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I frowned up at my dad, worried that I wasn’t understanding things. He offered me the same warm smile he gave Yarrow. I melted under his reassuring gaze.
“Yes, we met York at the hospital,” Blackjack said as his fingers caressed my forehead. “We’ll get to know him later, when you’re feeling better.”
Relaxing on the couch, I thought about the relief I felt when York told me not to shoot him.
“He found me in the darkness,” I mumbled as fatigue tugged at me. “I planned to wait until the sun came up and drag my ass to a house or road. I was so shocked when I heard York’s voice. He wrapped me in a blanket and gave me water. The guy’s such a Boy Scout.”
“I’m making fried chicken for dinner,” Sabrina said from the kitchen. “Does your boyfriend have any dietary issues?”
“He doesn’t like curry.”
“See, you know things about him,” Boone said helpfully.
“I overheard him tell one of his Black Rainbow bros that.”
Crying felt so odd. I rarely got emotional. Right now, I teared up whenever I thought about how I had no idea what would happen next with York. Was he my boyfriend? I couldn’t remember what he said to me in the hospital. I did remember him kissing me. Was he telling me goodbye? Or thinking about how we might not be able to fuck for a while?
“York is taking a nap,” Nova said and showed me her phone. “Dan fed York and got him a shower. Now, your boyfriend is napping. He’ll probably be up soon.”
Looking into Nova’s beautiful eyes, I wished I had inherited my mom’s blue eyes rather than my dad’s brown. After a dazed moment of jealousy, I remembered what I was going to do.
“Can you ask your brother to sneak in and take a picture of York sleeping?”
“Um, I don’t know.”
“You did that for Rowdy when you were watching his boys.”
“They’re babies, not men in their thirties.”
“York is thirty-six,” I said wistfully. “His birthday was a few weeks after we first hooked up. I gave him a blowjob as a gift.”
Yarrow smiled. “That’s what I gave your dad last year.”
Boone and I looked at our dad, who shrugged. “She also got me sweatpants.”
“To make the blowjob easier,” Yarrow told me, full of pride. “I’m glad you were sweet to that large biker. I didn’t like him when we met, but I think maybe he’s shy.”
“I doubt he’s shy.”
“No, he is,” my mom insisted. “I can tell.”
“York doesn’t talk much to people he doesn’t know well. He just nods and says as little as possible. When he’s with people he trusts, he opens up and acts goofy.”
“Really?” Nova asked.
“I don’t know. In fact, you likely know him better than I do.”
“Well, I’ve never seen him naked or done any of that other stuff.”
“But did you know his birthday?” Yarrow asked Nova.
“I have it on my calendar, but I don’t remember it off the top of my head.”
“Exactly,” Mom said and stroked my hand. “You know him better.”
Nodding, I wiped away my lingering tears. “I don’t want things to change.”
My dad leaned closer and waited until I looked at him. “Change isn’t a bad thing. When you bought the house in Rawlins with Boone and your friends, that was a good change because it gave you more independence. When you moved up here, that was a good change, because you could be around your friends. If you really love York like you said on the phone, whatever changes come next can be good. Don’t be stubborn just for stubbornness’ sake, okay?”
