Page 41 of Moonshot

Looking over to my friend, I notice his stoic expression. It’s now evident to me that Trevor is a newer acquaintance. Most anyone in fire, EMS, or the police in this area knows Zach’s story. And there’s not one who’d say Zach had it all figured out.

“You still haven’t heard anything from her? I thought you had to see her at work,” Zach asks.

“Well, I managed to get a pass on calling on their office for a bit. But I have to go next week, and I’m dreading it.”

“She cheat too?” Trevor asks as he casts his line in a completely different direction than where it had been before.

“Yeah. With her boss. Wish I could say I’m surprised. She was every bit as beautiful as your ex. She didn’t model or anything. Won a bunch of beauty pageants when she was younger to help pay for school.” I’m not sure why I feel I’m betraying Ava to talk about her in this way? Fuck. She’s the one that cheated on me. But it still feels wrong somehow. “Anyway, there might be something to your system.”

I turn, and both Zach and Trevor are looking at me deadpan.

“Only dating down.”

They both nod and return to watching their lines. Boy, the three of us are some sad lot. Zach’s avoided women for years unless he needs a rare hookup. And the two of us youngbloods can’t be more bitter. Yet, we’re not young anymore. That’s the thing. Zach has done the married life. He’s made his choice to live this way. I’m pushing thirty. Do I really want to spend the rest of my life hanging out with bitter, lonely guys like this? I reach over to scratch Otis behind his ear. God, what I’d give for a dog. If I didn’t have to travel so much, I’d at least have a loyal companion. But between life on the road and the frequent practices and games, it simply wouldn’t be fair to the pup.

“Are you sure about what you saw?” Zach pushes. I’m surprised by his questioning. He tends to think the worst of all women.

“Come on, man. It was clear as day.”

“Did you walk in on them?” he continues.

“Well, they weren’t fucking or anything. The lights were off in her office, and he was massaging her shoulders and whispering in her ear.”

“I know what you think you saw, Mick. But you went from telling me this girl walked on water to this. It just seems like a big leap.”

“Well, I guess money and status talk. Plus, he’s not a bad-looking guy. He’s just a asshat. And not because he was with Ava. Hell, she’s beautiful. Why not go after her? But I swear I thought he was married. And he’s a real dick. I’ve never met a more condescending asshole.”

Zach shakes his head, reeling his line in to change lures. “What’re you going to do if you see her? Next week, I mean?”

“I don’t know. I was thinking about going later in the day and just asking the receptionist if one of the docs could sign for me. I don’t have to see her.”

“It’s never that easy, though. You just going to ignore the elephant in the room if you can’t avoid seeing the girl?”

“Yep. I’m at work. I can’t fucking quit. I’m the only rep in this area. I’d have to move or take on a different product line, making a hell of a lot less money. Shit. I’ve thought about it. But I don’t see any way around it.”

“Women,” Trevor spits as he casts his line again.

* * *

Driving home, I feel different than I expected after spending time with Zach today. It was nothing against Trevor. I hadn’t been fishing with Zach and Otis for weeks. Between almost squeaking out a win with the boys today and knowing I was finally meeting my best bud to hang out, I was optimistic I’d have a better outlook on the week ahead.

Instead, the three of us commiserating together about our shitty luck with women seemed to amplify my foul mood. That and none of us caught a goddamn thing. Well, unless you count Trevor’s fish the size of a postage stamp.

What will I do if I see Ava next week? Sure, I probably should confront her. Tell her she only had to be an adult and let me down easy. I could take it. But I have no plans to see her outside of work ever again, and that isn’t the type of conversation I need to risk having in her office.

I’ll just be an adult about it. I’ll show up extra early or super late and hope she’s not there. Like the scaredy cat I am. If that doesn’t work, I’ll simply say I’m sorry things didn’t work out, and I hope we can keep things professional.

As I continue the drive home, I look down at the empty cooler on the passenger seat, and it dawns on me I have nothing at the house to eat. I’m not in the mood for anything heavy, so I decide to stop at a local sushi restaurant and order a few things for takeout. Their food is fresh and fast. I’ll just place the order once I arrive, and it should only be about fifteen minutes until it’s ready.

Arriving at Fuji, I put the car in park and search on my phone for their number. I need to just add them to my contacts as often as I order from here. Ah, there it is. I place my order for miso soup, a salad, a spring roll, a Tiger roll, and a Dynamite roll. The memory of my encounter with the Naga pork curry dish quickly comes to mind, and I decide to change the Dynamite roll to something less risky. Not willing to chance that again anytime soon.

Scrolling through my phone, I check out a few posts on TikTok while I await my order. Time passes quickly as I watch one grown-assed adult after another making a video where it appears a pen they are using disappears into their nose. These are some of the most ridiculous videos I’ve ever seen on this social media app.Why am I watching this?Realizing it’s probably been about fifteen minutes, I grab my keys and begin to open my car door when I spot one striking, tall blonde standing in front of the sports bar down the sidewalk from the Asian restaurant.

The guy she’s with is clearly not Joseph Stark. But then again, if he’s married, they probably can’t be seen together out in public. This guy is tall and broad. He appears pretty muscular compared to Dr. Dick. Watching the two of them, they must be pretty familiar with one another. Their postures both appear quite relaxed. I watch as he leans in for a hug, giving her a quick peck on the cheek before turning and walking away. Hell, maybe he’s gay. There’s no way I could kiss her on the cheek and not slide over to devour her mouth. As I watch her walk to her car, I replay the many hot, sensual kisses we’ve shared.How could she have kissed me like that and then want Stark? I don’t get it.

Hell, I need to just pull the bandaid off and get back out there. I’m out of town twice this week before heading to her office. If I can score while I’m in Salem, it’ll make it easier to move on. Two can play this game.

CHAPTERNINETEEN

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