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“Did you come by to get more gossip?” He wasn’t sure how he felt about people knowing how poorly this morning had gone.
“I came by because we’re friends and if you and Van are fighting, then you likely need some advice. I don’t know if you’ve figured this out, but you don’t always make the best decisions when it comes to interpersonal relationships.” Max’s lips tugged up. “I sound real smart, don’t I. I listen to a lot of what Alexei says.”
Yep. Max was here for a session. Max thought he could help Hale fit in, but Hale knew he pretty much didn’t fit in anywhere. “It didn’t work out.”
“So the sex went wrong? Come on, man. I love a good sex-gone-wrong story. Once Rach and I were at the Feed Store Church setting up the Easter displays. So we start going at it in the Feed Store part, not the church part. Rach was real explicit that we not move into any space where God could see us. I did not go into the all-seeing, all-knowing philosophy of the Almighty because I was really horny. But I was about to start the real action when I tripped and fell against a display of pitchforks—why would anyone do that—and that started a line of dominoes that ended with me flooding the aisle we were on with a thousand pounds of wild bird seed. Now the problem was I had already gotten Rach out of her clothes, and those were lost in the bird feed, but I was a quick thinker and found a couple of aprons that I fashioned into a nice dress, if I do say so myself. Yeah, I paid for that in more ways than one. That kind of sex-gone-wrong story?”
“The sex was fine.” The sex had been more than fine. It had been spectacular. It had been the best sex of his life because it had been about more than sex. “And it’s not any of your…”
Damn it. That was exactly what Van had said. Not any of your business. The words still hurt, and he’d turned right around and given them to Max.
Was Max his friend? Max felt like his friend, but sometimes it could be hard for Hale to tell. He’d been kicked so many times, with Van being the only exception. But now it looked like Van was going to join that long line of people he couldn’t trust anymore. Van had reconnected with his real family, and while they’d tried for a little while, real family would always win out.
“Am I supposed to guess what you were going to say next?” Max asked.
He had a decision to make. Was he going to shut down entirely or was he going to keep trying? “No. I’m sorry. This morning fucked me up, and I’m being an asshole.”
“I’m glad you can acknowledge that, but I understand if you don’t want to talk about it. I came by to check on you because it can be hard the first time a sasquatch tries to eat your cinnamon rolls.”
“I didn’t…” Ah, euphemism. Max wanted to clear up the whole rumor thing. “It’s okay. People talk. I don’t think they mean anything by it. In some ways, it feels like people at least give a damn.”
Trying meant not allowing himself to go to the absolute worst place. It meant opening himself up to the positive. Optimism was an act of bravery, and it might be time to find some real courage.
“I was hoping you would get that. There’s not a lot of scandals around here,” Max explained. “People genuinely want their neighbors to be happy. Hell, the fact Mel has a daughter is pretty much the biggest thing this town has seen in a long time. Being involved with her was going to bring some scrutiny.”
His optimism took an immediate hit. “Well, I’m not involved with her anymore, so I can fade into the background again.”
Max’s blue eyes rolled. “I know you don’t want to talk about it. I wouldn’t want to talk about it. But it does help sometimes. Did she do something that set you off her?”
He didn’t want to talk but not talking had gotten him nowhere. “No. She was perfect. I fucked up.”
“Ah, then you have come to the right place, my man.” Max sat down on the tub, settling in like he would be here for a while. “I have fucked up in every way possible.”
He doubted it. “Did you ever make a woman who survived breast cancer feel like shit about her body?”
Max’s eyes went wide. “You did that?”
Hale sighed and sat down across from Max. Guilt and anger had been burning in his gut, but below all of it was a deep sense of weariness. A base layer of disappointment he wasn’t sure how to deal with. “I didn’t mean to. I said something when I thought she wasn’t there, and she took it to the worst place.”
