Anthology Cherry

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Beau got his own shit together. TJ looked at him, nodded once.
"That was a good ride you had, Bell."
"Thanks." Thirty one. Thirty two. Thirty three. "You, too."
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"Well, come on, boyo. Let's go celebrate." Packer clapped TJ on the shoulder before nodding at
Sam and winking, leading the kid off.
"Saved his life, I bet," Beau said with a grin.
Beau had no idea.
Sam looked down at his riding hand, the fingers clenched so tight the knuckles were white.
"You drive over?" He hadn't. He'd caught a ride with the bullfighters. Everyone knew you could
catch a ride with one of 'em.
"Yeah. Yeah, I didn't want to have to chance Adam getting a piece of something." Adam Taggart
and Beau was good friends, but man, Adam got laid more than anyone on earth.
"You mind if I come with?" Him, he wasn't much on the getting laid these days. Not for lack of
offers, he guessed. He was sorta... holding out for the big dog, even if the big dog was kinda
teeny and looking at pickup men and all.
"Well, I asked you to, didn't I?" Those clear eyes glinted at him from under stubby lashes.
"Yeah. I was givin' you an out, if you wanted it, man." He almost grinned. "C'mon. I fucking
need a beer."
"Shit, yeah." They both shouldered their bags and headed out, ducking the reporter chick that
worked for the network.
Beau had him a good-looking truck, a pretty, shiny new duallie. Sam approved. You couldn't
trust a cowboy that drove one of them sport car deals.
Took three tries for the banty little rooster to climb up in it, though. Sam had to hide the smile.
"You know, they got a little step stool deal..." It wasn't that he was but a scant inch taller than
Beau. It was that his legs were four inches longer, easy.
"Shut up. Knock you into the middle..." He could hear the muttering, but Beau's voice was
muffled as he finally vaulted into the cab. Least he could reach the pedals.
He grinned over, meeting Beau's look. "Now, now, don't go all Cajun on me..."
"Shit, Poot. I'm Cajun all the time, even if I don't look it." The truck roared to life, and he had to
admire that sound, too.
"You do got the cowboy look." So did he, but he was from the Piney Woods, Texan to the bone.
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"Well, I grew up that way, yeah?" Beau kept sneaking glances at him. "So, uh, where to? I got no
idea where I'm going."
"Only bar I know is over to the hotel, but there's a beer store at that big grocery..." Thank God it
was a Saturday event. It sucked to not be able to buy beer on Sunday
"Sure. We could find a quiet place and hole up." Beau turned off toward the highway, looking
more confident.
"That suits me to the bone, Beau."
He could stand a nice sit and a chat. It'd give him some shower thoughts.
"Cool." Some zydeco song came on the radio, and Beau started drumming on the steering wheel,
singing along.
Sam let himself lean on the truck door and watch, knowing it was late enough, dark enough, that
Beau wouldn't know.
They pulled into the parking lot at the grocery, and Beau killed the engine. "You okay?"
"Yeah. Yeah, I mean, shit. I'm pissed, but... I ain't ever gonna be what y'all are. I fall on my
damn head too much." He let himself jabber to hide the fact that what he'd been thinking on was
Beau Lafitte and that fine damn jawline.
Beau gave him an incredulous look. "Poot. You got more talent in your little finger than I got in
my whole body. May not get you the championship, but you ought to be damned proud."
He grinned sorta, feeling like he was a hundred years old, all of the sudden. He didn't need to
have sunshine blowed up his skirt. He knew what was what. "Come on, man. Let's buy some
beer and something to munch on."
"You know, I could stand some pork rinds."
Oh, man.
"Sure. Pork rinds. Hot Cheetos. Beer."
"Pickles," Beau agreed. "Dry roasted peanuts."
Sam chuckled. "Beef jerky and Nutter Butters."
"Oh, you're a man after my own heart." Beau slapped his butt on the way into the store, and he
about jumped a mile. Beau was awfully familiar all of a sudden.
Cherry - 87
They grabbed a cart and started shopping, ending up with the weirdest assortment of food --
grapes and Funyuns, Cornnuts and a big assed bag of Hershey's Kisses.
Time they got to the beer, they were laughing hard, both of them tossing things into the basket.
How the box of condoms appeared in there, he'd never know.
He didn't ask, though, he just tossed them up like... like it was nothing.
Damn it.
Beau gave him a sideways kind of grin, one that warmed his belly, deep down. He was just
gonna ignore that, too.
Fine motherfucker.
Fine, little, short, evil motherfucker.
Somehow or another, they ended up with birthday candles and a Cosmo magazine, too. Jesus,
what was the little Cajun up to?
Sam helped lug it all to the truck, not asking a damn thing.
Hell, it was too fun just to wait, wonder.
Beau started singing again, whapping his leg and making hand motions for him to sing along.
The truck barreled for the hotel, fast as anything.
Sam chuckled and sang, loud. Shit, it was hard to be blue with Beau. Damn hard.
By the time they hit the hotel, he was laughing his fool ass off.
Even seeing a couple of TJ's friends in the lobby couldn't change his mood back to bad. Not with
them loaded down with bags and beer. Now they just had to decide whose room to go to.
"Who you roomin' with?" He was stuck with Max and Handy and Lon, Jesus love him.
"Uh." Beau grinned, just the bottom of his crooked tooth showing. "No one. I asked for the [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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