Alone

Carson sighed, but nodded. He wouldn’t argue. He was too tired for that anyway. Giving Misty an extra kiss on her forehead, he finally let her go, and wandered to the living room where he curled up in the corner of the couch and turned on the television. There really wasn’t much interesting on, but he thought it might at least keep him awake. He didn’t like it that he was actually here with Misty and he was feeling too lousy to do anything but sleep. 

He did manage to eat supper at least, but it was right back to the couch. Lying on his side with his head in Misty’s lap again, he drifted in and out of sleep, perhaps more from relaxation than from sickness. Eventually though, he turned onto his back, still leaving his head in her lap, and just looking up at her, watching her. He took one of her hands in his, and let his fingers drift through her palm and over her knuckles. 

“Do you…” His voice was soft. Hesitant. “Do you still blame me? For… for everything?” 


Hal nodded his agreement. “Yeah… Always better safe than sorry. I mean… I know Justin should know his stuff, and I’ve seen him work miracles with Scott, but…” He shrugged. “I dunno. I just don’t want to see you hurt because he thinks Aaron wouldn’t act out with you.” 

He stood up and aimed for the door. “I gotta get back to work. Let me know if you need anything. Oh, and any more ideas you’ve got for the new place.”


Leaning back against the workbench, Clint cocked his head at Ryan. He had no idea why she was here or why Hunter had brought her. He didn’t know if she was here to recover from something, or was she just here as Hunter’s friend? There was something in her eye that maybe indicated her story was a bit more complicated than her just tagging along for a lighthearted vacation.

He finally shrugged and took another sip of his pop. “For the record… I’m in here by myself all day every day – and not by choice. If I had my druthers, I’d still have a partner. That said… it’s gonna take an awful lot for me to regret having another set of hands in here.” He shoved off the bench and wandered to the adjoining bay where the stubborn tractor sat. “We all think other people can’t put up with us, when in reality… nobody really cares if we’re weird.”

Kicking lightly at the tractor tire, he reverted back to her original question. “We get outside jobs in here. Used to be a lot of what kept us going. But… with gas prices going up, nobody wants to come out this far anymore or pay for towing. So we get some business from nearby ranches, and the occasional stranded traveler, or a super loyal customer from town. But mainly it’s just the vehicles around here. It’s rare I have too much down time though. And with me being alone, it takes longer to get things up and running again. Which… also hurts outside business…. which also hurts ranch income. But that’s what happens when it’s all shoved on one person’s shoulders.” He didn’t mean to sound bitter but… in reality… he was. He shrugged as he took another swig of pop. “I want you to enjoy your stay here, but if you’re really wanting to get your hands dirty, if you can help get this tractor running, I definitely wouldn’t complain.”