“No,” said Austin, feeling very much like he was about to be scolded by someone years younger than him.
“Well, I know just the thing. Follow me.”
Clay led Austin along the path beneath the trees to the dining hall. There on the porch, from a cooler full of ice that had melted during the day, Clay pulled out two plastic bottles of water, then led Austin to some wooden bench seats along the wall.
“Sit down and drink,” said Clay. “There’s nothing going on, and no need to rush. Just drink.”
Austin did as he was told, glad, in that moment, to have someone else lead the way. He unscrewed the lid, his hand shaking a little bit, spilling cool water across his fingers, onto his canvas trousers, leaving spots behind. Then he drank and sat back, drank some more, and smiled at Clay, who smiled back.
In that moment, with the twilight coming down in dark waves of purple black, he felt good. Felt like maybe this time he’d made the exact right decision. There was no telling if he’d feel the same way come morning, but now, the cool water soothing him from the inside, the fresh breeze tenderly curling around him, Clay nearby, all seemed well. All seemed like it could get better, which starting from zero, as it had, looked like it could get a great deal better indeed.
11
Clay
Tuesday morning, Clay had nothing to look forward to except shoveling horse shit, picking up trash, washing dishes for Levi, and other out-of-sight chores. He also had nothing to look forward to for many days to come, as in the morning meeting Leland had announced that Brody would drive the chuckwagon for that week’s cattle drive, even though Clay’s black eye was going down, and his split lip was well on its way to healing. When he licked it, it barely tasted like salt, but he was still off the roster.
Unable to fault Brody, for he was as good a driver as Clay was, probably even better, Clay still felt hard done by as he made his way from the barn to the main lodge for breakfast. There, he climbed up the stairs to stand in line, bowing to guests while letting them go ahead of him, when he spotted Austin.
Austin had not been at the morning’s meeting, but then, being the accountant, he would not have to be kept abreast of current goings on or be alerted to special needs of particular guests nor even the weather, which promised to be hot and dry for the next few days.
Fully prepared to stand at the end of the line, Clay looked up and saw that Austin was looking at him rather like he’d found a long-lost friend. And, potentially unaware of buffet line protocol, he waved to Clay to join him.
This was definitely not something Leland would have encouraged, but the expression on Austin’s face, the light in his eyes, seemed expectant and hopeful all at once. Maybe because Clay was probably the only one he knew at the ranch? Except he’d met most everybody, so that couldn’t be it.
At Austin’s second wave, Clay gave in and scooted forward in line. Guests and employees merely smiled at him for, as everyone knew by this time, there was plenty of food and all of it was good.
“Hey,” said Clay when he reached Austin’s side. “You’re looking better than when I saw you last.”
“Thanks to you,” said Austin. He might not have been smiling, but there was a smile in his eyes. “After that water, I went straight to bed and slept like a baby.”
“A baby who snores,” said Clay, snickering as the line shuffled forward. Behind the easy laugh, his mind caught up with him, reminding him how they’d shared a bed that night. How the warmth of Austin’s body had drawn Clay to him. How sweet Austin’s smile was, even though Clay had ended up way too close to him, them being strangers and all.
“Those were baby snores,” said Austin with a laugh. “Very tiny snores, as you recall.”
They might be getting looks from guests who were listening and watching this exchange, but in that moment, Clay didn’t want to worry about that. He wanted to enjoy the morning, the anticipation of a good breakfast. And really, the idea of sharing the meal with Austin, who was looking at him now and frowning.
“I think I need to get different clothes, though,” said Austin.
“What?”
“Everybody here is wearing—” Austin pointed at the dining hall in general and then at Clay specifically. “Cowboy boots. Blue jeans. Shirt with snap buttons.”
“You mean these?” asked Clay as he reached down to unsnap the first three buttons on his cotton shirt, giving his wrist a risqué flip as he did this. He was not flirting with the new accountant, no, he was not. “All the cool kids wear them, doncha know. You want to be a cool kid, right?”
“Yes, I want to be a cool kid,” said Austin with perfect seriousness. “How do I do that? Will I need to drive to the nearest cowboy store or something?”
“All the way to the ranch’s store, next to Maddy’s office,” said Clay. “We have everything you need there. I pointed it out yesterday, remember?”
“Yesterday was a blur,” said Austin with a shake of his head. “I feel like I stumbled through most of it.”
“The altitude will get you every time.” Clay grabbed a tray and stuck close to Austin, maybe to see what he was getting, and maybe to just be close. “And look, you don’t want to miss out on the biscuits and gravy, for sure.”
After they got their breakfasts, Clay led the way to a long table beneath the windows.
“Usually Leland likes us to mingle,” said Clay as he put his tray down and sat. “But I figure you’re still new, so might like some company.”
“I would, and thank you,” said Austin. He went around the table to sit across from Clay, which was a bit of a surprise, as the view was from this side. But it turned into a treat, as now Austin was sitting with his back to the windows, his dark ginger hair lit up by sunshine, like a halo, his eyes solemn as he looked at Clay.
