showed me his service record. It’s impeccable. He was active in the Big Brothers chapter and several other local charities. I know he’s looking to do the same thing here. He wants to become a member of this community.”
“How the hell do you know so much about him?”
“From that dinner at Mom and Dad’s. We just all sort of showed up.” Hen shrugged. “You know how Mom is with guys like Saxon. She managed to pull his life story out of him. I don’t want to talk out of turn here, but his story is a lot like yours.”
“I know. He told me.” Christ, everyone had known about Saxon’s parents with the exception of me.
“After the OD scene you attended?” Hen’s voice was gentle.
I nodded. “I lost my shit on him that day. Christ, if not for Ozzy and Kennedy, I could have ended up being transported in my own ambulance for a psych hold.”
“How did Saxon handle the situation?”
“Like he understood and…” I paused, screwing up the courage to say the words out loud. “Like he cared about me.”
“All of us see it. Saxon’s definitely curious about you. He treats the rest of us like buddies, brothers even. But you? That’s another story.”
“What about Ozzy?” I asked, still sounding sulky.
Hen’s face screwed up into one of those are-you-nuts faces. “Ozzy has a man. He doesn’t want yours.”
“Ozzy better not want my man!” I said, a bit louder than necessary. Hennessey laughed at me. Asshole. “No, I mean what is Ozzy going to say if I’m dating someone in the firehouse?”
“You know what he’s going to say. We both do.” Hen stopped, as if he were waiting for me to answer my own question.
“He’d tell us to keep our private business out of the bunkhouse.” No one would be happier for me than Ozzy. I knew he’d be on my side, but the firehouse was a family. After what happened with Hal, the last thing we needed was more turmoil.
“Every relationship is a gamble.” Hen took a sip from his soda. “Some pay off, like with Kennedy and Ozzy. Others, don’t.”
I knew Hen was about to say like me and Toby. He also had a few relationships of his own that had sunk faster than the Titanic. I’m sure he was thinking of those failures the same way I was thinking of my own. “What do I do?”
“Come on, man. That’s the easy part. Ask him to dinner.”
“Shit. Dinner would mean a lot of talking. I’m not sure I’m ready for that yet.”
“Coward.” Hen elbowed me again. “What about a movie? Prescott Park is still doing movie nights. Grab a picnic dinner and a blanket. Enjoy a night under the stars. We all know how much you hate it when other people talk during a movie. Maybe Saxon will pass your sniff test.”
I burst out laughing. I was a bit of a bastard when it came to people shutting up during a movie. Ozzy and Hen laughed so much during Ghostbusters that I had to move to a different seat. Dad had moved to sit with me. Taking Saxon to a movie wasn’t the worst idea. Hen said he was looking to be part of the community. What better way than to go to a town event? “I’ll give it a try.”
“What’s the worst that could happen? Die Hard is playing this week. You’ve seen it so many times you can quote it by heart. Maybe Saxon talking will be sexy, rather than annoying.”
I wouldn’t count on it. I supposed it would depend on how close he was sitting to me. Damn. Hen was right. I was crushing on this guy something fierce. I pulled out my phone and texted Saxon before I could think better of it.
Hen was right. What was the worst thing that could happen?
14
Saxon
I was still in shock. Hours after Dallas called to ask me out and I said yes, I couldn’t believe this was happening to me. Maybe it was a joke or a prank. Dallas wasn’t coming at all or he’d send a clown or one of his brothers instead. Shit, why had I agreed to this in the first place?
When I’d gotten home from lunch and my errands, Gunnar and Kennedy had been unloading giant pumpkins from Kennedy’s truck. They’d been laughing and having a great time setting up their festive display. Both men looked excited to be with each other. If Dallas ever looked at me the way Kennedy looked at Gunnar,