Outlaw Vices (third in The Crane Gang Series)manxman

Chapter Thirteen

Chapter Thirteen

Craig was attempting to talk himself into getting out of the bed. He needed to get a good bath, a change of clothes and head back to the ranch so Ezekiel didn't worry too long about where he was.

Choosing to ignore the fact that he was thinking about someone else's feelings above his own, Craig sat up and threw his legs over the bed. He was just preparing to gather up his energy to stand when a loud bang sounded on the door.

Craig went diving for his gun as the door swung open. "Tell her to cover up because I'm coming in," Ezekiel growled as he strode into the room.

Then the big man stopped. Craig was tangled up in the sheet on the floor with his revolver aimed at Ezekiel's chest while Ezekiel glanced around the room with confusion.

"What in the hell do you think you're doing?" Craig demanded, putting his gun down. "I could have shot you."

Ezekiel closed the door behind him, though it didn't shut quite right with the splintered lock. "I uh..." He rubbed at his neck and appeared more out of place and at a loss for words than Craig had ever seen him. It was endearing really.

Craig freed himself from the sheet and stood up, wishing the pounding in his head would subside. "You know if you wanted to come in, you could have just asked. Now they're gonna charge me for a lock."

Ezekiel shook his head and fixed Craig with a stern glare. "Why are you here? Why aren't you at the ranch?"

Craig yawned and winced at the increased tempo of the drummers in his head. "I had a night off and Chester wanted to come to town, daddy. I'm sorry I didn't ask for permission but you were already gone doing whatever it was you went to do last night."

"Edison had me checking a fence line," Ezekiel quickly informed him. "And that doesn't matter. Why, when you get one free moment, do you insist on coming into town and getting drunk, gambling away your money and bedding every woman in sight?"

Craig frowned. He wanted to tell Ezekiel to go to hell but his head hurt too bad. Instead he walked to the water basin and splashed some water on his face before drying it with a stiff white towel. "First off, I didn't gamble away all my money. Second, getting drunk was a mistake, I'll admit that. The headache I have this morning is proof enough. And third, while I can't remember the last half of the night, I do recall that the first half I wasn't tempted by any of the scantily clad women vying for my attention. And since I woke up here alone this morning, I'm assuming the second half of the night went about the same."

Ezekiel glanced around again, his shoulders sagging a bit. Craig realized the man looked tired—bone tired. He felt another tug of guilt for causing him to worry. Then again, it wasn't Craig's fault the man was so overbearing.

"I came here to let you know I wasn't gonna be responsible for you anymore."

"Good. I don't need anyone to be responsible for me," Craig muttered. "I was just waking up and I was going to head down, get a good bath, a new change of clothes and then head on out to the ranch even though I don't have to work today. You don't have to worry about me."

Ezekiel flopped down in the chair, his gaze never leaving Craig. "Don't I?"

Craig shoved his hand through his tangled blond hair, attempting to tame it a bit. "No. I feel better than I have in a long time. Sure, I drank far too much last night but it didn't leave me wanting more. I've been known to completely lose myself in whiskey for days, or even weeks, but I don't want more just now. And I was about to come back to work early." He winked. "Surely I get credit for that."