Stars & Stripes (Cut & Run 6)

Zane ran his hands over Ty’s hard muscles, the smell of sweat and sex and Old Spice helping to convince his body that it could indeed take Ty at least one more time tonight.

“Besides me.”

Ty grinned, rolling his hips to spur Zane along. “Must be the Stetson.”

Chapter 5

“I wonder where Dad went.”

“Probably got tired of the horse smell,” Ty grumbled. He was watching Zane work from his perch on the edge of one of the stalls, his feet dangling. Zane was having a hard time keeping his eyes off him.

He’d missed the routine of the ranch, and he was enjoying getting his hands dirty again. Brushing down the horses certainly beat loitering inside under Beverly’s watchful eye until Mark arrived.

“Uncomfortable?” Zane asked, smirking.

Ty darted a glance at the horse Zane was brushing. “They keep . . . looking at me.”

Zane looked at Ty for a long moment, trying not to laugh. “Looking at you,” he managed to say.

Ty gave the horse a wave. “Look at him! It’s like he knows something.”

Zane snickered, and the horse mimicked him with a whicker, which just made Zane laugh harder.

“That shit’s not funny, Zane.”

“Agree to disagree,” Zane crooned.

“Hello the barn!” The call echoed from somewhere behind them.

Ty perked up like a hunting dog on a new scent, and Zane straightened from brushing the horse and peered down the barn’s center aisle. “In here!”

A lean man in a cowboy hat was walking toward them. The sun shone into the barn behind him, turning him into a faceless silhouette.

Ty tensed and looked over his shoulder to watch the man approach. He was always on edge in unfamiliar territory.

“Hey, I’m looking for—” The man stopped several feet away, where his face came into view. “Z? Damn, I thought you were your daddy.”

Zane stepped toward the stall door. “Mark. Been a while.”

Mark Masterson pulled off his hat. His blond hair underneath was shorn almost into a crew cut, and his goatee was neatly trimmed. He gave Zane a hug and then stepped back, blue eyes shining. Zane waited, apprehensive. Mark wasn’t exactly an open-minded individual, though he was a decent enough guy. Annie hadn’t been certain how he’d take the news that Zane was involved with a man, but they’d decided to tell him up front and let the chips fall where they may.

“Annie, uh . . . told me about what I missed at dinner.”

Zane straightened, squaring his shoulders.

Mark turned his head to look Ty up and down. Ty stared at him, unmoving, until Mark met Zane’s eyes and nodded. “I’m just glad to see you happy again, Z. We were worried for a long while it wouldn’t happen.”

Zane exhaled the breath he’d been holding. “Thanks.”

Mark looked at Ty and nodded, offering his hand. “Mark Masterson.”

Ty shook with his left hand, still wary.

“Ty, this is Annie’s husband. Mark, this is my partner, Ty Grady.”

Ty looked Mark up and down. Zane had seen him do it many times, but he always enjoyed watching Ty’s gears turn. “Semper fi,” he said to Mark with a small smile.

Zane’s brow jumped. “How’d you know he was a Marine?” he blurted.

Ty grinned enigmatically at him, and Mark laughed. “You wouldn’t understand, Z,” Mark said. He nodded at Ty again. “Welcome to Carter Garrett Ranch, Ty Grady.”

“Thanks.”

“Are you the Ty Grady? From Camp Lejeune?”

At that, Ty grew even more tense and quiet. It was unlike Ty in so many ways. What was this undercurrent between them about? And it was astonishing that Zane’s brother-in-law had heard of Ty before. What kind of badass Marine had Ty been to have his name known by people he’d never met?

Ty nodded. “That’s right.”

“I knew that name sounded familiar. I remember hearing it quite a bit.”

“I’m sure you did,” Ty said with a small, mirthless laugh.

“You were Second Recon, right?”

“I was.”

Mark nodded sharply, then glanced sideways at Zane. “Recon squads at Lejeune when I was there were a crazy bunch.”

“We had our moments,” Ty said, voice low and careful. It sent a chill up Zane’s spine, the type that often preceded wanting to be pinned to the ground and f**ked to within an inch of his life. Somewhere along the line, he’d come to terms with the fact that the more dangerous Ty seemed, the hotter he was. Zane had no regrets.

Mark nodded. “Well, it’s a pleasure to meet you. Will y’all be staying awhile?”

“Until we get something settled with Dad’s attackers. We’ll be around. We were waiting for you to show before we gathered on it.”

“All right, then. Hey, a couple of us are heading to the roadhouse later tonight. You two game?”

Zane cast a glance at Ty, who nodded. “Yeah, sounds fun.”

“Just, uh . . . fair warning. Word’s already got around the C and G about you two. Won’t be long before it gets out. Hope you’re ready for that.”

Zane fought against the butterflies. “Really? That was faster than I expected.”

“Yeah, well. The last remaining Garrett starts doing a guy, it makes the rounds.”

Zane laughed despite himself. He hadn’t thought of it that way, but he supposed it would cause a stir, considering he had no kids and was therefore the last Garrett in a long line of them.

Mark turned to go. “We’re ready when you are.”

Zane nodded, but he was watching Ty.

“Ty?” he said after a few seconds.

Ty tore his eyes away from Mark and met Zane’s eyes. “Hmm?”

“You okay?”

Ty nodded curtly. “Just wasn’t expecting to be recognized.”

Zane wanted to ask why it bothered Ty, but he’d save it for later. “You ready to head inside?”

Ty pushed off the gate and landed light as a cat in the dirt. “Was that true, what he said? Are you the last Garrett?”

“Yeah, why?”

“He’s right, that’s going to cause a stir.”

“I don’t care. Do you?”

Ty shook his head. Then he gave the horse one last mistrustful glance. “Let’s do this,” he said with a huff. He turned toward the barn doors. “It’s about damn time I hear what’s been going on.”

They walked side by side toward the house. Zane slid his hand into Ty’s back pocket. “Yeah, I’m sorry for keeping you in the dark, but I figured the less I told you, the better you’d be able to look at it through new eyes. I want to see if you can find an angle all of us are missing.”