____‡_______‡___
We'll do a little frog giggin', cow tippin'
How 'bout a little skinny dippin', bass fishin'
Take it easy on the 'shine
And stay away from other boys' women
That's one damn good way for a
man to get it whooped down here
These boys tough down here
Get your ass tore up down here
And be an all nighter with the hippies and the hicks
Jocks and bikers, they all came
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Had Ruger even had the slightest inclination of what his proximity would reveal to her, he would have kept his distance in the fullest. Would have respected her space and kept his fingertips to himself, despite the undeniable urge he'd felt to touch her...if only to reassure himself that she had made it out, real, whole and alive. His secrets were one of the few things that were truly his own...his pain was a burden he shouldered willingly and fully. Never had he wished to shift that weight--even in portion--to the back of another. He had always made an effort to make the window to his soul an obscure one to anyone that shared contact with him. Never too close, never too deep. The rivers of pain and regret had carved a deep canyon within his soul that was his territory, and his alone. He bathed in those waters often, when the skies were dark and the hour was none. For Ruger, it was a welcome and deserved justice for his failure, a private shower to which no one else was privy. Those waters were, in their own sick way, Ruger's path to justice. Suffrage came with the territory of failure, and it was a just punishment in his eyes for what he'd done.
For all of those reasons, he would have spared Polly. If only he had known.
But the knowledge was not his to share. He was, after all, no more than human.
Instead, he took the severity of her gaze as indication of her full attention to the words he spoke. And it pleased him, for if there was anything he had wanted to convey to her, it was the full weight of what had just happened in that rotting building not 50 yards from their current stance. He needed her to know that no matter how trained she was, she couldn't take that beast on by herself. It was a far more powerful entity than any he had ever experienced, and it had already stolen so much from him. He had made every effort in the years following Katheryn's death to keep such a loss from happening again. There were no more ties for Ruger...no more relationships, friendly or otherwise. He hadn't wanted to risk another life by association.
But despite those great efforts, he had failed at that, too. For now that Jarilo had sighted Polly, had associated her with him...he knew she would never be really and fully safe. She would be prey, if only for the pure and sole purpose of vindictive nature. And by that, Ruger could never abide. From the moment he had realized the identity of his attacker, he had also realized that he could not allow his hands to be dipped into blood again. He would protect Polly from that beast, even if it would cost him the ultimate price of his very own last breath.
When she spoke affirming her promise to his demand, Ruger's features softened just slightly, as if relieved that she was not arguing him on the matter. The woman had a good head on her shoulders...and was obviously experienced enough to know that such a creature could not be taken lightly. "Good. That's real good, sweetheart." He murmured softly, blue gaze dancing over her features, softer with the relief he so obviously felt. "Guess I might get me a wink of sleep, knowin' that." His words were soft, but the smallest of grins had begun to haunt his lips once more.
His fingertips tingled when he drew them away from her skin, an odd sensation that Ruger gave only the briefest of consideration. It had been so long since he had laid flesh to another, wasn't it only expected that he be unaccustomed to the sensation? That it might be something more, something so weighted as natural human attraction...well, that was something he didn't even want to begin to explore. He gave a huffed chuckle at her words, that trademark half-smirk present fully as his gaze locked on her once more. One brow raised slightly, daringly. "That so now sugar?" His low voice held just the slightest tone of amusement. "Might be I was kinda hopin' you would, considerin' I ain't a man prone to breakin' vows." While the note of his voice was light, there was an undercurrent of concrete truth to his words that left little doubt that what he said was any less than true. A man was no more than his word, after all....it had been a lesson Ruger had learned early and employed often.
Blue seemed to swell at her words, inflated by whatever egos canines had. He continued to sniff at her hand as she spoke, his tail wagging slow circles in the air. Ruger gave a short nod of his head, not pressing the issue further. Who was he, after all, to put question to a personal matter? His own secrets ran deep. "Got me one of them myself. Right hip don't like winter since my time in the sandbox." He admitted with a wry look. Since taking a nice hot chunk of shrapnel to the area, cold weather had slowed him down considerably. He could only imagine how much worse it would become when age was not on his side. "Too bad I left the camera in the truck, yeah?" He agreed with a short snort of laughter. He didn't give two slight damns about who believed what had gone down in that shithole. It was their story, a secret shared between virtual strangers....but it was true. At least the had that to share.
He glanced down at his bloodied shirt, broad shoulders rising in a shrug. "Guess you'll just have to suffer through drivin' a brand new mopar pickup. Pretty terrible, right?" He told her, an amused expression capturing his rugged features. He knew the beast of a truck was an eye catcher...it was one of the few things he took pride in. And more often than not, it had served as home.
The sound of the van's doors opening drew his attention, and he turned to watch the group as they piled out of it. They made no effort to be quiet, no effort to conceal their presence. Ruger's assessing blue gaze flicked to each member of Polly's little guild as they approached, on guard despite the fact that it was obvious they were friendly with the little tigress. Ruger had been raised with a healthy respect for those in religious position, even if his folks had been rather fanatical and entirely hypocritical in the matter. For that reason, he felt an immediate surge of respect for the nun as he watched Polly move to wrap her arms around the other woman. With his attention focused on taking in the group as a whole Ruger missed the older woman's quip as she sent it Polly's way.
Ruger could detect military discipline in the older man immediately. And as he would with any other battle brother, he raised his chin in respect of the other, the barest of nods given. His blue gaze flicked just in time to catch the irritated look the scrawny but nonthreatening kid shot his way, and it didn't take a genius to figure out what the problem was there. Polly was a damn attractive woman, and if Ruger were a betting man, he would have willed his life savings to the notion that the kid had a thing or two for her. It was laughable really, that the kid would feel threatened by him of all people, after all. Polly was a worldly creature, an ethereal beauty and ass kicker to boot. That she would show interest in a guy like Ruger was absurd, and Ruger was quite certain the kid had nothing to fear.
"Pleasure, fellas." Ruger responded upon Polly's introduction, giving Leroy a responding nod that showed nothing but respect. He then flashed that half-smirk Terrance's way, nodding to him as well. He couldn't help but give the kids a little bit of hell, after all. As Eve cooed to Blue, Ruger's humor resurfaced. "Well now, ma'am, my name's Ruger...but if ya insist on handsome charmer, well, that'll work too..." He gave her a joking smirk. "Oh. You was talkin to the mutt. Well now, that's embarrassin' now, ain't it?" He extended his hand to Eve, his smirk turning into an all out grin. "Pleasure's all mine, Miss Eve. Believe that." Somehow, Ruger was quite sure that he would come to like this woman very much. When she indicated his wounds, he gave a light shake of his head. "No worries, Miss. My tough hide's seen worse. Just a couple flesh wounds is all. Nothin' some soap 'n water can't handle."
Blue had his nose to the air, trying to take in the scent of all three newcomers plus the impending storm all in one go. He moved slowly to Polly's side, yellowish gaze peering up at her as if in question of when they would depart. Ruger gave a little scowl at the dog. "Traitor." He mumbled under his breath, though in truth he was slightly amused at how enamored the canine seemed to be with the brunette beauty. As she rattled off her orders to the others, Ruger gave a light nod in agreement. "Don't go frettin'. Ain't been a mountain that stopped me yet. She'll be taken care of. I'll see to it." Though humor laced his voice, there was little doubt that he meant his every word. He would stop at nothing to keep Polly safe.
The kid didn't seem so sure. The way he held Polly's arm and the look in his eyes spoke volumes, and Ruger almost felt bad for the poor guy. He wished he could convey that he wasn't much of a threat...after all, he wasn't the handsomest nor the most eloquent of fellas this side of the mighty river. But there simply wasn't time. Blue followed him as they made their way to the truck, and when Polly caught up he opened the back of the truck for her, grunting at the gnawing pain of his flank. He could feel fresh seepage around the wound, and looked mighty forward to getting some gauze on the area. "The gentleman in me wants to help you with that there bag. But the hunter in me says ain't nobody got the the right to go grabbin' on another body's toys...so you just go ahead and haul that big ol' bag up in here." He told her, waiting for her to do so before slamming the door shut. He smirked as his blue eyes dipped down to the kit in her hands, then back up to her. "Well now sugar, don't you know the south's got some of the finest gents? Bet I can arrange a nice little bit of beggin' for ya." He told her with a smirk and a wink, popping the door open so Blue could get in.
Once the dog was situated, Ruger turned back to her, placing a hand on his muscled chest. "Miss, I'd be mighty obliged if you'd share them medical supplies. Might be I'll buy ya dinner if ya do. Now, if ya don't, can't say I'll be around for that dinner. Can't remember my last tetanus shot and all." It was obvious he was joking...well, except for that dinner part anyway. If she accepted, then it surely wasn't a joke. And if she didn't? Well, he could play it off as if it was.
He hopped in the truck, and immediately got to work. He hadn't forgotten that their time was limited. He reached in the back and pulled out a leather bag, digging around until he found the shirt he was seeking. He then set to work pulling the wet naps from his glove compartment. "Well damn, sugar...just a little to the right and he'd have gored me sure." Ruger commented as he lifted the hem of his shirt, revealing the round red wound marring his otherwise chiseled lower abdomen. Most of the blood had formed a deep maroon crust, but some fresh bright red liquid was still leaking sluggishly from it's middle. Ruger set to work wiping away the crust and blood, hissing through his teeth at the sting. "Remind me to show him how good wood feels next time, sugar. Think I'll try him in the goddamn heart next time." Ruger growled, obviously displeased with the upper hand the demon had gained on him. When most of the blood from his stomach was cleared away, he pulled down the lighted visor mirror and set to work cleaning the cash at his hairline. It had bled like the dickens, but it didn't appear deep enough to warrant stitches. "Seems like you got yourself a good lil' group, Tumbleweed." He commented earnestly as he worked, his blue gazed flicking her her once in a while as he worked to remove the evidence of their tussle.
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Our side of the barbed wire
Money grows in rows
If it don't you're goin' broke
So we
We hang out by the bonfire
Just the good ol' boys having a dang good time
We crank it up down here
We get loud down her
Throwin' down in the dirty, dirty south down here
Be an all nighter with the hippies and the hicks
Jocks and bikers, they all came to kick it in the
sticks
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