Being on the beautiful property outside the tiny town of Garrett, California, settled Levi in a way he hadn’t felt in a long time. He’d planted his tiny home on a piece of land lent to him by the owner, and his three cats loved the freedom they had to explore. Those crazy animals had been his most consistent allies from the moment he found that box on the side of the road. No matter how far into the wilds they traveled, they always came home to him at night.
Unlike lying, cheating boyfriends.
Nah, not going there. It was Thanksgiving, and Levi wanted to be in a positive mood when he walked down to his hosts’ home for a midafternoon dinner. Despite being told he didn’t need to bring anything, Levi had used his small oven to cook up a batch of his father’s infamous cornpone. Thicker and wetter than cornbread, the treat was a family favorite.
Xander had adored it.
A bit of melancholy settled over Levi as he combed his hair in the small-ish bathroom, as it still sometimes did when he remembered his late little brother. Hard to believe he’d have been gone four years this Christmas Day. Xander and Robin had loved each other hard and for a long time, but Levi was glad Robin had moved on. He was house hunting still with his boyfriend, Shawn, and they were a lovely, committed couple.
The sort of relationship Levi craved more and more, but he lived in a semiremote area now, which made meeting people kind of tough. Dating apps hadn’t netted him much success in the past. And visitors to Bentley were usually not locals so flirting there was a waste of time. Maybe some people simply didn’t get that one big love of their life, while other people like Robin got two.
Didn’t mean Levi would stop trying. Hell, today’s Thanksgiving dinner would be full of people he didn’t know, including ranch staff and Garrett locals. Maybe he’d luck into someone—if for nothing else, a good roll in the hay.
Dinner officially began at two but guests were allowed to start arriving any time after noon. Since Levi lived a brief five-minute walk from his destination, he left at right around arrival time with his platter of cut cornpone. He loved the bit of land he was currently parked on, secluded from all roads without feeling too desolate or remote. Levi had gotten used to campgrounds and similar areas to park his home, so the isolation was new. Ginger darted out of the brush and trailed him for a few dozen yards before retreating, as was her habit. Even when he went running in the morning, she followed him for a bit before turning back.
Such a mama cat.
Not that she’d ever be an actual mama, because he’d gotten all three of his kitties spayed as soon as they were old enough.
The collection of vehicles parked around the Garrett-Bentley house came into view before the actual structure. Levi hadn’t been around last year for the celebration but he had to wonder how that many people fit inside the smallish, two-story cabin. Robin had mentioned that a lot of the ranch staff who attended carpooled but that was still a heck of a lot of vehicles.
He was more familiar with the employees of Bentley Ghost Town than of the neighboring Clean Slate Ranch, but he was very good with faces, and Levi exchanged greetings with several people as soon as he entered the house. It had a log cabin exterior, but the inside was an eclectic mix of styles. The first floor had a huge open living space, with the social area near the door and a long dining table in the rear near a bank of wide windows. The view was gorgeous. To the left were stairs to the master loft, and below that was the kitchen and spare rooms.
Levi liked the design of the place a lot, and it was already swarming with people.
Wes Bentley, one half of the duo who owned the place, popped right over with a bright smile. “Hey, welcome! You didn’t have to bring anything.”
“I know but this is a family favorite.” He handed over the platter. “Cornpone. Like cornbread, only way better.”
“Excellent. Drinks are in coolers over there. Please help yourself. And there are appetizers on the table already.” Wes bounced away with the platter, his energy already infectious when the guy had probably been cooking for hours by now.
Levi had liked Wes from the moment he met the high-strung actor, much like he’d liked Wes’s bear of a boyfriend Mack Garrett, who was also Levi’s boss up at Bentley. The names could confuse folks a bit—after all, how many couples lived between towns named after them—but they were good people. He spotted Mack in the kitchen with an older lady he guessed to be Wes’s mother, as she’d been named one of the primary participants in cooking today’s menu.
While Levi could hold a conversation with just about anyone, he poured himself a plastic cup of root beer and lingered by the coat closet, watching rather than participating. The slowly growing crowd was a mix of straight and queer couples, as well as single folks like himself. He spotted the owner of Clean Slate Ranch, along with the man’s foreman and the lady who ran the guesthouse. More ranch hands. One of the servers from the ghost town’s saloon.
When Robin and Shawn arrived, Levi exchanged brief hugs with both men. He genuinely liked Shawn, who was quiet and polite and made Robin shine like the sun when Robin smiled at him. The kind of in love Levi missed, but he also wasn’t sure he wanted to risk another heartbreak just yet. It had been over a year since Grant, and his libido was definitely on board with something casual—if he could find someone.
“What are your plans for the next two months?” Shawn asked Levi. “I’m donating my time down at the ranch in the guesthouse, so I’ve got something to keep me busy.”
Shawn was the pastry/sous chef at the ghost town saloon, and he lived in a cabin with Robin down at the ranch while they house hunted. Last year, the ranch cook Patrice had broken her collarbone right before Thanksgiving, and Shawn was hired to cook for guests in her place. It was how Robin and Shawn began their flirtation and eventual romance, and this year Shawn had the same two-month break as everyone else from the ghost town.
“I’m honestly not sure,” Levi replied. “Maybe I’ll spend some time exploring local attractions for my blog. Haven’t had much time to do that yet.” Even though he’d been in Garrett for ten months, he was usually too exhausted after work to do anything except stream television shows. And on his weekend—the ghost town was closed Tuesdays and Wednesdays—he was often practicing or wandering the land.
“How about you, man?” Levi asked Robin. “Gonna sit on your ass and whittle another chess set for Shawn?”
“Ha ha.” Robin flipped him off. “No, I’ve got some woodworking commissions to keep me busy. With Christmas coming up, I got a few extra orders through the general store.”
Wood whittling had been a hobby for Robin for a long time, until he started selling pieces in the ghost town’s general store this past spring. Now he had a good little side business to help supplement his income, especially during two months without pay. Levi would be fine. He had an income from his blog and no rent to pay on the land. Only monthly payments on his house and truck, and insurance every six months.