Page 43 of Redemption Ridge Vol II

Tyler cocked his head to the side. “So tell me now.”

“I didn’t contest the charges, but I still needed to plead my case for a lighter sentence, so the public defender wrote up something suitable for me to read in court.”

“Oh no.” Tyler’s wince matched the clinching in Owen’s guts.

“I was too embarrassed to tell my attorney I couldn’t read and hoped it would be one of the few occasions when the letters lined up for me. Spoiler alert: they didn’t.” Tyler smiled a little at that one. “I read the statement to the judge the best I could, but it came out sounding cold and robotic. The judge claimed I had no remorse and gave me the maximum sentence for a first-time offender.” Owen cupped his face. “I’m not sorry because I met you a year later.”

Tyler leaned forward and kissed him. “Still love you like crazy.”

Owen released a long sigh that ended in a shaky laugh. “Sounds like I’ve been storing that one for a long time.”

“I imagine you’ve been stowing a lot of things that aren’t necessarily good for you,” Tyler said. “Maybe now you can set them and yourself free.”

“Very profound,” Owen replied. “Did that come from your audiobook?”

Tyler’s lips curved into a smug grin. “Nope. I’m just repeating something you told Keegan once.”

Owen raised a brow. “I said that? Are you sure?”

“I am positive. You’re so much smarter than you give yourself credit for, and I think Bryant and Keegan might be onto something.” Just thinking about the amount of schooling he’d need to become a therapist was enough to induce panic. Maybe Tyler sensed it, or perhaps his expression betrayed the terror, because Tyler was quick to soothe him with a kiss. “You don’t have to become a licensed therapist to make a difference in someone’s life. You could use your boxing and mentoring skills to help teens feel less vulnerable or channel their frustrations in healthier ways.”

It was on the tip of Owen’s tongue to dismiss the idea, but something about the suggestion just felt right.

“Just think about it,” Tyler said, then glanced at his watch. “Your mom will be home from work soon.”

Owen knew he was right, but it was hard to put Tyler’s comment out of his mind. “One more stop first.”

“Oh,” Tyler said excitedly, as if they were taking a tour to see where the Hollywood stars lived. “Can I guess?”

“Sure.” Owen bit back a smile because there was no way he’d get it right.

“High school?”

Owen scowled and shook his head. “Too easy.”

Tyler hummed for a few seconds. “The spot where you had sex for the first time?”

“You already saw it,” Owen said.

“What? Where?” His eyes widened. “The boxing gym?”

“Yep.”

“Did Howie know you were gay?”

Owen’s face flushed as he recalled the moment he confirmed what his uncle had already known. “Oh yeah. The acoustics in that gym shower didn’t hide anything. Uncle Howie had suspected for a while that I was gay, and that’s why he started teaching me to fight so I could defend myself.”

“Because he loved you,” Tyler said.

“He did.” That’s why their last visit would be the hardest.

Neither of them said anything when Owen drove through the arched entrance to the cemetery. The sun had started to set, and the wind had picked up considerably when he parked near a tidy row of five tombstones.

Tyler gasped softly when he read the Doyle name on each of the markers. “These three have the same date of death on them,” he said.

“His parents and sister died in a car accident when Howie was twenty-one and Keith was fifteen.”

“Then he lost your dad five years later. No wonder he was so bitter.”