Page 41 of Fire Me Up
Lucas blushed, so like his brother, and yet… not. “Oh. Um. No? I just met a few guys from class for lunch. Gael, I’ll tell Dylan you’re looking for him if I see him.”
I thanked them and headed back outside, disappointment settling heavy in my gut. I circled around to the employee parking area, confirming what I already knew—Dylan’s bike was gone. So was the chance to have this conversation face to face.
I leaned against my truck, staring at the spot where his motorcycle usually sat. What now? Leave a voicemail? Text him? “Hey, great news, I’m healed! Bad news, I’m moving back to the Springs! Also, I might be in love with you!”
Fuck.
I wasn’t supposed to fall for him. That wasn’t part of the arrangement. I’d promised myself I’d keep it casual, enjoy the experience without complicating things. But somewhere between learning to ride and learning what his body felt like against mine, I’d broken that promise.
Now I had twelve hours before I needed to be back in Colorado Springs, reporting for duty. Twelve hours to figure out how to tell Dylan that everything was about to change. Twelve hours to prepare myself for the possibility that what we had—whatever it was—might not survive the distance.
Unless I told him about the transfer request. But that was a whole other conversation, one that might scare him off completely.
I pushed off from the truck, unsure where to go next. Liv’s place? Back to the doctor’s office to beg them to say I needed another month of recovery? The mountains to track down Dylan?
My phone buzzed in my pocket. I snatched it up, heart leaping—but it was just Liv.
“Hey,” I answered, trying to keep the disappointment from my voice.
“So? What’s the verdict?” She sounded annoyingly cheerful.
“I’m cleared. Full duty, starting the day after tomorrow.”
“That’s fantastic! We should celebrate tonight! I’ll tell Marisol to meet us at—”
“Can we do it another time?” I cut her off. “I need to talk to Dylan first.”
A pause. “Ah. The boyfriend talk. Finally.”
“He’s not my boyfriend.” The automatic denial came out sharper than I intended.
“But you want him to be.”
I didn’t answer. Didn’t need to.
“Gael? You there?”
“Yeah.” I sighed, scanning the parking lot again as if Dylan might materialize. “I’m at the FRMC. He’s not here.”
“Sweetheart, he might not want—”
Movement near the food truck area caught my eye. Not Dylan, but two familiar figures walking toward the building. Aiden, animated as always, talking a mile a minute. Beside him, Cash, silent and steady, nodding occasionally.
“I’ll call you back,” I said, hanging up on Liv’s protests.
Maybe they knew where Dylan was. And if not, maybe they could help me figure out what the hell I was supposed to do next.
Aiden was impossible to miss in his bright yellow Egg Me On t-shirt, hands gesturing wildly as he talked. Cash walked beside him, silent as always, nodding at whatever Aiden was saying. They were an odd pair—Aiden all animation and chatter, Cash built like a brick wall with tattoos. But the way they moved together, perfectly in sync despite their differences, made my chest ache. That’s what I wanted with Dylan. That wordless understanding. That certainty.
“Gael!” Aiden waved enthusiastically when he spotted me.
I forced a smile as they approached. “Hey guys.”
Cash gave me a nod, his version of a greeting. Up close, I could see smudges of flour on Aiden’s shirt. Lunch rush at the food truck must have been busy.
“You look like someone kicked your puppy.” Aiden tilted his head. “Everything okay with you and Dylan? Did he do something stupid?”
“I got cleared to return to work.” The words tumbled out before I could stop them. “Full duty, starting tomorrow in Colorado Springs.”
