“For good this time. We’re getting married.”

“No shit?”

Charlie nodded. “She always spoils my ass when there’s a big fire. Not missing out on it to have drinks with you.”

Braden couldn’t blame him. Instead of saying goodbye, he grinned, shook his head, and rolled the window up again, missing the cool air when he did. He loved fall in Colorado. Loved the slight crispness in the air. Not that you could always count on the weather there, but when it was like now, he thrived. Cool, sunny days and cold nights.

Braden picked up his phone and thought about calling to check on Jessie. He hadn’t spoken to Wes since he left his house a few nights ago. Hopefully the little girl felt better. She was a cool kid. He’d had a good time with her, and he definitely had a good time with Wes, even if he did make Braden swear to be a boy scout and then kissed the hell out of him afterward.

He really, really wanted to fuck the man again—or let Wes fuck him. He didn’t much care which way they went, but then he thought about that little girl again and everything Wes was dealing with and that made him feel like an asshole. He couldn’t imagine that kind of responsibility. Jock was enough for him. His dog, or when he stayed with one of his siblings to watch his nieces or nephews for a night.

Friends or not, their attraction for each other would make things difficult, and as much as he wanted Wes, he didn’t want to make things harder on him.

So instead of calling Wes, he dialed Coop to see if maybe he and Noah wanted to go have a few beers with him tonight.

“Cooper and Noah’s love shack,” Coop teased when he answered the phone.

“It doesn’t sound nearly as good when you’re saying it instead of me.”

“How’d babysitting duty go the other night?” Cooper asked.

“I painted nails.”

“Whoa. TMI. Wes is a kinky bastard, huh?”

Braden laughed. “Jessie’s nails, smart guy.”

“Oh, yeah. Okay.” Cooper pretended he didn’t know what Braden meant.

“I should have called your boyfriend instead of you. He’s the more levelheaded one. Ask Noah if he wants to go shoot some pool with me tonight.”

“Funny. Didn’t get enough the other night?”

“Nah, I didn’t end up going. I hung out with Jessie and Wes for a while, and then I was tired so I just went home.”

Coop paused for a minute before replying. “Sounds like things are better with you guys. We’re going to Wes’s for that party he’s having to celebrate his new job. Why aren’t you?”

Braden felt a little sting in his chest. Wes planned a party for tonight? That didn’t sound like something he would do at all. And he obviously hadn’t wanted Braden there, since this was the first he heard about it. “Wasn’t invited.” It shouldn’t matter, it really shouldn’t, and in a lot of ways, it didn’t. In all honesty, though, he called them friends. Were they really? He didn’t even know Wes. They’d fucked once, and now they could put it behind them. And in reality, neither of them owed the other anything; especially something like inviting the other to a party. But he’d also thought that after the other day, things would change. Maybe they would be friends.

“Shit. I figured since you guys hung out the other day, you came to some kind of understanding.”

Yeah. Cooper and him both. “It doesn’t matter. I’ll just go out tonight like I planned. I’m a big boy. I’m not going to get my heart broken because some guy I had sex with didn’t invite me to a party.” And he wouldn’t, but damned if that little sting in his chest still wasn’t there.

***

“I really don’t get why we needed to do this, Lyd.” Wes crossed his arms and leaned against the back of the couch.

Lydia swatted at his hands. “You always stand like that, like you’re mad at the world or something. Was your life really that hard?” She held no anger in her voice...just curiosity blended with sadness.

And in reality, he agreed with what she said. No, his life hadn’t been too hard. His dad had bailed, but how many people dealt with that? His mom would have done anything for them, even go as far as working two jobs to take care of them. And it was that love that had killed her. Her tired eyes that just wanted a few seconds reprieve, and it had been enough to veer into another lane and get hit head on.

It had broken all three of them to lose her...but then he’d always had Chelle. Until they lost her, too. Just like he’d lost the only man he’d ever loved. The difference there being that Alexander had chosen to walk away. Can I blame him?