Page 22 of Starting Over in Cedarwood

“You’re seeing him?” Remy narrowed his eyes.

“No.”Gross.“I’m seeing Kevin Keiser. It’s new, but we’re in a good place.”

“Nice. I believe he went to school with Bobby,” Remy said. “Might not have been in the same graduating class.”

He had no idea, but he wasn’t about to argue.

“Anyway, if you can connect Daron with Kyle, that would be great. It’ll jumpstart the interview process,” Remy said. “And will get him off my back. Daron wants to work with the team and I have the feeling he’s trying to get a job with them.”

“Might be.” He didn’t listen to the gossip around the office and had no idea. But, if he could get Daron and Kyle together and redirect Kyle’s attention from Kevin, then great. “Anything else?”

“Nope.” Remy clapped him on the shoulder. “Are you happy here? In Cedarwood?”

He nodded. “I thought I wouldn’t be, but it’s gotten better. I met Kevin and we’re trying a relationship, so there’s that,” Shaun said. “It’s nice to have someone and we’re serious enough that we’re exclusive, but still meeting for dates. I like knowing we’re on the same page and I even met his cat. We’re chummy.” Well, as chummy as he could be with a feline after one meeting. “Plus, I feel like I belong.”

“You do.” Remy started away from him, then stopped short. “Hey. We’re a sponsor for the upcoming 5k race. I know you run and I’ve seen Kevin run on the trails at the Metropark. Would you be interested in running the race and wearing aTribuneshirt to be a moving advertisement?”

“I signed up for it.” He should ask Kevin if he wanted to run it, too. “When is the deadline? I don’t remember.”

“I’m fairly sure it’s passed, but don’t worry about it. I’ve got shirts for you, me, Bobby, Chris, a few others and Kevin, if he’s interested.” Remy rested his hands on his hips. “Think Kevin would be interested in wearing aTribuneshirt for the race?”

“He might, but he might feel conflicted, too—if he wants to run it.” He should ask Kevin and not expect he’d comply.

“True.” Remy nodded. “Well, ask him if he’d like to do it and I’ll ensure everyone is registered. Thanks. TeamTribune!”

Shaun snorted.Team Tribune?The name sounded silly, but also kind of cool. He belonged and now he had Kevin, too.

Right now, he needed to get back to work. He finished the mock-ups and sent them to the printer for the final checks.

Plus, he wanted a break for supper. He headed to his office and closed the door. He picked up his cell phone and typed a text to send to Kevin.

Hey you. Hope work is going okay. On dinner break and wanted to say hi. Miss you.

He hit Send before he could second-guess himself. He rather liked the pace the relationship was going and Kevin’s need to slow down. With most other relationships, Shaun jumped right into bed and the fire spiraled out of control—usually on a fast course to dying out. Not so with Kevin. They had time to figure out what they wanted and keep the fire stoked.

His phone buzzed. He checked the ID screen. Kevin calling. His heart hammered as he answered. “Hi.”

“Hi,” Kevin said. “I’m on a break, so instead of texting, I thought I’d call. How’s work?”

“Good. We finalized most of the ads and we’ll check the print versions after dinner, but it’s good,” he said. The 5k came to mind. “We’re sponsoring the race in September. Just found out.”

“Nice,” Kevin said. “Do you have to help with it? Man a table or something?”

“I’ve been asked to run it and wear a shirt with the paper’s logo on it,” Shaun said. “I planned to run it anyway.”

“Good. Those are fun.”

He hesitated. “Are you going to do it?”

“The race?”

“Yeah.”

“It’s past the time to sign up or I would. I wanted to make sure we didn’t have a game that day and I forgot to register.”

“Are you serious? Do you really want to run it?” Shaun asked.

“I do, and I’d like to run it with you.”

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