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“Aren’t you sweet.” Dex opened his mouth, but Ash stopped him. “There isn’t jack-shit to talk about, so don’t bother.”
“Okay. How about you tell me why you were such a dick to my brother? And don’t bullshit me, man. You can say you don’t care, but I know you do.”
Ash got to his feet and started for the exit when Dex called out after him. “You really hurt him.” That brought Ash to a stop. Dex waited, holding his breath. Come on, Ash. Give me something.
“Good,” Ash ground out through his teeth. “I told you. He needs to stay away from me.”
Not the something he was hoping for.
Dex got to his feet, feeling sore as hell. “Whatever’s going on, I hope it’s worth it.”
Ash grumbled something under his breath, and Dex could have sworn he’d heard Ash say “me too.” But it was too late to ask because Ash was gone. Dex sucked in a sharp breath and headed for the showers. Wherever Sloane was, Dex hoped he found the answer he was looking for. Hopefully that answer would lead him back to Dex.
Chapter 9
HOW LONG can you keep this up?
How long could he keep running? It felt as though he’d been running his whole life. Sloane looked down at his wrists and the evidence left behind of his first attempt to escape. He’d grown stronger since then, but he was still running.
The dangers of his job never bothered him. It was different. He told himself he wanted to make the most of the time he had, and he should, considering the dangers they faced every time they went out in the field. Then Dex would take another step closer, Sloane’s chest would tighten, and he would balk. His guilt was eating at him, but he’d told Dex from the beginning that he couldn’t make promises. And this was why. He’d never expected Dex to become such a big part of his life so quickly, and he sure as hell hadn’t expected Dex to fall in love with him.
Gabe had loved him, but it had been different with Gabe. Like they were both holding something back. It was the way they’d been built. But Dex…. He smiled at the thought of that dopey grin, those sparkling blue eyes, and that infectious laugh. Something in the air changed, and Sloane couldn’t help his smile.
“How’d you find me?”
Ash took a seat on the bench beside him. “It’s what we do. Besides, I know you better than you know yourself.”
“In that case, maybe you can tell me why I keep doing this?” He looked up at the starless sky, feeling the breeze against his skin, hearing it rustle the leaves of the trees around him. There was nothing but their voices and the sounds of traffic on the other side of the fence a few yards behind him.
“You’re scared.”
“That it?”
“No. You’re scared because for the first time in your life, you found someone who sees you, all of you. He can see the cracks, the missing pieces, the one’s too broken to be salvaged, and despite all that, he still wants to be with you. What did he say to make you bolt? Must have been big.” Ash leaned his arms on his legs so he could look at Sloane.
“He let it slip that he loves me.”
“Daley’s in love with you?” Ash stared at him, and Sloane braced himself for a barrage of insults regarding Dex, how Sloane should bail or some unhelpful remark, but they never came. Instead, Ash looked him right in the eye and in his most sincere voice said, “Stop running. You’ve got something good. Don’t fuck it up.”
Sloane opened his mouth, but nothing came out.
“He knows all your hang-ups, your demons, all the fucked-up shit you come with, and not only does he stick by you, he fucking bleeds for you, man. I’ve seen it. For fuck’s sake, he got in the ring with me because of you.”
“What?” Sloane went to get up, but Ash grabbed his arm.
“Relax. He’s still in one piece. I only beat him up a little.” Sloane arched an eyebrow at him, and Ash winced. “Okay, a lot.
But he’s okay. I went easy on him when I realized it was because of you. Figured you’d left. It was the only thing that could set him off like that. We talked after.”
“About me?” Sloane didn’t know what to think about Dex challenging Ash to a fight. He must have been so angry and hurt.
“What else?”
Sloane clasped his hands between his knees until he couldn’t take it anymore. “What did you tell him?”
“Not to give up on you.”
“Thanks.”
