Read Online Kate Sherwood - Dark Horse 01 - Dark Horse by Kate Sherwood - Free Book Online
Authors: Kate Sherwood
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knows he’s been caught. He pours a draft and sets it in front of Chris, and then reaches for the bottle of Wild Turkey, holding it up questioningly.
“Fuck, yes, man. Get pouring.” Dan takes a minute to look at Chris, and sees that the man looks about as bad as Dan feels. But somehow, Dan is having a harder time forgiving Chris than he is forgiving Justin’s parents. He’s not angry, exactly; it just feels like he doesn’t know Chris as well as he thought he did. Like Dan had thought they were better friends than they were. He pours and then puts the glass on the bar and goes to serve other customers. When there’s a gap in the orders, he restocks the bar or polishes glasses, rather than going and talking to Chris like he normally would.
Chris drains his glass, and Dan has to go back to offer a refill. He isn’t surprised when Chris tries to stop him from leaving again. “Dan, do you have a minute? We should talk.”
Dan tries to maintain his calm. “Sorry, man, not really. I’m at work.”
Chris snorts. “Dan, you’re one of the top eventing trainers in the country. You shouldn’t be worried about your job as a bartender!”
Dan turns back to him, this time a little more fiercely. “Well, as of this morning, this is the only job I’ve got, so if you don’t mind, I’d like to keep it. If you have some sort of business you need me for, you can call me tomorrow—my schedule has just gotten really open.”
“Well, if you’re looking for work, you could consider the offer from Kaminski. He seems to be willing to throw a hell of a lot of money around.”
Dan is done trying to walk away from this. “Okay, first, other than you and Karl and Molly rambling about something, I haven’t actually gotten an offer from Kaminski—well, I have, but he wasn’t interested in me riding a horse , exactly. Second, it’s really none of your damn business what I do for a living—if you don’t see fit to include me in decisions about my lover’s life , then why the hell should I include you in my decisions about any damn thing? And, third, I’m not leaving Justin. So even if there is a job in California, I won’t be taking it.” Dan’s voice has risen enough that people are starting to look over, and he takes a deep breath to calm himself. He continues a little more quietly. “So, this job is still pretty important. I’d appreciate it if you would try to not fuck that up for me.”
Chris looks a little surprised by the depth of Dan’s resentment, but he doesn’t give up. “Okay, fine. No discussion, no conversation, but just let me give you one little fact.”
Dan waits reluctantly, and Chris continues. “The offer from Kaminski for buying the horses—it’s a really good offer, and Karl and Molly want it a lot. It’s way better than they’ll ever get for selling the horses individually, and it’s quick and easy and stress-free, which would be great for them right now. But the deal’s contingent on Kaminski being able to hire a suitable trainer for the horses.” Chris pauses and takes a sip of his bourbon as Dan stands waiting. “Now, that’s all it says in the contract, ‘a suitable trainer’. But the contract says that it’s Kaminski’s place to determine who’s ‘suitable’, and he’s made it pretty clear that when he says ‘suitable’, he means you .” Chris looks Dan in the eyes. “So, I’m not telling you what to do—I wouldn’t know what to say even if you were interested in listening. But I wanted to be sure you had the information before you made any big decisions. It’s absolutely your choice whether you want to take the job or not. But I just thought you should be aware that without you, the deal goes south.”
Chris polishes off what’s left in his glass and stands up. “So, if it’s all right with you, I’ll give Kaminski your number; have him give you a call.” Dan nods distractedly, and Chris’s expression softens. “Molly said you moved out of the apartment
“Fuck, yes, man. Get pouring.” Dan takes a minute to look at Chris, and sees that the man looks about as bad as Dan feels. But somehow, Dan is having a harder time forgiving Chris than he is forgiving Justin’s parents. He’s not angry, exactly; it just feels like he doesn’t know Chris as well as he thought he did. Like Dan had thought they were better friends than they were. He pours and then puts the glass on the bar and goes to serve other customers. When there’s a gap in the orders, he restocks the bar or polishes glasses, rather than going and talking to Chris like he normally would.
Chris drains his glass, and Dan has to go back to offer a refill. He isn’t surprised when Chris tries to stop him from leaving again. “Dan, do you have a minute? We should talk.”
Dan tries to maintain his calm. “Sorry, man, not really. I’m at work.”
Chris snorts. “Dan, you’re one of the top eventing trainers in the country. You shouldn’t be worried about your job as a bartender!”
Dan turns back to him, this time a little more fiercely. “Well, as of this morning, this is the only job I’ve got, so if you don’t mind, I’d like to keep it. If you have some sort of business you need me for, you can call me tomorrow—my schedule has just gotten really open.”
“Well, if you’re looking for work, you could consider the offer from Kaminski. He seems to be willing to throw a hell of a lot of money around.”
Dan is done trying to walk away from this. “Okay, first, other than you and Karl and Molly rambling about something, I haven’t actually gotten an offer from Kaminski—well, I have, but he wasn’t interested in me riding a horse , exactly. Second, it’s really none of your damn business what I do for a living—if you don’t see fit to include me in decisions about my lover’s life , then why the hell should I include you in my decisions about any damn thing? And, third, I’m not leaving Justin. So even if there is a job in California, I won’t be taking it.” Dan’s voice has risen enough that people are starting to look over, and he takes a deep breath to calm himself. He continues a little more quietly. “So, this job is still pretty important. I’d appreciate it if you would try to not fuck that up for me.”
Chris looks a little surprised by the depth of Dan’s resentment, but he doesn’t give up. “Okay, fine. No discussion, no conversation, but just let me give you one little fact.”
Dan waits reluctantly, and Chris continues. “The offer from Kaminski for buying the horses—it’s a really good offer, and Karl and Molly want it a lot. It’s way better than they’ll ever get for selling the horses individually, and it’s quick and easy and stress-free, which would be great for them right now. But the deal’s contingent on Kaminski being able to hire a suitable trainer for the horses.” Chris pauses and takes a sip of his bourbon as Dan stands waiting. “Now, that’s all it says in the contract, ‘a suitable trainer’. But the contract says that it’s Kaminski’s place to determine who’s ‘suitable’, and he’s made it pretty clear that when he says ‘suitable’, he means you .” Chris looks Dan in the eyes. “So, I’m not telling you what to do—I wouldn’t know what to say even if you were interested in listening. But I wanted to be sure you had the information before you made any big decisions. It’s absolutely your choice whether you want to take the job or not. But I just thought you should be aware that without you, the deal goes south.”
Chris polishes off what’s left in his glass and stands up. “So, if it’s all right with you, I’ll give Kaminski your number; have him give you a call.” Dan nods distractedly, and Chris’s expression softens. “Molly said you moved out of the apartment
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