Page 151 of Broken Wheels

Josh had to admit Dixon was right.

“Fine,” he said with a sigh. Then he remembered he had far more important things to think about. He shot a quick glance to the microwave so he could see the time. It was getting close. His heartbeat sped up.

I hope Dixon takes his gift the way I intended.

It felt like an awfully big gamble.

“I’m going in the other room,” he said, trying but failing to stand. “Okay, never mind. After my appointment, I’m a little sore, so I’m going to stretch out here on the couch and take a nap.”

“Want me to join you?”

That sounded like heaven, but the latest development had already taken its toll. Josh needed sleep. Too much stress, too little rest. “Can I take a raincheck?”

“Of course. Shut your eyes, Doc. I’m here with you, and I won’t be going anywhere.”

Josh closed his eyes, and a moment later, Coby climbed up behind him, her purrs rumbling through Josh, relaxing him.

And then he dozed off.

Dix stared at Doc, Coby curled on his shoulders. Even in sleep, worry creased Doc’s features. Dix couldn’t think of anything he could do to make it better for Doc. Hell, even saying something encouraging came across as merely platitudes, because he had no idea how the guy felt about having his life ripped apart by Spencer.

All he could do was hold him and wait for the eventual fallout.

He went to turn off his computer when his phone chimed. He glanced at the screen, and was about to send the unknown number to voicemail so it wouldn’t wake Doc.

“You’ll want to get that,” Doc said from the couch, his eyes still closed. “Trust me on this.”

Dix couldn’t think of anyone he trusted more.

He slid a finger over the screen. “This is Meeks.”

It was quiet for a moment. “Dixon?”

No way. Even though a couple of decades had passed, Dix still recognized that voice. “Whit?”

“Hey, man. How you doing?”

It was as if Dix was a teenager again, listening to his best friend, wishing they could get together and raise some hell.

Then it hit him.

“How’d you get this number?”

Whit chuckled. “I got a mail from someone called ‘Doc,’ who told me I should call you. They said it was important.”

Dix’s head snapped toward the couch where Doc sat, hand in the air, giving him a thumbs-up. He stood, cuddling Coby, who refused to relinquish her warm spot, and headed into the other room. Dix was torn between rushing after him or trying to get some closure. He figured since Doc had to have gone to a lot of trouble to set this up, the least he could do was stay and work on getting his shit together.

“Doc is my guy,” Dix said. “Been with him for a while now.”

“Really? That’s great. I’m married now. Living with my husband and our daughter, Alana.” He sighed. “Look, Dix, I’m sorry about everything that?—”

“No,” Dix said sharply. “Not one bit of what happened is on you. I was the one who fucking freaked out. It was me who pushed you away, and I’ve regretted it every goddamn day, but I was too much of a coward to deal with my shit. Doc was the one who convinced me I needed to man up.”

Yeah, Doc knew him well enough to know Dix wouldn’t have done that. He would have suffered, probably thinking of it as penance for his transgressions against his friend.

Whit chuckled. “You were a mule back then, and I doubt you’re much better now.”

Oh yeah, that whole “best friends know you” thing was an inescapable truth.

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