Page 69 of Cattle Stop

“Come down to the city with me, Coop, I’ll introduce you,” Brad says. “Myra is who you want to talk to.”

“No.” Whit’s arm brushes Cooper’s. Again, standing so damn close, like Whit somehow doesn’t know it’s already a million fucking degrees and the morning’s not half-over.

“God forbid we change the plan for the day, you mean.” Cooper hitches his thumb over his shoulder toward Whit. “Six fence posts by ten o’clock or Whit’s eye starts twitching.”

Whit shakes his head. “No, I just meant—the account, if you’re setting something up, Drew should go, or I should, not just Cooper.”

“I can do it,” Cooper says.

“The discounts,” Whit says.

Cooper scoffs. “I can do math.”

“Can you?” Whit asks.

Cooper pokes him in the ribs. “Fuck you.”

He pulls his hand back quickly. He didn’t mean to touch Whit, with everyone standing around. Argue with him, like they’re alone in their room. Flirt, a small voice whispers to him and he frowns, his cheeks heating. Embarrassing, all of it. Just sex, he thinks. Fucking focus.

“We’d love any chance to talk to them. Myra, you said? Is she around today?” Cooper asks.

“Yeah, I can definitely take you down.” Brad looks over at Whit. “Though I’ve just got the truck, so it’d probably be more comfortable if only Cooper and I go.”

“I could follow you.” Drew casts a look toward the barn. “The milk’ll keep.”

“I’ll go,” Whit says.

Cooper blows out a breath. “I can make a damn sale. And I’d like to see my moms if anyone is going down to the city.”

“No, I know, I just meant—” Whit licks quickly at his lips. “Coop, we can head down together. No need to interrupt your day, Brad. And, Drew, you can work on the cheese.”

“What about the fencing schedule?” Cooper asks. “Kind of a drop-of-the-hat redirect to your day, Mr. Morales.”

“Yeah,” Brad says. “Wouldn’t want to throw you off, Whit, seems like you have plenty to do around here.”

“Da pena verlos1.” Penny claps her hands together. “Whit and Cooper, you two go. I have today off, I’ll take care of milking this afternoon, yeah? I wouldn’t mind a day on the farm.”

“You sure?” Drew asks.

“Well, you’re making me dinner as a thank you, and Whit and Cooper are bringing me back some sort of overpriced, delicious treat, so yeah, I’m sure.”

“Yeah, I’ll make you dinner.” Drew’s cheeks turn a little pink. “Yeah, cool. And let me just grab that order, Brad, and I can get some cheese for you too, Travis.”

“Awesome, so are we doing this?” Cooper asks. “Yes? Getting while the getting’s good? Hey, Drew, put some cheese together for us to take down to the city!”

Drew waves a hand to show he heard as he disappears into the barn, Travis and Brad trailing after him.

Whit glances toward the field and the truck still parked there, the bed stacked full of fence posts and the roll of wire glinting in the morning sun. “It’ll take all day to get down there and back.”

Cooper grabs Whit’s arm, steers him after Penny as she walks towards the house, and says, “And yet, opportunity beckons. I swear, if you start in on the schedule for getting the fencing done, I’ll remind you, this doesn’t have to take as long if we get a post pounder to—”

“Rentals cost money.”

Cooper spreads his hands wide, walking backward toward the house. “Which is why I’m bringing home the bacon with cheese sales, babe.”

Oh, fuck.

Babe.