Page 61 of Intolerable Bishop

“Thank you,” I said when I could form words again.

“Trust me, ya don’t need to thank me.”

“Not just the sex, but for taking the risk with me.” I kissed along one of the tattooed lines on his chest. “I know what I asked, and…just, thank you.”

“Again, ya never need to thank me, risks and all. I would do it all over again a million times. I love ya, Snowflake, for the long haul. You’re completely stuck with me.”

I held him and let my eyes close for a few minutes. When I smelled food cooking, I knew we should get up and make sure that Blake and Theo hadn’t killed one another.

“We should get up,” I said lazily.

“Aye, but this is just a warning that I’m gonna bend ya over the arm of the couch later,” he said, making me laugh.

“I love you, Myles.”

“Yer my soul, Snowflake.”

JUNE 5 – MONDAY 3:05 PM

Blake

I aimlessly pushed the scrambled eggs around in the pan while holding the bag of frozen peas to my face. It really shouldn’t be bothering me as much as it was that Ren had slept with Theo before me. But I hated that Theo managed to find a way to make himself her hero and be what she needed when she needed it. Just when I thought my insecurities were getting better, he raced off into the night with her on the back of his motorcycle to have wild, apocalyptic-like sex in an abandoned gas station. Really? I swear he could fall in the biggest pile of dog shit and would still walk away like he was king of shits everywhere.

Okay, that’s a weird analogy, but it still works.

Sighing, I walked over to the toaster, grabbed the last of the toast, and buttered it before tossing it on the stack.

“Hey,” Ren said, her feathery voice giving away her nervousness.

I looked over my shoulder at her, and my heart clenched tight in my chest. The look on her face was wary, and the awkwardness in the air was too much like it had been before we got together.

“Hey.” I tossed the peas on the counter and pulled the eggs off the stove. “I made food. I needed to do something,” I said, opening the oven where I’d been keeping the bacon warm. I pulled out the plate and set it down. Busying myself with getting plates and forks, I didn’t notice her walk up behind me until her arms wrapped around my waist. I took a deep breath, loving the feel of her touch and the always accompanying calm. “I shouldn’t be mad. I know I shouldn’t be, but I am. Not at you. I’m mad at him. I’ll get over it.”

“You can’t put all the fault on Theo,” she said softly. Turning in her arms, she gasped when she saw my face. “Oh my god. Theo did that to you?”

“Yeah, but don’t worry, he looks worse,” I said. “I’ll be fine.” The bruise on my face didn’t hurt as bad as it looked, but my split lip stung, and my shoulder hurt. Nash was pissed and told me that it had better be good to go when swim practice started again. It didn’t even surprise me that he was worried about that.

“We should talk,” Ren said and tugged on my hand, but I didn’t move as Myles stepped into the doorway. He was practically glowing, and I realized that right now, I didn’t like anyone. Punching him seemed like a great idea.

“Not right now. Go ahead and eat while it’s hot.” Pulling away from her, I walked out the backdoor and kept on walking. The trail was pretty, and I could hear a woodpecker knocking in the distance.

“Blake.” I turned at the sound of Ren’s voice and watched her jog toward me.

“What are you doing? You should go back to the cabin.”

“No, not until we clear the air. I don’t hold things in and let them fester. I know we all deal with things differently, but I just can’t let things be like this between us. Not after everything we’ve been through and how far we’ve come. This shutdown version of you is just…no, no, no.” Ren held up a thermos and handed me a paper towel.

Opening it, I found a bacon and egg sandwich on toast, making me smile.

“Alright, you’re right. Holding shit in was what got me in trouble before.”

“Exactly. That was the old you. The new one tells me exactly what you’re thinking and feeling, even if it’s hard or it makes me mad. We can’t have things unsaid between us.”

I pointed at the trail. “Walk with me?”

“Sure.” She fell into step beside me and pulled out a sandwich for herself. We ate in silence, meandering along the forest path.

“Like I said, I’m not mad at you. I’m not really mad at Theo. I’m pissed with myself. I just couldn’t pull the trigger when you asked me, and Theo was right. I’m angry that he did. He was able to swoop in and do what needed to be done. He was who and what you needed at that moment. He’s always been like that.” I shrugged. “I’m sure you must be sick of me comparing myself to him, but fuck. I finally had something precious in my life, someone that I love that had nothing to do with him, and he managed to steal that from me, too.”