Earth and Sky

when Gable busted his leg. Is that what’s bothering you?”

    “I guess,” Hunter answered, raising his eyebrows.

    “Or is it the fact he was more to Gable than just the hired help?”

    Hunter didn’t reply immediately. As much as he loved Izzie, he hated the way she always knew what he was thinking. “I don’t hate guys like that. You know that, Izzie. I never held Gable’s choices against him.”

    “It’s not really a choice, is it?” Izzie responded. As usual, she didn’t look at Hunter or urge him to reply. Instead, she continued munching down her lunch.

    Although Hunter always felt comfortable around Izzie, he often feared she could read his most carefully hidden thoughts as well as the more obvious ones. This was no different. Did Izzie know the real reason he avoided Grant?

    “I just don’t trust men who bolt when it gets a bit hot under their feet,” Hunter added after a long silence. “I mean, how hard would it have been to stick around and do his job until Gable was healed up? He could have left then.”

    “You think Grant had something to do with how Gable got injured?” Izzie raised her eyebrows.

    “Not necessarily,” Hunter answered truthfully. “I just don’t trust a man who would do such a thing to a… friend.”

    “Lover,” Izzie corrected.

    “L….” Hunter couldn’t bring himself to say the word. “Yeah.”

    “We don’t know what happened, Hunter. Maybe they had a row just before the accident. For all we know, they’d split up already when it happened. Gable didn’t exactly say much afterward.”

    Hunter had to admit he was jumping to conclusions. Maybe Izzie was right. Maybe they didn’t know the whole story. “Maybe Grant didn’t even know what happened that day and he had already left the ranch?”

    “Yeah, maybe,” Izzie replied, nudging her big brother with her shoulder. “He didn’t stay for lunch, you know. He just came to persuade Hugh he needed a day off tomorrow. Some emergency. Hugh let him have it—unpaid, of course.” Izzie waited a bit as if to gauge Hunter’s reaction before continuing. “At least he asked for it and didn’t just ‘forget’ to show up.”

    “True,” Hunter had to admit. He mentally gave Grant a merit point. “But what if Gable finds out that I employ Grant now?”

    Izzie rolled her eyes. “I know Gable’s your friend, but this is business. He knows how hard it is to find decent help, and he of all people should know how big a help Grant is. If Grant wants to work here, then who are you to say no?”

    “That would be what a friend would do, maybe,” Hunter argued.

    “Besides, Gable’s found new help. Younger guy. Cute too,” Izzie quipped. “Of course, I don’t stand a chance. Not if he’s ‘working’ for Gable.”

    “You have the dirtiest mind I’ve ever seen in a girl,” Hunter said, shaking his head.

    “Then you clearly haven’t had a decent conversation with Miranda,” Izzie returned the jest. “Oh, I forgot. You only bone her.”

    “Izzie!” Hunter shouted, mock strangling his little sister. He didn’t deny it, though. He liked this sort of innuendo a lot more than when Izzie underhandedly suggested that maybe he had a soft spot for Gable. She laughed out loud, and Hunter felt some of the tension leave his body.

Chapter 3

    It didn’t take Grant long to become a valuable asset to the ranch. He worked long hours and kept himself more than occupied, even without Hugh telling him what to do. The other wranglers seemed to get along fine with him, and the stable boys sung his praises as well. Although Hunter still didn’t trust him, Hugh was quite happy to be his boss.

    Luckily for everyone even remotely close to Hunter, the earlier air-splitting tension between Hunter and Grant also seemed to die down a bit. They avoided each other but were both casual enough about it so it didn’t bother anyone.

    The one who helped Hunter most in that respect was Izzie, who had taken on the task of showing Grant how things were done around the ranch. The two of them were often seen laughing and enjoying themselves while at the same time doing the work that needed to be done. The news about this lovely understanding Grant and Izzie shared had traveled far beyond the fences lining the Blue River Ranch.

    One evening, after a long day—the first hot one of the summer—the wranglers were hosing down their horses with water. Of course, Grant’s hose slipped and got Izzie wet, which meant