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Who is Arthur’s secret admirer?
That question is the talk of the camp. Well, only the girls and Hosea are talking about it, but it’s still a mystery. Especially for Arthur, who finds his stomach fluttering whenever he returns to his tent to see a new tube of gun oil or treats for his horse. He’s found a present every day for a week now, but still has no clue who is leaving the gifts.
Until one day, when Arthur catches the person in the act. To Arthur’s shock, when returning from fishing at the lakeside, he spots Micah walking away from Arthur’s bed. Hands on his gunbelt, Micah walks off like he’s trying to be inconspicuous, but he fails to notice Arthur. And when Arthur enters his tent, he discovers a bottle of horse medicine on his pillow.
So his admirer is… Micah?
Micah has been less of an asshole lately, and Arthur has found himself becoming weirdly fond of him. Which explains why rather than feeling uncomfortable to be the object of Micah’s affection, Arthur is rather pleased. So, he wanders off to find him.
He locates Micah stood by Baylock, feeding Baylock an apple and patting his face.
“Hey, Micah,” Arthur says, leaning against the hitching post. “I might’ve just seen you leavin’ me a gift. Wanna talk about that?”
Micah flinches, stepping backwards. “I, I dunno what you’re talkin’ about.” He seems almost anxious, like he had no plan for this eventuality.
“Oh, don’t lie to me,” Arthur says, smirking. “We both know.”
“You’ve got no proof that was me, Morgan.”
“I literally saw you do it.”
“And why the fuck would I do that?”
Arthur sighs; he should have expected this to happen. For all his bluster, Micah isn’t a sociable man, so no wonder he’s struggling in this situation. “I only wanted to say—”
But Micah cuts him off as he continues to ramble (“Yeah, I know what you wanna say, so just do it already,” he says, his hands flailing wildly as he points at Arthur), desperately trying to talk his way out of this.
Arthur steps closer, and Micah tenses up. Does Micah fear that Arthur is about to beat him up, or that he’s disgusted by him? Arthur could try to explain, but Micah is so guarded he’ll probably shove Arthur and walk away.
So, on a stupid impulse, Arthur cups Micah’s face and kisses him to shut him up. Micah freezes for a second, but soon lets out a muffled chuckle against Arthur’s lips, kissing him back, harder.
When Arthur pulls away, Micah’s flushed, astonished expression is a picture. Micah avoids eye contact, breathing heavily and stunned into rare silence.
“I was tryin’ to say thanks, you insecure fool,” Arthur says, smiling.
After a few seconds, Micah snaps out of it, a smirk spreading across his face. “W-Well, you’re welcome, Cowpoke,” he says, trying to sound cocky, but still a little flustered.
And he pulls Arthur in for another kiss.