Two Marked Men by Roland Graeme

Author:Roland Graeme [Graeme, Roland]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: gay romance
ISBN: 978-1-61581-449-7
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Published: 2010-05-28T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Seven: Gladiatorial Combats

THE JANGLING of a triangle woke Henrique. It was the universal means of summoning ranch hands to breakfast. He sat up and grinned at Oren, who was already standing up, stretching and yawning.

“Well, play time’s over for now,” Henrique said. “Got to get to work.”

They dressed, then followed the other cowboys from the bunkhouse into a long room jutting off the main ranch house. Emiliano Lavigna was presiding at the head of the table, and he grinned at the sight of them. He gestured for his two new hands to take seats near him.

“Good morning. Listen up, men,” Lavigna said. “These are Lassiter and Vermudez, the new hires. Make ’em feel at home. You can all introduce yourself to them later, if you haven’t done it already.” The foreman addressed the two newcomers, “You’d better fill up, while you can.” Plates of eggs, and the coffee pot, were making the rounds. Lavigna passed a platter of steaks. “I intend to put you to work today, see what you’re made of. Are either of you an extra-good roper? I have sixty-odd colts to brand. I need somebody this morning who can keep my critter wrestlers sweating.”

“I’ve roped a little bit,” Henrique admitted, modestly, between bites of steak.

“Oh?” a young cowboy interjected. “You look too damn pretty to be much good at any real work.”

Henrique directed a cool, appraising stare at the man. He was a dark, heavy-shouldered youngster with a devil-may-care face. Henrique recognized him from the previous afternoon. He was Navarro, the man Lavigna had told to take care of their horses when they’d arrived at the ranch.

The other men at the breakfast table fell silent—waiting to see how the newcomer would handle it.

“You look like a goddamn fancy man, the kind who’d take money from a woman,” Navarro persisted.

“Appearances can be deceiving,” Henrique said.

One of the other hands tried to defuse the tension with a joke. “Hell, Navarro, from what I’ve heard—women pay you to stay away from them!”

The laughter that ensued did nothing to improve Navarro’s disposition.

“Of course, your friend there is ugly enough to make up for it,” Navarro said, looking at Oren.

“That’ll be enough, Navarro,” Lavigna said sharply. “Just because you got out of the wrong side of the bed this morning is no reason for you to be rude.”

Oren, too, refused to rise to the bait, although Henrique saw that telltale flush warm his scarred cheek.

“Oh, let him say his piece, Mr. Lavigna,” Oren said. “Mr. Navarro seems to be quite the connoisseur when it comes to appraising other men’s looks. I’m sorry I’m not handsome enough for him.”

The veiled taunt was a bit over Navarro’s head. “What does that word mean, ‘connysewer’?” he demanded, suspiciously. “Are you calling me a name?”

“Why, no, Mr. Navarro. That wasn’t my intention at all. If I wanted to call you a name, I’d say something like ‘jackass’ or ‘numbskull’ or ‘boneheaded damn fool know-nothing’.”

There was raucous laughter at Navarro’s expense.

“Why, you—!” Navarro exploded. He pushed his chair back from the table and started to stand up.

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