28. Ty
Chapter 28
Ty
W ith the study guide Hudson had received, and all the office supplies that Ty had ordered, on Friday they stayed in the mess tent after dinner to study. Except it was raining, so it was movie night, which made it impossible. Luckily, it was too damp to work on Saturday morning, so they went back to the mess tent and tried again.
Ty wrote flashcards out of the material in the book, and then he made Hudson use them.
“I’ll just read the guide and make notes,” Hudson said at first. “Besides, I know most of the material, anyway.”
“Flashcards are how you learn,” said Ty, insisting on this. “Let me show you.”
He showed Hudson how it was done, with questions on one side and answers on the flip side. Question: How many red reflective triangles should you carry? Answer: At least three. Question: When should you check your mirrors? Answer: Prior to the start of any trip.
“I know all this,” said Hudson, with a huff.
“We want you getting top grades, for sure,” said Ty, just about ignoring him. “You go through the question side and then you go through the answer side. All the way through until there’s not a single flashcard you can’t respond to.”
To Hudson’s credit, he submitted to the flashcards, dutifully going through each one as Ty wrote them out. Then he went backwards, taking the answer side and providing a question.
What made that even more fun was that as men came in for lunch, they wandered over to see what was going on, teasing Hudson a bit, and laughing, trying out the cards for themselves.
Wayne came over and even sat down, giving everything that was going on a hairy eyeball, but then he settled himself and asked questions.
“How long does this test take?” he asked. “And how much can you make as a driver?”
“Seventy grand, if you’re good,” said Hudson. “And I don’t know how long the test itself takes. An hour, maybe. Another hour for the driving test.”
Ty secretly thought he’d helped Hudson out by making him not take what he knew for granted, but he wasn’t going to ask. After all, it’d been five years since Hudson had driven a rig like the one he wanted to drive, and the laws and regulations could have changed.
Then they needed to clear up for lunch.
“We should allow for more time for all of this, just to be sure,” said Ty as he placed Hudson’s studying materials in the little office area near the opening of the mess tent.
After lunch was the group counseling session, and Ty dutifully took a seat, tugging on Hudson’s sleeve so they might sit together. So their knees might brush from time to time. So Ty could gain courage from Hudson’s very presence.
There was the usual talk about getting jobs when the summer ended, and what resources there were. Then Micha asked how they were doing.
“Who would like to go first?” he asked. He was friendly, but Ty shrank down in his seat, so Micha’s glance slid right over him.
“Wayne,” Micha said. “You look like you have a question for us.”
“Well,” said Wayne, in that way he had, like a first-grader pushing past kindergartners to get to the head of the line for treats. “Hudson says you can make seventy grand driving a big rig,” he said. “That’s more than I could make working cattle, for sure. I think I’d like that.”
“You’re certainly welcome to apply,” said Micha. “I’ll set you up with the paperwork and get you a study guide, as well.”
Ty tried not to roll his eyes and failed. Then he shrugged. It didn’t hurt him or Hudson, whatever Wayne decided to do, but he could damn well get his own office supplies and little toy truck.
He nudged Hudson’s knee as he laughed to himself, then did his best to pay attention to whatever it was that Micha was blabbing about.
It was after the group counseling session was over, as the chairs were being put away, that Micha came up to Ty, looking earnest and determined to do good.
“How did it go last week, you reaching out to the ranch you used to work for?” he asked, blocking Ty’s way out of the mess tent.
Dumbfounded that Micha was so persistently upbeat, Ty shrugged and stopped. He could see Hudson waiting for him, just on the top of the wooden steps.
“They aren’t much interested in ex-cons like me,” he said, finally deciding that the bald truth of it would have to be enough. “They’re one of the best, and I’m not interested in working for a ranch that doesn’t do it the way they do it.”
“Which is?” asked Micha, his eyes widening as if to show he was interested.
“Some ranches just let the cattle wander where they will,” said Ty, using all his patience. He wanted to get to Hudson and have them get on with their day. He did not want to deal with Micha.
“The D-Bar-D had you follow the cattle on horseback. Cowboys stayed on the range, camping out for weeks at a time to make sure the cattle didn’t overgraze, to make sure they didn’t tear down the riverbanks. It’s labor intensive, and I guess they just want the best.”
Which meant that he was no longer among that lofty crowd, but rather than give in to the surge of sadness at that thought, he pushed his shoulders back and pretended everything was all right.
“You should keep calling around, I think,” said Micha. “There’s got to be more than one rancher who does it that way. Widen your horizons a bit. You’ll be surprised at what you find.”
“You got it,” said Ty, though he didn’t believe a word of what Micha said. At any rate, the promise got him out of the counselor’s clutches and out of the mess tent at last, to where Hudson was patiently waiting.
“Gabe says we can do anything we want,” said Hudson. “Even if that means lollygagging in our tents.”
“Did he actually use the word lollygagging?” asked Ty. Sometimes Gabe seemed a little soft with his men, allowing them to do whatever they wanted.
“He sure did,” said Hudson. “But I’m tired of sitting around, and tired of studying. Why don’t we go load chopped wood onto the flatbed that Gabe had brought in? Or rake the pasture. Your pick.”
“Why not both?” said Ty, arching his brow in a flirty way as he thought about the night before. About what a nice man Hudson was. And how maybe if they worked hard and got all sweaty in the sun, they might have a repeat of the night before.
Hudson, knowing Ty might be a little sore, even in a good way, would put the kibosh on a second round. Hudson had seemed too shy to be on the receiving end, so Ty might have to wait for the right moment for that to happen.
In the meanwhile, it was a sunny day with blue skies dotted by puffy clouds. They weren’t hungry. They weren’t being beaten. If they got thirsty or tired, they could stop and take a rest or have a cool drink. Ty knew he’d get used to it eventually, but for now, the ordinariness of it was still a miracle.
“Let’s load wood so they can get it delivered,” said Ty. “Then rake?”
“Sounds good,” said Hudson. Then, with a grin, he added, “I will need my hat for this, I think. And you will need sunscreen.”
“Yes, sir,” said Ty, answering Hudson’s smile with his own.
They ambled to their tent to grab their cowboy hats and gloves, and then to put on sunscreen. That is, Hudson found his tube first, and insisted on putting the sunscreen on Ty’s face, the back of his hands, his neck.
This slowed them down some, because Ty wanted to return the gesture, which he did, but in-between came slow kisses and low laughs when the touches became suggestive.
“We should play hooky,” said Hudson, surprising himself at thinking of it.
“We owe Gabe to show up,” said Ty, pretending to be stern. “Besides, I’m hoping you’ll take your shirt off again and let me watch you be all manly and shit.”
“For you, the world,” said Hudson with a kiss to Ty’s nose. Which meant he had to wipe his mouth free of sunscreen and reapply it.
Cowboy hats and sunscreen in place, they headed to the glade, where Gabe and Blaze were already at work, taking the nicely stacked wood from the pile and placing it on the flatbed.
The sun was bright overhead, and the breeze skittered through the trees, and it was such a lovely day that Ty found himself humming. And felt Hudson looking over at him as though memorizing the moment. It was worth it for sure, because he didn’t know when he’d been happier.
Didn’t know when he’d been more amused when Hudson, in an exaggerated way, slowly took off his blue chambray shirt and placed it in the truck. Then slowly, and very manfully, continued stacking wood. There was no sunscreen on his back, so Ty went up to Gabe.
“Got any sunscreen?” he asked.
“Sure do,” said Gabe. “In the truck. Use as much as you want.”
Then, with a come-hither crook of his fingers, Ty gestured that Hudson should join him in the shade of the trees. Hudson, surprisingly obedient, followed Ty, and turned around when Ty made him.
“This is for your own good,” said Ty as he began applying sunscreen to Hudson’s strong back.
“You just want to get your hands on me,” said Hudson, whispering and laughing at the same time.
“You got that right,” said Ty, still trying to be stern but failing. “Now, turn around.”
Hudson turned around, his body blocking Ty’s view of Blaze and Gabe, hard at work. Now it was just the two of them in the pine-scented shade. Now Ty could run his hands all over Hudson’s chest, leaving white streaks of sunscreen as he went, and enjoying the heated look in Hudson’s brown eyes. The way his skin rippled beneath Ty’s touch, how he seemed to be leaning into it.
“I’m going to be slick enough to roast on a spit, if you keep that up,” said Hudson in his most growly voice.
“I’m not even sure what that means,” said Ty, shaking his head, pretending to be fed up with Hudson’s whole attitude.
Then he relented and rose on his toes to kiss Hudson on the mouth. And then again, and for a moment, it was as if they were the only two men in the beautiful valley beneath that brassy blue sky in a glade designed for just that purpose.
“I like you naked,” said Ty, trying to be flirty and failing because Hudson was squinting as though Ty had gotten sunscreen in his eyes. “Here,” he said. “Take my shirt.”
He peeled off his shirt so Hudson could wipe his eyes, then put it on again, well satisfied with his efforts. He got to look and touch, and now he’d get to keep on looking, and Hudson wouldn’t be at risk of getting sunburned.
They worked for another hour or so, the heat of the glade sizzling around them, bringing up the smell of tree sap and sun-warmed wood.
They covered the load of the flatbed with a tarp, tying it down securely with thin, yellow rope. Then Gabe went to grab the key fob from the truck.
“Would you guys mind driving this out to the Stop-n-Go in Chugwater?” he asked. “They’ll need it unloaded there, as well. They’re going to distribute it to families who might need wood for the winter. Take two guys with you. Make the unloading go faster. Here.” He reached into his wallet and pulled out a twenty. “Get yourself something cool to drink when you’re done. You’ll be back in time for dinner.”
“You got it,” said Hudson, marveling at how much more natural it felt to take money and take orders, and not have to square his shoulders and brace himself for some horrible task. That while, in fact, the work was and would be physically demanding, it would feel worthwhile. And, best of all, he would get to drive around with Ty in the passenger seat next to him.
“Who should we ask?” asked Ty, as Hudson tossed the key fob and then caught it. “Maybe Blaze and Wayne?”
“Go ask ‘em,” said Hudson. “I’ll turn the truck around.”
Ty hustled to the paddock, where he found Blaze and Wayne, and they were eager to put down their rakes, swipe the dust off their jeans, and follow Ty to the glade. When they all piled in, Hudson rolled down the windows, turned up the rock ’n’ roll, and took the shortcut onto the dirt road that went alongside the compound.
Ty leaned on the open window, tucked his cowboy hat at his feet, and let the wind blow through his hair until his eyes watered. It was a good day. It had been a good day ever since he’d met Hudson, and he knew he would do anything to stay at Hudson’s side.