Page 55 of Love in the Time of Wildfires

“I’m pretty sure I saw Sonny grinning at his phone yesterday, and I don’t think he’s ever grinned in his life.” Marcus held a coffee, pumping his eyebrows over the top of it.

“Yeah, there’s something definitely different going on here.”

“I knew you still had it in you,” Grace said with an amused look.

“Will you guys knock it off? I’m . . .” He wasn’t sure how to answer the question. Happy? Sure, yeah, he was that, and perhaps more. Was he in a relationship? As much as he’d like to think so, Logan couldn’t state this with any kind of certainty. While they had done things that made it feel like they were on a path toward a relationship, and he wanted to keep going, it wasn’t clear.

He should have asked River for exclusivity before he left town, but it felt presumptuous, and he chickened out. Exclusivity, on his side, was a given as a straight man who worked in a heavily male-dominated industry. Also, he wasn’t interested in anyone besides her. River didn’t give the impression she was out there catching swarms of guys with a butterfly net, but she was gorgeous, and surely there’d be interest.

Dammit.

He should ask her tonight so he would know where he stood and could depend on her keeping one side of the bed open only to him.

“Yes? You’re what, boss?” Marcus asked.

“I . . . might be seeing her.” He hoped he wasn’t potentially embarrassing himself, but Logan wanted to lay some kind of claim.

The group got boisterous at his admission, as though he’d just announced he’d won the lottery. Except them being happy for him felt good.

“I knew it!” Damon exclaimed above the noise. “Pay up suckers! Daddy needs some of that sweet, sweet cash. Easiest money I’ve ever made and not a single tiger involved.”

“I’d hire a tiger just to put him in your tent, Ford,” Marcus said to Damon, slapping down a twenty on the table, which was snatched up.

“Never a bigger fan of love than I am right now.” Damon fanned himself with the collected money.

Logan snatched the money from the other man’s hand with a stern look. “I warned you guys the last time that if you took bets based on my personal life, there would be consequences. I’m confiscating this . . . to take River out.” He smiled, stuffing the money in his pocket.

“See? I told you he grinned. I wasn’t imagining it. God dammit. I knew I should have put my money the other way,” Marcus said.

Damon didn’t seem too upset at losing his money, lifting his cup. “To fighting the beast and the lovers who make it all worth it.”

“Here, here,” the others said as they took a drink.

All except Jake, who stood, taking what was left of his dinner and abruptly leaving.

Grace, who sat beside Damon, pointedly elbowed the man in the side. “Dude,” she said as though giving him a warning.

Damon looked confused before something seemed to click in place. “Oh shit,” he replied under his breath before calling to the retreating man. “Sorry, Jake.”

“What’s wrong?” Logan asked, switching into boss mode. Had he screwed up and missed major clues all because his head was in the clouds and not focused on his squad? He needed to do better.

“Marla left him,” Grace responded with a frown.

“His girlfriend?”

She gave him a flat look. “How many other Marlas do you know? Yes, his girlfriend. He’s taking it pretty hard. She just said she’s had enough of it all and she’s not waiting anymore. At least that’s as much as I was able to get. He’s not really wanting to talk about it. Understandably.”

The rest of the table got quiet, the mood turning sober. Why was anyone celebrating his good luck with River when, like Jake, they’d all been here before? Things always started off good, but it wasn’t uncommon for the person left at home to get tired of the game.

Logan left dinner more down than usual, wondering if he was kidding himself on his future. To be honest, he didn’t blame Marla or Amelia. This life, for loved ones, wasn’t easy. They were signing up for something that very much felt like singlehood, while technically being in a relationship. Logan wasn’t being fair to River and was happy he’d chickened out on asking for exclusivity. Who was he to ask? It was like asking for a star to dim its light so it wouldn’t shine as brightly. He should be satisfied with whatever she was willing to give him for however long that was and leave it at that.

He’d been only gone a week. It already felt too long. He’d probably be stuck here for at least another, if not more. And she wasn’t waiting to live her life. River was probably making plans and doing stuff, as she should, and didn’t need to be tied to someone like him.

In his tent later, he retrieved his phone. As usual, there was a message waiting from River, which he couldn’t help hearing in her typical perky tone.

River

A bunch of us went to trivia night at one of the pubs. Our group won because we’re a bunch of masterminds. It was so much fun! Kyle, the PR guy at work, says that I’m now an official member. And they didn’t even test my SNRF knowledge because I would have really blown them away with fox facts.