"Cool mom," Ash told him. "Mine said I was going to hell. Cy's dad kicked him out. I would've rather had a bracelet."
"It's not a big deal," he said, but his cheeks were flushing again.
Then the barn door opened. Cy stepped through a second later, closing it behind him. "Thought I heard a strange voice. Zeke, right?"
"Yeah. Cy, right?" the kid asked, a little of his arrogance starting to show.
"Yep." And Cy moved right to Ash's side, pausing to give him a quick peck on the lips. "I'm covered in hay, babe."
"Smells good," Ash said, stealing another. "Kids want to go riding."
"Yep, hence me stopping the tractor. Don't want to spook the horses." Then Cy looked over at Luke. "Most of the hay's turned. Left a strip that was still wet."
"Shit," Luke breathed. "Still?"
"Just a bit over by the cabins," Cy assured him. "Worst case, we let it rot. Might be a bale at most."
"Ok," Luke said. "How late are the contractors here today?"
"No idea," I told them, because that was my job.
So Luke looked over at Zeke. "Then you two stay on this side of the property today. Don't want something scaring the horses and you two to be out there alone. Trust me, falling off one hurts."
"I have no idea how to get on one," Zeke admitted.
Luke just grinned at him. "Easy, and Faith will show you. She's been riding since she could walk." He tilted his head toward the drive. "Guys?"
I had no idea what he was doing, but Ash and Cy both followed him out. Clearly, they had something in mind, but that left me alone with Zeke, waiting for Faith to get changed and come back. I moved over to the stack of hay and sat on the closest bale, deciding I might as well get comfortable.
"Heard about the fight," I told him.
The boy's pale eyes jumped up. "Which one?"
"There was more than one?" I asked. "I only heard about Luke getting called into the office."
"Oh, yeah. That." He shifted, trying to get comfortable against the stall. "Faith said she can't get in trouble because it means she won't be able to live with her dad. Says her mom's a real hag who calls her fat."
"She's not fat," I grumbled.
"She's not," he agreed, "but she's nice, you know? Like, sweet nice. Doesn't know anything mean kind of nice, and that's why Olivia, Esther, and Anna Marie go after her."
"You taking care of her?" I asked.
He nodded. "Yep. She takes care of me too. Told someone she's got a crush on me. I mean, she doesn't, and she knows I'm gay, but she said it so they'd leave me alone."
"I was Ash's beard for a while," I said, showing I understood. "So you know, Luke understands. He knows that sometimes it's easier to lie about it than risk the fall out."
"He really doesn't care?"
"Not at all," I assured him. "Granted, the first time he saw Ash and Cy kiss? Shocked him a bit, and he said some stupid stuff, but it's how people learn."
"Everyone says stupid stuff," the boy agreed. "Well, 'cept Faith."
"She's all heart," I told him. "That's part of the problem, though. Those girls at school? What they say hurts her bad. We're all a little worried about her."
"She said you know about the cutting," he mumbled.
I nodded, then showed him the inside of my arm. "Yeah, hence the worry. Zeke, if she has a hard time, will you tell us?"
