Chester, one of the few truly friendly faces Craig had meant since Jeb's spread. Chester had welcomed Craig to the ranch without hesitation or question. 

      "Yeah. I need to get away for a while." 

      Craig didn't add that the main reason for that need was the grumpy foreman. The man rarely seemed to go into town so, just maybe, Craig could go a full night without being glared at. 

      "Go get a horse and I'll wait on you," Chester urged. "The poker tables are calling my name." 

      Craig shouldn't go. He should stay far away from saloons, poker and working women..... but, hell, he'd been a good boy for a good long while. It was time to let loose for just one night. 

      Craig wasted no more time before rushing over to the stable to ready his horse. When he walked in, he instantly wished he'd moved a little slower. 

      "Where are you going?" Ezekiel demanded, stepping out of a stall and wiping his hands on his thighs. 

      "Heading into town," Craig replied, doing his best to avoid making eye contact with the other man. 

      He wasn't scared of Ezekiel but he couldn't deny the fact that the man was 

intimidating. And in a closed in space like the stable his dominant presence could be overwhelming.

      Ezekiel was over six feet, thickly muscled and had intense brown eyes that matched his dark brown skin. He didn't carry a gun, just two six-inch knives which he wore on his hips. 

      There was a way in the manner that Ezekiel carried himself that told you he knew how to handle things, and, how to kill. It was something that Craig had learned to recognize in people from a very young age. 

      "You sure that's a good idea?" Ezekiel asked, moving in closer to Craig and causing Craig to shift sideways to place more distance between them. 

      Something about Ezekiel caused him to feel skittish and overwhelmed. He didn't like the feelings any more than he liked the man causing them. 

      "That's not really any of your concern. Who the hell do you think you are?" Craig demanded, hoping his voice sounded steady. 

      Ezekiel snorted, his large calloused hand, splaying across the post beside Craig as he moved in closer yet, pinning Craig close to the stall door. "I think I'm the man that saved your ass when I hauled you out of that waterlogged ditch, stitched up your busted head and convinced the boss here to give you a job. You oughta show just a bit more appreciation for that and stop being such a smart aleck jackass all the time." 

      "I'd have been just fine without your help," Craig muttered, knowing it was a lie. Ezekiel had saved his life—and Craig wished it could have been anyone else in the world. 

      Ezekiel shook his head as his arms fell and he stepped back. His full lips were set in a firm line and his wide nostrils flared. "You need to stay at the ranch." 

      Craig stood his ground, wondering why this man thought he was his keeper. "I 

need to go to town. I need to have a few drinks. I need to play a few hands of poker and I need to bed woman or two. What I don’t need is for you to keep acting like you’re my goddamn father! I work hard around here, I do my damn job and I don’t appreciate you riding my ass the way you do.“

      Again that 

something flickered in Ezekiel’s eyes only this time, Craig was close enough to decipher what it was. Hunger. Oh hell.

      Ezekiel leaned close again, the smell of horse, dust, sweat and cedar clinging to his skin. "Like I said before, when I'm on your ass, Craig, you'll know it." 

      And just like that, the man turned and Craig watched his broad frame until it disappeared from the stable. 

      He'd been around enough men who desired men to realize that Ezekiel had just looked at him as if he were one.... How hadn't Craig noticed that before?! And what the hell was he going to do about it? It didn't bother him. His brother and his best friend were both those types of men .... But he wasn't. 

      Surely when the foreman realized his wants were going to be unfulfilled, it would only give him one more reason to be hard on Craig. Craig figured he'd have to leave soon—find another ranch somewhere. 

      But for tonight, he wasn't going to worry. Tonight, he was going to go have a bit of fun......

Chapter Two

Chapter Two

Craig stumbled out of the whorehouse two mornings later. His head was pounding, his stomach churned and the sun felt like daggers in his eyes.

      He'd spent the last two nights drinking, gambling and whoring the hours away. Craig had 

thought he would feel better after spending some time letting loose, but he didn’t.

      If anything Craig felt worse—emptier—than he had before. And he was worried about his job as well, and what kind of hell he was going to catch. He was supposed to already be at the ranch hard at work today. He 

should have gone back last night.

      Why did he always seem to be his own worst enemy?

      Craig tried to stick to the shadows as he headed toward the livery. He stepped in to fetch his horse and became suddenly aware of a large presence behind him. 

      "Did you have fun?" 

      Craig winced, both at the volume of the voice and the knowledge of who it belonged to. 

      "Bunches." 

      Ezekiel came around him and glared down at Craig with those judgmental dark eyes. Once again, Craig was left feeling somehow small and overwhelmed. He attempted to take a step back but Ezekiel moved with him. 

      "The boss realized you were gone and sent me to fetch you." 

      Craig forced a cheerful smile. "You make a real nice errand boy." 

      Ezekiel simply pointed toward Craig's horse. "Get it saddled and come on. The boss wants to have a word with you." 

      Craig's shoulders slumped in defeat. For nearly the first time in his life he felt too sick to come up with any witty to say. 

---

As Ezekiel led Craig up the back stairs to the boss’s office, Craig couldn’t help but feel like a sheepish boy about to be scolded by his father. And Ezekiel was the damn tattle tale hell bent on smugly observing Craig’s punishment.

      Ezekiel knocked once and Edison Bentley called for them to enter. The aging but still straight-backed and broad shouldered man stood behind his desk. "Sit down, both of you." He gave the order with a friendly smile. 

      Craig threw himself down in the chair and slumped low. If they were going to insist on treating him like a child, then Craig was going to act like one. If his behavior had any effect on Edison, the man gave no sign. 

      "Craig, when Ezekiel first came to me and told me I should hire you, it took some work on his part to convince me. There is no shortage of men out here with ranch experience looking for a job. I couldn't see hiring someone so overwhelmed by his vices. 

      "But Ezekiel saw something in you and he convinced me. And I was pleasantly surprised. You've been a good, dependable worker—until now." 

      "Is this a one chance and done ranch?" Craig mumbled. 

      Edison merely shook his head sadly. "I know who you are, Craig. I used to be a lot like you. You're a man who has lost his purpose." 

      Craig's brow shot up. "Huh?"

      "You've lost your purpose. You used to have 

something or someone that you had built your life around and whatever that was must have been taken from you. You work hard to keep yourself busy because the minute you slow down, you lose yourself to your uselessness—your lack of purpose.“

      "Uselessness?" Craig snorted. He wasn't useless. What the hell was that old man rambling on about purpose for? He had a purpose! Drinking, gambling, whoring, having a good time.... Those things could definitely be called a purpose. 

      "Yeah, uselessness. When you're sloppy drunk and losing all your money to poker and whores, you're useless." 

      Craig turned his gaze to Ezekiel. "No one asked you. I'm about sick and damn tired of you acting so high and damn mighty! Leave me the hell alone." 

      "That might be difficult," Edison intervened as he filled a glass with whiskey from a decanter on his desk. "You see, I have an idea." 

      Craig didn't like the sound of that. "What idea?" 

      "I want to keep you on the ranch, Craig. I believe you deserve another chance. I don't think you are the man you seem to think you are." 

      Craig shifted in his chair. He didn't like this. He didn't like feeling so exposed. Who did Edison think he was?

      Edison took a sip of his whiskey, grinned as if he were quite pleased with himself and continued, "If you choose to stay here, you're going to be under Ezekiel's supervision. He'll be responsible for your whereabouts and your actions...." 

      "I didn't agree to that," Ezekiel spoke up. 

      Edison shrugged. "I'm the boss." 

      Craig sat up a bit straighter. "Let me get this straight. If I want to remain here working, I have to have a nursemaid?" Craig glanced over at Ezekiel. "

That nursemaid?“

      Edison clicked his tongue. "That's what I said. Or you can go back into town and drown yourself a bit longer. But, eventually, you'll wind up looking in a mirror and you won't recognize who you are any longer, Craig. Trust me, I know." 

      Craig tapped his fingers on his knee, wishing his head wasn't hurting quite so badly. "And how will staying here keep me happy with my reflection—which I am, by the way. I was blessed with a nice reflection." 

      He heard Ezekiel snort but ignored him. Craig had seen the way Ezekiel had looked at him in the barn. He thought his reflection was nice too. 

      Edison leaned forward, his blue eyes serious. "I have no doubt that if you stay here, you work hard, you learn to live without all those distractions—you will find your purpose." 

      Craig was quiet a moment as all that sunk in and then he began to laugh. "My purpose? To stay here, work on 

your ranch and make you money?“

      Edison seemed tickled by Craig's amusement. "Does that mean you'll stay?" 

      Craig was convinced the old man was crazy. This entire conversation seemed ridiculous. But he 

did like working on the ranch—aside from the sore muscles and aching back. And the pay was better than any ranch he’d ever been on before.

      And Craig had a trump card over 

nursemaid Ezekiel. He knew Ezekiel wanted him—that could be a powerful weapon to get the man to back off and give him space.

      "Sure, Mr. Bentley. I'd like to keep my job." 

      "And find your purpose," Edison added. 

      Craig shifted once again. Damn that man and his 

purpose talk. “Sure.”

      Seeming satisfied with the discussion, Edison dismissed them both and they walked down the back steps and into the midday sun. 

      "That man's a full bubble off plumb," Craig chuckled. 

      Ezekiel shook his head. "That man is one of the best I know. He's giving you a chance, Craig. It's more than most would do. Stop wasting your damn life and figure yourself out." 

      Craig snorted. "Why does everyone around here act like they know me? You have no idea who I am, where I'm from or what I've been through so your pretentious ass can kiss mine." 

      Ezekiel's full lips twitched. "Gladly." 

      Craig felt a shiver wash over him, but it was a good shiver, more of a tremble really. Oh hell.......What was wrong with him? He'd always been attracted to women. He loved women. He loved bedding women. 

      His mind was just a mess because of the damn boss, that's all. He needed some space and some work to do and he'd be just fine. 

      "I'll be a real good boy from now on, daddy, I swear," Craig muttered. 

      Ezekiel moved in closer, causing Craig to swallow hard and take a quick step back. "I know you will be. You don't leave my side, just like Edison said. And don't start thinking you'll use anything against me. I don't have any secrets from Edison and I'm not a child who's going to fall for tricks." 

      Craig opened his mouth to defend himself but Ezekiel silenced him by pressing a calloused finger against his lips. "If I decide I want you, you won't stop me...." He smiled, the expression somehow predatory. "You won't want to."

Chapter Three

Chapter Three

Ezekiel worked Craig hard that week. He knew he was probably overdoing it but he had to prove to Craig who was boss—and that was proving a difficult task.

      Craig was childish, stubborn and tended to speak when keeping quiet was the better option. 

      He was also easy on the eyes and had a vulnerable side that had gotten under Ezekiel's skin in a hurry—something he wasn't at all proud of. 

      Ezekiel lay in the bunkhouse and listened to the sound of men snoring around him. Craig was sound asleep in the next cot over—had fallen into slumber before his head had even hit the pillow. 

      Ezekiel wasn't so lucky. He wasn't able to sleep well at night; hadn't been in a long while. When you'd spent a good ten years of your life running with bad men, doing bad things and leaving a wake of death and destruction behind you.... It tended to eat away at you. 

      Deciding he needed a bit of air, Ezekiel stood silently and slipped out of the bunk house in his bare feet. The air was still warm but a gentle breeze blew, cooling his dark skin. 

      Staring up at the star-filled night sky, Ezekiel studied the constellations and thought about all that had led him here. 

      It wasn't too often he let his past get the better of him but tonight was one of those nights. Guilt ate at his gut as he thought about the things he'd been a part of—the things he'd done. 

      He was so wrapped up in his thoughts, that he failed to notice the sound of foot steps behind him until Craig's voice broke the silence. "Are you okay?" he asked. Then he shrugged and crossed his arms over his chest. "Not that I care or anything." 

      Ezekiel smiled. "I reckon I'll be okay. What about you? Your back still hurting?" 

      Craig glared up at him. "You're working me to death. You know that, right? Can't you lighten up at least a little?" 

      With a shake of his head, Ezekiel turned to face Craig. "No. No, if I lighten up, you won't be so tired at night and you'll start thinking about slipping off to town again." 

      "You're a hard-headed jackass. You know that?" Craig demanded, glancing at him through the corner of his dark green eyes. 

      Ezekiel couldn't help but chuckle. "And you're an immature drunkard. We all have our faults." 

      "I'm not a drunkard," Craig countered, his gaze going up to the stars above them. "At least, not all the time." 

      Ezekiel took a moment to study the way the moonlight illuminated Craig's handsome face. He had boyish good looks, which were even more breathtaking when the man smiled and you could see the mischievous glint in his green eyes. "What makes you be one some of the time?" he found himself asking. 

      Ezekiel could all but see the walls rise up around Craig. "Jackasses asking me personal question that have answers that are certainly none of their business." 

      Biting his tongue and taking a deep breath, Ezekiel somehow managed to hold on to his temper. "You'll never defeat those demons if you don't talk about what caused them to get so strong in the first place." 

      Craig scratched at his jaw. "What is it with folks here talking like they're some kind of philosopher? Mind your own damn business, Ezekiel." 

      "If you're so unhappy here, why don't you leave?" Ezekiel snapped, his patience fading. "No one is making you stay. We're trying to help you." 

      "Maybe I will leave. I'll get one more paycheck out of this place and get the hell out of here." 

      Ezekiel shook his head sadly. If only Craig could see that life didn't have to be as hard as he was making it. He let out a deep breath and shrugged. "You do whatever you have to, Craig. But you're still planning on being here in the morning, you and I are going to the grazing pasture in the far west to bring in some cattle. It'll be an overnight trip so pack you up what supplies you want to take along." 

      With that Ezekiel turned and strode back into the bunkhouse to once again attempt sleep—something that was going to be a bit harder now that he was thinking about being all alone in that field shack with Craig. 

A/N: I know it’s a short chapter but some of the probably will be so i can get them to you quicker! Just means faster updates and more chapters in the long run! Thanks for reading! Love y’all! 

~Nicole

Chapter Four

Chapter Four

The sun was beating down on his neck and he'd certainly had better company but, all in all, Craig felt more at peace riding free and open then he had in a long time. 

There was something about the rhythm of a horse beneath you and the fresh air surrounding your face that made a man forget everything except that very moment. 

"You look comfortable up there. I take it you used to do a lot of wandering?" 

Craig ground is molars in annoyance. Why did Ezekiel have to ruin a perfect moment with conversation? 

"Must have been hard to figure that one out," Craig replied. 

If Ezekiel was fazed by his tone, the man didn't let it show. "I used to wander a lot myself. It always seemed to get me into trouble." 

Craig glanced over at the brute of man riding an appaloosa gelding. The sun was shimmering off his chocolate skin and his expression was haunted. 

He shifted in the saddle torn between a desire to have the conversation over and to ask the man what had happened to put such an expression on his face. 

Curiosity won. "Surely you can't have gotten in too much trouble.  You certainly act like the pillar of superiority." 

Ezekiel glanced sideways at him. "I've never acted superior." 

Craig couldn't help but laugh. "Yeah, you have! Every damn time you talk to me, you're looking down your nose." 

"That's because you're short." 

"I'm not short!" Craig countered. "I'm at least six feet." 

One large shoulder shrugged. "Shorter than me." 

Craig realized Ezekiel had avoided answering his question. "What kind of trouble did you get into then?" 

Ezekiel cleared his throat. "The bad kind." 

Silence fell between them. Maybe there was more to the grumpy, overbearing foreman than Craig had first thought. It made him wonder about the man's past and just what he had done.... Had Edison too brought him onto the ranch to find his purpose? 

Craig chose not to press the matter any further. Instead, he decided to address something else that had been bothering him. "I think we need to get something straight before we spend the night out here." 

"I'm all ears." 

"I know you are attracted to men and that's perfectly fine with me. My brother and my best friend both found love with the rougher sex, but, I happen to like the fairer sex. You know, without the facial hair, thick biceps, deep voice and pecker?"

Ezekiel's laugh was a low rumble deep in his chest and it did something strange to Craig's gut. He chose to ignore it. Probably just gas from the beans last night.

"I do my best to keep my facial hair to a minimum. Thick biceps can hold you quite a bit tighter. A deep voice sounds nice when whispered in the dark. And a pecker? Well, hell, Craig, that one you have to experience to appreciate." 

Craig rolled his eyes. "Just the same, keep your hands to yourself." 

"That won't be a problem," Ezekiel assured him. "You're not my type." 

For some unexplainable reason, Craig felt slighted. "Why the hell not?"

Instead of answering, Ezekiel sped his horse up a bit. "We should hurry and get to the shack. Those clouds look like they might be bringing a storm with them." 

---

Craig was grown up enough to admit that Ezekiel had been right. Those clouds had indeed been bringing a storm with them. 

One hell of a storm. 

Rain fell in torrential rivers from the sky, soaking them to the bone nearly the instant it began falling. The ground became slick and treacherous and visibility was near zero. 

Thunder vibrated through them and lightning flashed across the sky striking the ground each time it lit up the late afternoon. 

Both men knew they had to get to that field shack. Conditions like this were dangerous if you weren't in cover. The horses could easily slip and break a leg. The low visibility could cause them to leave the trail and walk off a cliff. And it wouldn't be too farfetched for a bolt of lightning to strike one of them dead. 

Craig was relieved when he saw the ramshackle shack come into view. They put the horses in the lean-to that would serve as their barn and unsaddled them. After seeing to beasts needs, the men grabbed up their supplies and raced into the shack. 

Craig sputtered as he shook the rain from his hair. "Damn.... It's wet outside." 

"Thank you for clearing that up—just in case there was confusion about the weather." 

Craig glared at Ezekiel but said nothing. He went to the pile of dried wood in the shack and began to ready a fire in the cook stove to warm them up. 

He damn near swallowed his tongue when Ezekiel suddenly began shedding his clothing. 

"What are you doing?" Craig demanded. 

"They're wet and I don't want to catch my death in them. Don't worry." Ezekiel winked. "You enjoy the fairer sex, remember?" 

A/N: This story is coming pretty quickly to me so i’m hoping it all flows

Chapter Five

Chapter Five

It took every bit of Ezekiel’s self-control to keep from bursting into laughter at the wide-eyed expression or pure shock on Craig’s face.

      The man stumbled backward, lunged toward the bed and threw a blanket at Ezekiel just as he was shedding the last of his rain-soaked clothes. 

      Taking pity on the other man—and because he was chilled to the bone—Ezekiel wrapped the large, rough, wool blanket around him. 

      "You better take your clothes off too," he warned Craig. "You really will get sick and even though you called me a nursemaid, I'd rather not play one for you again. I had enough of that when you busted your head open the night we met." 

      Craig's hand went to his head and Ezekiel knew he was running his fingers over the scar beneath his messy blond hair. "I didn't exactly bust it open myself. I had help." 

      Ezekiel fixed him with a stern gaze. "Take your clothes off." 

      Giving Craig that order sent a shockwave of desire through Ezekiel. Hell..... Craig was temptation and Ezekiel had spent the better part of his life so far giving in to temptation real quick. 

      And when a look of hunger entered Craig's green eyes, it took everything in Ezekiel to keep from striding his way and taking him in his arms right there. 

      Confusion quickly replaced the hunger in Craig's eyes only to be shook away and have that trademark sarcastic smirk put firmly back in place. "Nice try, Ezekiel, but only the women get to see what I have to offer." 

      With a roll of his eyes and a heave of his shoulders, Ezekiel walked to the cot, grabbed the second blanket and tossed it at Craig. "Cover yourself then. Don't put me through what you put them poor women through." 

      Again Craig shifted uneasily. "I'm fine. I'll dry out." 

      Ezekiel could see the way the other man was beginning to shake and it had nothing to do with nerves. He was cold and growing more chilled. 

      Turning his back on Craig, Ezekiel pulled his own blanket tighter around him. "I promise I won't peek." 

      He could hear Craig as he grunting and struggled to shed his soaked clothes. Tempted as he was to turn and sneak a peek, Ezekiel stayed true to his word and kept his gaze on the wall. 

      Once both men had their clothes laid around the cookstove, the fire built up and their blankets tight around them, they sat on the two small cots and nibbled at the jerky and hard tack they'd brought along. 

      "We won't be able to do any work in this mess," Craig lamented. "And I don't think it's going to let up any time soon." 

      Ezekiel listened to the rain pounding like rocks on the roof and had to agree. "Hopefully it'll be done by morning." 

      "But the job is gonna be ten times harder. This thunder and lightning is bound to have the herd scattering." 

      "You aren't scared of a bit of hard work, are you?" Ezekiel teased. 

      Craig swallowed down a chew of jerky and chuckled. "You know damn well I'm not. If I was, you'd have kept me terrified all week." 

      It was true. Ezekiel could admit that Craig was a hard worker—when you stayed on him. But when given free time, he tended to want to slip back into bad habits that were bound to end with him dead... would have already caused his death if Ezekiel hadn't hauled him out of that ditch. 

      He chose not to mention that, however. He was enjoying spending some time around Craig without the man's defenses raised sky high. 

      "We'll probably need the whole day tomorrow to round them up. Leading them back to the ranch will probably have to wait until the next day. This shack will probably end up being home for two nights." 

      Craig glanced around and his face curved with that boyish grin. "It might be hard to believe but I've actually laid my head in worse places." 

      "Oh, I believe it," Ezekiel assured him. "I've seen some of your company at the whorehouse." 

      "The ladies prefer the term brothel." 

      Ezekiel shrugged. "It is what it is." 

      "Are you going to say you're a monk?" Craig asked, his brow raising. 

      Ezekieltossed the sack of jerky aside and laid back on his cot, using this hands for apillow. "No, I'm not a monk." He glanced over at Craig and winked. "I've justnever had to pay for it." �b�-J$�

Chapter Six

Chapter Six

The storm was ebbing and darkness had fallen a long time before. Craig had tossed and turned upon his cot and hadn’t slept a wink…

      He had moved his cot to the farthest side of the tiny shack from Ezekiel's but it wasn't far enough. Something about knowing the other man was sleeping naked so close by had Craig feeling anxious. 

      He thought about his saddlebags beside the door and the whiskey he'd managed to stash away inside. He could sure use a drink of whiskey just now—just something to take the edge off so he could get some sleep. 

      Slipping from the bed, Craig grabbed his trousers, now mostly dry, and slid into them before walking to his saddlebags. He moved silently—as silently as he'd learned to walk while robbing rich men's ranches. 

      His hand itched as it closed around the bottle. He knew he shouldn't but that didn't stop him from pulling the bottle out and removing the cork. 

      Just as he was about to put the bottle to his lips, Ezekiel's angry voice came from behind him. "Can I ask what you think you're doing?"

      Guilty fear shot through Craig like a bullet. He suddenly felt like a boy caught with his hands in the cookie jar... and it riled his temper that he felt that way! 

      He was a grown damn man and if he wanted a drink, he should be able to have one—he didn't have to answer to anyone.

      "I'm having a drink. Want one?" 

      Ezekiel shook his head as he crossed his thick arms over his broad, bare chest. Craig swallowed hard when he realized that Ezekiel had 

not taken any time to put clothes on before confronting him.

      "I'm not having a drink. And neither are you." 

      Craig grunted and lifted the bottle but before he could take a drink, it was jerked from his hand. "No, you're not." 

      "What the hell do you think you're doing?" Craig demanded. 

      "Keeping you from getting sloppy drunk when we have work to do tomorrow." 

      Craig hated that Ezekiel seemed so calm when he was so close to losing his mind completely and attacking the man. "I wasn't going to get sloppy drunk. Now give me the damn bottle back." 

      Ezekiel raised a black brow. "Why do you want it?" 

      "I....uh..." Craig struggled to answer the simply question. He stomped his foot, feeling every bit a two-year old. "I just need it to sleep tonight. Just a little to help me sleep." 

      Ezekiel nodded and seemed to be thinking hard on what Craig had just said. Maybe the man was going to see reason and give him the bottle. "Do you need sips often to help you sleep?" Ezekiel asked. 

      Craig shrugged. "Sometimes. Now give me the damn bottle." 

      Instead of responding, Ezekiel took two steps to the door and jerked it open. Craig saw him raise the bottle and knew the other man was about to throw it. 

      He jumped at him, attempting to stop him while yelling obscenities. Ezekiel shook him off as if he were no more than a pesky fly and threw that bottle with all his might. 

      Craig watched as it shattered upon the wet, rocky ground and every bit of his whiskey was wasted. "Why you son of a bitch!" Craig exclaimed. 

      Ezekiel stepped back and closed the door. "You're not getting any whiskey. Not on my watch." 

      Craig was mad. 

Livid. What right did Ezekiel have to control everything he did?

      "Something is wrong with you," Craig accused. "Your cart's lost a few bricks. That was my whiskey so you owe me a bottle when we get back." 

      Ezekiel, still completely nude, simply let out a tense breath through his flared nostrils as he turned away from Craig and headed toward his clothes. 

      "What do you have against having fun?" Craig demanded. 

      "Not a thing," Ezekiel replied, grabbing up his pants. 

      Craig snorted. "You could have fooled me. What do you have against a man taking a sip of whiskey now and then? All men need a sip to relax at times." 

      Ezekiel didn't say a word as he pulled on his long johns and trousers. Then he turned slowly to Craig and his expression was grave. "Yes, but not all men turn one sip into twenty and end up broken and bloodied." 

      Craig threw his hands up in frustration. "That's it! When we're done with this job, I'm out. I'm leaving the ranch."

      "Why not just leave now?" Ezekiel asked, returning to his cot and sitting down. 

      Craig glared at him. "Because I said I'd do this job and while you might think I'm nothing but a gambling, whore mongering drunkard, I 

am a man of my word.“

      Ezekiel laid down in the darkness and put his hands behind his head. "I'm glad to hear that. Now go to sleep, Craig. If talking will help you fall asleep, I'd be more than happy to help but whiskey isn't the answer." 

      Craig grumbled under his breath, curled up on his own cot and turned his back toward Ezekiel. He was angry. Angry at the other man for throwing his whiskey and acting so patronizing about it—and angry at himself for feeling as if he needed the whiskey to begin with. 

      Why? Why did Craig insist on being his own worst nightmare?

A/N: I’ve had several complaints about chapter length but doing the shorter, more frequent chapters is working for me. So, I believe that will be the format for this story. I am sorry if anyone is dissatisfied with that but in order to keep myself motivated to write, this is the way it needs to be done!

I hope y’all are enjoying the story! Things are going to be picking up between Craig and Ezekiel quite soon! Just had to keep Craig’s head up his ass a little bit longer!

Love y’all

~Nicole

Chapter Seven

Chapter Seven

The next day was tense and Ezekiel hated it. He’d honestly hoped that having a trip alone with Craig might open the other man up and let them begin a friendship—which could possibly lead to more.

      But now?

      Now Craig was pissed at him and Ezekiel was pissed at the Craig as well. Craig had known that Ezekiel wouldn't want him drinking whiskey; that's why he'd been sneaking it at night. 

      Ezekiel had never been much of a drinker but he understood that unexplainable urge to self-destruct. He had once been very much that man himself. But Craig seemed determined to keep up a wall and not heal from whatever was holding him down. He wouldn't listen to Ezekiel or Edison. He was a stubborn, infuriating man. 

      They'd spent most of the day apart, working in separate areas to find the scattered herd and bring them all to the land surrounding the field shack. 

      Daylight was already fading and Ezekiel knew they'd be spending another night alone in the shack. He was no longer quite so excited.  

      He glanced to the east and saw Craig riding in, leading a small group of cattle including a few calves. They had managed to find most of the herd. There were still a few head unaccounted for but Ezekiel figured they might have fallen victim to predators or one of the mud pits that tended to form when they had a rainy season like the one they'd had this year. 

      "I think we've got all we're gonna get," Craig stated as he rode in closer. "But we've taken the whole day and don't have time to drive them home before dark."

      "And we can't work in the dark." 

      Both men knew what that meant and it was clear to Ezekiel that neither of them were happy about it. Craig sighed. "We'll just have to leave them here and hope another storm doesn't come through in the night and scatter them." 

      As the two men started on their way toward the shack, they heard a ruckus kick up from the cows behind them. Ezekiel couldn't see from here what was causing it, so he dug his heels in and sent his horse racing toward with Craig right beside him. 

      As they neared the situation, it became clear to Ezekiel that it was bad news. "Damn," he muttered, pulling up on the reins. 

      "Oh hell," Craig agreed, coming to a stop as well. They were at the edge of a large mud pit and a young cow had somehow managed to land itself toward the middle. The mud was deep—nearly swallowing the cow completely and it was stuck fast. 

      "I think it's still sinking," Craig noted. 

      Ezekiel nodded. "Those mud pits can be deeper than a man is tall....." His gut twisted but he knew what had to be done. "Shoot it, Craig. Put it out of its misery." 

      The young cow let out a panicked cry and began thrashing harder, which only made it sink deeper. 

      "Hell no I'm not gonna shoot it!" Craig argued. "We have to save the thing." 

      Ezekiel shook his head. "You can't save it. I've seen this before. You can't go in after it because there's a good chance you'd die too. You'd never get out under your own power." 

      "I won't kill it," Craig insisted as he jumped off his horse. 

      Before Ezekiel could reason with him further, Craig slipped off his gun belt and leapt into the mud pit. Somehow, Craig managed to make it to the young cow, but it was clear, once he arrived at the thrashing beast, that he wasn't going to be able to make it any further. 

      He held on tight to the cow and Ezekiel watched in horror as that critter pulled Craig lower faster. 

      If Ezekiel didn't do something, Craig was going to die. 

      He jumped from his horse and grabbed the rope from the saddle. Thank God his Appaloosa was smart and well trained. There were no trees or rocks to tie the rope off to but there was a saddle horn. 

      Moving quickly, Ezekiel secured the rope to the saddle horn before tying it off to his waist. He could hear Craig trying to calm the cow but knew it was no use. If Ezekiel didn't get out there to them—and his horse didn't help pull them back out—all three of them would die today. 

      Craig's eyes met his across the mud and Ezekiel saw the raw fear. It was clear Craig thought he was about to die.

      Not if Ezekiel could help it. 

      Drawing a deep breath to steady himself, Ezekiel leapt into the mud. Sheer brute strength and desperation propelled him through the slippery substance attempting to cling to him, drag him down and trap him beneath it. 

      When he reached Craig, Ezekiel had sunk to his thighs. Craig was chest deep. 

      "What are you doing?" Craig demanded. "You could get stuck in here too!" 

      "You risked your life for a cow," Ezekiel reminded him. "You shouldn't be surprised that I'd risk mine for you." 

      Wrapping one strong arm around Craig's upper chest, Ezekiel closed his other hand around the rope. "Leave the cow, Craig. I don't know if the horse can pull all three of us out." 

      "I can't leave her," Craig countered, hardening his jaw. "I already told her everything was going to be okay." 

      Grumbling under his breath, Ezekiel nodded. He gave a tug on the rope and let out a sharp whistle. Instantly the big Appaloosa began to move back. 

      Ezekiel's muscles bulged, strained and screamed in protest as he used every ounce of his strength to assist the horse and pull them inch by painstaking inch toward firm ground.  

      Craig's gripped the rope with his free hand and did all he could to help as well while his other arm was wrapped firmly around the struggling cow's neck. Ezekiel realized that even the cow seemed to sense they were rescuing it and was trying to aid in the attempt.         

      When his hand hit firm ground, Ezekiel grabbed hold and hauled himself, Craig and the cow out of the mud pit. 

      The exhausted men flopped, panting and mud-covered on onto their backs. The cow, her legs wobbling, let out one more loud moo before hobbling off toward the herd. 

      Silence reigned between Ezekiel and Craig for a long while as they lay beneath the evening sky. Finally, Craig cleared his throat. "I should have thought to use a rope."

Chapter Eight

Chapter Eight

Craig had washed up as well as he could in the stream behind the shack but he figured he’d be digging mud out of cracks and crevices for the rest of his life.

      Damn, he'd been an idiot. 

      He didn't regret saving the cow. It hadn't seemed right to kill the animal or allow it to die in the mud. But, he should have been smarter about how he went about saving the creature. 

      Ezekiel had been forced to risk his own life to save Craig and Craig wasn't okay with that.... There'd been enough damn death and pain around him in his life; Craig wasn't eager to see any more. 

      Craig glanced across the oil lamp lit field shack. Ezekiel was sitting on his cot, cleaning the mud from his knives and holsters with some oil and a rag. 

      "Thank you." 

      Ezekiel glanced up. "You're welcome." His dark eyes dropped back to the blade he was wiping. 

      Craig was seeing a different side of the foreman just now. He'd always wanted to see the worst in Ezekiel—probably because the man seemed to always see the worst in Craig. 

      But Ezekiel had saved his life twice now and the man hadn't said a single word about the mud or Craig's own foolishness for simply leaping into it. 

      Something in him was desperate to open up a bit. He was desperate for that feeling of comradery that he'd once shared with the gang—his family. 

      "Would you believe me if I told you I spent most of my life in a gang?" he asked, filling the silence. 

      Ezekiel brow furrowed as he looked up once again. "Are you making conversation with me?" 

      Craig raised a shoulder. "Do you see anyone else to conversate with?" 

      Ezekiel glanced around. "Guess not. And in answer to your question, yes, I'd believe you. I figured, based on certain things I've noticed about you, that you'd either been a lawman or a gang member." Ezekiel chuckled. "But upon further examination, I just didn't figure you as the badge wearing type." 

      Craig made a face. "No. I ain't a single bit the badge wearing type." Then curiosity got the better of him. "What is it about me that told you I was either gang member or lawman?"

      Ezekiel, apparently satisfied with the cleanliness of his weapons, put them back in their holsters and tossed them aside. "You work well in a team, don't take well to authority and you're clearly loyal to a cause, a person, or a cow, once you set your mind to it." 

      Craig batted his lashes. "I didn't know you were so fond of me." 

      Ezekiel snorted. "I never said I admired those characteristics." 

      Craig laid back on his cot and stared up at the shadows on the lamp-lit ceiling. "It surprises me to hear you say good things about me. I was sure you hated me completely." 

      "I never said I hated you, Craig," Ezekiel replied firmly. "Hell, if I hated you, I wouldn't give a damn about you killing yourself for fun." 

      Craig didn't know what to say. He felt a strange stirring in his chest. A tug in his heart. Damn. If there was one person Craig didn't want to be like it was his overbearing, bossy brother..... but they might be alike in one very specific way. 

      How could that be? Craig had always been attracted to women. He had never in his life felt any pull toward a man—until Ezekiel. 

      But why Ezekiel? Hell, the man was just as bossy and overbearing as the brother that Craig had run away from. Craig glanced over at the man who was watching him with those intense brown eyes.... His dark skin shimmered in the lantern light. His muscular forearms were slung across his knees and his big hands dangled down.         

      Craig swallowed hard. 

      He was finding it harder and harder to tell himself that he wasn't attracted to Ezekiel. 

      Ezekiel stood up slowly and stretched his arms over his head. The motion emphasized just how smoothly the man's broad chest and shoulders tapered down to his narrow waist. 

      Craig quickly averted his gaze but the look on Ezekiel's face told him the man had noticed his appraisal. 

      Feeling too exposed and vulnerable, Craig hopped to his feet. "I'm gonna make sure the horses are good for the night." 

      After that mumbled excuse, Craig made a quick escape out the door. Out in the open, he drew the fresh air deep into his lungs and tried to focus. 

      Craig was confused. Part of him was angry at Ezekiel for the way he'd treated him since coming to the ranch. Then again, Ezekiel had saved his life—twice. 

      And he was only harsh when Craig was thinking about drinking, gambling or whores..... Was it possible that, just like Jeb, Ezekiel was hard on Craig because he cared?

      Craig had seen the desire Ezekiel felt for him written on the other man's face more than once. Was it possible that Ezekiel was fond of him too?

      Could the other man be falling for him?

      Shit. 

      Two days ago, Craig wouldn't have cared if he hurt Ezekiel but now Craig was beginning to see him in a different light. Possibly as a friend? He didn't want to hurt Ezekiel when he told him they had no future. 

      If, (and it was a very big if), Craig ever settled down, it would be with a woman—no matter what out of character and confusing thoughts Ezekiel caused him to have. 

---

Ezekiel stared out a crack in the log walls at Craig who was staring at the sky with what was clearly confusion. It was as if he were hoping the darkening evening would somehow give him answers.

      Ezekiel felt a little sorry for the man. It was clear he'd never realized he might desire men—but it was also clear to Ezekiel that he did.

      Ezekiel wasn't commonly the pushy type. He'd never even had much of a desire or drive to find a partner to bed. 

      Craig had changed that. There was something about that man that had everything in Ezekiel screaming to take him, claim him and make him his. 

      Craig made him hungry in ways he'd never been hungry before. Ezekiel was going to get pushy. He was going to get real pushy. 

      He knew Craig wanted him—the man just needed a bit of guidance. Ezekiel was more than happy to lead the horse to water—and then he'd see to it that they both drank their fill. 

 

A/N: I hope you enjoyed it.. a bit of a filler, I know! But the next chapter should prove to be VERY interesting ;)

Chapter Nine

Chapter Nine

Craig stepped into the shack and his gaze instantly went to Ezekiel. The man was sitting on his cot, with his back against the rough wooden wall. The top few buttons of his shirt were undone and his chest gleamed in the lantern light.

      Those dark, predatory eyes seemed to be burning holes directly in Craig. 

      Craig felt his hands shaking. His legs went a bit weak. He swallowed hard and fought the urge to race back out the door. Instead, he squared his shoulders and stared at the wall behind Ezekiel as he began to speak. 

      "Ezekiel, I want to make something clear. I... I've said it before but I reckon it bears repeating. I am attracted to women." 

      Ezekiel nodded and rose from the bed in one fluid motion that caused Craig's gut to tighten. "You've mentioned that," the giant of a man admitted. 

      Craig licked his shaking lips before continuing. "And I wanted to make sure you understood...." His voice trailed off as Ezekiel stalked toward him. 

      His movements were slow. Deliberate. Predatory. 

      Dark eyes roamed across Craig's body causing him to feel exposed and vulnerable...... and quite a bit warmer than he'd been moments before. 

      "Oh I understand," Ezekiel breathed out as he towered over Craig. His tongue slid across his full bottom lip and Craig clenched his fists tight and a lightning bolt seemed to flash through his veins. "Now I need to make sure you understand something." 

      Craig wasn't sure how he spoke but somehow the words. "What's that?" came from his mouth. 

      Ezekiel circled around behind him and Craig stiffened when a large calloused hand gripped his hip. Those fingertips resting dangerously close to the front of his trousers. "I am attracted to men... and I find myself desiring one man in particular." 

      Warm breath breezed across Craig's ear and his cock hardened damn near painfully. 

      Hell. 

      When was the last time he'd felt this kind of want for  a woman? Had he ever felt this kind of want for a woman?

      As Craig was still piecing together what that meant and what he intended to do about it, Ezekiel moved away. 

      That hand left his hip and the warmth of his breath left Craig's ear. "But if you're sure you only want women...." 

      Craig wrestled with himself a moment. If he gave in to what he was feeling it could change 

everything he’d ever known about himself…

      Oh, what the hell. Craig had always been foolishly impulsive. There wasn't any point in changing now. 

      Turning quickly, Craig realized that Ezekiel was still standing there with that same hungry gaze in his dark eyes and a satisfied smile on his lips. "I was hoping you'd change your mind," that deep voice rumbled. 

      Craig threw all caution and thought to the wind. He leapt forward and jumped into Ezekiel's arms, propelling them both backward as their lips hungrily sought each other. 

      Ezekiel's back struck the wall and he braced himself against it, as he grabbed Craig's face in his hands and deepened their kiss. 

      Craig trembled as he felt Ezekiel's hard body moving against his. Each and every coiling muscle bunched and moved beneath him.        

      With a low growl from deep in his chest, Ezekiel peeled Craig off of him and put distance between them. 

      "What are you doing?" Craig demanded, his breath panting out of him as if he'd just run a mile in the sun. "The kissing was working for me." 

      Ezekiel's dark eyes were glowing in the lamp light as he shook his head. "Not like that. Not rushed. You need to know something, Craig." 

      Craig rolled his eyes. "Are you always bossy? Even when it comes to a quick rut?" 

      Ezekiel raised one thick brow. "I don't have 

quick ruts ,“ he assured him and Craig could hear that cocky sarcasm that had always annoyed him before….. it was beginning to grow on him.

      "Well that makes a pair of us," Craig boasted with a wink. "Might make for a long night." 

      "I plan on it," Ezekiel agreed, stepping forward. 

      Anticipation had Craig stepping up to meet him but Ezekiel held out a hand. "That thing you need to know?" 

      Craig grumbled. "Yeah, yeah, what is it? Do you have six toes on one foot? Or a really tiny....." He let the question trail off and he saw Ezekiel's lips twitch with a laugh he held back. 

      "No. No, there's nothing tiny about me," Ezekiel assured him. "But I am bossy. Real bossy." 

      Craig expected to feel annoyance. He'd always hated authority. 

      But instead he was surprised when a hungry tremble of anticipation washed over him. "Boss away, sir." 

A/N: I know, I know… it’s a bit of a tease! But i’m already working on the next chapter so please don’t come looking for me! I just wanted to give y’all something to read because it’s been a while!

Chapter Ten

Chapter Ten

Ezekiel clenched his fists and breathed deep through his nose to gain control of himself. Craig set him on fire like no other man ever had.

      Ezekiel knew he was playing a dangerous game. Craig would probably enjoy his time with him tonight and then, tomorrow, he'd call it all a mistake and go back to his old life—that's just the way Craig was. Impulsive. 

      However, if Ezekiel took Craig, it wouldn't be a meaningless encounter for him. Ezekiel wasn't the meaningless encounter type. He was the loyal, commitment type. There was a damn good chance that Ezekiel was going to end up hurt. 

      But even that wasn't enough to stop him. 

      His hunger overrode his trepidation. 

      Ezekiel strode forward and stood toe to toe with Craig—towering over the shorter man. "Take off your shirt." 

      Craig's green eyes narrowed as his lips twitched mischievously. "Don't 

you want to undress me?“

      Ezekiel shook his head and folded his arms across his chest. "Do as I say, Craig." 

      He didn't miss the fact that Craig's hands were shaking as he undid the button of his shirt and slid it from his shoulders. Ezekiel growled low as he took in the sight of Craig's tan, lean torso. 

      Putting his fingertips against Craig's heated skin, Ezekiel pushed him back slightly before circling around him. He heard Craig's sharp intake of breath as he stooped low and blew warm breath against the man's neck. 

      "Hell, Ezekiel.....

Do something!“

      A low rumble of laughter left Ezekiel's chest before he lowered his lips to Craig's skin and got his first real taste. A low growl came from within him as he ran his tongue along Craig's trembling skin. 

      Craig groaned out his name and dropped his head to the side to grant Ezekiel better access as he leaned back into him. 

      Ezekiel knew Craig would feel his hard arousal against his ass and he took a moment to grind it against the other man. He felt Craig respond instantly, shoving his hips back into Ezekiel's thrusts. 

      For a man who'd never given any thought to being with a man, Craig seemed to know what he was doing. 

                Craig's hand reached back and brushed against Ezekiel's cock through his trousers. A loud curse flew from Ezekiel's mouth. Damn the man! 

      Grabbing Craig's wrist in one hand, Ezekiel nipped his neck hard enough to cause the other man to let out a hiss. "Patience, outlaw." 

      "Sorry...." 

      Ezekiel took pleasure in his quick submission. He released his hold on Craig's wrist. "Turn around." 

      Craig quickly did as he was told and gazed up at Ezekiel with his bottom lip sucked between his teeth. Ezekiel slowly undid the buttons of his own shirt and slid it off. 

      He saw Craig's fingers flex as he began to reach for him, obviously eager to touch Ezekiel. Ezekiel knew it was mean to do but he shook his head. "Not until I say you can," he warned, enjoying the frustration lining Craig's brow.  

      He was toying with the man—seeing just how long Craig could remain submissive. Ezekiel had heard of men who would go so far as to hit their lovers, whip them, cause them real pain in the name of pleasure.... That wasn't something Ezekiel believed in. But teasing and bossing? That he took pleasure in. 

      Ezekiel hook a finger in the front of Craig's trousers and pulled the man toward the cot. He kept his eyes focused on Craig's as he quickly undid the button and slid Craig's trousers down off his hips. 

      Without warning, Ezekiel spun Craig around and shoved him down on the cot so he was lying on his back with his legs hanging off the edge. 

      "What are you doing?" Craig whispered, voice shaking. 

      Ezekiel simply took in the sight of that hard, throbbing cock and licked his lips. "Gonna suck you good and drink you down," he growled before dropping to his knees and sliding his tongue along the tip of Craig's cock. 

      Craig let out a string of curses and tried to sit up. Ezekiel forcefully put his hand on his chest and shoved him back down. "Stay." 

      Ezekiel gave Craig a stern gaze and nearly chuckled when he saw Craig's jaw muscles jumping with restraint. 

      He then refocused his attention on showing Craig just how good it could be with a man. Slowly, teasingly, Ezekiel traced the length of Craig with his tongue. 

      Craig let out another loud string of curses and his hips surged forward. Growling, Ezekiel held Craig down and continued teasing him. Licking, tasting and nipping lightly. 

      "Damn you, Ezekiel!" Craig moaned, gripping the blanket tightly and glaring down at him with hunger etched on his face. "Stop teasing me." 

      Ezekiel pulled his mouth away and his brow rose slightly. Craig let out a whimper. "Please...." He pleaded. 

      Deciding that he'd tortured the poor man enough, Ezekiel swooped down and took Craig's full length in his mouth. 

      It was clear, from the moans leaving Craig's mouth that the man wasn't going to last long. Spurred on by his pleasure, Ezekiel rubbed at his own throbbing arousal through his pants as he loved Craig's cock with his mouth. 

      Never had Ezekiel heard a sound more erotic then his name leaving Craig's lips as the man stiffened and his release flooded Ezekiel's mouth. Drinking him down, Ezekiel allowed Craig to ride out his release before standing slowly. 

      Craig's cheeks were flushed and his blond hair was a mess on his head as he gazed up at Ezekiel. "What now, boss?" he asked, a smile curving his lips. 

      Ezekiel returned the smile as he undid his pants and stepped out of them. "Get on your knees." 

      Craig's eyes were locked on Ezekiel's cock as he moved quickly to the position Ezekiel had indicated. "Take me in your mouth." 

      Craig swallowed hard and licked his lips. It was clear he was apprehensive and unsure. Ezekiel stooped low and nipped at Craig's ear. "I've been waiting long enough." 

      With a tremble and a nod, Craig leaned forward and ran his tongue across the tip of Ezekiel's waiting cock. 

      A loud groan escaped Ezekiel's throat as his muscles bulged with restraint. He reached up and gripped the ceiling beam with his hands in an effort to control himself. 

      Seeming emboldened by Ezekiel's response, Craig took him in his mouth. Never in his life, had Ezekiel felt anything so all-consuming as the pleasure, the want, the need that Craig was awakening in him. 

      His grip on the wooden beam grew tighter and Ezekiel knew he had to stop Craig before this all ended a bit too soon. He didn't want to spend himself in the other man's mouth—he wanted his ass. 

      Pulling away, Ezekiel was met with Craig's frustrated moan. "Why did you pull away?" he demanded. Then he frowned as he gazed up at Ezekiel. "Did I do something wrong?" 

      Ezekiel shook his head with a chuckle. "No, you did everything just fine," he assured the other man. He was enjoying this side of Craig. Less cocky arrogance and more innocent uncertainty. 

      "Turn around," Ezekiel ordered. 

      Craig swallowed hard. "I... I uh..." 

      Ezekiel could hear real fear in Craig's voice and that wasn't something he wanted. Uncertainty was one thing; true fear was another. 

      He stooped down and took Craig's face gently in his hands before pressing a tender kiss to his lips. "Trust me." 

      Craig's eyes remained closed a moment after Ezekiel pulled away before he nodded and turned on the cot. Seeing Craig's ass in the air and waiting for him had Ezekiel's desire roaring back in full force. 

      Reaching for his saddlebag, Ezekiel rummaged inside until he pulled out a tin of oil. Perfect for readying Craig to take him. 

      Ezekiel moved in behind Craig and began nibbling and kissing his back before pressing one oiled finger against his virgin backside. 

      Craig stiffened and Ezekiel put his mouth against his ear, pressing their bare skin close together. "Relax," he whispered. 

      Craig's moans soon filled the shack as Ezekiel continued to ready him. Feeling his own need growing to a near desperate level, Ezekiel removed his fingers and swiftly replaced them with his throbbing cock. 

      Craig let out a string of curses and bucked against him. "Damn you!" he growled. 

      Ezekiel reached around and stroked Craig to full hardness. "You want me to stop?" he teased, nipping his shoulder. 

      Craig glared back at him. "Stop and I'll kill you." 

      That was all the encouragement Ezekiel needed. He began to move and move fast. There'd be time for slow another day. He'd waited for this too long and he had no patience left. 

      He felt his release building just as Craig called out his name, stiffened and had his own. Ezekiel grabbed Craig's hips, pulled him tighter against him and drove in deep as he too hollered out and lost himself in a white hot release. 

      An awkward silence fell over the men as they regained their legs and cleaned up. Craig stood beside the wood stove and glanced toward his trousers. 

      Ezekiel wasn't ready for the night to be over just yet. He swooped in quickly and wrapped his arms tight around Craig from behind—pulling the man into a warm embrace and resting his head on his shoulder. 

      Craig stiffened. "I'm not a damn woman.. I don't need to be coddled." 

      Ezekiel nibbled at Craig's ear. "Well maybe I do. Reckon two of us can fit on your cot?" 

      He saw Craig's cheeks crinkle as the man smiled. "Might get a bit crowded... You're one of those big boned gals." 

      Ezekiel pulled away and took Craig's hand, leading the man to the cot. "Didn't your mama teach you better than to comment on a lady's size?"

      Ezekiel laid himself down on the cot and felt a calm and quiet peace settle over him when Craig curled himself up in his arms, resting his head on his chest. "She probably tried," Craig replied. "But I've got a stubborn streak." 

      Ezekiel hooked the wool blanket with is toe and brought it up to cover them both. He chuckled and pressed a kiss to Craig's sweaty blond hair. "Really? I never would have guessed." 

:{“nxΤ׃

Chapter Eleven

Chapter Eleven

His ass hurt. That was the thought resounding loudest in Craig’s head as he rode along beside the herd of cattle beneath the hot sun. 

      How in the hell did men do it? 

      Craig shifted slightly and Ezekiel rode up close beside him. Craig marveled at the change in his feelings toward the foreman. Instead of annoyance at having him close, Craig found a sort of peace in it and a heat in it all at once. 

      He glanced over at the giant of a man to see that Ezekiel was watching him with concern. "Are you alright?" 

      Craig nodded. "Never better," he assured him. "Thinking saddle cushions might just be the next big thing in the riding market." 

      When guilt filled Ezekiel's features, Craig was shocked. "I should have taken it easier on you." Ezekiel reached out and ran his fingertips across Craig's hand. "Do you want to take a break? We have all day to get this herd to the ranch." 

      As badly as Craig wanted to be tough and insist he didn't need a break, his pain won the battle. Ezekiel smiled and motioned toward a set of sparse trees that would provide them a bit of shade. "Let's take the cattle that way and hunker down a bit." 

      Craig had never been so happy to be off a horse in all his life as he was when he slipped off the mare. No sooner had his boots hit the dirt, Ezekiel was coming up behind him and wrapping him tightly in his arms. 

      Craig felt a moment of awkwardness. He was accustomed to being with women—and in those situations, he'd be the one to come up behind her. Not that Craig had ever done much in the way of 

cuddling . Whores didn’t seem to have much time for things like that.

      "Do you regret last night?" Ezekiel whispered, his breath washing over the tender skin beneath his ear. Craig trembled as the fear in that deep gruff voice registered in his mind. Ezekiel was worried....

      Craig didn't want that. Hell, he wasn't sure what he wanted. Did he want to be with Ezekiel long term? Was he ready for that kind of commitment? Was Ezekiel looking for that relationship? 

      Was it time for Craig to settle down the way Jeb and Wyatt had and was Ezekiel the man to build that life with? But hadn't he decided that if he 

ever settled down it would be with a woman?

      Shit.....He had no damn idea. 

      But he didn't regret the night before. He'd learned a hell of a lot about himself during the last few days he'd spent in that shack with Ezekiel. And last night had been......damn. 

      "You know me, Ezekiel. I'm not the regrets type." 

      "For once I have a reason to be grateful you're impulsive." 

      Craig pulled away and busied himself rummaging through his saddlebags for a piece of hardtack. He had to put some form of distance between them... Ezekiel's touch made him ache for more of what he now knew the man could give him, but it wasn't right.... Now when Craig wasn't a damn bit sure of what he wanted.

      "Want one?" Craig asked, turning around with an extra biscuit in his hand. 

      Ezekiel nodded as he leaned against the crooked tree behind him. Craig couldn't read the man's face and had no real idea what he was thinking. He tossed him a biscuit and they ate in silence. 

      Craig sighed as he looked up at the fat white clouds in the sky. "What did last night mean?" he finally spoke. "For us, I mean."

      Ezekiel was quiet for several long moments but Craig's gaze remained stubbornly fixed on the sky. "What do you want it to mean?" 

      Craig shoved his hand through his messy blond hair which was hanging close to his shoulders once again and becoming unruly. "I uh... I don't know. I have always wanted women. Always. Until you." 

      "Is that a problem?" Ezekiel's voice was low, even and very controlled. Craig wasn't sure if that meant he was angry or just trying to hide his feelings on the matter. 

      "No...." Craig drew the word out. "My brother and his man are happy together. So are my best friend and his giant injun he managed to fall in love with. I'm just....." Craig sighed and his shoulders slumped. "I'm just confused." 

      Craig was barely aware of Ezekiel's movements before the man was standing close and taking his hands gently. The tenderness Ezekiel had been showing since last night was a definite surprise for Craig..... He'd never had someone show him such tender care and he'd be lying if he said he didn't like it. 

      It was certainly nicer than having Ezekiel insulting and looking down his nose at him. 

      "Craig, last night was something I won't forget, I won't lie. And I'd damn sure take the chance to repeat it if you gave it to me. But you gotta figure out what's right for you. I happen to think what's right for you is me. If you choose not to feel that way then I'll go back to just being your foreman." 

      Craig had no real idea what to say and his silence had Ezekiel stepping away from him and it was clear the smile on the big man's face was forced. 

All tenderness was gone from his voice when he spoke and in its place was the familiar authoritative tone of a foreman. “Let’s get this herd back to the ranch. We’re wasting daylight.”

---

      Ezekiel wasn't surprised when Edison Bentley called him into his office that evening after the cattle had been delivered to the ranch. He stepped into the office and the older man greeted him with a smile. 

      "Hello, Ezekiel. Please, sit down." 

      Ezekiel took a seat in the cushioned wooden chair and it creaked beneath his weight. "We found most of the herd. There was a couple head we couldn't locate......" 

      Edison interrupted him with a wave of his hand. "I know the herd is fine, Ezekiel. I sent my best man to fetch them. What I am curious about is how Craig fared during the trip." 

      Ezekiel stiffened at the mention of Craig. He was trying real hard not be angry at the other man—he had known that a relationship with Craig was iffy at best and he'd led himself down that road anyhow. Craig was confused, conflicted and still trying to figure himself out. It wasn't his fault. 

      But damn that didn't make his distance hurt any less. 

      "He did just fine," Ezekiel replied. "Worked hard and got the job done. He even risked his life to pull one of your younger cows out of a mud pit." 

      Edison chuckled. "I noticed you seem a bit dirtier than I expected." 

      Ezekiel glanced down at his clothes and nodded. "I couldn't let the man die for a cow." 

      Edison rubbed at his chin and studied Ezekiel carefully. "Be careful. Don't give too much of your heart to him too quickly, Ezekiel. He won't hurt you on purpose but he's bound to hurt you." 

      Taken aback by Edison's words, Ezekiel shifted in the chair and gripped at the arms. "What are you talking about, sir?" 

      Edison winked. "I am old not blind. And I'm not judgmental either if that's your worry. I just don't want to see you, or Craig, hurt too badly. He's a lost soul, Ezekiel, just as you and I both were once. And lost souls leave damage in their wake as they attempt to find themselves. Just be careful." 

      Ezekiel was at a loss for words. He hadn't been aware that Edison knew that particular detail of his life. His preferences weren't something he openly discussed with anyone—a man could be killed for being the way he was. 

      "I'll let you simply chew on that knowledge a while," Edison continued when Ezekiel remained silent. "I need to ask you for a favor. If you are too tired to do the job tonight it can wait until tomorrow night...." 

      "What's the job?" Ezekiel asked, eager to have something to do to keep his mind busy. He hadn't ever cared much for sleeping—that's when the nightmares came. And tonight would be even harder with Craig sleeping mere feet away—it might as well be miles. 

      "It's come to my attention that there are several holes in the fences toward the south. I'd like for you to go check them out and keep an eye on them for tonight—see if anyone shows up." 

      "Could just be regular wear and tear over that way. We haven't repaired that line in a while," Ezekiel countered. 

      "It could be," Edison agreed. "But several ranchers have had cattle stolen in the last few months." 

      Ezekiel bristled. He didn't like the thought of someone stealing Edison Bentley's cattle. Edison was a man who would 

give those beasts to anyone who truly needed them. Stealing from him simply wasn’t right.

      "I'll head that way." Ezekiel stood up slowly. "What about Craig? I'm supposed to be keeping an eye on him, remember?" 

      Edison grinned. "I think that, just for tonight, he should survive without your company. I'd say after being in that shack with you, he'll probably be grateful for the rest." 

      Ezekiel was grateful for his dark skin because it hid the blush that suddenly burned in his cheeks. With a muttered goodbye, Ezekiel all but ran from the room and took the back staircase three at a time.

Chapter Twelve

Chapter Twelve

Craig’s body ached and he was bone tired. He stepped out of the barn after tending to his and Ezekiel’s horses and stretched his arms over his head.

      He was scratching at his stomach and wondering where the foreman had gotten off too when Chester approached him. "Hey there, Craig. It's our night off, you want to head into town with me since your guard dog is gone for the night?" 

      Gone? Where the hell had Ezekiel gone? "Where's he at?" Craig demanded. 

      Chester's eyes widened. "Hell, you sound mad! I figured you'd be happy to not have him breathing down your damn neck a while."

      Craig forced a smile and shrugged. "I reckon it's like a critter freed from a cage that just stands around a minute—they don't know what to do with their newfound freedom." 

      Chester laughed and patted him on the back. "Well he's gone. Said something about being back tomorrow before he took my horse and rode off. So, critter, tonight you're free." 

      Craig felt unease in his gut. He needed to stay here. He needed to avoid town—and the trouble he always landed himself in when he was there. Those damn vices that kept dragging him down. 

      "Come on, Craig!" Chester encouraged. "Don't tell me you've forgotten how to have a good time! Let's go drink and gamble and maybe even find a pretty woman or two." 

      Craig found himself being led into the barn by the painfully skinny man. He knew he should say no... but the thought of some whiskey and cards sounded damn good. A night to unwind. Forget about all his confusion for awhile. Yeah, it sounded real good. 

---

      The next morning found Craig regretting his decision with all his might. His stomach ached, his head was pounding and he couldn't open his eyes more than a crack without feeling like the room was spinning out of control.

      The night before was a blur and Craig couldn't remember half  of it—he didn't remember renting this hotel room but he'd woken up alone in side of it with the lock engaged from the inside so apparently he had. 

      Most mornings, after a night of drinking and gambling, he woke up in the brothel.... So a hotel room was certainly a change of pace. 

      From what he could remember of the night before, (before everything went black), he'd lost a lot of money, drank 

far too much whiskey, and seemed to have lost all desire for partners with breasts and soft hands.

      The saloon women had been eager to lure him from the tables—he'd always been easy to lure—but last night he hadn't been tempted. Not once. 

      He was broken. Broken by a giant colored man with dark eyes, calloused hands and a fondness for cuddling. 

      Jeb was never going to let him hear the end of this. 

      Craig knew he should get back out to the ranch before Ezekiel worried about him, but his head and stomach rebelled strongly at the thought of getting out of bed just yet. So, with a sigh, Craig pulled the blanket tight over his head and attempted to sleep off the pain. 

      

---

      Ezekiel was more tired than he'd remembered being in a long time. A long night of lovemaking, followed by a long day of driving a herd, followed by another sleepless night watching a fence line had Ezekiel feeling as if he'd been run over by a runaway wagon. 

      He stepped out of Edison's office after telling the boss that it seemed as if the holes were simply caused by wear and tear and glanced toward the bunkhouse. 

      It was still early but the ranch was already coming alive. Was Craig still asleep? Ezekiel wanted to see him. Hell he'd been near the man every day for weeks—he'd grown attached. 

      Edison had given him the next two nights off and Ezekiel knew how he'd like to spend them—but he was doubted that Craig would feel the same. 

      He glanced around the bunkhouse as he stepped inside and realized that Craig wasn't there. "Thompson?" he called to a man who was readying himself for work. 

      "Yeah?" Thompson replied, buttoning his vest.

      "Where the hell is Craig?" 

      Thompson glanced toward Craig's empty cot and shrugged. "He wasn't here when I bedded down last night." 

      Ezekiel clenched his fists and strode from the bunkhouse. The only place Craig could be was in town. And if he'd gone to town last night it hadn't been for good reasons. 

      Ezekiel couldn't believe the lack of respect the man had for everyone else. Edison had given him a chance to straighten up. Ezekiel was on the hook for anything Craig did since he'd been put in charge of him... and still the man was drinking, gambling and whoring..... That last thought caused pain to twist in his gut, which he quickly pushed away. 

      He had no claim to Craig and if the man wanted to spend his time in brothels that was fine—but Ezekiel wasn't going to be responsible for it. He was going to make sure Craig knew he was washing his hands of him. He was going to be responsible for someone while they continued to insist on self-destructing. 

      Saddling a fresh horse in the barn, Ezekiel rushed off toward town, his temper good and riled.

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Thirteen

      Craig was attempting to talk himself into getting out of the bed. He needed to get a good bath, a change of clothes and head back to the ranch so Ezekiel didn't worry too long about where he was. 

      Choosing to ignore the fact that he was thinking about someone else's feelings above his own, Craig sat up and threw his legs over the bed. He was just preparing to gather up his energy to stand when a loud bang sounded on the door. 

      Craig went diving for his gun as the door swung open. "Tell her to cover up because I'm coming in," Ezekiel growled as he strode into the room. 

      Then the big man stopped. Craig was tangled up in the sheet on the floor with his revolver aimed at Ezekiel's chest while Ezekiel glanced around the room with confusion. 

      "What in the hell do you think you're doing?" Craig demanded, putting his gun down. "I could have shot you." 

      Ezekiel closed the door behind him, though it didn't shut quite right with the splintered lock. "I uh..." He rubbed at his neck and appeared more out of place and at a loss for words than Craig had ever seen him. It was endearing really. 

      Craig freed himself from the sheet and stood up, wishing the pounding in his head would subside. "You know if you wanted to come in, you could have just asked. Now they're gonna charge me for a lock." 

      Ezekiel shook his head and fixed Craig with a stern glare. "Why are you here? Why aren't you at the ranch?" 

      Craig yawned and winced at the increased tempo of the drummers in his head. "I had a night off and Chester wanted to come to town, daddy. I'm sorry I didn't ask for permission but you were already gone doing whatever it was you went to do last night." 

      "Edison had me checking a fence line," Ezekiel quickly informed him. "And that doesn't matter. Why, when you get one free moment, do you insist on coming into town and getting drunk, gambling away your money and bedding every woman in sight?" 

      Craig frowned. He wanted to tell Ezekiel to go to hell but his head hurt too bad. Instead he walked to the water basin and splashed some water on his face before drying it with a stiff white towel. "First off, I didn't gamble away 

all my money. Second, getting drunk was a mistake, I’ll admit that. The headache I have this morning is proof enough. And third, while I can’t remember the last half of the night, I do recall that the first half I wasn’t tempted by any of the scantily clad women vying for my attention. And since I woke up here alone this morning, I’m assuming the second half of the night went about the same.“

      Ezekiel glanced around again, his shoulders sagging a bit. Craig realized the man looked tired—bone tired. He felt another tug of guilt for causing him to worry. Then again, it wasn't Craig's fault the man was so overbearing. 

      "I came here to let you know I wasn't gonna be responsible for you anymore."        

      "Good. I don't need anyone to be responsible for me," Craig muttered. "I was just waking up and I was going to head down, get a good bath, a new change of clothes and then head on out to the ranch even though I don't have to work today. You don't have to worry about me." 

      Ezekiel flopped down in the chair, his gaze never leaving Craig. "Don't I?" 

      Craig shoved his hand through his tangled blond hair, attempting to tame it a bit. "No. I feel better than I have in a long time. Sure, I drank far too much last night but it didn't leave me wanting more. I've been known to completely lose myself in whiskey for days, or even weeks, but I don't want more just now. And I was about to come back to work early." He winked. "Surely I get credit for that." 

      Ezekiel was quiet for several long moments. Craig spent that time, gathering up his gun belt and sliding into his boots. "Where are you going?" Ezekiel asked as Craig headed for the door. 

      "To get a bath, a change of clothes and bring you back some breakfast. You look terrible, Ezekiel. Sleep. I'll be back soon." 

      "Terrible huh?" Ezekiel's lips twitched. "I notice you keep staring anyhow." 

      Craig felt that shockwave shoot through him and knew he needed to get gone before leaving became impossible. He shrugged one shoulder. "Nothing else to look at in here." 

      Craig left the room and headed down the stairs. Pulling his hat low as he stepped outside, Craig took a deep breath of fresh air. 

      He felt......

good. Better than he had in a long time. He felt more like his old self this morning than he’d felt in over a year. Gone was just about every bit of that melancholy that had held him down.

      He no longer felt as if he were drowning. He might not be safely on shore just yet, but he felt as if he'd managed to find something to hang onto and float his way in. 

      A smile curved his cheeks as he thought of the way Ezekiel had barged into his room. The man had been worried and jealous. Craig was glad he'd been alone in that bed. He couldn't imagine the temper he'd have seen if Ezekiel 

had caught him with someone.

      His mind was on thoughts of Ezekiel the entire time he bathed at the bath house and slid into the new clothes he'd purchased at the tailor. He dropped his dirty outfit off to be washed before heading down the road to one of the diners. 

      Balancing a large tray with two meals, Craig pushed the broken door open with his hip and stepped into the room to find Ezekiel sprawled out on the bed sound asleep. 

      The man looked as if he'd been run over and left. His arms and legs were dangling off the bed and he was face down on the pillows with his muffled snores filling the room. 

      Craig sighed. Ezekiel needed to learn to lighten up a bit. Perhaps if the man wasn't always so uptight, he'd rest better at night. 

      Placing the tray of food on the small table, Craig grabbed his plate and sat down in the arm chair. As he ate, he thought about home and his family, which he was beginning to miss more and more now that he wasn't spending most of his time in drunken stupors. 

      He needed to go home again soon. Perhaps not to stay, (since he enjoyed working for Edison and he was curious to see where things would go with Ezekiel), but at least to visit. 

      He wondered if Ezekiel would come with him. Jeb and the man were bound to get along since they were both equally bossy. And Wyatt would probably scare the man to death with threats of death should he hurt Craig. 

      Craig smiled. Then he frowned. Damn he missed them all.

      A rustling on the bed had Craig snapping out of his thoughts and glancing at Ezekiel as the man sat up and rubbed at his face roughly with his hand. 

      "Hello, sleeping beauty." 

      Ezekiel looked at him from the corner of his eye. "Just a while ago you said I looked like hell." 

      Craig chuckled. "The nap helped." He pointed to the tray on the table. "I got you some food too. Figured you might be hungry." 

      Ezekiel grabbed the tray and began shoveling food into his mouth. Craig watched him with a mixture of disgust and amusement. He'd never seen anyone put food away quite like that before. 

      Ezekiel paused, (probably for breath, Craig assumed), and looked over at him. "I was ready to be really damn mad at you when I got here." 

      Craig nodded. "The broken door is proof of that." 

      Ezekiel cast a guilty glance toward the crooked door and sighed. "I'm still annoyed as hell that the first place you ran was the saloon." 

      Craig opened his mouth to defend himself but Ezekiel held up his hand. "But, you're right. You have every right to let loose and enjoy yourself now and then. And you do seem...

different today. You don’t have quite the chip on your shoulder.“

      Craig grumbled under his breath. "I never had a chip on my shoulder. I have an 'I can't stand bossy folks treating me like a child' on my shoulder. You and my brother are more alike than I care to admit. Impossible." 

      Ezekiel laughed before taking another bite of breakfast. "I was surprised to see how fast you had that gun in your hand. I'd noticed you wearing it but it never occurred to me that you actually knew how to use it." 

      Craig frowned. "Of course I know how to use it. I told you I was in a gang." 

      "You just don't have the look of a killer. And most men good with guns are killers." 

      Craig stood up and carried his empty plate to the tray. "No, I'm not a killer. I have. But only in self-defense or to protect someone." Craig thought back to the many times the gang had thumped folks over the head and tied them up. "We left more headaches and hurt pride behind then we did death."

      Ezekiel stood up and walked toward him. Craig instantly had that feeling of being stalked. Ezekiel was smiling, as if he knew exactly how weak he made Craig's legs when he stood close. "So, why the talent with the gun if you chose not to use it?" 

      Shaking off the effects of Ezekiel's nearness, Craig took a step back and pulled his revolver from the holster. He spun it around and around his finger, even tossing and catching it several times with a smile on his face and his eyes never leaving Ezekiel's. 

      "I learned how to be good with a gun," he began as he slipped it back effortlessly into the holster. "Because the ladies love it." 

      Hunger flashed in Ezekiel's dark eyes. He drew that full bottom lip between his teeth before flashing a wicked grin. "Is that right? What if I told you men love it too?"

Chapter Fourteen

Chapter Fourteen

      Craig wasn't sure how it happened. One moment he'd been fully clothed doing gun tricks and the next he was fully undressed and lying on his back on the bed, his eyes fixed on the giant of a man standing fully unclothed beside the bed. 

      He grumbled when Ezekiel looked away from him. "What are you waiting for?" Craig demanded.

      "You picked a hotel with broken locks," Ezekiel replied, shoving the heavy wardrobe in front of the door. "I'm ensuring we have privacy."           

Craig chuckled. “The locks here were just fine until you came along.”

      "Doesn't matter." Ezekiel stalked once more to the edge of the bed. Where were we?" 

      Craig decided to take charge of the situation—at least  a bit. Last time, Ezekiel hadn't allowed Craig to do much tasting or touching. That was going to change. 

      He stood up and stared Ezekiel down. Ezekiel's dark brow rose. "What are you doing?" 

      "Gonna taste you," Craig replied. He winked. "Got a problem with that?" 

      Ezekiel's nostrils flared as his fists clenched. Clearly he had a big problem giving up the control and having someone else take the lead.  "I'm in charge," he warned. 

Craig shook his head. “I’ve always rebelled against authority.”

      Craig stepped around Ezekiel and came to stand behind him. The man was a sight to behold—breathtaking, really. His dark skin was taut over muscles chiseled by hard work. 

Craig laid his palm against the flat of Ezekiel’s back and marveled at the difference in their skin tone. Craig, who was tanned well from working in the sun, appeared pale when placed against Ezekiel’s ebony body.

The big man trembled beneath his touch. “You gonna do something?”

Craig gently raked his hand downward and gripped Ezekiel’s firm ass tightly. “I’m enjoying the view.”

Ezekiel let out a growl and attempted to reach around to grab Craig but he leaned out of his reach and chuckled. “Have patience,” he warned, repeating what Ezekiel had told him in that field shack.

“This isn’t a game, Craig,” Ezekiel insisted, his voice tight.

      Craig pressed his lips to Ezekiel's heated skin and nipped at his shoulder. "Trust me. I know." 

      Craig wrapped his arms around Ezekiel and pulled the man's body close against him. His cock hardened nearly painfully as it pressed tight against Ezekiel's sculpted ass. 

      Ezekiel trembled and a low growl emanated from his chest. Craig knew the big man's restraint wouldn't last much longer—he needed to take advantage while it lasted. 

      Craig spread his palms across Ezekiel's chest and couldn't stop himself from grazing his thumbs across his nipples. Ezekiel jerked and looked over his shoulder with a dark gaze. 

      Craig shivered eagerly. Ezekiel was going to break any moment and Craig was ready. 

      He rose on his toes and his lips danced across Ezekiel's stubbled jaw. Craig's hands slid down Ezekiel's toned torso. His fingertips grazed Ezekiel's arousal and it proved to be more than the man could stand. 

      Craig's name left his lips like a curse and Ezekiel spun around and pulled Craig tight against him. Their cocks slid against one another and Craig nearly cried out. His legs buckled but Ezekiel supported his weight and dropped them both onto the bed. 

      "You don't realize what you do to me," Ezekiel growled in his ear, nipping at the lobe for good measure. 

      "Yes I do," Craig countered, urging his hips upward. 

      Ezekiel grinned wickedly. "You've been bad, Craig. I shouldn't give you what you want." 

      Craig shocked his own self with a whimper. "Please, Ezekiel....." He attempted to push the other man down, longing to feel that mouth working magic on his cock once more. 

      Ezekiel sucked his full bottom lip into his mouth and worked it with his teeth. He moved down lower, laying kisses and nips along Craig's chest and stomach that had Craig gripping the sheets and longing painfully for more. 

      "I don't know..." Ezekiel stopped his downward trek mere inches from where Craig most longed to feel him. 

      "Dammit Ezekiel....." Craig grumbled. 

      Ezekiel gazed up the length of Craig's body. "Tell me you're mine." 

      Craig stilled and met his gaze. Ezekiel wasn't teasing. He was serious—and he was scared. 

      Craig swallowed hard. Commitment. 

      Hell. 

      Then again, hadn't he been thinking of taking Ezekiel home to meet the family just a while ago?

      Craig reached out and ran his fingers through Ezekiel's thick, coarse hair. "I'm yours." 

      The hunger that flashed in Ezekiel's eyes took Craig's breath. Then the man descended on him and Craig lost the ability to think. 

      Ezekiel's name left his lips all mixed in with his moans. He seemed to know just what to do and it wasn't long before Craig was pumping his hips and grabbing Ezekiel's head, urging him on. 

      Craig felt himself tighten before being blinded by a release that had him arching from the bed. 

      Ezekiel gave him no time to recover before sliding a wet finger deep into his ass. Craig's eyes flew open at the sudden intrusion. 

      Ezekiel gave him a quick kiss before moving his mouth to Craig's shoulders and nipping and suckling the tender flesh. 

      One finger was quickly replaced by two as Ezekiel readied him. There was pain, yes, but there was also pleasure. 

      Ezekiel seemed to know juts where and how to touch him to all but numb the pain with all the white hot pleasure. 

      Ezekiel remained a top him and when he slid himself inside Craig, Craig muffled his cries by burying his face in Ezekiel's chest. 

      "Look at me, Craig. I want to see you." 

      Craig obeyed the command. 

      Already he was hard and ready for a second release. Ezekiel's dark eyes gazed deep into his, never breaking contact as he reached a hand between them and began working Craig's cock. 

      Craig knew he wasn't going to last much longer and Ezekile's intensifying thrusts had him believing the other man wouldn't either. 

      Craig clung to Ezekiel's chiseled arms, feeling them tighten just before the big man's eyes slid closed and his body stiffened. Craig felt Ezekiel's release fill him. 

      With his eyes closed in ecstasy and his jaw falling open, Ezekiel painted the most erotic picture Craig had ever seen. It sent him tumbling over the edge and joining Ezekiel in release. 

      Craig lay there on the bed unable to get up, his limbs refusing movement. He felt his cheeks redden when Ezekiel cleaned them both and then the foreman climbed into bed and pulled Craig into a warm embrace. 

      "My man is a cuddler," Craig mumbled, secretly loving being held this way and feeling the warmth and peace that came with it. 

      Ezekiel chuckled and pressed a tender kiss to his hair. "Yes, I am." 

      "Shouldn't we get dressed? What if someone comes looking for us?" 

      "The wardrobe will stop them. Besides, it's our day off. They can leave us be." 

      Craig rested his head against Ezekiel's heartbeat. "We're supposed to go back to the ranch tonight." 

      "Not gonna," Ezekiel replied, his eyes closing as he traced patterns on Craig's bare back. "We're taking tomorrow off too." 

      Craig smiled. "But we're not supposed to take tomorrow off." 

      Ezekiel's lips twitched. "You should be happy. We're taking tomorrow anyhow." 

      "So, you're finally gonna take it easy. Good, you can stop riding my ass so hard." 

      Craig knew the instant the words left his mouth how Ezekiel would take them. A big hand closed on his ass cheek and gripped it tight, pulling Craig closer. "If I ever get tired of riding this ass, I'll let you know."

Chapter Fifteen

Chapter Fifteen

Memories and flashbacks of his distant past had Ezekiel studying the ceiling as Craig lay sleeping against his chest the darkness covering them heavily.

      Hours ago he'd been so full of peace and contentment after spending the day locked away with Craig. But the night, and demons of his past, had stolen that. Now Ezekiel was left with nothing to do but wait for the daylight. 

      Craig stirred against him. "Why are you awake?" 

      Ezekiel glanced down at the man in the faint moonlight. He knew he'd never get tired of seeing that boyishly handsome face. "I'm not tired."       

      Craig sighed and propped himself up on his elbow. His green eyes showed worry. "It's two in the morning. Everyone is tired." 

      "Not me," Ezekiel countered, pushing a stray lock of Craig's hair behind his ear. 

      "I've noticed that there seems to be a lot of nights you're not tired. Do you want to talk about it?"

      Ezekiel stiffened. "Nope."       

      Craig's body language changed instantly at Ezekiel's curt reply. The man pulled away and the distance between their bodies left Ezekiel feeling cold. 

      Craig's expression was a tense one. "Alright then," he grumbled. 

      Ezekiel rubbed roughly at his face and adjusted his head against the soft hotel pillow. "It's just memories, Craig. Bad ones. They keep me up some nights." 

      Craig seemed to soften a bit and he curled his body back against Ezekiel's. "I've heard people say that talking about your problems can make them better." 

      "Those people don't have my problems." 

      Craig laid his head once again on Ezekiel's chest. "I wasn't always quite as useless, drunk and angry as I was when you met me. The gang I ran with, we were family. Our whole lives were that gang. We stole valuables, money and cattle off wealthy ranchers and we gave what money we made to orphanages to tend to children. Jeb, my brother, gave us that purpose. And that was more than ten years of my life. Then suddenly everything changed. Two of my family were murdered and more were captured. It took some effort, and some killing, but we got them free and what was left of us decided to head to some land my brother had.  Settling down was what my brother had in mind to do......" 

      Craig was quiet for a moment. He spread his hand across Ezekiel's taut stomach before continuing. "I tried. I did. My brother settled down fine with his man and their boy. My best friend, Wyatt, he seemed okay with ranch life too. So did my cousin and her husband. Everyone seemed good. Happy..... and I was lost. I couldn't seem to find the button that everyone else had found to turn off the life we'd lived before. 

      "I missed the people we'd lost but I also missed the lifestyle we'd lost. I didn't know who I was or what to do without it. And so I drank to help me forget... and with the drinking came the rage and the melancholy. Hell, there were times when I was drunk for a week at a time. I wouldn't eat or sleep. I would just drink and gamble and whore around. 

      "I found myself for a short time when I thought Wyatt was in trouble and ended up riding with him and Zachariah. But then that adventure ended and we were right back to that ranch and once again, the button eluded me. I just couldn't find peace. But I couldn't stay and worry my family any longer. So, I left to 

find myself.“ Craig snorted. “What I found was more trouble and a nice wet ditch to die in…… then you had to go and save me.”

      Ezekiel chuckled quietly. "Are you upset that I saved you?" 

      Craig was quiet and it caused Ezekiel to raise his head a bit so he could look at the other man's haunted expression. "For a while, yes, I was." 

      Ezekiel held him tighter. "And now?" 

      Craig raised his head a bit and winked. "Now I think I'm starting to find that peace I've heard folks talk about." He laid his head back down. "Well, there, I've talked about my problems. If those folks are right, I'll be right as rain in no time." 

      Ezekiel kissed his hair. "That's good." 

      Silence reigned. Ezekiel knew what Craig wanted. But he wasn't ready to share his deepest darkest secrets. "I was a bad man who did bad things. I was orphaned when I was too damn young to be on my own and I got taken in by the wrong crowd when I was too damn young to know any better. I did what I wanted when I wanted and didn't care who I hurt, or killed in the process.... I don't tell people details because no one can ever look at me quite the same when I do." 

      Craig nodded against his chest. "Fair enough. But, if you do ever want to talk, I'm here." 

      Ezekiel kissed his tangled hair. "I'll keep that in mind. Now, go back to sleep. I know you're tired." 

      After several moments, Craig's breathing evened out and Ezekiel knew he'd been lost to slumber. Ezekiel held him tighter and swallowed hard. 

      He'd given a hell of a lot of himself to the man currently in his arms. A man who could very well rip him apart. That terrified him. Ezekiel had spent nearly his entire life with no one he cared about enough to fear losing. 

      He couldn't decide if he was happy or upset over the recent changes in his heart. 

---

      The following afternoon came far too quickly as far as Craig was concerned. He hadn't ever been the staying in type. He'd always preferred the hustle and bustle of saloon life. But sitting in with Ezekiel? Now that was something he could certainly get used to. 

      They'd spent the entire day locked up in the hotel room together. Ezekiel had slipped out the back door of the hotel twice to get food and they'd eaten, talked, learned more about each other and 

tasted more about each other.

      Craig wanted the day to last for at least five more days but time had a way of passing quicker when you least wanted it to. 

      Now it was time to head back to the ranch so they'd be ready for work in the morning. 

      "I'm gonna miss doing this," Ezekiel's deep voice growled in his ear, causing a tremble to wash over Craig just before Ezekiel's arms slipped around him from behind and pulled him tight against his hard body. 

      Craig couldn't stop his lips from curving upward. "We'll have to slip away whenever we can. There is that fence that needs fixing." 

      Ezekiel slowly pulled away and headed toward the door. He stopped and turned slightly toward Craig, adjusting the belt that held his knives. "I'll go out the back so the clerk doesn't ask questions. I'll meet you at the livery." 

      With that, Ezekiel shoved the wardrobe out of the way and left the room. It was then that Craig remembered the broken door. 

      Damn. 

      Ezekiel had slipped away like a damn snake slithering out the back and now Craig was going to have to tell the clerk the door was broken and, no doubt, have to pay for the damages. 

      He'd make sure Ezekiel paid him back. Craig smiled as images of just how he'd get his payment flashed in his mind. Craig gathered up his belongings, slid on his gun belt and headed out the door. 

      He stopped at the desk in the lobby and rang the bell. The clerk stepped out of the back. Craig smiled to greet the elderly gentleman but the scowl on his face quickly had Craig faltering. 

      "I uh.. I need to check out and settle up my bill," Craig announced. "I reckon, judging by that look on your face, you've realized the lock on my door is broken. I'd be happy to pay for the damages if you'll let me know how much that'll cost." 

      The clerk's face reddened as he shuffled a stack of papers. "One more reason for me to do what I'm about to do," he spat. He shoved his glasses up on his rather large nose and fixed Craig with a stern gaze. "I am running a clean, safe establishment here, sir. An establishment where patrons can feel comfortable bringing their families." 

      "That's real admirable," Craig admitted, feeling confused. "What's that got to do with a broken lock?"

      "I do 

not appreciate the company you chose to keep while in my establishment.“

      Craig stood there feeling both sheepish and annoyed all at once. So the hotel owner knew that Ezekiel had spent the weekend in Craig's room.... That caused him to feel like a kid caught with his hand in the cookie jar. But knowing that the man felt it was something bad or dirty, caused Craig's temper to spike. There wasn't a damn thing wrong with his brother, his best friend or him, for that matter.

      Before Craig could let the clerk know his bedroom guests were his own business, the clerk glanced around hastily and continued. "Women of ill-repute, such as the one you checked in here with, are not welcome in my hotel. I was unaware of her presence until the next morning when my employee informed me you'd taken her up to your room. And then she had slipped away a short time later, with a purse full of money, I'm sure." 

      Craig heart stopped for a full ten seconds as he attempted to process what the man was saying. "I checked in with a lady?" 

      "She could hardly be referred to as a 

lady ,“ the clerk huffed. “Because of your company and now, the broken lock, I must ask that you no longer use my establishment. There are several others here in town that do not have the reputation of high standards that I have worked so hard to garner here.”

      Craig simply muttered an apology, laid out a bit of money on the counter to cover the door lock and quickly left the hotel. 

      On the boardwalk, he fell back hard against a post as he cursed himself a damn fool. A woman? He'd checked in with a woman? Shit. That would hurt Ezekiel terribly...

      But it didn't make sense! If Craig had checked in with a woman then why had he woken up fully clothed in a locked room? 

      Why had he gotten so foolishly drunk?

      Never again. He'd never again let himself get so drunk he couldn't recall his own actions. 

      And he wasn't going to tell Ezekiel about the woman either. That would only cause the other man pain and Craig wasn't going to be making any more mistakes like that. 

      Something had changed between the two men in that hotel room and from now on, Craig was going to do better. 

      He saw Ezekiel stepping out of the livery down the road and tugged his hat down. He was happy. Ezekiel made him happy. He wasn't going to ruin that by talking about a rut with a woman that he had no memory of. 

      It wasn't truly a lie..... just a slight omission of the full truth. 

rn.com/“,2.3 X

Chapter Sixteen

Chapter Sixteen

“Please?” the woman’s aged voice pleaded as tears cut across her lined face. Wet, gray eyes blinked up at him. “Please, kill me too.”

      Ezekiel shook his head roughly. "No..." 

      "Please?" she whispered. Her voice was hollow. Broken. 

      Ezekiel backed away from the woman who sat clinging to her husband's lifeless body. The moonlight seemed to darken around him. Blood covered his hands. Blood he couldn't wipe off no matter how hard her tried. 

      "Please..." Her plea echoed again and again. 

      Shadows emerged from the darkness around him. They closed in on all sides, leaving him trapped. Ezekiel spun in circles, recognized each and every face as the shadows materialized and became the faces of those he'd killed. 

      "No... please..." he whispered, tossing down his guns. "Please don't...." 

      They came closer and closer. Their silence was deafening. Their presence suffocating. 

      Ezekiel couldn't get away. His limbs felt heavy and useless. A hand reached out and he shied from it, causing him to fall on his backside in the dirt. 

      "I'm sorry!" he yelled, but the shadows, the dead faces, they didn't care.          

      The became thick. Too thick to pull into his burning lungs. Ezekiel's head whipped around, watching the faces coming toward him, powerless to stop them. 

      "Kill me too..." the old woman whispered. 

      Ezekiel shot straight up in his bunkhouse cot and drew in deep gasps of air. Sweat slicked his dark skin and he feared his heart might burst straight through his chest. 

      As his stomach flipped and his pulse thundered in his ears, Ezekiel knew he needed air. Standing quickly, he slipped silently past the slumbering men and out into the cool night air. 

      He kept walking until he reached the river that ran behind the main house and barn. 

      Staring down into the water, Ezekiel breathed deep and tried to fend off the nausea swirling in his gut.

      He was lost in fighting off the memories of his dream and didn't hear anyone approaching him when suddenly two arms wrapped around his waist from behind. 

      "I can't believe I got stuck with a man so much like my damn brother." 

      Ezekiel let out a long contended sigh as he leaned back against Craig's strong body. "Why am I like your brother?"

      Craig pressed a kiss to the nape of Ezekiel's neck causing him to let out a warning growl. "You're both bossy, have a tendency to brood and, for some unknown reason, you seen to like staring into rivers." 

      "They're peaceful," Ezekiel replied, covering Craig's hands on his stomach with his own. "They make me feel peaceful." 

      The two men remained in that warm embrace for a long while of peaceful silence. Two weeks had passed since they'd shared that hotel room in town and their relationship had truly changed and become something real. 

      Ezekiel had never allowed himself to feel such a closeness for a man. He'd never opened himself up enough to be vulnerable. But something about Craig had made it impossible for him to remain guarded. 

      He was fairly certain he was in love with the man. But he wasn't going to say that word—not until Craig said it first. There was only so much vulnerability Ezekiel was willing to show. 

      "For the last couple weeks, I've held you like this most nights after you've bolted out of the bunkhouse like a man with demons on his heels. Every time I ask you what's wrong, you always say you don't want to talk about it." 

      "But you're going to ask again, aren't you?" Ezekiel grumbled. 

      Craig poked his head around Ezekiel's shoulder and grinned. His boyish face temptingly handsome in the moonlight. "I'm nothing if not persistent." 

      Ezekiel was terrified to share his past with Craig. What if Craig looked at him differently once he knew? What if he no longer wanted to hold Ezekiel by the river when nightmares kept him awake? 

      Ezekiel didn't want to lose him. 

      Craig sighed and moved away from him. He went to the oak near the water's edge and sat down, leaning his back against the rough bark. 

      "You could start by telling what the dream was about," Craig offered.

      Ezekiel remained where he was, his arms crossed tight over his chest as he stared at the water and chewed at his cheek. 

      

“Or you could chew a hole through your face and be much less fun to look at.”

      Ezekiel knew he had to open up about his past eventually. Hell, if him and Craig were going to be together for the long haul, Craig needed to know who he was sharing his life with. 

      "I've killed people," Ezekiel whispered, his voice seeming incredibly loud in the silent night. "A lot of people." He didn't dare look at Craig as he continued. "A few in self-defense but most simply because I could. Men who looked at me the wrong way or had something I wanted—some just so I could prove how fast or tough I was." 

      Talking about his past felt as if he were talking about a stranger—but it wasn't a stranger. It had been him. Ezekiel had been a cold blooded killer. 

      He took a breath and trudged on. "I lost my parents when I was far too young to be on my own but I ran away to avoid the orphanage. I was half-starved and getting closer to death every day when Colten Haywood and his gang found me.

      "They took me in, fed me, kept me alive and began teaching me about life—or their version of it. I was only eight years old and I learned how to lie, cheat, steal, kill....."

      Ezekiel let his gaze go to the star-dotted sky. "I was too young to know better—at least that's how I try to justify it now. I was with those men for over a decade... closer to two decades. I went from too young to know better to too rotten inside to care. But as I got older, something inside me kept rebelling against the lifestyle I was living. A part of me knew it was wrong. I was a murderer and I was lonely—you see, the men I ran with, it wasn't like the gang you talk about. We weren't family... weakness was a death sentence and survival of the fittest ruled us. 

      "One night....." His voice shook but he cleared his throat and continued. "One night I was out riding with another man named Clearwater. We were looking for trouble to get into and we found it. An elderly couple was traveling in a real nice cart after dark. It was too easy to pass it up. They were dressed fancy and we knew they'd have something to offer us." 

      Ezekiel fell silent a moment as his stomach swirled and his heart twisted. Craig didn't say a word. Hell, Ezekiel didn't think the man had even moved a muscle since he'd started speaking—though he was still too afraid to look at him. 

      "We stopped the cart and they were terrified. The husband kept begging us not to harm his wife. We heard someone else approaching in the distance so Clearwater rode back to take care of them. I stayed with the husband and wife and demanded they get off the cart and give me their valuables.

      "The man was beside himself. He just kept begging and pleading for his wife and.... And then he began groaning and gripping at his chest. He fell to the ground and I watched his wife cling to him as he died right there in the dirt. 

      "I wasn't sure what I was feeling. It was as if all the years of bad I'd been doing came crashing down on me all at once. The monster I was suddenly became clear to me. The old woman, hell she'd probably spent her entire life with the man lying there dead, she begged me to kill her too. Pleaded with me to end her life. I couldn't.

      "I dropped my guns right there. Took the gun belt off and let it fall into the dirt. I hopped on my horse and I took off into the darkness. I heard a gunshot. Just one. A revolver round. I was fairly certain of what the lady had done with it but I didn't turn back to see. 

      "I rode for months, only stopping to eat and sleep. I was lost and angry and confused and broken. That's when Edison found me. I was nearer to death than you were when I found you thanks to a drunken fight I'd managed to get myself in. 

      "I've been here quite a few years now and Edison knows all about my past. He gave me a chance even with I didn't want to give myself one. He helped me get my past record erased in the eyes of the law—something I still don't quite believe I deserved. But I've made the most of the second chance I was given. I try to be level-headed, fair and help when I can. And I no longer carry a gun. Haven't picked one up since I dropped mine on the ground.

      "Yeah, it would seem I'm an entirely new man and the past has been forgotten—until I fall asleep." 

      Silence fell. A thick, heavy, suffocating silence that made it difficult to breathe. 

      Ezekiel clenched his fists and swallowed hard. "I'll understand if you want to put distance between us." 

      He heard movement but didn't dare look to see what Craig was doing. Then he felt that familiar hand on his, unclenching his fist and entwining their fingers together. 

      "I might not know quite what to make of what you just told me but I ain't going anywhere," Craig assured him. "I'm right here." 

2

Chapter Seventeen

Chapter Seventeen

The next day found Craig and Ezekiel riding side by side to survey and repair fences in the more distant pasture and fields. They could certainly stay out overnight and have it be perfectly acceptable—everyone would believe they’d gotten too busy with work to make it back in one day.

      Craig grinned. He had far too few overnights with Ezekiel. They were forced to sleep apart in the bunkhouse and one night a week in town simply wasn't quite enough. 

      He'd been a bit shocked last night when Ezekiel had admitted his past to him. He'd picked up enough hints from Ezekiel and had seen enough of the signs to know that the man had killed in the past—but he hadn't realized the extent of just how 

bad Ezekiel had been.

      He'd be lying if he said it didn't bother him slightly to think of Ezekiel as that man he'd described—but it also didn't deter him. What Ezekiel had been in the past, it was clear that wasn't the man he was any longer. 

      And, hell, Craig had been a cattle thief, horse thief, anything-that-wasn't-nailed-down-and-he-wanted thief. While those might not sound as bad as cold-blooded murder, they were still hanging offenses. And Craig had killed men as well—always in self-defense but taking a life was taking a life. 

      Craig wasn't about to turn his back on Ezekiel when the man had finally opened up to him just as Craig had wanted him to. And he hadn't given Ezekiel any grief over his past either. Ezekiel seemed to give himself a hard enough time, there was no need for Craig to make it worse. 

      "What are you thinking about so hard?" Ezekiel's voice broke through his thoughts. 

      "What makes you think I'm thinking?" 

      Ezekiel chuckled. "You're not talking." 

      "Are you missing the sound of my voice?" Craig asked with a wink. 

      Ezekiel snorted as he shook his head. "Not particularly." A half grin curved his mouth. "Just worried you might overheat that brain of yours."

      "Charming," Craig mumbled. Then he sighed. "Actually, I have been thinking a lot about something lately." 

      "What's that?" Ezekiel asked, squinting into the sun. 

      "My family. This is the longest I've ever been away from them." 

      Ezekiel glanced sideways at him and picked at his horse's mane. "Do you want to go home?" 

      Craig quickly averted his gaze. 

‘Not without you,’ was what he wanted to say, but he knew he couldn’t. He had no idea if Ezekiel thought of him as anything more than a fun for now , kind of person. Going home to meet the family was asking a hell of a lot out of a person.

      "I thought it might be nice to go for a visit.... Do you think Edison would let me keep my job here if I left for a while?" 

      When Craig glanced over at Ezekiel, the man was tense in the saddle and his jaw was twitching as he stared straight ahead, his eyes burning holes in the horizon. "You'd have to ask him that. I don't speak for him. He's a fair man, though. I'm sure he'd work with you." 

      Craig scratched at his jaw. "Are you angry? Do you not want me to go?" 

      Ezekiel shook his head. "No. Go. Not all people have a family. It'd be foolish not to spend time with yours." 

      Craig was confused. It was clear Ezekiel was angry about something. But what? Swallowing hard, Craig stared hard at Ezekiel's profile. Did the other man want an invitation? Did he 

want to come meet Craig’s family?

      "Uh..." Craig struggled to come up with a subtle way to get around to asking, but nothing came to mind. So he shrugged and decided to be as straightforward as he could. "You want to come with me?"

      Ezekiel's head whipped around and his dark eyes fell on him. Craig suddenly wondered if he'd asked the wrong question but then he saw the smile light up the other man's face. "You'd want me with you?"

      Sitting up a little higher in the saddle, Craig chuckled. "Sure. You can tell them all how good I'm doing so my brother won't glare at me the whole time."     

      "I don't know about that. I spend most of my time glaring at you." 

      Craig attempted to resist the urge to stick his tongue out at the other man but failed. Ezekiel laughed. "Are you sure you want me to go? I don't want to stick myself where I'm not wanted." 

      Craig wagged his brows. "You're always welcome to stick yourself when it comes to me." 

               A thick brow raised slightly at Craig's response. "I'll keep that in mind." Then his expression sobered. "What are we when we get there?" 

      "Uh.... People... unless you want to be a horse." 

      Ezekiel rolled his eyes. "I mean, how are you going to introduce me. As your friend or....?" 

      "Are you my friend?" 

      "Hell no." Ezekiel grinned. "We sure as hell aren't friends." 

      "I didn't think so," Craig replied. "We're together and that's what I'll tell them. I've told you before that my brother has a man and so does my best friend. It won't be odd to them and we won't have to hide it.... Though, seeing as how my brother was always onto me about my fondness for lots and lots of women, I'll never hear the end of it when I show up with a man." 

      "Still seems a bit strange to me that so many men can live together and as couples without folks protesting." 

      Craig laughed as they pulled their horse's to a stop at the first section of fence they were out to repair. "Once you meet them, you'll understand. They aren't they types of men you want to stand against." 

      The two men dismounted and immediately got to work on the fences. Craig knew they needed to keep their hands busy—because if they got started with each other before the work was done, the work would never be thought of again. 

      It seemed so odd to him, knowing that he'd found someone who made him forget everyone else. Craig had always been a womanizer. Hell, he'd had more bed partners than everyone else in the gang combined! 

      Speaking of the gang.... If Craig was going to take Ezekiel to meet them, he had to let Ezekiel know who they were. Jeb might pitch a fit since they were all supposed to be dead but Craig trusted Ezekiel with the secret. 

      "There's actually something I need to talk to you about," Craig admitted, swiping at his brow and turning to face Ezekiel. 

      The other man dropped his tools and pulled Craig into his arms. "What's that?" 

      Craig rolled his eyes even as his body heated. "I meant 

talk . It was secret code for ‘get some lovin’.“

      Ezekiel winked down at him. "Everything is secret code for 'get some lovin'." 

      Craig sighed as his body molded to fit perfectly against the bigger man's. "You're impossible." 

      Ezekiel swooped low and nibbled at Craig's neck, causing him to moan low in his throat. "I want to talk to you...."he somehow managed to whisper. 

      Ezekiel pulled his face away but didn't release Craig from his arms. "Talk then." 

      Craig took a moment to steady himself after Ezekiel's assault. "The gang I was in, my family, I should probably tell you who we are." 

      "The Crane gang." 

      Craig's jaw dropped as he stared up at Ezekiel. "Uh..." For once in his life, Craig was speechless. 

      Ezekiel chuckled. "It wasn't too difficult to figure out. I'd heard about that gang, the timeline fit and I recognized some of the names you've mentioned." 

      "Well hell...." Craig mumbled. "Didn't you know the Crane gang died?" 

      Ezekiel's lips curved in a mischievous half smile just before he swooped down and pressed a breath-stealing kiss to Craig's mouth. "You taste good for a dead man," he growled as he pulled away.         

      Gripping onto Ezekiel's thick arms to steady himself, Craig cursed his weak legs. "Jeb would kill me if he knew I'd given the gang's identity away before I meant to." 

      "I won't tell him if you don't."         

      Craig somehow managed to untangle himself from Ezekiel's grasp. "We need to get some work done. I'd like to go visit them soon and Edison might be more agreeable about us leaving if we have these fences done." 

      "I'd rather keep tasting you," Ezekiel all but pouted. 

      Craig winked. "Of course you would. I'm delicious." 

      Ezekiel's gaze went skyward. "And humble. You're right. Let's get back to work before your head swells." 

      As the two men returned to the task at hand, Ezekiel cleared his throat. "I 

am a bit uneasy about meeting your brother’s man.“

      "Gill?"  Craig frowned. "Why? He's nothing to worry about. He's a nice enough man and I knew his pa Rafe real well and his mama lives nearby in town. Outlaw royalty is what they are." 

      "I happen to know him better as Gilliam Tomlinson, Texas Ranger royalty." 

      Craig winced. "Damn. Was he after you?"

      Ezekiel's quiet chuckle filled the mid-morning air. "No, thankfully. I heard that he and his partner rarely failed to catch up to a target and it was even more rare for them to keep that target alive for a trial. No, I was already on the path to straightening up before he began making patrols. But I did meet him once and he sure as hell knew who I was and seemed mad as hell cuz I had a pardon and he couldn't 

legally kill me.“

      Craig was quiet a moment and then a laugh burst from his mouth. "Well, that oughta make it real fun when we come riding in together!"

Chapter Eighteen

Chapter Eighteen

“Where are you off to?” Ezekiel’s deep voice rumbled in Craig’s ear as the man came to stand close to him.

      Craig paused in readying the ranch wagon to simply enjoy the closeness as he trembled. Ezekiel's breath washed over his skin causing bumps to break out on the sensitive flesh. 

      Slowly, and without much enthusiasm, Craig put a bit of distance between them before any other ranch hands became suspicious. Ezekiel quickly began securing the riggings as an excuse for why he'd been so close to Craig. 

      "I have to run into town for supplies. Edison gave me a list." He held it up and Ezekiel took it and scanned the scrawled words with narrowed eyes. 

      "You're going by yourself?" 

      Craig bristled at the weary tone in his voice and the judgment in his eyes. He snatched note away. "Yeah, daddy, but don't worry, I'll be a real good boy," he grumbled before shoving the note into the inside of his vest pocket. 

      Ezekiel heaved out a sigh. "Don't get angry..." 

      "Angry?" Craig flashed a bitter smile. "I'm not angry. Why the hell would I be angry? Because you still don't trust me? Naw, I'm not angry about that. Hell, no one has ever had a whole lot of faith in me. Why should you be any different?"

      Ezekiel let out a growl and took Craig by the arm. No matter how hard Craig dug in his heels, he couldn't stop the bigger man from dragging him a short distance away and hiding them both behind the smokehouse. 

      Ezekiel put Craig's back against the rough wood and his heard body seemed to surround him, making escape impossible. "Don't you 

ever speak to me that way,“ Ezekiel warned, his deep voice causing Craig to swallow hard as his knees weekend.

      Damn, Ezekiel was tempting as hell when he got in a temper. 

      Calloused fingers, smoothed Craig hair from his face tenderly. "You know damn well I didn't mean what I said to hurt you. I wouldn't ever hurt you." 

      Craig squared his shoulders. "You didn't hurt me. You pissed me off." 

      A low chuckle rumbled from Ezekiel's chest. "I 

did hurt you and I’m sorry. I just saw that that list from Edison was going to take you to the saloon for liquor and….“ He shrugged. “I worry.”

      "Well, don't," Craig insisted. "I'm a big boy," he winked. "You know that." 

      Ezekiel studied him hard a moment and then his shoulders sagged as he nodded. "You're right. I'm sorry. I was worried you'd fall back into old vices." 

      Craig pushed his hips forward, causing their groins to press together. "You're my only vice now," he assured the big man. 

      Using, Ezekiel's moment of surprise against him, Craig slipped around him. "Now, I have to get to town and get those supplies for Edison." 

      "Get supplies for us too," Ezekiel spoke up. "We're leaving tomorrow." 

      "Where are we going?" Craig asked with a frown. 

      Ezekiel rolled his eyes. "To visit your family. Did you forget?" 

      "Hell, it's been two weeks since we talked about it!" Craig exclaimed, a happy smile curving his lips. "I thought 

you forgot.“

      "Well, I didn't." After a quick glance around to check that no eyes were watching, Ezekiel stooped down and pressed a tender kiss to Craig's mouth. "Get what we need so we can leave at first light." 

      Craig nodded and quickly walked away, knowing if he stayed hidden behind the smokehouse with Ezekiel, too much longer, he'd end up right back in his arms. 

---

Despite Ezekiel’s worries, Craig managed to collect every supply on the list without falling headfirst into a whiskey vat, losing himself to a poker game or becoming lured away by a scantily clad, perfumed lady.

      He was just securing the last of his purchases in the back of the wagon when he heard foot steps approach and then come to a stop just behind him. 

      A chill washed over his spine. Life had taught him that it was dangerous to have an unseen person 

hovering behind you. Bullets in the back were often deadly.

      He spun around quickly and his brow creased. Why was the owner of the brothel standing behind him with her arms crossed over her stomach, her ample chest heaving, her toe tapping and her cheeks red?

      "Can I help you, ma'am?" 

      "I would damn sure say so," she snapped, pursing her painted lips. 

      Craig swallowed back his surprise and nodded—hoping to appease the angry woman who, though he'd been taught better than to say a loud, was quite large enough to snap him in half without difficulty. 

      "Let me know what it is I can help you with and I'll get to it straight away." 

      She put her hands on her round hips and stared him down. "You can get to paying me for the girl you ruined." 

      Craig frowned, his confusion simply growing. "Ruined?" 

      "Hell yes. Susannah had promise but now she's ruined and she won't do a damn thing about it. Says she has to talk to you." 

      Craig scratched at his jaw. "Can I uh.. can I ask what exactly I am supposed to have done to the girl to ruin her?" 

      The large woman snorted. "Do I need to be explaining the birds and the bees to a strapping young man like you?" 

      Craig's gut twisted. "Ma'am?" 

      She threw her hands in the air. "She's growing a damn babe in her belly and you're' the damn scoundrel who put it there." 

A/N: I know it’s short but it’s a chapter! And I didnt’ want to keep you waiting any longer! I got 2 out of the 3 stories sent to my publisher so I decided I could get back to ‘Outlaw Vices’! Love y’all!

Chapter Nineteen

Chapter Nineteen

      The air left Craig's lungs in a rush. His legs grew week and he clutched the wagon for support as he attempted to steady himself under the harsh gaze of the Madame. 

      A babe?

      That couldn't be. Craig had always, 

always , been more than a little careful to never get a woman with child…. It had been something he was obsessive about not doing since the child of a whore seldom grew up with love and care. He’d spent most of his adult life helping children—he wouldn’t want his own growing up unloved or unwanted.

      No. There was simply no way that Susannah was carrying 

his child. He’d always been too careful.

      His eyes closed as a groan escaped his lips. 

      But what about 

that night? The night he couldn’t remember? The night the hotel clerk claimed he checked in with a guest of less than exceptional reputation?

      Craig squared his shoulders and met the Madame's eyes. If he was going to be accused of fathering a child, he was going to look into his accuser's eyes while it happened. "Where is Susannah?"

      "Follow me," the Madame barked. 

      Craig did just that and his hands were shaking as he entered the brothel. He was led up the grand staircase and down  carpeted hall to one of many doors. 

      The Madame rapped sharply at the door before pulling it open and ushering Craig inside. He stepped across the threshold and his eyes fell upon his accuser. 

      "Hello, Craig," she whispered, wrapping her arms tight around herself as she stood there in floor length yellow robe, cinched tight at a waist that wasn't showing any sign of the life growing inside her just yet. 

      Craig took in the waves of golden hair, the full lips, the soft cheeks and big blue eyes. She was damn pretty, that was for sure. 

      But he had no memory of the woman—or of bedding her. 

      Craig glanced at the Madame. "Ma'am, can we have a bit of privacy?" 

      The Madame sent Susannah a sharp glance and then nodded curtly before exiting the room with a swish of heavy skirts. 

      Without her Madame's heavy gaze on her, Susannah let out a lengthy sigh and her shoulders sagged. She didn't seem to want to meet Craig's eyes. "Did she tell you?" 

      Craig walked to the small table and tapped his fingers on the dainty ceramic vase sitting upon it. "Yeah, she told me. Forgive me if I'm out of line, but, how can a woman of your profession possibly determine who fathered her child?" 

      Susannah's face paled as she rubbed at her fabric encased arms. "You shouldn't judge a woman for her profession," she replied. "Especially when you've so enjoyed it." 

      Craig winced and shook his head. "I'm not judging your profession, ma'am," he assured her. "I was only asking a question. I'm assuming, by the looks of you, that you're quite good at your job, which would mean that any number of men could have fathered a child with you. Why are you so certain it's me?" 

      "I appreciate your high appraisal of my physical wares, however, in answer to your question, I'm very certain that you are the father of the babe in my belly because you are the only man I've laid with while in this brothel's employ." 

       Craig could not completely contain his laughter. "Right... And I'm supposed to take your word on that?" 

      Susannah's eyes narrowed. "You should, yes. I would have no reason to lie." 

      "Maybe you've been laying with men without your Madame's consent and keep the coin for yourself and you got yourself in a spot and decided to blame me." 

      Susannah's face paled and her blue eyes widened. She took a step back and shook her head as she clutched at the lapel of her robe. "How dare you accuse me of..... You know that I was a... You...." 

      Craig feared the woman had forgotten how to speak simple English. He crossed his arms over his chest and stared her down. "Just what have I forgotten?" '

Other than everything , ’ he added silently.

      "You know good and well what you took when we spent our time together. You were my first customer. My first man. You were my first." 

      Craig swallowed hard. He thought about what she said. Swallowed again. He tapped his fingers on his arms. Swallowed. 

      Then his laughter filled the air. "A virgin whore?" he demanded, finding so much humor in the idea that he was nearly doubled over with laughter and finding it difficult to breathe. 

      His demeanor sobered instantly when the stinging of her hand across his face had him standing straight and slack-jawed. 

      "Don't you dare laugh at me," Susannah hissed, her finger nearly poking him in the nose as all five feet four inches of her shook. "I 

was

a virgin and you took that for a decent amount of money. But the very next day a man came to town, he told Madame that he wanted to purchase me. I was not to lay with any other man. I was, from that day on, to remain faithful only to him. And he paid Madame a fortune to ensure she’d honor his wishes.“

      Craig rubbed at his sore jaw. "I don't remember a thing from that night....." he mumbled. "I sure as hell don't remember taking a woman's virginity....." 

      "Which makes me feel so wonderful about the situation," Susannah replied, her gaze falling to the floor as she stepped back. "But it happened. And now I'm carrying your child and the man who paid the Madame will no longer want me and will demand to have his money returned." 

      Craig shook his head. "Let's just say that hypothetically I believe you, what makes you so sure the babe isn't that man's?" 

      "You sure are slow," she muttered. "I 

never actually laid with him. He came into the brothel, picked me out and made the deal with Madame, but he was on his way out for a big job and hasn’t returned yet. He’s do back any day. You are the only man I’ve laid with.“

      Craig decided he needed a drink.. but first needed to sit down. Falling down hard in the dainty chair beside him, Craig winced when he heard it creak. 

      Then again, maybe he'd get lucky and die if the chair broke. Death by fancy arm chair. Hell, a man could dream. 

      What the hell was he going to do? Did he believe Susannah? Not entirely. There was something about the woman that just seemed off. His gut sensed an act but he wasn't quite sure what the play was. 

      He wasn't a wealthy man so she couldn't be coming after him for money. He was pretty damned easy on the eyes—would a woman go through so much trouble to ensure she'd have a good view every morning?

      Damned if he knew. 

      For all that Craig had enjoyed of female company, he knew next to nothing about what went on between their ears. 

      The hotel clerk suddenly entered Craig's mind. The clerk had seen the lady Craig had apparently checked in with that night. If the clerk could identify Susannah, then Craig would at least know the woman had been to his hotel room. 

      "Come with me," he said as he got to his feet. 

      "Where?" she demanded, crossing her arms tight around herself. 

      "To the hotel. If the clerk recognizes you, then I'll at least believe part of your story." 

      "You're saying you don't believe me?" she snapped.    

      Craig rolled his eyes. "Darlin', I'm not as dense as you seem to think. I smell something off about this whole situation. Did you think I'd just fall to my knees at your accusation, whip out a ring and beg you to run off to be my wife?"

      She remained silent and stared hard at him. Craig shrugged. "Get dressed. I'll wait in the hall." 

      Craig opened the door and the Madame was standing there, still tapping that foot for all she was worth as her girth shook. He glanced over his shoulder. "Hopefully your boss won't break me in half while I'm waiting." 

---

      They stepped into the hotel a short time later. The clerk glanced up from his paper with a smile on his face, however, that smile quickly morphed into a scowl when his eyes fell upon them. 

      "You again?" he demanded. "Sir, I told you before that we don't allow 

her kind in this establishment.“

      That hadn't been what Craig had wanted to hear. "I was in here with her before?" 

      The clerk let out an exasperated breath. "Yes. Of course you were. Now get her out of here!" 

      Craig shook his head and stepped closer to the counter. He leaned over it and whispered. "But are you sure it was 

her? It wasn’t a different woman?“

      The man glared. "It was her. Now get out!" 

      Craig rubbed at his abused ear drum and stood straight. He looked from the clerk to Susannah several times and grumbled. 

      "Well hell." 

      Stepping outside, Craig began to pace. His long legs ate up the ground as he stormed back and forth. He didn't pay attention to the townsfolk forced to scurry out of his path or be run over. 

      He could only think about what a mess he'd made. He still wasn't entirely convinced that the babe in the woman's belly was his. Hell, how could he be? He didn't judge women of her profession for what they were, but he also knew how babes were made and he doubted she'd truly been a virgin. Virgins didn't tend to go into the whoring business. 

      But what if it was? What if he told Susannah to go to hell and ended up abandoning his own child in the process? Craig had spent most of his life helping children who had no one—he couldn't very well abandon his own. 

      "I need a goddamn drink so I can think more clear," he grumbled.

      His boots carried him to the saloon. He ordered a shot of whiskey and a mug of beer and, after downing the shot, he settled down at a back table to nurse his beer. 

      He was aware of Susannah settling herself down at the table with him and stubbornly ignored her. Couldn't she tell he needed space to think? 

      "I am not any more happy about this than you are. But, facts are facts, Craig. This 

is your babe. I have nowhere to go and no one to turn to other than you. Madame is kicking me out because no man wants a whore who has a child nursing her tit or lines on her from carrying a child.“

      Craig downed an even larger swallow of his beer and swiped at his mouth. "Do you think you could give me some damn space?" he grumbled. "Hell woman, you gotta let a man breathe." 

      Susannah shook her head. "No. I won't. This is my life hanging in the balance here. My child's life. 

Our child’s life. Tomorrow I’ll be homeless. Soon I’ll be showing. No one in this town is going to help a ruined whore who got herself in trouble.“

      Craig rubbed roughly at his face. He had no idea what to say. So instead of speaking, he let out a groan and bent forward, banging his head on the table several times before letting his forehead simply rest against the scarred wood. 

      He stayed that way for several long moments. Susannah, thankfully, had finally ceased to speak. 

      When a masculine throat cleared beside him, Craig nearly came up swinging, tired of being bothered. Instead, he turned his head slightly and cracked a lid. 

      And the world stopped spinning. 

      Shit. 

      "I'm trying to be real patient," Ezekiel growled. "But finding you here in a saloon with a mug of beer and a woman it testing that resolve."

Chapter Twenty

Chapter Twenty

Ezekiel had hardened his heart the moment he’d stepped into the saloon and found Craig. He’d searched every store in town before coming here. He hadn’t wanted to believe that Craig would be spending time at the saloon after the talk they’d had at the ranch.

      But he was. 

      He was at a table with a mug of beer and a rather pretty woman.

      If Ezekiel's heart hadn't hardened, it would have broken, and he wasn't about to let Craig turn him into a broken-hearted fool. 

      Craig raised his head, his green eyes wide and his boyish face pale. "It's not what it looks like," he muttered. "

Trust me. There is no way that this is what it looks like.“

      Ezekiel crossed his arms over his chest and glared down at the man he'd spent the last weeks falling in love with—he shook his head. He couldn't think that way. Love was foolish. Love hurt you. 

      "Can I ask just what the hell it is then?" Ezekiel growled, ignoring the woman who was looking between them with confusion. 

      "What are you doing here?" Craig asked, becoming defensive and bristly, which was always what Craig did when he was cornered and uncomfortable. "Thought you trusted me?" 

      Ezekiel raised his brow and said nothing. Craig's shoulders sagged. "We need to talk. Let's go talk." 

      He pushed himself from his seat and Ezekiel followed him from the saloon. Craig whirled around when they realized the woman had followed them. "We need privacy." 

      She raised her chin. "We weren't finished with our conversation." 

      Ezekiel watched Craig as rubbed roughly at his face and pointed down the road. "You go back to the brothel. We'll talk later. I need to speak with Ezekiel and 

only Ezekiel.“

      Her eyes narrowed as looked between the men once again. Finally, she nodded, turned on her heel and strode away. 

      Ezekiel turned toward Craig but didn't meet his gaze. He didn't want to look in those eyes. It would only worse. Letting out a long sigh, Craig motioned for Ezekiel and continued off the boardwalk and down the road. 

      Ezekiel clenched his fists as they came to a stop behind the livery at the tail end of town. Craig's eyes were closed as he turned around to face Ezekiel. He held up his hands, spread his palms and let out a sigh as he opened his eyes. "Don't overreact." 

      Ezekiel crossed his arms over his chest and raised his brow as he stared down at the other man. He wanted so badly to pull Craig into his arms and soothe the lines of worry and stress on his face. He didn't do that, however, because he knew something bad was coming—something that would hurt. 

      "Given your similarities to my brother, Jeb, I'm gonna word this like I would if I was telling him...." 

      "I'm not your goddamn brother, Craig. I'm your......" Ezekiel's voice trailed off. 

      What was he to Craig? He had no real idea.

      Craig winced and let out yet another long sigh. "That woman in there, she's a worker from the brothel." 

      "Why doesn't that surprise me?" Ezekiel growled. 

      Craig laid a palm on the rough hewn livery boards. He flashed a grin that was clearly meant to soothe Ezekiel's temper. "Because I'm a bad man." 

      When Ezekiel remained silent and still, Craig let his hand fall. "Her Madame found me on the street today and accused me of.... Well, it would seem that the lady is with child and she has told them her Madame that 

I put it there.“

      Ezekiel's heart twisted. There was the pain. The pain he'd known was coming. He hardened his twisted heart a bit more and squared his shoulders. His jaw was tight when he spoke. "Did you?" 

      Craig frowned. "I.. I honestly don't know." 

      "You surely know how babes are made, Craig. Did you make one with that woman?" 

      Craig's shoulders slumped and he fell back against the livery wall. "I don't remember. She.. she says it happened that night I came to town alone, got black out drunk on rotgut and passed out at the hotel." 

      "The night you took off, ignored the fact that I was responsible for you and had me come looking for you the next morning even though I hadn't had a bit of sleep?" 

      Craig's expression was sheepish. "Yeah, that one." 

      "You lied to me then. After what we shared at the line shack, you spent the night with a goddamn whore, told me you hadn't and then spent the rest of the time there locked up with me?" 

      Craig shook his head. "Hell, I don't remember bedding her. But I don't remember 

anything and that’s the problem.“

      "Then how do you seem so sure she 

was at that hotel with you?“

      "Because... when I checked out the clerk made it clear he didn't want me checking in with women of her profession ever again. And, today, I took her to the hotel so the clerk could identify her and... he did." 

      Pain. Deep lacerating pain. Ezekiel swallowed hard. "You knew then that you'd laid with a whore and you didn't tell me... Damn you, Craig. I knew you wouldn't do a damn thing but disappointment me." 

      Craig's face paled. It was as if he'd just taken a solid kick to the gut. He stepped back and the hurt on his face quickly morphed into anger—just as Ezekiel had known it would. Corner Craig or hurt Craig, it all led to anger. 

      And anger Ezekiel could deal with. Anger he could walk away from. "Go to hell, Ezekiel. I didn't owe you a damn thing—hell, I don't owe you a damn thing. We never made any goddamn promises to each other. I was just somebody to tend to your cock and that's all you were to me." 

      Ezekiel couldn't breathe. Shit. He hadn't thought hearing those words would hurt this badly. Was that all it had been to Craig? Truly? Goddamn. It had been so much more to Ezekiel. 

      It had been 

everything .

      "Well alright then," he managed to growl. He turned and began to stride away, only to be stopped in his tracks when he felt Craig's hand close on his arm. 

      He didn't dare turn to face Craig as the man's fingers seemed to burn and brand him. "Where are you going?" Craig demanded. "I thought...." 

      "You thought what?" Ezekiel grumbled. "I'll find someone else to tend to my cock and you've got your whore to tend to yours now. I'd say your family will be happy to have you back and Jeb'll make a good uncle." 

      Ezekiel felt Craig's hand fall away and he used the opportunity to make a quick escape. 

      Anger was better than pain. He didn't want to let Craig see the pain. 

---

      "Here's what's going to happen," Craig stated as he entered Susannah's room a short time later. "I'm leaving tomorrow to go back home and you're coming with me. I'll see that you're taken care of until the babe is born. If, after it's born, I feel like it's mine, I'll do what's right by you and the child." 

      Susannah looked up from the book in her lap and her expression was guarded. "And if you don't feel as if it's yours? Am I to be at the mercy of your 

feelings instead of the facts?“

      Craig was done. 

      He turned quickly and grabbed the door handle. "Take it or leave it." 

      "Okay!" Susannah leapt to her feet and Craig paused without looking back at her. "Okay. I'll leave with you. When?"

      Craig's jaw popped. "Dawn. Be ready or I'll leave without you." 

      With that, he left the room. He stopped at the desk downstairs and approached the Madame. "I'll be taking Susannah with me in the morning." 

      "My money?" the Madame inquired with a raise of her brow. 

      Craig's clenched his fists. "How much?"

      "The previous gentlemen was going to pay me a hefty sum yearly for keeping her here and pure for only him." 

      Craig shook his head. His temper spiking suddenly. "Well that's just too goddamn bad, lady. I suppose you're learning the risks of business, aren't you?" 

      "Are you saying you won't pay me at all?" the Madame demanded, her chins trembling. 

      Craig snorted. "Pay you for what? It was your whore that got herself pregnant and 

you that made the deal. I’ll take her off your hands but your blown deal ain’t my problem.“

      Craig strode from the brothel, headed down the road and didn't stop until he reached the wagon which was still loaded down and waiting to be taken to the ranch. 

      Craig hopped into the seat and led the wagon out of town. Once town was just a speck in the distance, Craig's shoulders sagged as every ounce of his fight and temper left him. 

      

Just a few short hours ago he’d been so excited for the future. A future with Ezekiel….. But now? Now Ezekiel was gone. He’d walked away from Craig as if Craig had never meant anything at all—he hadn’t even bothered to disagree when Craig had said he’d meant nothing to Ezekiel.

      Craig was going to be returning home to his family with a trampled heart and a pregnant whore. 

      Wouldn't Jeb be proud?

fDZNB

Chapter Twenty-One

Chapter Twenty-One

The trip to the ranch could have gone worse, Craig supposed, but it still left him feeling hollow and broken.

      Ezekiel hadn't been there. And Edison hadn't seen the man. Edison had realized that something was very wrong. He had asked many questions but Craig hadn't given him any answers—he hadn't wanted to see yet another person looking at him with disappointment. 

      So, he'd given the ranch owner the supply receipt, gotten his last week of pay, collected his belongings from the bunkhouse and ridden away from that ranch as quickly as his horse could carry him. 

      Craig felt his mind still attempting to wrap around the day he'd just had. He knew that there was a very good chance Susannah was lying to him. He knew there was a very good chance the babe was not his. He knew there was a very good chance he'd never even bedded the women. 

      But there was still that slightest chance that she was being truthful—no matter how small the chance might be.  Craig's weakness was children—always had been. It was Jeb's weakness as well. Craig supposed his older brother had instilled those values in him. 

      Craig wouldn't be able to sleep at night knowing he might have turned his back on his child.... Surely, when the babe was born or as it grew a bit, he would know. He would see something of himself in that child. He would feel something when he held it and then, Craig would know. 

      He wished Ezekiel could have helped him—could have supported him somehow. Could have come to the ranch with them so that Craig had the man he loved to lean on....

      Fresh pain lanced its way through Craig's heart. He loved Ezekiel. Loved him something fierce. But Ezekiel hadn't felt the same and he'd walked away. 

      Craig couldn't make the man come back—and wouldn't beg him to do it either.

      He was going to go home to his family. Sure, they might give him a hard time initially but they'd have his back—they would support him despite his mistakes. 

      He'd been a fool to stay gone so long. 

      Craig hitched his horse at one of the hotels closer to the outskirts of town. He was just stepping up onto the boardwalk when Susannah rushed into his arms in a flurry of skirts. 

      Craig stiffened and was quick to peel her arms from him and disentangle himself. "What the hell are you doing?" he grumbled. 

      Then he heard her sniffles. Was she crying? He grabbed her shoulders and held her still. "Look at me," he ordered, feeling a bit of himself soften. He hated to see a woman cry. 

      She looked up at him, her blue eyes red and her cheeks damp......and a bloody welt at the corner of her lips. 

      "What happened?" Craig demanded. 

      "The Madame.. she's so angry. She hit me and tossed me out with nothing. Please.. please, I have nowhere to go tonight..." 

      Craig heaved out a sigh. He was angry at the Madame for hitting the woman, especially given the Susannah's condition, but, then again, Susannah's actions had cost the woman a fair deal of money so he wasn't going to get involved. 

      But he also couldn't let a woman, who might be carrying his child, sleep on the street. 

      Craig cast a glance up at the sky. "We still have some daylight left. Why don't you go to the mercantile and get a few things you might need for the trip and I'll go see about getting a wagon. We'll leave out today." 

---

      Ezekiel rode into town at dawn the following morning. He'd spent the entire night simply riding in around in circles with his heart aching and his mind tangled. 

      He'd had time to cool the initial anger he'd felt at knowing Craig had lied to him. He was no longer angry—only hurt. Hurt worse than he had ever been hurt in his life. 

      But he also loved Craig and, despite the man's words the day before, he had a feeling Craig loved him too. They could get through this together. 

      Whether the babe was truly Craig's or not, Ezekiel wouldn't turn his back on the man—not so long as Craig wanted him at his side. 

      Ezekiel searched the streets for Craig but couldn't see him. He checked the diners, the saloons and the hotels but there was no sign or word of Craig. 

      Unease settled in his gut. Where was Craig?

      There were two buildings left. One of the town mercantiles and the brothel. Ezekiel couldn't bring himself to step into the latter, so he entered the mercantile. 

      "Good morning, Ezekiel," the clerk greeted. 

      "Good morning, Phillip. Have you seen Craig this morning? I thought he'd be at the ranch but he isn't..." 

      Phillip nodded. "Yeah. Well, I didn't see him exactly but a young woman named Susannah was in here yesterday afternoon. She was surely beaming and carrying on about how Craig had admitted he wanted to be with her and the two of them were running off together. They were gonna get married and everything. Ain't that something?" Phillip chuckled. "I never figured that man would settle down after seeing him around town but I guess the right woman will change all our minds." 

      Ezekiel had heard enough. He fled from the mercantile and stumbled around the corner, struggling to breathe. His eyes burned and his vision went blurry. 

      Letting out an angry growl, Ezekiel slammed his fist into the wooden beams of the mercantile and the wood splintered and dug into his bare knuckles. 

      He took a deep breath and rubbed his bloody hand across his face. He was done. Done worrying about that bastard. Done with it all. His life had been going fine before Craig and he wouldn't let that son of a bitch destroy it. 

      Ezekiel had known Craig was a risk. He'd known the man would break his heart and Ezekiel had set down for that game of poker anyhow.

He had no one to blame but himself for his losing hand.

Ү

Chapter Twenty-Two

Chapter Twenty-Two

Despite knowing the disappointment he would no doubt receive from his family, Craig was still happy to see the ranch come into view.

      And he wasn't a bit surprised when he was stopped before he got there by Wyatt stepping around a rock with that sawed-off shotgun of his aimed at Craig's chest. 

      Craig brought he wagon to a stop, ignoring the questions from Susannah who was sitting in the back of the covered wagon. 

      Craig saw Wyatt frown as the man stared up at him. Craig knew he'd be hard to recognize. He hadn't shaved in the weeks it had taken him to get to the ranch. He hadn't bothered to bath much either. His hair was a greasy, dirty mess that had gotten far too long and his face was hidden behind the starting of a real decent beard. 

      "You gonna shoot your best friend, Wyatt?" 

      The confusion on Wyatt's face vanished as a smile so damn broad it nearly cracked his face, spread across his cheeks. He hopped up and down and motioned behind him as his mouth went a mile a minute. 

      Craig damn near shit his britches when that giant, scarred-up Indian his best friend loved stood from the rocks, seeming to materialize out of nowhere. 

      "Glad you're back, Craig. Now my man can stop talking about you five hundred times an hour," Zachariah stated dryly. 

      Craig saw Wyatt shoot Zachariah a glare and then the smaller man was once again hopping up and down and urging Craig to get down. 

      "I'm gonna finish driving in...." Craig began but his words fell silent when Susannah popped her head through the opening at the front of the wagon and frowned at the sight of Wyatt and Zachariah. 

      "Who are the negro and the ugly injun?" she asked, curling her nose. 

      Craig felt his temper flare at the sight of Wyatt's hurt expression. He saw Zachariah take note of that as well and begin to step forward with his fists clenched. 

      Craig was quick to respond, before Zachariah could. "The 

negro is my best friend so you’d do well to show a bit more respect and that injun is his man and part of the family and more than a little hot-headed… you’d do well to show him a bit more respect as well.“

      "His 

man ?!“ Susannah exclaimed with disgust.

      Craig winced at the shrillness of her tone. He should have explained all of this to her in the past couple of weeks as they'd travelled—but, truth was, he hadn't spoken more than a handful of words to the woman. 

      He hated her. And not just for her role in tearing Ezekiel from him. She was horrid. Loud, shrill, judgmental and whiney. Nothing was ever good enough and she used her condition to attempt to receive special treatment everywhere they went. 

      Yeah, she was 

not a woman that Craig would have been tempted by even before Ezekiel….

      Thoughts of Ezekiel had pain radiating throughout Craig so he quickly shoved the man from his mind. 

      He turned his attention to his best friend. 

‘Who is she?’ Wyatt asked.

      Craig rubbed the back of his neck. "I'd only like to have to explain this once so can we get everyone together first?" 

      Wyatt cast a worried glance to Zachariah who put his arm around him and cast a threatening glance toward Craig. 

      Craig sighed. The ex-bounty hunter never had cared much for him—probably because Craig had been so good at hurting his family recently.

      Slowly, Wyatt nodded and Craig urged the wagon forward. "What kind of place did you bring me?" Susannah demanded, settling herself on the seat beside him. "Men loving men? That's an abomination." 

      "Says the pregnant, unwed whore in the wagon seat," Craig muttered. 

      Susannah gasped and Craig grabbed her wrist to stop her hand just before he struck his face. "Now, I've let you hit me several times in the last couple of weeks. I won't allow it again. I haven't smacked you around so keep your hands off me." 

      Susannah jerked her arm away and huffed as she folded her hands in her lap and stared straight ahead. "You are horrible to me. You've treated me as if I don't even exist since we left that town!" 

      "I've kept you clothed, fed and let you have the wagon to sleep in at night. What more did you expect from me?" 

      "I expected to be truly cared for by the father of my child!" 

      "I'm doubting more and more that I'm that man," Craig grumbled. Surely, even drunk off his ass, he wouldn't be attracted to a woman like Susannah. "And you won't get anything better from me." 

      "And when the babe is born and you realize you've been wrong and that it 

is yours? What then?“

      Craig didn't want to think about then. "We'll cross that canyon when we get to it." 

      As he pulled the wagon to a stop in front of his brother's home, he saw the pony barn and Preston leading a black pony around the corral. 

      He saw the pig that Eleanor and Preston had lovingly named Bacon, parading around as if he owned the place. 

      He saw that there was an old hound with a missing leg lounging on the porch. 

      And he saw his brother.... Standing on the porch with a cup of coffee steaming in his hand and a bewildered look on his face. "Craig?" Jebidiah muttered. "You're back?"

      Craig leapt from the wagon and rubbed at his neck. "Yeah, I'm back."

      "Hey there, Craig," Gil said as he stepped from the house and came to stand beside Jeb. "Who's your lady friend?"

      Before Craig could reply, Susannah left the wagon, skirted quickly around Wyatt and Zachariah and sauntered up to his brother and Gill. "My name's Susannah," she purred. 

      Craig was....flabbergasted. 

      Susannah held out her hand daintily and offered Gill a coy smile. "Who might you be?" 

      Jeb let out a low growl. "Taken," he stated possessively as his arm snaked around Gill's waist and pulled the man closer. 

      Susannah's eyes widened almost comically as she whirled around. "Another one? Is this abomination ranch? Did you bring me here to make me think about my own sins? Are 

you one of them? Is that why you refuse to touch me or even have a conversation with me for Christ’s sake?“

      "Abomination ranch?" Gill chuckled. "It's  got a odd kind of ring to it." 

      "Who the hell is she?" Jeb demanded, locking gazes with Craig. 

      Craig sighed. "I... well... apparently..." 

      "My name is Susannah. I'm from the town that Craig was living beside while he worked a ranch. He came into town, drank too much, had too much fun and put a babe in my belly. Now he's treating me terribly and blaming me for his mistake." 

      Craig winced and dropped his gaze to the dirt. He should have left the damn woman in town before coming here. Why was hindsight always so clear?

      He felt Wyatt smack his arm and he turned to see his best friend looking quite confused. 

‘Her? You laid with her? Don’t you have better taste?’

      Craig would have laughed out loud if Jeb's eyes weren't burning holes in him. "She was a whore in the brothel, Wyatt. I don't remember bedding her but she says I did and the hotel clerk recognized her as being a woman who checked in with me one night...." 

      "So you finally did it, huh?" Jeb snapped. "You came riding back in with a pregnant whore. Somehow I'm less surprised now." 

      "Go ahead," Craig mumbled. "Go ahead and tell me how bad I messed up. Go ahead and rub my goddamn face in it. Trust me, I know what how bad this is. I've lost so damn much because of my own foolish vices. Nothing, and I repeat, 

nothing you say could hurt me near as bad as what I left behind.“

      Silence fell around them. 

      A pin could have been heard falling in the dust. 

      Susannah's sharp intake of breath broke the silence. "

Him ?! Are you talking about him?! “ She threw her hands in the air and the screech she let out was ear-piercing. “This is the abomination ranch!”

      Craig couldn't hear any more. He had to get away. He'd been holding everything in for weeks and it was all about to come flying out at once. 

      He turned, saw the horse hitched by the corral and ran for it. He jumped onto its back, grabbed a handful of mane and took off over the plains, ignoring everyone who called out for him to stop. 

      He wasn't proud of the tears that soaked his cheeks as the wind blew against them. Damn but he missed Ezekiel. He wanted that man. If he had Ezekiel, none of this would seem so hard. 

      But Ezekiel had turned his back on him. Ezekiel was just one more person he'd disappointed. One more person who had decided Craig wasn't worth the trouble.

Chapter Twenty-Three

Chapter Twenty-Three

Jeb wasn’t quite sure what had just happened.

      All he 

was sure of was that there was a pregnant whore pacing around while screeching about abominations and that Craig had raced away as if the hounds of hell were on his heels.

      "What in the world....?" Jeb glanced back to see Eleanor poke her head from the house, clearly alerted by the volume of the screeches their unwelcome guest was emitting. 

      "Preston?" Gill called as Eleanor rushed back inside. Jeb knew the woman would be terrified. She was a nervous little bird at the best of times and, while she was comfortable around the family, new people sent her running. 

      "Yeah pa?" Preston asked as he came out of the corral and approached with his hands over his ears. "Go in and check on Eleanor." 

      Preston nodded and rushed into the house, clearly eager to be escape a bit of the noise. 

      Jeb saw Wyatt's gaze go skyward before the man let out a huff, stormed over to a pacing, ranting Susannah and clamped his hand over her mouth. 

      Jeb nearly chuckled at the comical widening of the woman's blue eyes and he heard that Zachariah 

did let a laugh slip out.

      Susannah jerked away from Wyatt and wiped at her face. "Don't put your negro hands on me!" 

      Jeb stepped forward, his temper fully flared, but Gill's hand grabbed his arm and pulled him back. Jeb turned to look at the other man. "Jebidiah, go find your brother and talk to him. 

Talk not scold. I will deal with her.“

      "I don't want her on this ranch," Jeb growled. He was thankful for Gilliam in that moment. Gilliam tended to be the cooler headed one of the duo. 

      "She won't be," Gill promised. 

      Jeb nodded, threw one last threatening glance at the suddenly silent woman and headed for the barn to get a horse. He wasn't sure what he'd say to Craig but he knew he'd have to go easy... it was clear that Susannah was a snake and Craig had been through a hell of a lot. 

---

      Gill stepped off the porch and pointed to the wagon. "Get in." 

      "Don't order me around, negro," Susannah spat. 

      Gill chuckled. Clearly the woman thought she was something special. "I apologize, ma'am." He tipped his head politely. "If you'd be so obliged as to enter the wagon, I will be happy to drive you into town so you can rest a bit at the hotel." 

      Susannah huffed her way to the wagon. She stood beside the seat a moment and then cleared her throat loudly. "Am I to climb up alone?" 

      Wyatt smacked Gill on the arm to get his attention. 

‘Does she know slavery ended?’

      Zachariah shook his head. "Brothels don't teach history." 

      Gill ignored them both and approached Susannah. "I'd be happy to help you up, ma'am. I was merely keeping my distance because I'm a negro, ma'am, and didn't want to soil you with my negro hands." 

      Wyatt let out silent laughter and waved his dark hands in the air. 

      Gill helped Susannah onto the wagon seat before sitting down beside her. He headed off toward town, knowing he'd have plenty of time during the ride to figure out what the hell was going on. 

      Jebidiah's temper had been too spiked by Susannah's treatment of his family and Craig certainly hadn't been in his right mind. Gill, however, was thinking perfectly clear and he knew something was very not right about the current situation. 

      "Ma'am, I have a few questions for you," Gill began. He'd interrogated more than a few people during his life. It was time to be a lawman once again. 

      "I don't have to explain myself to you," Susannah replied curtly as she stared straight ahead. 

      Gill nodded. "Yeah, you do. Craig is my family, my brother, and when I see someone taking advantage of my family, I have a problem with that." 

      "Why do you think I'm taking advantage of him?" she inquired, in a much more subdued tone. Gill had been told before that, when he asked questions, there was an authority in his tone that made it nearly impossible to lie or deny him the answers he wanted. 

      Gill leaned back in the seat. "Why don't you just tell me how you and Craig found yourselves in your current situation." 

      "I don't have to tell you anything." 

      Gill nodded. "You're right. You don't. But, convincing me would go a long way in helping make your life here a whole lot easier." 

      Susannah seemed to consider that a moment before clearing her throat. "Yes, I was living in the brothel but I had never laid with a man until Craig. I was new to the brothel when a man stopped in. He took a liking to me and made a deal with the Madame. I was to be saved for only him and no other man was to touch me." 

      "Then why did you lay with Craig?" 

      There was the slightest shift in her eyes. The slightest tightening of her posture. "I made a mistake." 

      "Craig says he doesn't remember laying with you." 

      "He was very drunk," Susannah replied. "I had to help him to the room." 

      "He was so drunk he couldn't walk alone but he managed to put a babe in your belly?" 

      "I'm not on trial here, 

negro ,“ Susannah spat.

      Gill rolled his shoulders. "I'll keep that in mind, 

whore .“ He nearly chuckled at her indignant expression. “So, you were an innocent woman, promised to another man and you just so happened to enter a saloon, find a man so drunk he couldn’t walk and wouldn’t remember anything come morning and then, not only lay with him, but get with child?”

      Again, just the slightest tensing. "I am done talking to you about this. It is none of your concern." 

      Gill chose not to argue. He'd heard enough. 

---

      Craig wanted to scream when his brother came riding up to the tree Craig had taken cover under. He just wanted to be left alone. He couldn't take any of his brother's condescending tone just now. 

      He waited for Jeb to begin his disappointed scolding any moment. Jeb slid from his horse's back, walked to the tree and settled himself down next to Craig without saying a single word. 

      The brothers sat there together in silence for several long moments before Craig let out a sigh. "It just doesn't make sense." 

      "What doesn't?" 

      Craig was surprised by the question and by the concerned and quiet tone with which it was spoken. Jeb and Craig had always been close so Craig simply opened his mouth and began to speak the truth. 

      "I learned a lot about myself while I was gone. I was lost in liquor and anger for a while, wound up bloody and beaten in a ditch and a man saved me...." Pain lanced Craig's heart but he pushed it aside. "He took me to the ranch he was foreman on and got me a job there. I was doing pretty good, still letting loose but only on my days off. The man, he seemed to hate me.... And then it changed." 

      "What do you mean it changed?" 

      "I uh... I mean that I... I realized I wanted him and that he wanted me." 

      Craig spared a glance at his older brother and it was clear the man was surprised but trying real hard to rein in his own emotions and stay perfectly calm. "Oh....okay. So where does Susannah come in?"

      Craig rubbed roughly at his face. "I was still trying to figure out what it all meant and I had a night off so I went into town and.... And I did what I do best and got shit faced drunk. But I remember half the night and what I remember was thinking that I'd been broken because I wasn't the last bit interested in taking a woman.

      "I woke up in the hotel the next morning fully clothed, alone, in a room with the door locked from the inside and no memory of how I'd gotten there. That man showed up that morning and we spent the rest of the break from work together.... It wasn't until I checked out that I realized the clerk had checked me in with a woman. I decided not to tell the man because I figured nothing had happened. I'd been dressed and alone when I woke up.... Apparently I was wrong. Or at least she says I was wrong—and the clerk recognized her." 

      "Is there a reason you won't say the man's name?" Jeb asked quietly. 

      That certainly hadn't been what Craig had expected. He'd expected his brother to give him hell for his mistakes.

      "Ezekiel. His name is Ezekiel. And I... I love him, Jeb." 

      "Why isn't he here?" 

      "Because, when Susannah came to me and told me she was pregnant, he left. I reckon he didn't love me as much as I'd hoped he did." 

      Again, silence fell over the brothers. Finally, Jeb spoke. "Do you think the babe is yours?" 

      "No," Craig admitted. "I don't. I think Susannah wanted out and I was the way she found." 

      "Then why did you bring her here?" 

      Craig swallowed hard. "Because what if it is mine? What if I'm wrong? Or, even if it isn't, you've met the woman...that kid is gonna need somebody." 

      "Do you even know for sure that she's with child?" 

      "Yeah, I reckon. She's been getting sick a lot." 

      Jeb grunted. "Well hell, Craig."

      "Yep." 

      "So, what's the plan?" Jeb inquired. 

      "I told her I'd put her up in town until the babe is born and if it's mine, if I feel as if that's my youngin, I'll do what's right by her." 

      "And if it's not yours?" 

      Craig shrugged and his shoulders sagged. "I don't know. I've done lost 

him ….. I just don’t know.“

Chapter Twenty-Four

Chapter Twenty-Four

“Well she is pregnant, or at least Maria says she’s pretty damn sure she is,” Gill stated as he joined Jeb and Craig on the porch of Jeb and Gill’s cabin.

      "You took her to your mother's?" Jeb asked as he held out his arm and slid it around Gill's legs as the man came to stand beside him. 

      Craig felt pain fill him at the sight. If Susannah hadn't showed up, if Craig hadn't gotten so damn drunk that night he couldn't remember, then Ezekiel would be here with him now and they'd finally be able to openly show their affection. 

      "I wanted to get an experts opinion on whether or not there was a babe in her belly." 

      Jeb raised a brow. "What do you make of her?" 

      Gill chuckled. "Wonderful woman, really. Riding to town with her was almost as pleasant as riding to town with a bur in my saddle." 

      Gill met and held Craig's gaze. "I also believe that she's lying."

      "I don't understand," Jeb muttered. "What is she getting out of this? Craig is a good man but he doesn't care about her. He's not rich. I just don't understand..." 

      "It's not that difficult to understand," Craig spoke up. "The madame promised a 

virgin whore to a rich man. Maybe he’s a dangerous man. Maybe he’s violent. I don’t know. But, Susannah wasn’t truly a virgin and then she wound up pregnant. I honestly do think she was scared to stay there and she needed a scapegoat. Who better than the drunkard who can’t remember if he bedded her or not?“

      "But why keep it going?" Gill inquired. 

      Craig shrugged. "A free ride. I've promised to keep her up and marry her after the babe's born if it's mine." His shoulders sagged as his gaze dropped to the worn out toes of his dusty boots. "And we all know there just ain't a way to prove it ain't mine." 

      "It ain't right," Jeb growled. "That bitch is taking advantage of you. You're going to sacrifice your whole life because of her lies. I don't want my brother suffering his life away married to 

that .“

      Craig sighed as he stood up slowly. "Don't worry about me, big brother. I made my bed and now I'll have to spend the rest of my life laying in it." 

---

      Ezekiel rapped his knuckles sharply against Edison's office door. He didn't appreciate having his work interrupted by a house maid informing him Edison wanted to have a word. 

      "Come on in, Ezekiel." 

      Ezekiel pulled his hat from his head and rubbed at his wiry hair as he stepped inside. "You wanted to see me?" 

      Edison pointed to the chair in front of the desk. "Please, sit down." 

      Ezekiel's muddy boots left tracks on the polished floor as he strode to the chair and flopped down. "I'm a bit busy today, Edison. We need to make this quick." 

      Edison nodded, folded his hands on the desk and met Ezekiel's gaze. "Fair enough. You've become a rather big asshole lately." 

      Ezekiel blinked several times as Edison simply continued to look at him politely. "Is that right?" Ezekiel asked. 

      Edison nodded. "Yes. I've received more than a few complaints. You've been physically abusive to several hands....." 

      "I haven't...." 

      "You threw Chester into a corral with an angry stallion," Edison countered. "

Threw him. Over the fence and flat on his backside into the dust.“

      Ezekiel's right shoulder rose and fell. "The stallion needed to be broken and Chester was bragging about how good a horse tamer he was." 

      Edison didn't seem to find humor in the situation and, honestly, neither did Ezekiel. Of course, he hadn't found humor in anything in weeks. 

      "The men used to respect you because they admired you. You were fair and decent with them. Now, they're respect comes more from fear and they're beginning to think about leaving my ranch. That is a problem, Ezekiel." 

      "Over Chester and the goddamn horse?" Ezekiel growled. 

      Edison slammed his hand down in a rare show of temper. "You know good and well that you've been mean and abusive and angry ever since he left. You are upset that life was less than kind to you and you are taking it out on everyone around you. You are self-destructing!" 

      Ezekiel huffed and threw himself back against the chair. "I'm just fine, dammit. 

He has nothing to do with it.“

      Edison's expression softened as he tilted his head and studied Ezekiel. "

He has everything to do with it. You’re broken-hearted and broken-hearted men tend to act like loud, angry fools.“

      Ezekiel shoved himself to his feet and paced the floor to the empty fireplace. He stared down at the ash covered, fire scorched stone and swallowed hard. "

He was a mistake.“

      "Is that why you're angry? Because you feel you made a mistake?"

      Ezekiel didn't turn to look at the older man. To anyone else he would have yelled, hollered and demanded they keep their mouth closed about his personal business. But Edison wasn't just anyone. "Yeah," he replied, gripping the wooden mantle in front of him. 

      "And what exactly was the mistake?" Edison inquired. "Falling in love with Craig or allowing him to leave without you?"

      Ezekiel's neck turned sharply and he glared at Edison. "I did 

let anyone leave. I went to town the next morning, the morning he was supposed to leave, and I heard from Phillip at the mercantile that he’d run off with that damn woman and was going to marry her. Apparently, she was over the moon about the whole thing and tickled pink that he loved her.“

      Goddamn. 

      That hurt.

      Saying those words out loud, giving them a voice and breath and life had them tearing him apart all over again. 

      Edison let out a patient sigh and stood slowly. He filled two glasses with scotch and made his way to Ezekiel. 

      Ezekiel stared at the man's offering of amber liquid before taking the glass and throwing back every bit of it in one swallow—enjoying the slow burn that worked its way down into his gut. 

      "I'll admit that Craig didn't say much when he came here to let me know he'd be leaving town. I didn't push for details either. I could see the pain and confliction written all over the man's face." 

      Ezekiel merely grunted, strode to Edison's decanter of scotch and refilled his glass, downing the second one just as quickly as the first. 

      "I've seen love a few times, Ezekiel. I've seen it written on the faces of several men. I've even seen it written on Craig's—but not that day." 

      Still Ezekiel didn't speak. What was there to say?

      Edison sat his untouched glass of scotch on the mantle and turned to face Ezekiel. "The man was in love with you, Ezekiel, much the same as you were him. Now, I don't know the details of what happened with him and that woman but I do know that you're both stubborn, strong-willed men without any real communication skills to speak of. Craig was finding his way here and he was finding himself with you." 

      "What the hell do you want me to say?" Ezekiel demanded. "Yes, I love him. Is that what you want to hear? Yes, I turned my back on him to save myself a hell of a lot of pain...." 

      "And did it work?" Edison asked, his graying eyebrow quirking upward. "Were you spared any pain?" 

      Ezekiel fell down hard in an empty chair. "No." 

      "I did a bit of digging about Susannah," Edison stated as he too returned to his seat. "Something I'm sure you didn't do given your stubborn nature." 

      Ezekiel glared but said nothing as he sat up a bit straighter and waiting impatiently for Edison to speak again. 

      Edison folded his hands on his desk. "She 

was fairly new to town and to the brothel. There was rather wealthy man who made a deal with the Madame for Susannah. And she had recently been to the doctor with suspicions that she was with child.“

      "Craig's child," Ezekiel growled, his hands clenching into tight fists on his thighs. 

      Edison tilted his head. "Perhaps. Of course, she and the madame approached at least three other men before approaching Craig. It seemed that all those before Craig, laughed at the woman's accusations. Craig was the first man to 

take the bait so to speak.“

      "That goddamn, heifer, bitch!" Ezekiel growled as he shot to his feet. "She lied. She lied to Craig and she lied to the store keep! Of course Craig didn't turn her away... He's an orphan for christsake! And he spent a good part of his life helping orphans. Kids and family are his weakness." 

      Ezekiel stopped speaking when he realized he'd been rambling a loud. He turned his attention to Edison who was grinning in his chair. "I will take that as your letter of resignation. If you're ever back around this way, you better stop in to visit." 

      Ezekiel swallowed hard. "But what if I'm too late?" he asked. "It's been weeks. What if he 

has fallen in love with her?“

      Edison stood up and walked around the desk. He laid a comforting hand on Ezekiel's shoulder. "Impossible. The look the man had on his face when he was with you was a look that only comes around once in an entire lifetime. Go to him, Ezekiel. And learn to communicate, please? I'm an old man. I can't be doing all the work for you forever."

Chapter Twenty-Five

Chapter Twenty-Five

      Numb. 

      Craig was, quite simply, numb. 

      But he knew that his best friend was worried sick about him so he plastered the best smile he could on his face and assured the man he was okay. 

      Wyatt's gaze went skyward, his hands went to his hips and his glare was one for the record books. 

‘You’re not fine.’

      Craig sighed and looked out from the porch of the line shack that Zachariah and Wyatt had made their home. "You're right. I'm not. Hell, I loved him, Wyatt." 

      Wyatt put a hand on Craig's shoulder. 

‘Did you tell him that?’

Craig opened his mouth to say yes but then clamped it shut. No. No, he hadn’t. He had thought that Ezekiel would simply know that he loved him…. He had assumed that it was understood.

‘Of course you didn’t,’ Wyatt mouthed in what Craig knew would be a mutter if the man could speak.

      "You're right. I could have fought harder to keep him," Craig grumbled. "But he could have fought harder too." 

      The two friends sat there in silence together for a long while before Wyatt finally slapped Craig on the back, nearly dislodging his lung. 

      Craig turned a pained expression his way. 

‘Let’s go on a trip. A few days of riding, sleeping under the stars, playing poker. It’ll be like the old days.’

A genuine smile curved Craig’s lips at his best friend’s offer. “Are you sure Zachariah would let you out of his sight for a few days?”

      Wyatt shrugged. 

‘Sure.’ His thick brows waggled. ‘He can miss me a while.’

Craig nodded. “I think I’d enjoy a few days under the sky. Thanks, Wyatt.”

      Wyatt wrapped him in a warm hug and pulled away with that bright smile on his face that always seemed contagious. 

‘What are best friends for?’

      "I was only gone an hour and you've already replaced me." Zachariah's deep, gruff voice accused as the man came around the side of the cabin. "You just can't find a good man these days." 

      Wyatt rolled his eyes before stepping to the banister and putting his arms around Zachariah's neck. Craig couldn't see what Wyatt said but it had the grizzled Indian blushing beneath his scars. 

      Wyatt pulled away and glanced at Craig. 

‘Craig and I are going away for a couple of days.’

      "Where the hell are you going?" Zachariah demanded, clearly not happy with the news. 

      Wyatt sighed. 

‘To get some fresh air.’

      Zachariah was quiet a moment. It was impossible to tell what the man was thinking and Craig wondered if he'd kill him. Zachariah had never been real fond of him and, while they hadn't had any issues since Craig's return, this was sure to spark some. 

      Zachariah's gray eyes were angry. "Fresh air?" 

      Wyatt nodded in earnest as he put his hand on the tall man's chest. 

‘My best friend needs me.’

“I need you,” Zachariah growled. He threw a glance at Craig and then tugged Wyatt into his body possessively. “I don’t know why I have to suffer and be lonely because Craig can’t handle his own life.”

      Craig opened his mouth to defend himself but was silenced when Wyatt punched Zachariah in the chest an glared up at the man. 

      Zachariah's expression was nearly comical as he rubbed at his chest and stared down at the much smaller yet very angry man glaring up at him. 

‘Stop being an asshole,’ Wyatt snapped. ‘Craig and I are going and that’s that.’

      Zachariah scratched at his scarred cheek before crossing his arms over his chest. "Well alright then. How long?" 

      Wyatt glanced at Craig but Craig simply shrugged. "It's up to you, Wyatt." 

      Wyatt tapped his chin. 

‘About three days.’

      Zachariah's jaw popped. "So my man is leaving me for three days to do what?" 

      

‘Ride around. Play poker.’ Wyatt smiled at Craig. ‘Just like old times.’

      Zachariah grunted. "Except back in the old times Craig preferred skirts and split tails."

      Craig was surprised when a laugh rumbled from his chest. "Don't worry, Zachariah. You're safe. Wyatt's not my type." 

      Wyatt scoffed. 

‘What’s wrong with me?’

Instead of responding, Craig fell silent. Good humor left him. Wyatt wasn’t Ezekiel. No one was Ezekiel. Craig figured he never would find another person in the world that made him feel what that tall, thick-muscled, dark-skinned, outlaw-turned-ranch foreman had made him feel.

      "Alright, take the damn sad puppy dog looking jackass out for three days," Zachariah muttered. He pulled Wyatt closer. "But let me tell you something, outlaw. You're gonna owe me a thing or two when you get back home." 

      Craig turned his back to the lovebirds, both to give them a bit of privacy and save himself from the sight of them. He was happy for all those who had found love but he couldn't pretend he wasn't jealous and bitter at the same time.   

      He didn't realize their affection had ended until Wyatt tapped his shoulder. 

‘We’ll need to get some supplies. You want to come into town with me?’

      Craig was quick to shake his head. "Why don't you and Zachariah go? I'll pack up what we'll need from around here and meet you at Jeb's." 

      Wyatt appeared ready to push but decided to relent. He motioned for Zachariah.  

      Craig avoided town. He didn't want to see Susannah. She paraded around town like the queen of Sheba, telling everyone who would listen that she was having Craig's child and charging credit after credit at every store in town—in Craig's name, of course. 

      She was a horrible human being and his entire family hated her. So did Craig. But her belly had begun to round slightly and, as long as he thought there might the smallest chance the babe she was carrying was his, Craig would do his best to do what was right by that babe. 

      He took in a deep breath and steadied himself. A few days out on horseback with his best friend would be just what the doctor ordered to get his mind off things it didn't need to be dwelling on. 

      "Craig?" Zachariah called, poking his head from the barn. 

      "Yeah?" 

      "Wyatt wants to know if you want him to get whiskey." 

      Craig was quick to shake his head. "No. No whiskey." 

      He hadn't touched whiskey since leaving town with Susannah a month ago. He had no urge for the stuff that had helped ruin his life. Strange how, at one point, he'd felt whiskey was all he had. Now, he saw the stuff for what it really was. 

      Watching Wyatt and Ezekiel ride away, Craig sighed. Recovering from drunken whiskey nights had never seemed so hard as recovering from all these sober ones. 

---

      Ezekiel had no idea how this had happened. He'd come into town hoping to find out where Jeb's ranch might be and had ended up standing toe to toe with an angry, loud group of ignorant men who seemed to have a dislike of dark-skinned folks and a strong love of guns. 

      Ezekiel was currently staring down the barrels of five guns while those men were staring down the blade of nothing but his knife. 

      "We don't take no mouth off a negro," the lead trouble maker announced. 

      "Then you shouldn't have talked to one," Ezekiel replied calmly. He glanced at the bloody face of one of the men and winced. "You should probably go see the doc.. he might be able to set your nose so it don't heal quite so crooked." 

      Ezekiel had been in town a total of ten minutes. He'd been on his way to the mercantile, figuring that was as good a place as any to start asking questions, when this band of merry idiots had begun to shove him around on the street and insult the color of his skin. He assumed they'd chosen to pick on him because he had no gun and there were five of them. 

      Damn fools. 

      Ezekiel had tolerated it a full five seconds before his temper had overridden his other senses and he'd broken one of the bastard's noses. Which had led to the current situation. 

      "Oh the negro has jokes," ringleader sneered. He spit at Ezekiel's feet. "I don't think I'd be cracking jokes if I was you." 

      "Then again, you don't think much at all, do you Linus?" 

      Ezekiel turned to see that someone was approaching them. The man was tall, scarred up, clearly an Indian and roughly the same size as Ezekiel himself. 

      The ringleader swallowed hard at the sight of the man and all five men lowered their guns. "We don't want no trouble with you, Zachariah." 

      The Indian shook his head. "Then quit making trouble." He tipped his head to the side. "Now get the hell out of here and leave folks alone." 

      The men were quick to hightail it away and Ezekiel turned to the man who had helped him. This had to be the Zachariah who was in a relationship with Craig's friend Wyatt. There couldn't be two giant, scarred up, scary Indians living in the same tiny town. 

      "You must have a death wish, staring down five men with guns when all you're holding is a knife," Zachariah mused. 

      Ezekiel shook his head. "I've faced worse odds. I actually think you might be able to help me." 

      Zachariah's brow rose. "I doubt it. What do you want?" 

      "I'm looking for Jebidiah Crane's ranch." Ezekiel slid his knife back in the holster. "I got some business there." 

      "You're looking for Jebidiah?" 

      Ezekiel spun around to see Gilliam Tomlinson standing there with that cocky lawman stance and narrowed eyes. A young scrawny boy with pale skin and glasses stood beside him. 

      Ezekiel nodded. "I'm looking for his ranch." 

      Faster than even Ezekiel could react, Gill's fist shot out and caught him hard in the temple. The world spun around him before going black as he hit the dirt.

---

      "Damn pa!" Preston exclaimed, pushing his glasses up on his nose. "You just knocked him out cold." 

      "Watch your language," Gill scolded, shaking his aching fist as he stared down at the unconscious outlaw in the dirt. "Pick him up, Zachariah and we'll take him to my mama's while we try to figure out what to do with him. I don't know why a good for nothing, cold-blooded killer is looking for Jeb but it'll be a cold day in hell before I let that bastard anywhere near him." 

      Zachariah bristled, clearly unhappy with being given orders, but the large man put his arms under the outlaw's arms and hoisted his body partly off the ground so he could drag him a bit easier. 

      "What's his name? I don't recognize him and I thought I knew outlaws well. I 

was a bounty hunter.“

      "He's protected by a pardon granted to him by a crooked politician," Gill grunted as the trio made their way down the road with their captor. "His name's Ezekiel." 

      Zachariah stopped in his tracks as realization dawned on them all. Gill shook his head and Preston rolled his eyes. "Looks like Uncle Craig has some explaining to do," he announced. "Papa ain't gonna be happy about this." 

      Gill groaned at the thought of telling Jeb who his brother had fallen for. "I'm afraid you're right, Preston," he said, putting his hand on the eleven-year old's shoulder. "Papa ain't gonna be happy at all."

Chapter Twenty-Six

Chapter Twenty-Six

Craig was having a better time than he’d thought he’d have. He and Wyatt had only been out on their own for a night but it felt good to sleep under the stars and spend the day riding, talking and relaxing in the shade with his best friend.

      He'd missed this. He'd missed feeling like the old days. 

      The two had just sat down beneath a shade tree to play a bit of cards when the sound of hoof beats reached their ears. Craig glanced up and sighed. "Looks like the bounty hunter couldn't let you stay out of his sight for three days after all." 

      Wyatt's head whipped around and when his eyes fell on Zachariah, he shook his head roughly and shoved himself to his feet. 

‘That overprotective jackass…..’

Wyatt’s posture changed from one of annoyance to one of worry as Zachariah neared them on that big black horse and it became clear that something was wrong.

      "Craig, you'll be wanting to get back to Jeb's place," Zachariah announced. 

      Craig stood and swiped the dirt off his backside. "What's wrong? Is everybody okay?" 

      "You've got a visitor," Zachariah replied. "And in true Crane Gang fashion, he's been knocked unconscious and is tied to a chair at your brother's place." 

---

      Ezekiel had regained consciousness several moments ago but had remained still, silent and kept his eyes closed to allow himself time to gauge his surroundings. 

      "Look at your damn hand, Gill. You need to let Maria look at that. I think you might have broken it." 

      "My hand is fine, Jeb," Gill replied with exasperation. "You worry too much." 

      "It's so nice to see that mother hens don't change," a third male voice announced with a tone that was clearly teasing. 

      "You better be quiet, Pete. With the mood Jeb's in, he's apt to try to hurt you and then I'd have to step in an protect you," a woman warned. 

      "My knight in shining armor," Pete mused. 

      Ezekiel frowned. These people were insane—just as Craig had said they were. 

      He remembered Gill knocking him out cold. First damn time Ezekiel had ever been knocked out with one punch. He wouldn't be surprised if the man 

had broken his hand. And he wasn’t surprised Gill had hit him. Hell, Ezekiel was lucky Gilliam Tomlinson hadn’t shot him on sight.

      The man knew what Ezekiel had once been. He knew every single nasty detail ever listed on law reports about Ezekiel and the things he'd done. 

      But Ezekiel couldn't figure out for the life of him where he was now or why he was tied to a damn chair and surrounded by a small army of bickering, teasing and 

mother henning folks.

      He figured it was as good a time as any to open his eyes. Would he see Craig anywhere? 

      "He's awake," the woman's voice immediately announced the moment Ezekiel's eyelids opened. She had wild blond hair beneath a wide brimmed hat and a young boy, he knew must be Little Willie, was propped on her trouser clad hip. 

      "Hello Jane," Ezekiel replied. 

      A red haired, buck-toothed man instantly came between Ezekiel and Jane. It took him a moment to place the familiar face. "Pete Bardlow. Nice to see you." 

      Pete batted his lashes and laid his hand over his heart. "That warms my heart. Did you hear that, Gill? It's nice to see me." 

      "That's the first damn time those words have been uttered," Gill grumbled. He stepped forward. "What are you doing here, Ezekiel?"

      "We 

already know the answer to that, Gill. Hells bells! Where have you been? He’s here because he obviously came chasing after Craig. Catch up.“

      Gill pinched his nose between his fingers and shook his head. Another man, a man who must be Jebidiah Crane stepped forward. He had the same colored hair as Craig, only it was cut shorter, and his eye color matched his brothers. But where Craig had boyish good looks, Jeb was sharper, sterner and it was clear the man was angry. 

      "Does my brother know you? Does he know what you are?" 

      "A ranch foreman?" Ezekiel shrugged one shoulder and tugged at the restraints keeping his arms behind him. "Yeah, I reckon he knows." 

      Jeb clenched his fists. "You know damn well I'm not talking about your ranching cover. I'm talking about the man you really are. A cold-blood killer?" 

      Ezekiel sighed. "I'm not that man anymore." 

      "See? He's not that many anymore. Simple as that. Untie him. Let him up. Apologize for cracking his skull." 

      "Pete?" Gill grumbled. 

      Pete smiled at the other man. "Yes?" 

      "Don't." 

      "Okay. You never let me have any fun." 

      Ezekiel focused his attention on Gill and Jeb. Those were clearly the two he was going to have to convince if he wanted out of the damn chair.  "Craig knows. He knows about my past. I've worked real damn hard to overcome all that and I've changed. I came here because I need to see Craig. I need to speak with him." 

      Jeb threw up his hands and began to pace. "Craig is one giant headache. If he isn't worrying me to death by drinking himself into a stupor, he's riding in with pregnant whores or losing himself in melancholy or falling in love with damned cold-blooded murderers who were wanted dead or alive not too damn long ago....." 

      Ezekiel wasn't sure what to say. He was sure, knowing Craig the way he did, that being big brother to the man must be hard... and Jeb had been more than that. He'd been more like a father to the man for over a decade since their parents had been murdered. 

      Craig was certainly a person who gave you more than a few gray hairs and headaches if you were responsible for him. 

      Before Ezekiel could say anything, Gill crossed the floor and stilled Jeb's pacing by putting his hands gently on his chest and blocking his path. "It's going to be okay, Jebidiah. We'll figure it all out and everything will be just fine." Ezekiel was surprise. Was the ex-lawman who had just knocked him unconscious not too long ago, suddenly on his side?

      Jeb's voice was quiet as he stooped down lower. "I've almost lost this family too many times, Gilliam. I can't risk it again. What if we can't trust him? What if Craig made a mistake... it wouldn't be his first one." 

      "No, it wouldn't," Gill replied. He let out a humorless chuckle. "Hell, he was the one who trusted Pete and I when we met him in that town. He was the one who led us to you and the gang never knowing that we were supposed to bring you to justice. He's made mistakes before, that's for sure. But they worked out." 

      "Yep, look at us now!" Pete agreed, throwing his arm around Jeb's shoulders. "One big happy family." 

      The look on Jeb's face was a murderous one. "Personal space, Pete," he growled. 

      Pete put up his hands and backed away. "Grouch," he mumbled as he went to his wife and she patted his arm soothingly. 

      "Gill? Jeb?" Ezekiel spoke. "I know you have good reason to not trust me. Hell, I've spent years trying to forget the things I've one but I don't ever sleep a whole night without the memories waking me up. I was orphaned young and fell in with a bad group of men who saved my life—I didn't know any better at the time and by the time I was old enough to know better, I was in so deep it didn't seem to matter. But that's not me any longer. I'm a hard working man who's earned respect from those I've worked with and for. Hell, I don't even carry a gun anymore. I hurt your brother when I walked away from him and I intend to make that right. Just let me know where he is. Where is Craig?"

      A floorboard creaked near the door and Ezekiel's head whipped around to find Craig standing in the doorway. The man was pale, his green eyes were wide and he was gripping the door facing for all he was worth. 

      Pete nudged Ezekiel's shoulder. "He's right there."

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Chapter Twenty-Seven

Ezekiel struggled to find words to say. His mouth worked up and down several times but no sound escaped. He simply stared at Craig, feeling his heart break all over again.

      The man looked terrible. He looked tired, beat down and completely broken. Craig no longer resembled the man Ezekiel had fallen in love with. His boyish smile and that mischievous spark in his green eyes had gone out. 

      The last month had definitely taken its toll on the man and Ezekiel's heart ached. He should have been there. He should have been at Craig's side offering what help and support he could have. 

      Damn, he was an ass. 

      But he was here now and all he wanted was to get out of this damn chair and take Craig into his arms and assure him that he'd never turn his back on him again.

      The cabin fell completely silent. Even Little Willie, who had been babbling on and on as he struggled to get down from his mother's arms, fell silent and still. 

      "Why are you here?" Craig demanded, his voice quiet and strained. 

      Ezekiel growled as he struggled to turn the chair enough to face Craig. "You," he replied, meeting and holding Craig's gaze.  

      Gill let out a sigh and stepped to the chair. He began to untie the ropes holding Ezekiel but Jeb stopped him. "What are you doing?"

      "Letting the man go." 

      "But 

you’re the one who knocked him out and told me was dangerous to begin with,“ Jeb reminded him.

      Gill shook his head. "I'm changing my mind. And if I'm wrong then I'll just kill him later." 

      Gill bent down and undid the ropes around Ezekiel's wrist. "Don't make me regret this," he grumbled. "I understand a child getting lost in something he doesn't understand and I understand a man wanting to change, but if you hurt my family I'll see that you pay for it. Understood?" 

      Ezekiel stood slowly, allowing the blood to return to his legs as his aching head swam a bit. "Understood," he agreed. 

      He was aware of more of Pete's goading going on behind him and he was aware of Jeb pulling Gill aside as the two men whispered between each other. 

      But Ezekiel paid it all no mind. Instead he strode three quick steps across the floor and stood before Craig. He longed to reach out and touch the man but Craig still hadn't said a word—and the man didn't look too happy to see him. 

      Suddenly Craig turned and walked away. Ezekiel rushed to follow him but was stopped when a rather small wiry man with ebony black skin and an angry glare shoved the barrel of sawed off shot gun into his chest. 

      Ezekiel held his hands up and raised his brow. "Hello Wyatt." 

      The man's eyes narrowed further and his lips moved without sound. Unfortunately, Ezekiel had no skill in reading them. 

      Zachariah cleared his throat after Wyatt's lips stopped moving. "He said if you hurt his best friend again, he'd kill you. He said Craig's been through enough and he doesn't need some jackass making things worse." Zachariah shrugged. "Personally, I think Craig is a bit of an immature babe who makes bad choices and then bitches about them."

      Wyatt's elbow made contact with Zachariah's gut causing the man to chuckle as he rubbed at the abused spot.  

      Ezekiel grunted. "More people wanting to kill me just for being here..... this sure ain't a real welcoming family, is it?" 

      Zachariah chuckled. "Not at first, no. I reckon I was knocked unconscious and tied to that same chair that Gill just freed you from." 

      Ezekiel turned his attention back to Wyatt. "I'm here to stay if Craig will let me," he promised. "Now, can you remove the gun from my gut so I can go talk to him? I came a long way." 

      Wyatt stared hard at him a moment longer before pulling the gun away. A bright smile lit up his boyish face. He shooed Ezekiel away and gave him a slight shove to get him moving toward the barn. 

      After regaining his footing, Ezekiel let his feet carry him swiftly and determinedly toward the barn Craig had taken cover inside. 

      Ezekiel had been far too long without the man and he wasn't going to allow Craig to walk away from him now. Entering the barn, Ezekiel gave his eyes a moment to adjust to the change of light. 

      "Where'd you go?" he called out, earning a snort from a horse in a nearby stall. 

      "Back here." 

      Ezekiel followed the sound of Craig's voice to the back of the barn and an empty stall that house a bed and kerosene lamp. "Home sweet home," Craig muttered. 

      He was avoiding looking at Ezekiel, but Ezekiel didn't care. He wasn't going to waste any more time. Did they need to talk? Of course they did. But there would be time for that later. 

      Ezekiel swooped forward and pulled Craig into his arms. When the man opened his mouth to protest, Ezekiel slammed their lips together, getting the first taste of Craig that he'd had in far too long. 

      Craig's body became liquid and molded against him as Ezekiel propelled Craig's body backward and pinned him against the rough-hewn boards of the wall.  

      Ezekiel nipped at Craig's lips, demanding entrance. Then, just as suddenly as Craig had submitted, the man pulled away and shoved Ezekiel back. 

      "What are you doing?" Ezekiel growled, his chest heaving. He licked at his lips, still tasting Craig upon them. "Come here." 

      Craig's cheeks were flushed and his lips were red from Ezekiel's assault. Ezekiel could see the want in those green eyes but Craig shook his head and didn't take a single step toward him. 

      "No." 

      "Craig...." Ezekiel's fists clenched. "Don't tell me no. I want you." 

      "No, you don't," Craig announced, the life seeming to leave him in an instant as his shoulders sagged. "I'm just one of those people who is one big ol' mistake after the other and I always will be. I'm gonna have to struggle and work hard every day to keep from giving in to old habits and I can promise you that there will be times I fall back into them. I'm not my brother. I'm not strong like him and Gill. I'm not good and patient like Wyatt. Hell, I'm not even as dependable as Pete." 

      "Craig...." 

      Craig held up his hand. "Don't. Don't." He took a deep breath before swallowing hard and his green eyes were red rimmed as they looked into Ezekiel's. "I'm gonna spend my life making mistakes and trying to get better. I'm okay with that. But there is one thing I can't do. I can't spend my life looking at your back as you walk away from me time after time." 

      Ezekiel felt as if he'd been punched in the gut. More of that damn pain. Only this time, he really did have no one but himself to blame. 

      "Craig, stop. You are a good man. You are 

my man,“ Ezekiel added sternly. He saw Craig’s throat bob as a tremble washed over the man. The ghost of a smile tugged at Ezekiel’s lips. “Hell, Craig, I know I have a temper and I hate it but it’s just the way I am. And I don’t always know how to say what I need to say or show what I need to show. You know the man I used to be. I’ve told you how I grew up. Heart to hearts and being open weren’t things that went along with that. We both said things that day that I really don’t believe we meant and I know I shouldn’t have walked away from you. I promise I won’t ever walk away from you again.”

      Craig wrapped his arms tight around himself and sat down on the edge of his rickety bed. "And what happens when 

her babe is born and I can’t prove it’s not mine. What happens when I marry that goddamn harpy to give a child a name? You just gonna stand by me and smile like it’s all okay?“

      Ezekiel hated seeing Craig so broken. He 

had to soothe his man and find some way to see that smile again. Ezekiel stepped to the bed and dropped to his knees in front of Craig. He took the man’s hands in his and tilted his head to force Craig to meet his gaze. “It’ll hurt. I won’t lie. It’ll hurt like hell. But, yes, I will stand by you. I won’t walk away again, Craig. No matter how hard you want to push me away right now. I’m staying. You’re mine and I’m yours. That’s just the way it is.”

      A tear slid from Craig's eye and Ezekiel gently swiped it from his cheek with his calloused thumb. Craig leaned forward and dropped his brow against Ezekiel's. "It ain't gonna be easy." 

      "I've never been one to shy from a challenge." 

      "I'm sorry I hurt you." 

      "And I'm sorry I hurt you." 

      The two men stayed that way for several long, silent moments of peace. Being so close to Craig, sharing the same air as the man, filled Ezekiel with a calmness that he hadn't felt a single moment they'd been apart. 

      "I came after you that morning," Ezekiel finally whispered. 

      "Huh?" 

      "The morning after our fight, I came to town for you. I knew I couldn't let you leave without me and I figured we'd get through whatever came together."

Craig’s hand tightened in his own. “You came back for me?”

Ezekiel nodded. “But a storekeep told me you’d left the night before. That damn woman had gone in bragging about how you claimed to love her and that the two of you were going to get married…..”

      "That lying bitch," Craig hissed, sitting up straight. Anger flashed in his green eyes. "I never told that heifer I love her, I can promise you that. I can't stomach to be in the same town as her. She's a lying, small-minded, big-mouthed cow." His shoulders drooped once again. "What am I going to do about this baby? I don't think I could stand being married to that monster...." 

      Ezekiel knew now was the time to tell Craig about Edison's findings. He put his hand on Craig's stubble-covered cheek. "You won't have to, Craig. Edison did a bit of digging and lying is something that woman is good at. She has no clue who the father of that babe is and I highly doubt even she believes it's you." 

      Craig's brow furrowed. "What do you mean? She told me she was innocent until we laid together—which I still have no memory of, by the way." 

      "Because I don't believe you did." 

      Craig sighed. "You don't 

want to believe I did. Neither do I. But…“

      Ezekiel put his finger over Craig's soft lips to silence the man. "Think about it a minute. You were so damn drunk you can't remember a thing about her and yet, when you got done bedding her you fully dressed yourself and locked your door from the inside before going to sleep?" 

      "That was part of what never made any sense to me. Well that, and the fact that ever since that line shack my damn cock seemed broken." 

      Ezekiel's brow crooked up and he lowered himself a bit so his warm breath would blow against the front of Craig's trousers. "I remember that cock well. There ain't a damn thing broken about it. It just knows it belongs to me." 

      Craig's grip on his hands became nearly painful as the man trembled from his head to his toes. Ezekiel raised his head to offer the man a bit of relief. "You weren't the first man she accused of being the father of that babe. You were number four, at least." 

      Craig's jaw dropped just before anger filled his features. He shoved himself to his feet and paced to the side of the stall before slamming his hand against it. "That damn whore!" he bellowed. 

      Ezekiel rose up slightly, turned around and sat down on the edge of Craig's bed. "That was her profession," he agreed as he watched Craig work through whatever was going on in his mind. 

      "I gave up....

everything for that bitch,“ Craig hissed. “I disappointed everyone who meant something to be because of her.”

      Ezekiel shook his head and his silence had Craig turning toward him. Ezekiel smiled. "You didn't give me up, outlaw. I'm right here." 

      Slowly, the tension left Craig's body. It was like watching the sun come out as a smile curved Craig's cheeks and his green eyes lit up. "Well that's good to know." 

      Ezekiel hooked his finger and urged Craig to come to him. Craig shook his head. "Not now. Not in Jeb and Gill's barn. We're gonna head to town, I'm gonna have a talk with that whore and then we're gonna spend a good three days locked up in the hotel." 

      Ezekiel chuckled. "Three days?" 

      That mischievousness Ezekiel had missed seeing flashed in Craig's eyes. "At least."

Chapter Twenty-Eight

“You can wait out here. I’ll only be a minute,” Craig said as he stood in front of the hotel and prepared himself to face the woman who had tried to ruin his life.

      It had taking quite a bit of begging to finally convince his family to stay behind—especially Wyatt. The man had been furious to learn the news Ezekiel had brought with him. But Jeb had helped keep everyone from coming along. 

      The gang might have technically ended but everyone still new that Jebidiah Crane was the boss. 

      "No," Ezekiel interrupted Craig's thoughts. "That ain't gonna happen. I'm going with you." 

      "Ezekiel...." 

      "Don't argue with me," Ezekiel growled, causing Craig to shiver. Damn, but that man was something when he got in a temper... and Craig had missed being growled at. "I haven't been by your side when I should have been but I'm here now and not leaving." 

      Craig couldn't lie. His heart was warmed the words. Gruffed and growled out as they were. 

      "And I want to tell you something before we go in," Ezekiel added. He pulled Craig away from the door and toward the bench at the side of the building. "Back at the barn, you went on and on about not being a good person. Now, that pissed me off but I wasn't sure what to say so I didn't say much of anything. I've been thinking about it all the way to town and I know what I want to say now." 

      "Didn't think too hard, did you?" Craig quipped. 

      Ezekiel rolled his eyes. "You 

are a good man, Craig. You’re a man who spent most of his life helping orphans have food, clothes and medicine. You are a man who jumped into quicksand to save a damn cow and refused to leave her because you’d already promised the beast everything was going to be okay.“

      "You remember that?" Craig muttered, color rising in his cheeks as he glanced away. 

      Ezekiel put his finger under Craig's chin and forced the man to meet his gaze again. "And you are the man who was willing to give up everything in his life and face hell from his family just to keep a child from being unloved." Ezekiel offered a half smile. "That sounds like a hell of a good man to me." 

      Craig shifted his feet and shoved his hands in his pockets. How the hell was he supposed to respond to that? He wasn't used to having people point out the 

good things about him.

      He nodded quickly and pointed toward the door. "Yeah, well, let's go have that chat with Susannah." 

      "Then I get you for three days," Ezekiel reminded him, his voice full of raw, unfiltered, possessive want. 

      Craig's knees went week and his cock got a hell of a lot more alert. Damn that man and the power he held over him. 

      None of this felt real yet. He hadn't thought he'd ever see Ezekiel again and in the span of only a few hours, the man was back, had made it clear he wanted to stick around and had woken up part of Craig that had died the minute the man had walked away from him so many weeks ago. 

      But before he could truly embrace his future with Ezekiel, Craig had to deal with Susannah. 

      Stepping into the hotel, Craig tipped his head in greeting to the clerk and headed straight up the stairs. Taking a deep breath as he reached room 15A, Craig knocked sharply on the door. 

      "Who is it?" 

      Just the sound of her voice caused Craig's temper to raise at least twenty notches. "Craig," he ground out. 

      He was acutely aware of Ezekiel's large frame behind him—looming. 

      The door opened and Susannah stood there in a nearly sheer cream colored sleeping gown that hugged her figure just right in all the right places. The black trim at the rather low neckline and rather high bottom, accentuated her ivory skin. 

      If Craig didn't hate her guts and if he wasn't in love with the seething man behind him, he'd admit that Susannah was certainly a beauty. But he 

did hate her guts and he was in love with the seething man behind him. And, well, Susannah was a goddamn harpy.

      Her blue eyes widened comically when she saw Ezekiel. Quickly, she turned and rushed to the small chair in the room, grabbing her robe and throwing it around herself.

      "What kind of lazy ass vagrant is lounging around in an outfit like that in the middle of the day?" Ezekiel grumbled. "Isn't there something productive you could be doing?"

      Craig shrugged. "I think whores do most of their 

productivity dressed like that.“

      "Excuse me?" Susannah spat, her pretty features contorting into the hate-filled lines he'd grown accustomed to. "You won't come in here with 

him and speak to me that way. What is he doing here anyhow? Doesn’t the abomination know you’re engaged?“

      Ezekiel's large, calloused hand clamped Craig's shoulder. "He's mine, lady."

      Craig had to take a moment to compose himself and get control of the shakes that had overtaken his body at the sound of Ezekiel's deep voice declaring possession over him. 

      He slipped out of Ezekiel's grasp and chuckled. "Are the two of you gonna fight over me? I wouldn't blame you. I'm something special. How about I get a beer and watch?"

      Susannah rolled her eyes and crossed her arms under her breasts, shoving them upward. "You need to explain what you're doing here with him? You have ignored me since tossing me into this pathetic hotel in this boring, dusty town and now you show up with your 

lover ?“ The last word sounded like a curse as it flew from her lips.

      "You made your own life hard, Susannah, don't go blaming me. If you hadn't been such an unbearable horror toward my family, you might not have gotten stuck in this pathetic hotel in this boring town. But you just don't know when to shut that mouth of yours." 

      She laid her hand over her ever-so-slightly rounding stomach and shook her head sadly. "You shouldn't speak that way to the mother of your child." 

      "Yeah about that," Craig held up his hand as he went to the window and peered outside. "How many men did you use that same bullshit on before I fell for it?"

      "Excuse me?" she demanded, her expression blank. 

      Craig sighed. "Do I need to speak more slowly? How many men did you use that same bullshit on before I fell for it?"

      "What exactly are you accusing me of?" Susannah asked, a bit of the color draining from her cheeks. 

      "It never did make any sense to me. First of all, a virgin whore? That alone is an unbelievable title. Now I don't have anything against whores. I have known and thoroughly enjoyed more than a few...." This earned a growl from Ezekiel. "....but most women don't enter into that profession as quiet, shy little virgins." 

      "I explained that...." 

      Craig nodded. "Yeah, you had a story. And I believe that you did mess up royally and get with child after being promised to another man. That Madame of yours probably wanted to get some more money out of you in between visits from your gentleman caller. And I believe you were both in a panic and desperate to get you out of town before he returned. So I'll ask again. How many other men?" 

      She was silent and he let out a sigh. "Answer the question, Susannah. I heard it was at least three." 

      She looked from Craig to Ezekiel several times and Craig could see the wheels in her head spinning as if she were trying desperately to come up with some way to get herself out of this and convince him she'd been truthful. 

      Finally, her entire body sagged with defeat. It was very much as if the wind left her sails. "Five. There were five others I approached. You were the first one to buy my story." 

      Craig closed his eyes and let that sink in a moment. He'd already known she had lied to him but to hear it come from her mouth just seemed to make him feel an even bigger fool. 

      "And I'm guessing the Madame is the one who welted your cheek but it wasn't because she was angry. It was to make me what? Feel sorrier for you?" 

      "That and so you'd get me away faster before you had time to start asking too many questions around town." 

      Craig met her gaze hard. "And you know damn well I didn't put that babe in your belly, don't you?" 

      When she remained silent, Craig took a step closer. "I never bedded you, did I?" 

      Susannah looked away from him and her leg began to bounce as she licked at her bottom lip. Craig felt his temper snap. He took three long strides and grabbed her arm roughly. "Did I?!" 

      Susannah jerked from his grasp and shoved him back. "No! No, you didn't. I 

did walk you back to your hotel room that night but you wouldn’t let me in. Are you satisfied now? I lied to you. I messed up. I was in a hell of a lot of trouble and I used you to get myself out of it.“

      Craig clenched his fists at his sides. He'd never been a particularly violent person and he'd certainly never hit a woman but, damn, he wanted to hit one now. "Do you have any idea what you did to me?" he demanded. "Do you even care what you cost me? You came between me and the man I love. You shamed me with my family . You had me thinking I was truly a no-good drunkard who deserved to spend the rest of his life married to a woman I despised...." 

      "Despised?" she huffed, her eyes looking anywhere but into his. "Truly?" 

      "After I heard the way you spoke to my family? Oh, hell yes. Despised. Family is 

everything to me which is probably why I fell for your lies. But do you want to know the worst part, Susannah?“

      "What's that?" she asked, her chin wobbling. 

      "If you'd have been honest with me in the beginning and just come to me looking for help, I would have helped you."

      When Susannah didn't say a word, Craig decided he was done. She was still bouncing that leg with her arms wrapped tight around her and that chin quivering as she kept her gaze firmly on the wall. 

      "I'm gonna tell you what's gonna happen now," Craig asserted. "You aren't going to be staying in the pathetic hotel in this dusty town. You're going to pack up and I'm going to give you enough money to catch the first stage at dawn and disappear." 

      "And where exactly am I supposed to go?" 

      "That's not my problem," Craig assured her. "North, South, East or West don't make a damn bit of difference to me." 

      "And just how much money are you going to give me?" she whispered, her gaze finally meeting his.         

      Blood-sucking leach. 

      "Enough," Craig ground out. "Get your things together. You're gone in the morning." 

      With that, Craig turned and strode from the room with Ezekiel on his heels. He was surprised by how silent the man had been. 

      After seeing the clerk and getting a room of their own, Craig and Ezekiel found themselves alone at last with the door locked securely behind them. 

      Craig wasted no time. He pulled off his gun belt, tossed it in the chair and then hopped around as he yanked off his boots. He was just beginning to undo the buttons on his shirt when he turned and realized Ezekiel was simply standing still with a stunned expression on his face as he stared at Craig. 

      "You okay?" Craig asked, his hands pausing on the buttons. 

      Ezekiel slowly nodded. "I'm okay." 

      Craig tilted his head. "Are you sure? You look..... shocked?"

      "Back there, in that room with her...." 

      "Yeah?" Craig urged as Ezekiel paused. 

      "You said..." 

      Craig sighed and finished undoing his shirt, sliding out of it and dropping it on the floor. "I said a lot of things. What's wrong with you?"

      Ezekiel swallowed hard. His dark eyes were wide and Craig felt worry for the man grow. "You said that you... that you love me." 

      Craig thought back and nodded. "Yeah." He smiled when Ezekiel's eyes widened further. Craig stepped forward and rose up to nibble at Ezekiel's neck. "I love you a hell of a lot." 

      Craig wasn't sure what he'd been expecting to happen at his admission. He hadn't been sure what Ezekiel's reaction would be, even though he knew the man loved him too. 

      It was his turn to be shocked when Ezekiel slipped his arms around him, hoisted him up and tossed Craig over his shoulder. "What the hell.....?" Craig grumbled. 

      Ezekiel carried him to the bed and tossed him down upon it. Craig simply lay there and watched as Ezekiel slid from his clothes, every inch of his hard muscled body already burned into Craig's memory becoming revealed to him once again. 

      Ezekiel crawled up the length of Craig's body, his hungry lips scorching a trail across his bare torso. "You've just earned yourself four days," Ezekiel growled, nipping at Craig's shoulder. 

      Craig grinned, thrusting his hips up to rub his hard cock against Ezekiel's, cursing the trousers he was still wearing that came between them. "Promises. Promises."

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Chapter Twenty-Nine

Craig woke that evening curled deep in the warmth of Ezekiel’s arms. They’d fallen asleep all tangled together. Ezekiel had been exhausted after his trip to find Craig and Craig hadn’t been sleeping well during their separation. After a round of love making it had simply been too great a temptation to curl up against Ezekiel’s broad chest and sleep the rest of the afternoon away.

      But now he needed to take care of nature's call—and he needed to find food. His stomach rumbled and Craig rubbed at it. If he and Ezekiel had four days of rutting to look forward too, they were going to need food. 

      Craig wondered if he should wake the other man up but Ezekiel seemed so peaceful and relaxed. There wasn't a single tense line or worry marring his stubbled face. 

      Craig simply watched him for several long moments. Never in his life had he thought he'd fall in love with a man.... He'd 

always been a skirt chaser. Ezekiel had changed that. Ezekiel had changed him. And Craig knew that the changes had certainly been for the better.

      Craig didn't want to leave the warmth of Ezekiel's arms but he also didn't want to cause a puddle in the bed so, with a loathsome sigh, Craig slid free and stood slowly. 

      His body was sore from Ezekiel's hard loving but it was a damn good sore. He pulled on his clothes, donned his gun belt and shoved his hand through his tangled hair. He could use a shower, a shave and a hair cut. Ezekiel would wake up to see a brand new man.

      Craig slipped from the room and, after a quick trip to the outhouse, he grabbed a change of clothes from the tailor and headed for the bathhouse. 

      He walked into the lantern lit diner forty-five minutes later with fresh clothes, clean skin and a trim up to his nearly shoulder length blond hair. He had thought about cutting it shorter but Ezekiel seemed to like the length—it gave him something to tug Craig around by. 

      With a grin on his face, Craig ordered two dinners to go and found an empty corner to stand in and wait. The diner was crowded tonight and he eavesdropped on several nearby conversations to pass time. 

      He felt like a new man. No more Susannah hanging over his head. No more worries. The future was wide open and looking real bright thanks to the man currently sleeping at the hotel. 

      Craig's thoughts became wrapped up on that man but were suddenly stolen by the sight of Susannah stepping in the door on the arm of a cowboy Craig didn't recognize. 

      What the hell did she think she was doing? She was supposed to be getting ready to get the hell out of town come morning. 

      Craig wasted no time before striding across the floor, grabbing the unsuspecting woman by the arm and pulling her right back out the door. 

      Her companion let out a startled yell and came after them. "Get your hands off my fiancée!" he exclaimed. 

      Craig stopped short. He was sure he painted a comical  picture as his jaw damn near hit the floor and he whirled around on Susannah. "Fiancée? When the hell did that happen?" 

      Susannah threw him a warning gaze before turning back to the man who seemed quite concerned and ready to fight Craig if need be. "Darling, please go wait inside for me," she purred, laying a dainty hand on his arm. She batted her lashes as she gazed up at him. "My cousin just wants to talk for a moment." 

      Craig nearly laughed. Cousin? Damn, this woman was something.

      The man glared at Craig a moment. "You sure you'll be alright?" he asked Susannah. 

      "I'm sure, darling. The diner looks quite crowded. Find us a good place to sit." 

      He gave Craig one last hard look before turning and disappearing inside. 

      Craig let a harsh laugh out then and leaned back, rocking on his heels. "What the hell was that?" 

      Susannah crossed her arms over her chest with a snort. "

That was my fiancé.“

      Craig rubbed at his freshly shaven jaw. "Just a few hours ago you were telling folks 

I was your fiancé. Where did you find him?“

      "Are you jealous?" Susannah batted her long lashes.

      Craig raised a brow. "Uh no." 

      Susannah let out a sigh. "A woman has to do what she has to do, Craig. I can't very well go wandering the country alone as my pregnant belly swells." 

      "And what exactly is he going to think about that pregnant belly?" 

      "He's agreed to claim the child as his own."  

      Craig's eyes widened. "Damn woman, you work fast. How'd you manage that?"

      She smoothed out the front of her dark blue skirt and folded her hands. "He feels sympathy for the young, beautiful widow who is terrified and completely alone." 

      Craig couldn't believe his ears. Holy hell. He shook his head with complete disbelief. "You found another man to be your fool." 

      "The world is full of them when you're a beautiful woman." 

      Craig laughed out loud, unsure if he was more amused, annoyed or just plain over it all. "Well, good luck Susannah. I can only hope that, when that babe is born, you'll realize there is more to life than just you. Take care of that youngin." 

      For the first time since he'd known her, Craig knew he was seeing a true, real, unfiltered emotion on Susannah's face. "I will. They will have a better life than I've had. I will make sure of that." 

      Craig simply nodded and headed back into the diner. His food was ready so he grabbed the tray and headed out, casting one last glance at Susannah, who was at a back table fawning over her new man. 

      Craig worried about the child she carried but it was something that wasn't his to worry about. He had to focus on his own life now.

      Balancing the tray in one hand, Craig opened the hotel room door with the other and was immediately assaulted. Craig barely had time to the tray on the small table beside the doorway before Ezekiel was pulling him into his arms and covering his mouth with a rough kiss. 

      He wrapped his arms around Ezekiel's bare body and ran his palms down the smooth, coiling muscles of the man's back. Their tongues warred for dominance and their bodies strained to be closer. 

      "You left while I was sleeping," Ezekiel growled against Craig's ear before nipping sharply at his tender flesh. 

      The shockwave of pleasure had Craig gasping for breath. "I wanted to smell a bit nicer for you. And I brought you something to eat." 

      Ezekiel pulled away and hunger flashed in his dark eyes. But Craig knew the sudden appetite wasn't for the meal waiting on the covered tray. 

      Ezekiel dropped to his knees without a word and hastily undid the gun belt around Craig's lean hips, letting it clatter to the floor. He then undid Craig's trousers and Craig swallowed hard with anticipation as his cock was suddenly freed and already standing at full attention. 

      Ezekiel gazed up at Craig through his thick black lashes and Craig swallowed hard as he looked down at him. Damn, he loved the man—and he loved what he knew the man was about to do to him. 

      Without warning, Ezekiel took Craig's cock into his mouth, clear to the hilt. Letting out a string of curses, Craig reached his arms over his head and gripped the door facing behind him—glad that the door itself had swung shut on its own since neither man had done so. 

      Ezekiel gently dragged his teeth along Craig's length. "Don't ever leave while I'm sleeping again. Don't make me worry about you." 

      Craig closed his eyes and let his head fall back. "Dammit, Ezekiel, less talking." 

      Ezekiel was chuckling as he took Craig back into his mouth and the vibration nearly did Craig in. 

      There was certainly an advantage to being with a man—a man knew exactly what felt good when it came to a cock. Craig pumped his hips in time with Ezekiel's movements and he lost himself in the pleasure. 

      His groin tightened and that band stretched tight suddenly snapped. Blinded with the white hot heat of his release, Craig cried out Ezekiel's name and nearly collapsed as his knees weakened. 

      Ezekiel's arm held him up even as the man drank him down. Ezekiel pressed several slow, lingering kisses along the length of him before pulling away and standing straight. "I mean it," he warned, tenderly pushing Craig's hair from his face. "Don't leave while I'm sleeping again and make me worry about you." 

      Craig's hands were trembling as he struggled to fasten his pants. Ezekiel stopped him by taking his hands gently in his own. "Don't bother. Take your clothes off, Craig. You're not gonna need 'em." 

      Craig grinned and engaged the door lock behind him. "Yes sir." 

      Ezekiel swooped in for a long, lingering kiss before turning his attention to the tray Craig had carried in. "What'd you bring?" 

      "Steak, potatoes and beans," Craig replied. 

      Ezekiel carried the tray to the bed and sat down. Craig hastily removed his clothes and joined him. As they ate, Ezekiel glanced toward the window. "We'll have to get up early and put Susannah on that stage." 

      Craig shook his head. "No, we won't. She's leaving without any fight." 

      "Have you talked to her?" 

      "Yeah, while I was out. She came into the diner with her fiancé." 

      Ezekiel choked a bit on the steak he'd just swallowed. "Fiance?" 

      "Yep." Craig sighed ruefully. "Another poor sucker falling hook, line and sinker for a lie about her being a lost, lonely, scared little widow with a baby on the way." 

      "Did you warn him?" 

      "No. No, I'm hoping he really is a decent man and that the kid will have a good father in him. I want the kid to be with someone good." 

      The two men fell silent for several long moments as they ate their meal. Finally, Ezekiel cleared his throat. "You'd have been good for that babe too, Craig. I just want to make sure you know that."

Chapter Thirty

Chapter Thirty

      The sunrise shone through the window and fell brightly across Craig's sleeping face. Ezekiel, who had been awake for nearly an hour, simply laid beside the man and study every visible inch of him. 

      He had long ago memorized every inch of Craig's body—every line, mole, muscle and dip in the man's body was burned into Ezekiel's memory. 

      Craig was beautiful. And he was Ezekiel's. 

      A peace that hadn't been his since losing Craig was suddenly his again. Ezekiel didn't know what their future held. He didn't know where life would lead them. But he did know that wherever it led, wherever they ended up, they would end up there together. 

      He wasn't letting 

anything take Craig away from him again.

      "I can't blame you for staring," Craig's sleepy voice whispered. "I'm damn nice to stare at." 

      Ezekiel chuckled. "I was wondering if it was worth chopping off my arm to get away without waking you." 

      Craig snuggled up closer to him and wrapped his arm tight around Ezekiel's middle. "You aren't going anywhere." 

      Ezekiel smiled and kissed Craig's head. Neither man was in any hurry to turn the moment into anything other than one of laying together. They'd made love twice in the night and both of them were in need of a bit of rest. 

      "I'm hungry," Craig finally admitted. 

      "You're always hungry," Ezekiel noted. 

      "Yep. And you picked me so that means you have to tend to my gut." 

      "Your gut isn't all I get to tend to." 

      Ezekiel saw the tremble that washed over Craig even as he moaned. "Please... not now. You've tended those needs just fine." 

      Ezekiel smiled and gently kissed his warm lips. "I'll have mercy. And I'll go get your breakfast." 

      Craig shook his head as they both sat up. "We'll go together and eat at the diner. Get a change of scenery for a while."

      As they stepped out into the early morning sunlight, Ezekiel put some distance between them. Craig grumbled and closed the distance before taking Ezekiel's hand in his. 

      Quickly, Ezekiel's eyes scanned up and down the boardwalk and street. He was ready for someone to harass or attack them for the display of affection. 

      "Calm down," Craig scolded. "You look a lot like a blood thirsty attack dog." 

      Ezekiel shook his head. "Should we be so open and uh.....

close ? Folks don’t usually respond well to folks like us…“

      "Folks can take a long walk off a short plank," Craig replied, his eyes full of mischief. "And most folks around here are used to seeing it. Jeb and Gill broke them in good. Then Wyatt and Zachariah. By now they don't mind. And if it does bother anyone, they're too intimidated by the family to say anything." 

      Ezekiel remembered the men who had been harassing him just yesterday and how quickly those men had backed down when Zachariah and Gill had gotten involved. 

      "So, I can hold your hand on the street here?"

      Craig nodded. "If you're real good, I'll even let you kiss me now and then." 

      Ezekiel growled and pulled him closer. "You might, huh?" 

      Craig slipped out of his grasp and waggled his brows. "I might. But first I need breakfast." 

      The pair made their way to the diner and as they ate, Ezekiel found himself lost in thoughts about the future. His thoughts were interrupted when Craig tossed a piece of bacon and it bounced off his nose. 

      "What are you thinking about so hard?" 

      Ezekiel grabbed the bacon off the white table cloth and shoved it in his mouth. "What we're gonna do after this."

      Craig grinned. Ezekiel felt his booted foot run up his calf. "I have a few ideas." 

      Ezekiel felt his cock tighten. "I know damn well what I'm doing to you after breakfast." 

      Craig let his foots fall. "Then what is it you're pondering so hard?" 

      "I've just been wondering about after... Where we're gonna end up." 

      Craig took a sip of his water. "Where do you wanna end up?" 

      Ezekiel gazed out the window. "I never pictured myself leaving Edison's ranch. It's pretty damn rare to find a place where a colored man can be a foreman. I was proud of that." 

      Craig nodded. "You should be proud. You worked hard nagging and bossing to get where you were." 

      Ezekiel simply glared and Craig smiled. "We can go back," Craig offered. "I enjoyed working there." 

      Ezekiel rubbed at his cheek. "Yeah, we could. But your family is here...." 

      "As long as my man promises to bring me back to visit a few times a year, I think I'll be okay." 

      Ezekiel reached across the table and ran his fingertips across the top of Craig's hand. "Your man could definitely do that," he whispered deeply. 

      "That's what we'll do then," Craig replied, after swallowing hard and tugging at his shirt collar. "We'll ride out to the ranch when we're done at the hotel and let everyone know." 

      Ezekiel felt his heart ache. While a part of him truly did miss Edison's ranch, he knew he would never ask Craig to leave his family. Just knowing that Craig was willing to give all that up to make him happy made him love the man even more.       

      And there was one other pretty serious reason Ezekiel wasn't in any hurry to leave. "If we went back," he began. "Edison would welcome us back to the ranch. We could go back to things being exactly the way they used to be." 

      Craig seemed to catch his meaning as he leaned back in the chair and sighed. "Separate beds in the bunkhouse with snoring men all around us. Trying to steal private moments together. Locking ourselves up at the hotel but renting two rooms so it doesn't raise any suspicions." 

      "Exactly." Ezekiel glanced around. Not a single person in the diner seemed to care that his hand was currently resting on top of Craig's. "But here we could be more. We could have more. No hiding that we're together. No separate beds in a bunkhouse. We could have a real home and a real life." 

      Craig smiled. "That sounds real good to me. You know Jeb has a boat load of land. You can ride on it for two days in a couple directions and still not leave it. We might be able to talk him into letting us put a house on some of it, just like he did Pete and Jane." 

      "I don't know," Ezekiel sucked in a breath. "They don't seem to like me." 

      "Jeb's always been grouchy, anti-social and bad when it comes to meeting new people. He'll warm up to you." 

      "I guess I'll have to take your word on that," Ezekiel muttered as he rubbed the welted bruise on his temple. 

      Craig winked. "Don't worry. I won't let them hurt you too bad." 

---

      Three days later, the duo rode onto the ranch. Just his luck, Ezekiel realized that 

everyone was there. So much for getting to know them all one at a time.

      Of course, with all the stories that Craig had told him about his family, Ezekiel already felt like he knew most of them pretty well. 

      "Nice of y'all to finally come up for air," Jane teased as they stepped up to the porch of Jeb and Gill's home. 

      "They have a nice, healthy glow on their cheeks," Pete noted, balancing a laughing Willie on is shoulders. "The last few days were good for them. Maybe we need a hotel vacation," he winked at his wife. 

      Jane pulled off her hat and tossed her wild curls over her shoulder. "I glow plenty." 

      Pete stooped low and kissed her cheek. "Positively radiant." 

      "How'd things go with 

her ?“ Jeb asked as he stood leaning against a post.

      "She's gone," Craig replied simply. "Left town a few days ago." 

      "Gone?" Jane huffed. "I'd hoped I'd get to smack that heifer in the mouth one good time." 

      "But Aunt Jane," Preston spoke up, looking over the book in his hands. "She's with child." 

      "Well, the babe ain't in her head," Jane reminded him. "A good thump to her pretty little face wouldn't hurt her." 

      Preston looked thoughtful a moment before chuckling and pushing his glasses up on his nose. "I love this family," he stated before burying his nose back in his book. 

      Gilliam ruffled his son's hair before turning his attention to Craig and Ezekiel. "You two look like there's something on your minds." 

      His statement reminded Ezekiel that Gilliam had once been a very good lawman and it caused him to wonder yet again, if he'd ever really be accepted on the ranch. 

      "I wanted to talk to you and Jeb about something," Craig admitted. 

      Wyatt stepped forward and pointed to his chest. Ezekiel saw his lips move but couldn't tell what the man said. "Of course I want to talk to you too, best friend," Craig replied with a smile. Craig looked up at Ezekiel. "He wants to know if we want to come play poker at his place tonight." 

      Ezekiel could think of a few things he'd rather do than play poker with an ex-bounty hunter and a short, wiry young man with a mean shot gun and an itchy trigger finger... but this was Craig's family and he could see Craig's eagerness to spend time with them. 

      "Sure," Ezekiel shrugged. "I like a good game of poker." 

      "What did you want to talk to us about?" Jeb spoke up. 

      Craig cleared his throat. "We want to build a home somewhere on the land. Get a few head of cattle to raise, breed and sell. Just enough for us to live off of." 

      "Of course...." Gill began but he was quickly cut off when Jeb's hand touched his forearm and Jeb stepped forward. 

      "I think I'd like to have a private talk with Ezekiel." 

      Craig shook his head. "Now dammit, Jeb, that's enough. When you swore to all of us that Gill could be trusted, you were mad as hell when we didn't believe you but you turned out to be right. He's family now and always will be. Dammit, Ezekiel can be trusted too and I'm asking you to take my word on that. I wouldn't be with someone we couldn't trust." 

      Temper sparked in Jeb's eyes. Ezekiel remained silent, however. This was between two brothers. Family matters were often messy, volatile and not something to be stepping in the middle of. "I'm not going to let you set up house on 

my land until I’ve had a chance to speak with Ezekiel.“

      "Technically it's 

our land,“ Gill countered. “And Craig has a point. I was a Texas Ranger and you welcomed me.”

      "With an open bedroll," Pete chimed in. 

      It was clear Gill chose to ignore him. "And Zachariah there was a bounty hunter coming to a ranch filled with dead outlaws and, after a bit of tension, we welcomed him. Don't be too rough on Ezekiel. People change." 

      "And if you're wrong?" Jeb asked, sparing a glance at his man. "What then?" 

      "Then I blow his brains clean out of his head." Gill shrugged. "Shouldn't take much of a bullet. There can't be much in the way of brains in there. He 

is in love with Craig.“

      "Haha, Gill," Craig grumbled. "But thank you." 

      Some of the tension left Jeb's jaw as he let out a sigh. "Of course, my brother is welcome to put a home on the ranch. It's your ranch too, Craig. But I still want to talk with Ezekiel." 

      Craig was about to argue further but Ezekiel's hand squeezing his shoulder stopped him. "That's alright, Craig. I'll go talk to him." 

      Ezekiel watched Jeb step off the porch and followed the man toward the barn. "Jeb, be nice!" Craig warned. 

      "Yeah, don't scare off Craig's man. Craig wants to keep glowing!" Pete added. 

      Ezekiel couldn't explain the uneasiness in his gut. He scratched at his chin as he stepped inside the barn with Jeb. Jeb put his back to a tall and leaned against it, crossing his arms over his chest. 

      Ezekiel held up his hands. "If you're wanting to talk to me so you can threaten me a few more times or warn me that my past makes me a bad man and I need to keep away from your family, I really don't need to hear it again and again. I get it. I was bad. I did bad things. Hell, 

I’m the one who has to live with those things. But I’m not that person anymore…..“

      Jeb shook his head and Ezekiel stopped talking. He hadn't meant to ramble so damn much anyhow. Why was he so nervous? 

      "Your past is the past. Thankfully, Gill tends to have a cooler head than me and he's had a few days to reason with me. Hell, none of us here have hands that are blood free."

      Ezekiel glanced around. "They why 

are we out in the barn?“

      "I'm sure Craig has told you about our parents dying." Jeb paused and Ezekiel nodded. "That meant most of his life, I was looking out for him.... And I think sometimes I looked out for him too much. My brother is a kind, carefree, trusting man but I didn't do him any favors by taking all the responsibility onto myself and giving him none." 

      Ezekiel wasn't sure what he was supposed to say. Should he defend Craig? Or just shut up and listen? He chose the latter. 

      Jeb kicked at a bit of hay with his boot. "Craig seemed to spend all his time chasing something. No one knew exactly what it was he was looking for.. I don't reckon he even knew. Whiskey, women, brawls, late nights and three day long sprees of drunken stupidity were common. Him and Willie caused more than a few headaches for me and Wyatt. When our lives changed, when we lost people, it did a number on Craig and the brother I knew was gone." 

      Still Ezekiel didn't know what he was expected to say. 

      Jeb reached over the stall door and rubbed at the cheek of a brown mare. "I thought my brother was gone for good. He came back to us but it wasn't really him. Then you showed up. I saw my brother today for the first time in a long time. Whatever it was he was searching for, he's found it." Jeb sighed and met Ezekiel's gaze. "I guess what I want to make sure of, is that you realize what you've given him and that you aren't just going to take it away." 

      Ezekiel let out the breath he hadn't fully realized he'd been holding. So that's what the talk was. It was the classic 'what are your intentions with my brother' talk. 

      Ezekiel held Jeb's gaze so the other man would see the honesty in his eyes. "I know all about Craig's faults. He knows all about mine. I know it won't always be easy. I know there are times we'll struggle. But I was looking for something too and I found it when I found your brother. And then I lost it. Now that I've gotten it back, I'm not about to be foolish enough to let it go again. I love him and I'll not be going anywhere." 

      That seemed to satisfy Jeb. He took a step forward and smiled as he held out his hand. "Alright then. Welcome to the family." 

a

Chapter Thirty-One

Chapter Thirty-one

The seasons came and went, changing from summer to fall to winter and now spring was arriving. Craig loved spring. It was his favorite time of year. The time when everything came back to life after hunkering down for the winter—not that winter here was like some of the winters he’d seen before. Eastern New Mexico was a good place to spend the winter if you liked being warm.

      Craig finally felt like he had his shit together and life was good. He had a home he shared with a man he loved. They had twenty head of cattle to tend to during the day and a nice soft bed to fall into together at night. 

      Craig smiled as he thought about all the nights they'd shared in that bed. 

      He felt Ezekiel's thick arms close around his waist and he leaned himself back against him. "You keep looking so damn lustful out here around the bull, he might start getting ideas." 

      Laughter flew from Craig's mouth. "Are you jealous?"

      Ezekiel's lips brushed his ear causing Craig's entire body to tremble. "Hell yeah, I am. Have you seen the size of that bull?"

      Craig chuckled as he spun in Ezekiel's arms and kissed the man's full lips. "I want to go to town tonight." 

      Ezekiel growled, stooped down and nipped at his neck. "I'd rather stay home." 

      Craig slipped from Ezekiel's arms, desperate to put distance between them before he ended up letting Ezekiel take him right there and then. "It's been a while since we've had a night out. I want to go to town. Gamble a bit, let loose a little." 

      Craig still enjoyed those vices he'd always been weak for but he was smarter about them now. He knew that he couldn't be trusted to be go 'let loose' in town by himself. He only ever went with Ezekiel because the other man could keep him in check. 

      Ezekiel let out a sigh. "Alright then. You want to see if Wyatt and Zachariah want to come with us?" 

      Craig shrugged. "Sure." Then he grinned. "You want Wyatt to stomp your ass at poker again?"

      Ezekiel chuckled as he scratched at his jaw. "That little bastard is good." 

      "Maybe you're just not all that good." 

      "Is that a challenge?" Ezekiel growled, reaching for him. 

      Craig moved out of his reach. He winked and saw Ezekiel's eyes narrow. "It might be, old man. You gonna teach me a lesson?" 

      Ezekiel's dark eyes were so full of hunger, Craig nearly broke down and leapt into his arms. "Oh, I'm gonna teach you a lesson alright," Ezekiel warned. "First at the poker table and then a whole other kind of lesson in our bed tonight." 

      Craig winked even as his body trembled at the thought. "Promises. Promises." 

---

      They stepped out of the saloon in the early morning hours and Ezekiel was grumbling. "He did it again. I can't believe that little jackass did it again." 

      Zachariah chuckled. "You can't beat Wyatt at poker. You should have learned that by now." 

      Craig, his blood nice and warm from the liquor, grinned. "Wyatt here is a regular card shark, aren't you Wyatt?" 

      

‘I don’t know about that. But I always beat your man.’

“Haha,” Ezekiel grumbled, having finally learned the art of reading Wyatt’s lips. “It’s time to be getting home. I’m ready for bed.”

      Craig met Ezekiel's eyes and saw the challenge in them. He remembered the warning Ezekiel had given him earlier. Craig winked. "Let's get you home and tucked in then." 

      The four made their way toward their waiting horses but stopped when Maria was suddenly in their path. Craig frowned at the pale and drawn expression on the face of Gill's mother. "What's wrong?" he asked quickly. 

      She pointed down the road toward her house at the edge of town. "I need you to come with me, Craig. There's an emergency."       

      Concern filled him. "Is it Jeb? Gill? Preston? Did something happen at the ranch? Are Pete and Jane okay? It's not Willie, is it....." His ranting questions were cut off when Ezekiel's hand squeezed his shoulder. 

      "What's the problem, Maria?" he asked. 

      Maria cast a glance up at Ezekiel before her eyes returned to Craig's. "It's her. Susannah. She's back and insisting she needs to speak with you."

      Wyatt stepped forward. 

‘Tell her to disappear,’ he snapped.

      Craig couldn't seem to say anything. The buzz he'd been feeling was gone instantly and he was faced with stark sobriety at the idea of Susannah being back. 

      Why was she back? The woman had been nothing but a distant memory for months. He'd sometimes thought about and wondered about the babe in her belly but he hadn't ever thought, or wanted, to see her again. 

      Ezekiel seemed to notice that Craig couldn't find words. "Why is she here, Maria?" he asked.   

      Craig took Ezekiel's hand in his, holding tight to his anchor. He needed to keep Ezekiel close. Whatever was about to happen, Craig knew he had to keep Ezekiel near him. 

      "Just come on now, Craig. She needs to speak with you," Maria urged. 

      Wyatt tapped Craig's shoulder and he turned to face his friend. 

‘Want me to come?’

      Craig slowly shook his head. "It's okay. Ezekiel is here.... Just go warn everyone that she's back." 

      It was clear Wyatt wasn't happy to leave Craig but he nodded and walked away with Zachariah following behind him. Craig kept Ezekiel's hand tight in his as they followed Maria to her home. 

      Stepping inside, Craig was struck by the silence. Maria led them to a back bedroom and it took Craig a few moments of simply staring and blinking to realize that the woman who lay upon the bed was indeed Susannah. 

      Her stomach was swollen and large under the thin nightdress she was wearing. Her golden hair was dull and dirty and laying limp over her shoulders. Her skin had lost its healthy glow and was now pale, gray and dark around her eyes. A rueful smile curved her colorless lips when her eyes fell on Craig. 

      "Surprise," she whispered, her voice tight and strained. 

      Before Craig could respond, her face twisted and she let out a cry as she gripped the sheets and writhed upon the bed. "What's wrong with her?!" Craig demanded. 

      Maria rushed to the woman and began to wipe at her brow with a damp cloth. "She's dying, Craig." 

      Craig felt Ezekiel's hand tighten nearly painfully around his own. "Dying?" Craig whispered. "Why is she dying? What about the babe?"

      Slowly, Susannah relaxed against the bed and she let out a strained sigh. "I tried, Craig. I was good to him, I swear I was. I wanted to give the babe a good life..... He wasn't what I thought he was. He hurt me... a lot." 

      Craig didn't want to feel sympathy for her. She had made her own bed. She had lied and cheated and used him, nearly destroying his life. 

      But the woman lying on the bed in front of him was different from the woman she had been. And Craig 

did feel sympathy—bucket loads of it.

      "Where is he?" Craig found himself asking. 

      Fear filled her blue eyes. "Probably looking for me. I ran away from him and this was the only place I could think to come.... It was the only place I knew anyone who might help me." 

      "Help you?" Ezekiel all but snarled. "Why in the hell would Craig help you after what you did?" 

      "Did you hear her say I'm dying?" Susannah demanded, her eyes narrowed as she met Ezekiel's eyes. "I'm not here to attempt to steal him away from you again."     

      Craig swallowed hard and tried to focus. "Why did you want me here? What do you want? I know you must want something." 

      Susannah opened her mouth to speak but instead of words, another scream tore from her mouth as her back came up off the bed and she clutched desperately at the sheets. 

      Craig damn near took off running out the door. Hellfire! 

      Her breathing was labored and Craig was sure she'd lost even more color when she finally stilled. "She doesn't have much time," Maria warned. "Susannah, you best get to your point before you run out of time." 

      Susannah nodded and met Craig's gaze once again. "I am dying. But Maria is fairly certain she can save my child. I never married that man, Craig. My child will need a father...." 

      Craig felt Ezekiel tense. His mind spun. A father.... Why? Why was this happening now? Craig had thought he'd left this behind him. 

      "What does that have to do with Craig?" Ezekiel asked quietly. "You've already admitted he's not the father of that child." 

      "You're right. He's not. But I want him to be. I'm dying. My child will need someone good and decent to raise him or her. Please, Craig. You are one of the best people I have ever met. I have no right to ask it of you, I know I don't. But please.... Marry me before I die and claim the babe as your own." 

      "Marry you?" Craig shook his head. "I can't.. I can't do that. I can't do any of this... I... shit... it's too much..." 

      Susannah's voice seemed to be growing weaker by the second. "I know. I wish I could think of another way. I wish you could have more time to think about it but there's not.... You are the one who told me to start thinking of someone other than myself. You are the one who told me the babe deserved a good life. You can give them that life. Please......?"

      Tears slipped from her eyes and slid down her colorless cheeks. 

      Craig stood there unsure of what to say or what to do. Susannah was dying. Maria would not have said she was if it wasn't the truth. That babe 

would need someone. And only through marriage could he ensure that no one else could come lay claim to the child—it would keep the boy or girl safe from the man hunting Susannah.

      Craig had never been known as a thinker. He tended to act first and think later. Now there was no time to think at all. Was he going to do this? Was he going to marry Susannah, the woman who had torn his life apart, the woman who was currently laying upon a bed dying, in order to give her child a better life?

      Before Craig could even fully comprehend what he was about to say, the word left his lips. "Okay."

Chapter Thirty-Two

Chapter Thirty-Two

      Craig suddenly found himself alone with Maria and Susannah. At his single uttered word, Ezekiel had released his hold on Craig's hand and strode from the room without so much as a growl. 

      Craig longed to chase after him but there wasn't time just now. Another of Susannah's screams filled the room and Craig winced at the overwhelming volume. 

      "Maria, go get witnesses. I need paper, ink and a pen too. And get Ezekiel back in here." 

      Maria narrowed her eyes. "Are you honestly going to do this?" 

      Craig swallowed hard and shoved his trembling hands in his pockets. "Please, go." 

      Craig stepped to the edge of the bed once he and Susannah were alone. "Thank you, Craig. Thank you for marrying me...." 

      "I'm not. I'm not marrying you," Craig quickly countered. 

      Her blue eyes widened. "But you said....." 

      "I meant, okay, I would take the child. Not, okay, I will be your husband." 

      "But Gregory will come and he'll take the babe, or fight you for it...." 

      "That won't happen," Craig interrupted. "We're going to write out a certificate of adoption. You're going to give that babe and all rights to that babe to me. We'll have some witnesses that can sign and that'll be all we need." 

      "It would be wiser to marry me," Susannah argued. Her blue eyes pleaded as she reached out a hand to touch her fingertips to his arm. "And then I could die a wife instead of a pregnant whore." 

      Craig pulled away and shook his head sadly. "I won't do a damn thing to help your conscience, Susannah. I don't owe you a damn thing. I'm only doing this for your child." 

      "But...." 

      "And if you're being honest and you're afraid for your child and truly want to give him or her a better life, you'll let me adopt it and put yourself last for once." 

      Silence reigned for several long moments. Finally, Susannah sighed. "Okay. I want my child to have a life—a good life. And I know that you'll give that to them." 

      "Even around the dark-skinned folks you slung so much hate at?" he asked. "And the abominations?" 

      Susannah winced, though Craig didn't know if it was guilt or pain that caused the gesture as she put her hand on her swollen belly. "I was bitter and full of hatred." 

      Maria entered the room then. She handed Craig paper, ink and pen and he took them over to the small table. "Where's Ezekiel?" he asked. 

      "Outside. He refuses to come in." 

      Craig growled. Stubborn jackass. He motioned for Maria to come to him. "Write up a quick letter of adoption. Her child will be passed to me upon her death. Susannah and I will both sign and you and Ezekiel can sign as witness."      

      "Good luck getting him to come in to witness anything," Maria countered as she began to write. Susannah screamed again and it became clear she didn't have much time left as her head lolled to the side and she fought to remain conscious. 

      Craig raced out the door and found Ezekiel on the porch staring off into the night. "Get in here. I need you," Craig stated bluntly. 

      Ezekiel shook his head. "I love you, Craig. And I understand what you're doing, but please, don't make me watch you share vows with someone else—even if they don't mean anything to you. They're gonna mean something to me." 

      Craig sighed. He walked up behind the giant of a man and wrapped his arms around him, resting his cheek against his tense back. "I'm not marrying that shrew." 

      "But you said okay to her proposal." 

      "I meant okay to the part where I took the kid. Sure, for a second I thought marriage was the only way to keep the babe safe if she truly was being hunted down by a violent man. But then my brain had time to think a bit and I realized that if she was well enough to sign marriage papers, she was well enough to sign adoption papers." 

      "And the man?" 

      Craig snorted. "If he even really is after her, can't do a thing to say the babe is his. Hell, there are plenty of people who knew she was with child before he ever came along." 

      "Do you think he really will come and raise hell?" Ezekiel questioned. 

      Craig squeezed him hard. "With that lying heifer? Who knows. But what I do know is that she's dying, there's not much time and I need my man right now.. both for support and to serve as a witness when I sign this paper." 

      Ezekiel pulled out of Craig's grasp, turned around and swallowed hard as he gazed down at him. "Your man's right here and I ain't going anywhere." He swooped low and brushed a light kiss against Craig's lips. "A baby, huh? We come into town for poker and fun and go home parents?" 

      Craig shifted his feet. "I know you weren't planning on this, neither was I. But that babe in there needs us, Ezekiel. I can't turn my back on a child... it just ain't in me. And it ain't in you either." 

      Craig knew Ezekiel was still a bit unsure. Hell, Craig was still unsure. He didn't know the first thing about parenthood and they hadn't exactly built their tiny cabin with a family in mind. But Craig knew that this child would need them and they could give him or her a home full of warmth and love and that's all any kid really needed. 

      Ezekiel smiled. It was a small and it was shaky but it was what Craig needed to see. He felt Ezekiel's arms around him and realized that they could do this. Ezekiel wasn't going to turn his back on him again. They were going to stand together and become a family.

      They entered the room hand in hand and Craig gasped at the nearly lifeless Susannah lying in the bed. 

      "Damn..." Ezekiel muttered. "She really is dying." 

      "Yes, she is," Maria agreed. "Her body isn't made for childbirth. You'd better get to signing those papers and pray like hell I can at least save the babe." 

      Craig quickly signed his name upon the adoption paper and he carried the paper as well as a book to lay it on to the bed. "Here you go, Susannah." 

      Her hand shook as she took the pen and groaned. Hesitation stilled her movements as her hand hovered above the line she needed to put her name across.     

      "It's truth time," Craig reminded her. "Who do you care about more? Yourself or that babe?" 

      Much to Craig's surprise, Ezekiel stepped in and helped Susannah sit up while she hastily signed a sloppy signature. Her breathing was ragged and Craig could smell the scent of blood beginning to fill the room. 

      Maria and Ezekiel were next to sign the paper and Susannah's scream once again filled the room. Maria shooed Ezekiel and Craig from the room and Craig was quick to step out into the cool early morning air. 

      He breathed in deep, fighting off the waves of unnamed emotions he was feeling. 

      Susannah was a monster. She'd made his life hell. He shouldn't care that she was dying.... But Craig was 

not a monster and he did care. Seeing someone dying before your eyes was not an easy thing.

      He was reminded of the blood and the horror he'd once seen in that tent when the unnamed woman riding with Zachariah and Wyatt had taken her life. 

      He closed his eyes and shivered. 

      Ezekiel's arms were suddenly around him and holding him tight. "I'm here, Craig." 

      "I shouldn't care about her...." 

      Ezekiel sighed. "The man who nearly died for a cow would most certainly care." 

      A smile curved Craig's lips despite the worry in his gut. "Did you just compare her to a cow?"

      "You're the one who always called her a heifer." 

      Craig wrapped his arms around Ezekiel's around his waist. "What about the babe, Ezekiel. What if it doesn't make it?"

      "It will." 

      "But what if it doesn't?" Craig chewed on his lip. "I was just coming to terms with being a father before she left the last time. After she left, I came to terms with not being a father. Now she's back and so is the reality of me being a father again..........what if it's ripped away just like that?"

      "The babe is going to be fine. Maria knows what she's doing. And, if I'm wrong, there are other babes, Craig. Babes that need a father like you. If you want to be a pa, you 

will be a pa.“

      "So will you," Craig reminded him. 

      "Poor damn kid. I ain't got a clue how to be a pa. Reckon I'll be any good at it?"

      Craig turned his head and kissed Ezekiel's tense jaw. "You're pretty good at bossing me around so you'll probably do pretty good as a pa." 

      Silence fell as the two men stood there both lost in their own thoughts, hopes and worries about the future. Minutes ticked and stretched on and on and Craig was left to wonder what was taking so long.

      Had something gone wrong? Was the babe dead? What exactly would Craig feel if it was? How was it possible that the had so much of his heart already invested in a child he had never met—one he hadn't even fathered?         

      The door suddenly opened behind them and Craig sucked in a deep steadying breath. Everything was going to change, one way or the other, the second he turned around.

Chapter Thirty-three

Chapter Thirty-three

          Ezekiel heard the hoof beats come thundering into town. He didn’t have to look to know it was the cavalry— family —arriving. He stood up on the hotel porch so they’d see him and choked on dust as they all came to a stop.

          “What’s going on?” Jeb demanded as he stepped onto the porch beside Ezekiel. “Wyatt said Susannah was back.”

          Ezekiel waited until everyone was within hearing distance before answering. “She was. She’s dead.”

          “Shit…. I know she was trying to steal your man, but, you killed her?” Pete spoke up, which earned him a smack to the back of the head from his wife, which led to a rather loud laugh from his son.

          Ezekiel simply shook his head at their antics. “Maria said her body wasn’t made for childbirth,” he replied. “Whatever the hell that means.”

          “Where’s Craig?” Jeb asked.

          Ezekiel tipped his head toward the hotel door. “Room fifteen upstairs.”

          Ezekiel followed the family as they raced inside. He was sure they didn’t know why they were racing to reach Craig, only that he wasn’t out here with Ezekiel so that had to mean something was wrong.

          Ezekiel smiled as they stepped into the hotel room and found Craig in the chair beside the window, a newborn babe swaddled in his arms as he fed it a bit of goat’s milk from a bottle.

          “Well I’ll be damned….” Gill muttered.

          “Baby!” Willie exclaimed, struggling to escape his mother’s arms.

          Craig grinned at his young cousin. “Yeah, this is a baby,” he agreed. “Family, meet Delilah. Delilah, meet the family.”

          “Is that her baby?” Jeb asked tightly.

          Ezekiel stepped forward. “No, it’s our baby,” he countered quickly.

          Craig’s eyes met his and his heart melted at that grateful smile on Craig’s boyish face. Damn.. he’d do just about anything for that man.

          Jeb held up his hand. “I don’t.. I don’t want to sound like a jackass…”

          “Then stop talking,” Craig warned, his jaw tensing as his gaze went to his older brother.

          Jeb sighed. “Craig, please, did you think this through? Did you think about it at all?”

          “Not a whole hell of a lot,” Craig admitted.

          Jeb rubbed at his neck. “You’re my brother and you know I love you but not too long ago you couldn’t even take care of yourself……”

          Jeb stopped talking when Gill’s hand closed around his and, judging by the wince from Jeb, it squeezed hard. Jebidiah glanced at his man and Gill gave a small shake of his head causing Jeb to let out an even longer sigh.

          “Congratulations you two,” Jeb conceded. “I really do want you to be happy.”

          Craig stood up slowly and walked to Ezekiel. Ezekiel realized, with horror, that Craig wanted him to take Delilah. He had never in his life held a baby.

          But this was his daughter and he’d have to learn eventually.

          “Don’t worry,” Pete spoke up. “It’s not dynamite, it won’t explode. And, you’d be surprised by how well they bounce when you drop them.”

          Pete’s well-timed shot of humor was just what Ezekiel needed to overcome his hesitation and worry and he took Delilah into his arms.

          Craig turned to face his brother—and the rest of the family minus Preston and Eleanor who had apparently stayed behind. “Thank you, Jeb. I know you worry about me. You always have. You’ve always worried too damn much about everybody. That’s why you’ve always had a stick up your ass. It’s a worry stick.”

          It was clear Jeb wanted to glare but Gill’s chuckling, as well as the laughter from everyone else, made that impossible. “I want you happy,” Jeb replied. “I can see that Ezekiel’s been good for you and I just have to trust that Delilah will be too.”

          “Trusting is hard for Jeb,” Jane spoke up. “He has issues.”

          “Would you all shut the hell up about my worry stick and my trust issues?” Jeb grumbled. “Damn.”

          ‘Watch your language,’ Wyatt scolded. ‘There’s a baby girl present.’

          Wyatt suddenly gave a little hop and smacked Zachariah in the chest. ‘We’re uncles!’

          “You were already uncles,” Gill reminded him with a grin.

          Wyatt nodded. ‘I know but this one’s a girl! We get to spoil her rotten.’

          “And chase off her gentlemen callers,” Pete agreed with a sober nod of his head.

          Ezekiel and Craig both grumbled loudly. “Hey now, it’s too soon for that,” Ezekiel warned.

          Jeb cleared his throat. “Well that’s enough of that. You can’t hog that youngin’ all day, Ezekiel. Let me hold my niece.”

---

 

          Ezekiel and Craig tumbled down upon the bed, sweat gleaming on their skin in the lantern light. Craig couldn’t help but stare at the picture Ezekiel painted.

          Dark, rolling muscles gleaming and twisting so fluidly with every move the man made. He felt his own body coming alive yet again, despite the thorough care Ezekiel had just finished giving it.

          “You keep looking at me like that and we’ll never get to sleep,” Ezekiel warned.

          Craig winked. “Promises. Promises.”

          “Get that ass over here and I’ll show you promises,” Ezekiel growled.

          Before Craig could more than happily grant the big man’s request, a baby’s cry filled the room. Craig was about to get up but before he could move, Ezekiel was out of the bed, hopping haphazardly into his trousers, and making his way to the cradle.

          “What’s the matter, little one?” he cooed as he lifted the squalling infant into his arms. “Are you hungry again? You’re just like your pa over there. Loud and demanding.”

          Craig chuckled. “Yeah and her papa is the picture of patient,” he muttered. He rose from the bed, slid into his trousers, went to the kitchen, readied a bottle and returned to the bedroom to find Ezekiel in the bed with Delilah. Her crying had subsided as he held her against his chest and rocked her tenderly.

          Craig was struck by the hominess of the scene. Delilah had only been in their lives a week and already Craig couldn’t imagine their cabin ever being without her. That little girl with patchy blond hair, pink skin and big blue eyes had quickly become everything to both men.

          And Ezekiel was proving to be one hell of a caring and overprotective papa—just as Craig had known he would.

          Craig knew that he’d finally found himself. Edison had been right. It seemed like a lifetime ago when the old man had sat him down in his office and told him he was lost and looking for something—for a purpose.

          Craig had found that purpose. His man and their daughter—the life that he now had. He wouldn’t risk losing them for anything in the entire world. They were his entire world.

          “You better quit daydreaming and get that bottle over here,” Ezekiel warned, pulling Craig from his overly sentimental thoughts. “You know how the little one gets when she doesn’t get her way.”

          Craig grinned as he climbed into the bed and handed the bottle to Ezekiel. “About the same way her papa gets when you don’t get your way.”

          Ezekiel winked and leaned in close to Craig, letting his breath wash over the tender skin of his neck. “Ain’t you realized it yet, Craig?” he growled. Craig felt Ezekiel nip at his flesh and he swallowed hard as he let his gaze go upward. “I always get my way.”

A/N: And we’ve reached the end of ‘Outlaw Vices’! The next story in the series is ‘The Outlaw and the Lady’