The Man Who Loved Cole Flores (Dig Two Graves 1)

At least Saul was a quiet man who didn’t ask too many questions.

“We’re almost there,” Saul told him, chewing on jerked meat as they continued down a grassy path toward the boulder where Cole and Ned had trained shooting in the days before the train job.

The sun stabbed Ned’s eyes as they changed direction, and he lowered his hat, stashing the tintype in the saddlebag. Many times throughout the ride, he’d considered getting rid of it, but that only reminded him Cole had a picture of them too, and had surely already seen it for what it was.

He wouldn’t have told anyone in camp what they’d done, since it would have implied he shared Ned’s perverse nature, but if he knew… if he remembered what had happened, their friendship would be over.

Ned still took time to wash his face and comb his hair when they stopped by a stream for a short break. A voice at the back of his head whispered that while alcohol had been involved, Cole still found him handsome enough to kiss. He did not want to look like a mountain man when they saw one another again.

When they rode into camp, Ned was met with more smiles than usual. The news of him being Tom’s savior had spread, and all that approval tasted like the most delicious soup… stuffed with rotten meat. It would make him sick sooner or later, but he’d finally done it—gained the gang’s favor and trust. Too bad the actions that got him there were so foul.

Lotta ran out of Tom’s tent, clapping her delicate hands. Her beautiful blue dress was dirty at the hem from swiping dirt, but she still looked like a princess in Ned’s eyes, and he froze at the sight of her, feeling unworthy of her attention. Especially now.

After he’d put his hands on Cole. After he’d robbed a train and allowed Tom to kill two innocent people.

But as he dismounted, she took him straight into her arms for a silent hug.

“She says she’s very grateful,” Tom said from the entryway to his tent, facing Ned with his torso bare and the upper half of his union suit wrapped around his waist like a thick belt.

Cole was nowhere to be seen, likely eager to avoid Ned, and the upcoming awkwardness was gnawing at Ned’s throat even when Lotta offered him a white handkerchief, pointing to the initials NO embroidered in the corner.

“For me?” he asked, trying not to agonize over the loss of the one friendship he cared for, and she responded by hanging off his nape again.

Ned squeezed Lotta back to keep her from breaking his neck, and tried not to think that his presence here was about ending the life of her man, not saving it. “I just wish we’d turned back for Adam Wild when he had the chance.”

“That’s all right. We’ll get him out,” Tom said, approaching Ned with a casual gait. “I’m sending men to three nearby towns. They must be jailing him in one of them.”

A low cry made everyone turn their heads toward Scotch, who hit his head on the back of the chuck wagon while carrying a barrel of pickles.

Mary ran his way once she realized no other help was coming, but Tom only shook his head. “Careful there. We need to pack up fast, but not at the cost of supplies!”

“Where are we headed?” Ned asked, realizing that he might send word to the Pinkertons if he knew the location of their next campsite.

Tom opened his arms with a wide grin. “Saul says he knows a place. He’ll ride there now to make sure it’s still safe,” he said, nodding at the tall man, who hadn’t bothered to dismount. Saul was off with a brief nudge at his gelding’s sides, once again leaving Ned in limbo.

In the midday heat, people swarmed like ants, packing everything into wagons. Even tents were being taken down. “What do you want me to do?”

“You’ll go with me.”

That voice. So sweet, if raspy from last night’s drinking.

A hand rested on the back of Ned’s nape, sending odd sensations all over his body. Did Cole have any idea what his touch was doing to Ned now? The gentle petting alone could have got him hard.

He stepped to the side to acknowledge Cole’s presence but was too embarrassed to look at him and kept his gaze on Tom. “Or I could help Bertha with the supplies. Scotch isn’t doing too well today.”

Tom hummed, but before he could have made his decision, Cole stepped in and gave Ned’s shoulder a pat. “Better don’t get between her and Zeb. They’re like a cat and mouse today. With Zeb being the mouse,” he added in a quieter voice.

Even Lotta chuckled at that and once again nodded at Ned before making a series of gestures with her hands. Cole stepped forward and made some of his own, but while they were much slower than hers, it was obvious they understood one another. She provided an answer with a fast wave of her fingers before walking off to her quarters.