Free Kate Sherwood - Dark Horse 2.4 - The Filly by Kate Sherwood

The Filly | Kate Sherwood
    Jeff smiles at both of them, then reaches across to rest his fingers on Evan's wrist. Even just that little bit of contact seems calming. "Remember when we met Dan, kid. You thought he was a good guy based on how he acted around horses, and you were right." Jeff's lips twitch just a little. "And you've got to admit, riders have some advantages— tight asses; nice, fluid hip movement…."
    Evan jerks his hand away. "Shit, Jeff!" He frowns at both of them. "This is Valentine's Day for us, too, you know. You should be being nicer." He leans back and crosses his arms. "As a matter of fact, I think I'm going to insist." Dan's become pretty good at reading Evan's shifting emotions, and he can sense the playfulness reasserting itself. "You fuckers are going to woo me. You're going to apologize for your bad behavior. Your insensitive, inappropriate, and hurtful comments. You need to grovel a little, and make it up to me." He's nodding now, as if he's realizing the brilliance of his scheme. "We're going to wait for Brian to get here, then we're going to make his life a living hell for a while, and when they leave—it's wooing time."
    The doorbell rings, and Evan stands slowly, not looking away from the other two men. "You probably want to take some time to make a plan, I'd say." The mischief is clear in his eyes, now. "'Cause I am absolutely going to make you work for it. Both of you." He turns and heads for the front door.
    Dan has no problem with that idea, and judging by Jeff's slow smile, it's a unanimous winner. For now, though, they stand and follow Evan out to the front hall. Evan had been insistent that he wanted back up, and Brian had cornered Dan in the barn earlier that day, nervous and stuttering and asking whether Dan was going to be at the house when he arrived. He'd made it pretty clear that he was hoping for a friendly face. Dan's so happy that Tat's found someone who's already aware of her brother's unconventional love life that he'd been more than willing to help out. Evan opens the front door and just stands there. Dan's behind him, so

The Filly | Kate Sherwood
    he can't see his expression, but his shoulders are set and his neck is tense and he looks huge. Dan shifts enough so that he can see past Evan to Brian, his smooth young face frozen in a stiff, formal smile.
    Evan lets the moment last so long Dan's about to intercede, welcome the kid himself, but it's Evan's house and Evan's sister, so Dan makes himself stay out of it until Evan finally shifts a little, leaving space for Brian to ease inside.
"Hey, Brian." Dan smiles, but he keeps it quiet, makes it clear that
    Evan's in charge.
"Dan, hey!" Brian turns a little. "And, Jeff, hi." The kid's been
working part time at the barn for months, so he knows them all. But he's
never been to the house, never gotten involved in their personal lives. Jeff smiles, then looks at Evan. "I'll just go check on Tat, see if she's
ready?" Anna and Robyn had been over that afternoon, going over lastminute wardrobe decisions, figuring out… well, figuring out whatever it is
that females figure out before going on a first date. But they'd gone home
before dinner, and Tat had barely eaten, even though Tia had left her
famous chicken lasagna, Tat's favorite. A little calming Jeff-time would
probably be a good thing.
Evan nods, then jerks his head towards the living room. "We can
wait in here." He's still practically growling, and Dan wonders how much
of this to allow before interceding. Of course, with Evan wound as tight as
he is, there's no guarantee that he'd follow Dan's suggestions, and the two
of them having a fight would do nothing to make Brian more comfortable.
He decides to wait it out— Evan's protective streak is deep, but fairly
narrow, and Dan hopes that they'll get through it soon.
He trails along behind the others, tries to read the look Jeff shoots
him before he heads down to Tat's room, but doesn't think he really gets it.
Oh well, he'll