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to you?
Nate had forgotten about the gash on his cheek, which was a good thing at least it had
stopped hurting but the skin there felt tight, wrong. He dismissed the question with a
swish of his hand.
Was nothing, got myself involved in a fight last night is all. It s already healed.
As Aaron stared at the cut, his eyes widened comically. Okay, maybe it hadn t healed as
well as Nate had thought.
What did you want to talk to me about?
Actually, I wanted to apologise.
What for?
The way I ve been treating you. Occurs to me I haven t been as friendly to you as I
could have been. I m sorry for that. Nate picked up his coffee and took a sip. The strong,
bitter liquid tasted like a little piece of heaven. Was never my intention to make you feel
uncomfortable.
Aaron shrugged. I thought it was because you were jealous, because you wanted Cary
for yourself.
Nate nearly choked, spluttering as the coffee went down the wrong hole. Jesus Christ,
kid, warn a man before you go and make a stupid ass comment in future.
Aaron growled. His eyes darkened and his hand clenched into a fist on the table.
What s so stupid about that? Cary s gorgeous and sexy and smart and
Whoa! Nate said, raising a hand to silence Aaron. Don t put words in my mouth. I
never said there was anything wrong with Cary, but Jesus, he s nearly young enough to be
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NATE S DEPUTY Lavinia Lewis
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my son. You surely couldn t have thought I d be interested in him in that way. What sort of
man do ya take me for?
Sorry, I just thought
Well don t think not if that s the sort of shit your mind comes up with.
So what s the reason then? Aaron asked defiantly, straightening his shoulders and
meeting Nate s gaze head on. Nate had to give the kid props he certainly knew how to
posture, and he had an authoritative tone to his voice that exuded confidence and power and
told Nate the kid would make a good alpha someday.
You remind me of someone, Nate pursed his lips. Well, not just someone& of my
brother, Rick.
Nate took another sip of coffee but instead of sliding down his throat smoothly like the
nectar of the gods he d come to know and love, it felt thicker than tar and was as sour as
month old milk. He was barely able to swallow it down.
Aaron s shoulders slumped and he stared at Nate apologetically. I m sorry.
Nate shook his head. See, that s the thing. You have nothing to be sorry for. It s me
that needs to apologise. It s my hang-up. When we were younger, my brother and I were
close. Rick was funny, vivacious, so full of life he was a joy to be around. He was always so
brave and idealistic and he stood up for what he believed in, too. More often than not, he got
what he wanted because he was just that type of person. People warmed to him, see? They
liked him and I see so many of those qualities in you that sometimes it s hard to look at you.
Why didn t you say anything before?
Nate smiled sadly. When you can t even look at someone, how hard do you think it is
to actually talk to them?
Aaron nodded. I can understand that I guess, but what made you tell me now?
Let s just say a certain someone showed me the error of my ways.
Aaron s face lit up like the fourth of July and his eyes sparkled. Cary, he said around
a happy sigh.
Nate grinned. Yep, you ve got a good un there. Treat him right, kid, and I suggest you
tell him every day how special he is.
Aaron mirrored Nate s grin. I do.
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41
Aaron? I thought you were making e Oh! Hi, Nate! Cary gasped and rushed to
Nate s side. What happened to your face?
Jesus, was the gash on his cheek really that bad? He hadn t even bothered to check the
mirror when he d crawled out of bed. I think that s my cue. Aaron will fill you in, I reckon.
I m gonna go grab five minutes before shift.
Oh, okay. Cary walked around the table and planted himself easily in Aaron s lap.
Nate could feel their eyes on him as he rose from the table and placed his coffee cup in the
sink. He grabbed a bottle of water from the refrigerator on his way out the room.
Remember what I told you, Aaron, Nate said, nodding at Cary.
Aaron wound his arms around Cary s waist and planted a kiss his mate s cheek.
Yeah& and Nate& ?
Nate paused on his way out the door. Yeah, kid?
Thanks.
Nodding, Nate turned and left the lovebirds to their breakfast. He was halfway to his
room to rest a while before he had to start his chores, when on a last minute whim he
retraced his steps and headed outside to get some air.
Standing on the porch, he guzzled down half the water in his bottle while drinking in
the golden rays of the early morning sun as it made its first appearance on the horizon.
Sun-up had always been his favourite time of day. The appeal was the new beginning
with its endless possibilities, even though one day was usually pretty much the same as the
last. But today, Nate couldn t find any comfort in it. The new day loomed over him a
gloomy, stark reminder of the fuck-up he d made of his life, of the mess he d made of his
relationship with Rick and of the things he d given up&
Of Jared.
Leaning back against the wall of the bunkhouse, Nate closed his eyes and tried to
swallow down his anxiety. His only consolation in this whole fucking mess was that Jared
would be better off without him. Jared had Tristan to take care of and something told Nate
that was a full-time undertaking.
Nate? You got a minute?
When Nate opened his eyes, Kelan was striding purposefully towards him.
Sure boss, what s up?
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Kelan climbed the porch steps and nodded to the bench seat that ran along part of the
wall. You mind if we sit?
Nate shrugged and took a seat next to his alpha. Kelan s lips were pursed and he was
silent for a moment while he looked out past the corral, then he turned to study Nate s face.
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