The Gunslinger's Child

After parents die from tuberculosis, Dakota May Carver sold her home and moved north. Attempting to reorient her life, she purchases a small farmhouse just outside a town called Valentine. While at a bar, Dakota sees a trio of cowboys walk in through the doors. One of them catches her eye and she strikes up a conversation with him. They talk the night away until the owner practically pushes them out. Dakota asks the cowboy to take her back home, and they ride off to her house. Knowing how late it is, she invites the cowboy to stay the night.
The cowboy accepts, and she asks him if he'd like to sleep in her bed with her instead of out by the horses. A brisk wind leaks in through the old window seams, and in her drunken state, Dakota wriggles her way into the cowboys arms. She's never felt so safe before, and feeling his muscles relax lets her know the cowboy has never been at ease for a moment in his life. A mutual feeling of trust falls over the two drunken people, and Dakota wonders if her life will be the same if he leaves.

***Story is inspired by @maeve..morgan on tiktok!!***