time with Gavyn and Noah. And in the evenings, we can draw up plans for Bare Natural 2.0 with input from the full crew instead of just us.”
He held his breath as he waited for her reaction. These past several days she had been on edge, not at all the calm, unflappable, ultimately happy woman he’d loved pretty much forever. Would she think he was betraying her if he admitted he craved action instead of this never-ending spinning of their wheels?
Hell, it wasn’t often he saw Devon of all people walking on eggshells around Kayla. But none of them wanted to risk wounding her more than she’d already been lately. Or setting her off. She wasn’t herself. And he didn’t know how to do more than put a Band-Aid on the problem, taking her mind off things for the duration of a favorite TV show, or a quickie in the shower, or long enough to feed her a warm meal. Was this how impotent she’d felt after his accident?
His stomach lurched, making him glad he hadn’t yet partaken of the bacon and eggs James was whipping up for them. Kayla had stood by him—hell, for him—when he couldn’t do it himself, and now Dave had to do the same for her.
Would she see their suggestion as an abandonment or as a way to help her snap out of this funk that was so unlike her to fall into, which was what he intended it to be?
Kayla stared at the four of them and their very carefully composed faces as they prepared to duck for cover if necessary. Then she surprised them by bursting out laughing. “Are you that afraid of me? Jeez. I must need a vacation. Get me some coffee and breakfast and let’s hit the road. You’re right: we might as well be productive. And…being together, with the whole crew, will be good for me too. I’m sorry I’ve been such a pain in your asses.”
“Yas!” James fist-pumped even as Neil was taking his phone from his back pocket to text the good news to the rest of the crew in their ongoing group chat. “I mean, you haven’t been any trouble, but it sucks not being able to do more from here. I think it’ll be good to get out of here and really think things through without constantly having to face the aftermath of the fire.”
They couldn’t so much as drive down the street without seeing people who’d been displaced bunking up with friends, signs for still-missing pets, and advertisements for cleanup crews staked into the corners at intersections. It was impossible to escape the far-reaching ramifications unless they hunkered down inside. And hiding out was starting to make Dave stir-crazy.
The rest of their little gang, too.
“You better make double.” Neil got the eggs out of the refrigerator for his husband. “I have a feeling we’re going to need our energy when we get there. And I’m not talking about working the Hot Rods construction site either.”
“We did leave in kind of a hurry, and things have been so tense since then. I bet you’re right. Someone is going to crack pretty quick, probably me, and need to blow off steam together.” Kayla sighed. “Sorry about that. About everything.”
“It’s not your fault.” Devon crossed to her and wormed between Dave and Kayla. “I know this is the last thing you ever would have wanted. I’m sorry we can’t snap our fingers and make things right as fast as they were destroyed.”
“I guess that’s just not how life works. Progress is slow and steady, but tragedy can wipe away years of hard work and doing the right thing in an instant.” Kayla’s smile faded a bit. “We should make the best of the situation, though. Isn’t that what we’ve always done?”
“Yup.” Dave rubbed the scars on his thigh, then held his hand out to Kayla. “We’re going to get through this. It might take a while and it won’t always be easy, but we can do it. Being with the rest of the crew will only make the time go faster. We were going to be missing them so hard this summer and now we have a chance to go be with them. We should take it while we can.”
“I’m grateful that I have you.” Kayla hugged Devon, then leaned in to kiss Dave. “All of you. All right. Let’s go.”
6
Dave tried not to check on Kayla for the four-thousandth time during their drive, and failed. He