On the ride back, he doesn’t do any of the things he did on those first rides we took together. He doesn’t lean back and stroke my thigh comfortingly. He doesn’t place my arms around his waist and hug them tightly to him. He doesn’t seem to seek out the connection between my chest and his back like he did before.
When we pull into the driveway back at camp, he doesn’t get off the bike when I do. The rust bucket is gone. Morgan and her friends have already left for her game.
“Going for a ride to clear my head,” Evan grunts.
I step back without a word, let him get the bike turned back around, and putter off down the driveway. Once he hits the treeline on themain dirt road, off the camp property, I hear the Harley’s engine rip as he guns it away.
Well, shoot. So much for getting him to talk more about his feelings…
Chapter Eighteen
I’m starting to worry that Evan may not actually return. He’s been gone since Saturday, now it’s Tuesday, and I’m such a mess—it’s ridiculous. I’m not even trying to cover the fact that I’m a dumpster fire up anymore, though I’m not sure how good I was ever doing anyway. Sherri commented on how out of sorts I was that first night, as we entertained the kids with movie night. The next day, I went with Kai to help out at Portland Pride, and all he did on the ride down and back was rib me about how I’d had it bad forDaddy.
I didn’t even have it in me to tell him that there was no Evan and I. He’d just give me more grief about how Evan and I didn’t even make it a whole day. Not even a frickin’day.
Now Evan’s up and left, and I’m really starting to get worried.Whichisridiculous, am I right? I mean, only my old-fashioned, lovesick heart would get this darned attached so quickly.
But what if something happened to him? What if he wrecked his bike? Though he always makes sure I wear Colton’s helmet, it doesn’tseem like he’s the type to take those sorts of safety measures into consideration for himself.
This is all my fault. I’d never be able to forgive myself if something happened to him, all because he left in a huff—mad at me.
“Hey Mr. G, have you heard from my dad at all?” I’m startled out of my sea of doubt by Colton knocking on my office door. “I just went up to his cabin to talk to him, but it doesn’t look like he’s been there for a bit…”
Any hope I had that perhapstheyhad at least been talking fizzles, while more worry niggles at me.
“I haven’t seen him since Saturday,” I tell Colton. “But hey, while I’ve got you here, do you mind if we chat?”
“Sure.” He shrugs, plopping down in the chair. “What’s up?”
I start by handing him the check for his art piece. His face lights up. Gosh, he looks just like Evan when he smiles like that. They have the same frickin’ dimples and everything, though Evan’s are just covered by his close-cropped beard he grew out of the stubble that lined his jaw when he arrived here.
“So cool! That was super awesome of your mom to sell that for me, by the way,” he gushes.
“Yeah, about that,” I begin. “She’s kind of what I want to talk to you about…”
“Yeah?” he asks, concern lining his brow.
“Whelp, she made a little mistake at the gallery. She accidently told your dad that Nikolas is your boyfriend. She tried to smooth it over, but I don’t get the feeling Evan bought it…”
“Oh.” Colton looks down at his lap, picking at his cuticles—his anxious tell. “Is he pissed? Is that why he’s been gone and not answering my texts? I mean, I was kind of hoping he’d see the picture and maybe that’d get us talking—”
“Wait, youwantedhim to see it?”
“Yeah, I mean. The college talk I had with him went really well. He seemed really supportive and stuff. I was kinda thinkin’ that maybe I might be ready to tell him, you know? I don’t care that your mom messed up. In fact, I think I’m kind of glad she said it, so that I didn’t have to face his reaction head on. Now, I guess I know… shit.”
I scrub a frustrated hand down over my face. My flippin’ pancakes. How much could this have all been avoided if Colton and Evan would just frickin’ communicate with each other? I’m going to circle back around to this in a moment, but first, I’m more concerned about something else.
“You’ve texted your dad and gotten no response?”
“Nah. I thought it was weird at first, but I guess if he’s mad at me, now I know why. I figured you’d know where he was though. You and him seemed to be getting pretty tight.”
I let him make me come twice in one night. Yeah, I’d say we got pretty tight there for a second or two. Ugh, nope. Don’t go there, Brooks. Not in the presence of his son.
“I don’t know, no,” I tell Colton. “When he left, all he said was that he was going to take a ride to clear his mind.”
“Bet he did it looking like his typical hard-ass self, too. Great, I knew I should have just kept everything secret for another year…”
“No,” I say, stopping Colton before he tries to bolt out of here. “You felt ready, and you did what you felt was right. He’s not mad at you, I don’t believe. I think he’s mad at me.”
