At the site, Ty was already there, clipboard in hand, talking with one of the contractors.When he spotted Oren, his brows creased.
“You okay?You look like you’ve seen a ghost.”
Oren shrugged, trying to breeze past it.“Fine.Just tired.”
Ty stepped in front of him.“Cut the crap, Oren.I’m not buying it—what’s really going on?”
That’s when Oren snapped.
“You want me to talk about my fucking feelings?Jesus, Ty, is that what this is now?You corner me in a hallway, kiss me without consent or warning, and now I’m supposed to open up like this is fucking therapy hour?”
Ty reeled back like he’d been slapped.“What the hell, Oren?”
Oren’s face was flushed, breathing ragged.“I don’t need this.I don’t need either of you crawling into my head.Just stay the fuck out of it.”
“You know what, fuck you,” Ty snapped.
Oren glared back, teeth gritted.“Yeah, I know you want that, too—but newsflash, you’re not my type.I don’t do needy little bitches who throw tantrums when they don’t get their way.”
Dale had stepped around the corner just in time to hear that.“Oren—”
“No,” Ty cut in, voice like a blade.“Don’t even try to fucking twist this like that.You can hate me, you can call me names, I don’t give a shit, but do not accuse me of forcing myself on you.That’s not just bullshit—it’s cruel.I’ve lived through that kind of trauma, and I’d never put anyone through it.Fucking.Never.Damn you for throwing that at me like it meant nothing, and fuck you for making me say it out loud.”
The silence that followed was thick.
“Goddamn you, Oren.”Ty shook his head and walked off without saying another word.
Dale didn’t follow.He turned to Oren, his expression unreadable.“That was rough.”
Oren slumped onto a low bench in one of the half-finished therapy rooms and dropped his head into his hands.Dale sat beside him, quiet.Everything from the past ten minutes whirled around his head, and he could accurately see the cause and effect of his behavior and he groaned.
“I fucked up,” Oren muttered.
“Yeah, you did.Big time.”Dale said simply.
Oren lifted his head with a snort.“Thanks for sugar-coating it.”
Dale’s voice was calm.“You don’t need sugar-coating.You need the truth.”
Oren nodded, scrubbing a hand through his hair.“You think he’ll forgive me?”
“He’s your best friend.And he cares about you.A lot.He’s angry now, but ...yeah.”Dale looked over.“He’ll forgive you.But he’s going to make you work for it.”Oren winced, knowing that was true and that he deserved to have to do it.
Dale stood up from the bench and turned to stand in front of him.“We should all talk.Tonight.My suite.I’ll cook.”
Oren hesitated.Then nodded.Ty wouldn’t turn down a chance to spend time with Dale.This might be a chance to start on Operation Please Forgive Me.“Okay.”
Dale stood staring at him for a moment, then reached down to grip Oren’s shoulders and wrench him up.“Seems only fair I get a taste of you, too.”
And then he kissed him.
It wasn’t soft or questioning.It was confident and deep and full of fire.Oren’s hands gripped Dale’s arms before he even realized what he was doing.
When Dale pulled back, Oren stared at him, lips tingling, mind scrambling.He hadn’t expected that—not from Dale.The kiss had been hot, consuming, and for a second, he’d leaned into it like it was the most natural thing in the world.Dale was licking his lips, eyes dark, a crooked grin playing at the corners of his mouth.
“That was, um, wow,” Oren said, breathless, still reeling.
Dale chuckled low.“Hell, yeah, it was.”
