“And you’re bringing me the hounds.” Adam laughed with Coke, and it felt good.
“You know it.” Coke leaned up against the house and yawned wide enough to catch a hawk in his teeth. “Lord, that pig smells good.”
“It does. They do it up big down here.” He watched people milling, laughing, the musicians setting up with fiddles and guitars.
“Yessir. Landon’s done a good job with his place. I like it. I ain’t never been before.”
“Yeah?” He didn’t want to admit he’d driven by, but he wouldn’t lie to Coke, so he just nodded along.
Coke nodded. “I do. It’s got a good feel. Bet there’s good fishing.”
“I bet.” He could so drop a line in the water. “You remember that time we went to Oklahoma?”
“God, yes. We ought to do that again. We can go up and get a cabin, iff’n you want.”
“That would be a hoot.” Of course, Coke would be having sex with Dillon, and Adam would have Landon, so that would be different, for sure.
They stared at each other, one of those shared looks that remembered all the wickedness they’d got up to, back in the day, in the name of fishing. Adam chuckled. “Maybe we should just go with Nate and Tracy.”
“Maybe so. ’Course, I bet your Cajun can catch him a fish.” Adam got a wicked, slick grin from Pharris. “He caught him a Texan, after all. A damnably slippery one, I hear tell.”
“Well, I guess it just took someone with lots of energy.” Adam winked, letting go of the rest of his worry over Bri, and his nervousness at meeting Landon’s people.
“The Energizer Cajun.” Coke snorted in his beer.
“Hey, you’re the one doing the clown.” That got him tickled.
“I am. Well and often. He’s got that wiggle thing, you know?”
“Ew,” Adam teased. He had no room to talk. He’d loved on that wiggle a goodly bit after Dillon had broken up with a longtime lover. Still, his wanting had tightened up to a certain black-headed cowboy with a knack for the horses and a wild laugh.
“I got a question for you, Taggart.”
He glanced at Coke, but the man didn’t seem like he was angry or anything, so he nodded. “Sure. What’s up?”
“You ever thought about using Landon as a safety man? He’s damn good at roping and he’s like magic on a horse.”
Adam pondered that. He’d had a passing familiarity with the notion, but that was it. “I haven’t thought on it too much, no. It’s a good idea, though.”
“It is. You might talk on it with him. He’ll have a good future on it and I’d be willing to speak for him with the suits.”
“I’ll see what he thinks. You get Dillon to negotiate for him.” The clown knew how to get an amazing deal.
“You got it.” Coke held out one hand and they shook on it.
He couldn’t believe he hadn’t followed up on the idea before now. They could travel together, him and Landon. Fuck, the thought had him grinning like a fool. His Cajun, right there, in his back pocket to talk to on the road, to ride with.
That would be a blessing. It would be amazing. He clapped Coke on the back, nodding hard, then went hunting for Landon to share the news.
The place was swamped, food and music and laughter filling the air. He could hear Beau laughing, a sound that used to draw him right to the man, but he passed by, just smiling.
His Cajun was leaning on a huge old tree, eyes on him, warm and happy. On him and him alone.
“Hey, honey.” He went and kissed Landon on the mouth, not a bit worried someone might see. “Pharris had a great idea.”
“Did he?” Landon grinned at him, bird-black eyes twinkling. “Did it involve you riding a bull, because I’m thinking you’re damn tall for it.”
“No, it involved you being a safety man.”
