“I’m done telling you what’s best for you,” Holden said.
Axel and Gray exchanged a skeptical look. But I appreciated that Holden was trying to let Bailey make his own choices, even if it was tough for him.
“Do you want to drop out of school?” Holden asked. “There’s a place in the auto shop for you as soon as you want it.”
Bailey cast me a concerned look. “What about Flynn’s job? I don’t want to take that.”
I rested my hand on his thigh under the table. “You’re the best mechanic. If it costs me a job, that’s okay. It’s your family business, and you love the work.”
Once, I’d panicked at the idea of not getting kept on permanently. But that was when I thought it would be because of my own failings. I’d happily step aside, start over somewhere else, if it gave Bailey what he really wanted.
“We’ve got enough business for you both,” Holden said. “I can’t promise that will always be the case. But for right now, it is.”
Bailey chewed his lip. “I don’t know.”
Holden cocked his head. “No?”
“What did I miss?” Gray asked. “Since when are you okay with Bailey quitting school?”
“Since he told me he didn’t want to be there,” Holden said. “I pushed him to go, and he gave it a chance. But if he’s getting involved with the wrong people, using that drag race shit to distract himself because he’s unhappy there, then it’s not the right place for him to be. I can see that much.”
“What do you want, Bailey?” I asked gently. “If you could do anything you wanted, what would it be?”
He looked conflicted. “I want to be here, with you all. I want to work in the shop again. But…it also doesn’t sit right to just give up and drop out. I put a lot of time and energy into these classes. Maybe not enough, but…some. You know?”
“Do you want to be done with school, or do you just want to do it closer to home?” Nova asked.
Bailey pondered that as Leo called out, “Order up!” from the bar.
Gray and Axel went to fetch the food. Dalton still hadn’t arrived, but I trusted he’d show before the night was over.
“I don’t want to be an engineer or some shit,” Bailey finally said. “I want to work on cars. But I want to contribute to the auto shop in a real way, you know? Not just the day-to-day grind.”
“Riverton has a new auto body restoration program launching next fall,” Nova put in. “It made me think of you. Maybe if they’d had it last year, you’d have stayed.” She smiled wistfully. “It would have been nice to have you closer this year.”
“Really?” Bailey looked intrigued. “Huh. That’s cool.”
“Yeah.”
“I just don’t know. I already wasted so much money at Thurston. The scholarship and Holden’s savings. I don’t want to do that again unless I’m sure.”
“You don’t have to decide right now,” Gray said. “But if you aren’t positive you won’t go back to school ever, it might be worth finishing the semester. You can transfer those credits, and hey, even if you don’t, you’ll have learned something important about what you want in life. That’s not a waste. Right, Holden?”
Holden nodded. “That’s a good thought. It’s Bailey’s call, though.”
Bailey blew out a breath and gave me an uncertain look. “Yeah, as much as I’d like to just…stay and be with you guys every day?—”
“Especially hisdream man,” Emory teased.
“—I think I’d feel better about seeing this through and finishing out the semester.”
“Then that’s what you should do,” I told him. “I’ll be here when you’re done.”
“Yeah?” He smiled. “You’ll wait for me?”
“I’d wait all four years, if that’s what it took. Figure out what will make you happy, Bailey, and I’ll be there when you do.”
Bailey tipped his face up, brushing a kiss to my lips, and Axel catcalled.
