Page 9 of Huge Dynamite
The only one I’m worried about having a relationship with is Colt, my kid brother. After the rocky start we had, I’m still floored that he hunted me down here in Hoppa, Arizona and decided to pledge for the Steel Knights.
Walking into the back room, the tension is so thick, it’s like I’m walking into a bowl of jelly. Bullseye is sitting in a chair with his torso sprawled across the table littered with blueprints I created for the clubhouse and papers about the plans for expansion. Nick’s sitting near the window, puffing on a cigar. He’s got the window cracked, and when the breeze blows in just a certain way, the cool evening desert air feels great against my burning skin.
“Jesus, guys.” Waving my hand through the air, I make my way to the table, pull out a chair, and spin it. Plopping down, I rest my elbows on the back of the chair. “No one else left to grab a shower? It smells like a freaking locker room in here.” I don’t know what else to say to break the ice.
Lifting himself off of the table, Avery raises his bottle in a toast. “Some of us had reasons to come right back to the clubhouse.”
“Your reason’s gonna run when she smells you,” I joke, trying anything to ease the stress that’s downright tangible. “Where is Seneca, anyway? Working around back?”
“Damn straight, and I want to finish this up so I can go help her.”
“You mean slow her down,” Harry adds. “I’ve never seen anyone who can fix a bike like Seneca.”
“True.” Avery grins.
Damn, he’s got it bad.
“All right.” Stamping out his cigar, Nick stands and waves his hand through the air to clear it of his smoke. “Enough with the chitchat.” He turns to me. “Son, I need to find out if we have a problem on our hands.”
“What are you talking about?” My voice is low and breathy.
“I’m just going to ask point-blank. What were you thinking, going to that hospital alone tonight when you knew the Dogs were there?”
Dropping my head, I stare at the table before me. The truth is I wasn’t thinking. And everyone knows it. Raising my gaze, I look Nick in the eye. “It’s over. I can promise you that.”
“Seth, I don’t want it to be over for you. I want you to find love like the rest of us. I hope it’s with Dr. Holly if—”
“It won’t be.” I cut him off, and he raises his eyebrows at me. “Sorry,” I mutter. “Finish, please.”
“I was going to say that I hope it’s with Dr. Holly if that’s what you both want. She’s an amazing woman.”
“Yeah. But there’s nothing between us.”
“Getting shot down once doesn’t mean crap,” Harry adds.
My face warms as the blood rushes to my cheeks. “What are you talking about?”
“I know you sent her flowers.”
“Sent who flowers?” I say through clenched teeth, and my tight jaw makes the muscles in my shoulder ache.
Harry tips his head. “Dr. Holly. Who else?”
“How did you—?”
“I heard you on the phone ordering them. I waited in the other room. I didn’t want to barge in on you.”
“So you eavesdropped?”
“Seth.” Nick raises his eyebrows.
Sighing, I scrub my face with my hand. “It was only as a thank-you for helping me out.”
“It was the right thing to do,” Nick adds.
“She never got back to you?” Avery asks.
Shaking my head, I toy with an empty bottle on the table. “No. That’s one of the reasons I know it’s over before it even began. She’s just not into me. And why would she be? It took seeing her in action tonight, but I’ve finally woken up and realized that nothing can happen between us. She’s a brilliant, gorgeous doctor and I’m, well,me.”
