Chapter 15
Dex
The next morning is super awkward. I know that Korren is majorly uncomfortable about sharing the cabin with me, and he definitely hates that I saw him yelling and thrashing around in his sleep, and then there’s the little matter of me jerking him off and not minding it.
Yeah.
But we both act like nothing happened, which is cool. It’s totally fine. Korren’s voice is a bit stiffer than usual as he wishes me good morning, and then we’re talking logistics about getting the place furnished as if enough mindless chatter will make us forget about last night.
“What’re we doing for breakfast?” Korren asks, acting all casual, as if he isn’t out of food and hoping I might be able to keep him from starving until the weekend is over.
And I can’t fucking help myself. The more I get to know him, the more I feel an irrepressible desire to look after him.
“Let’s just worry about getting this place furnished first,” I say. But on the way out the door, I slip a folded-up bill in his pocket. He doesn’t notice.
We pass the bakery on our way to the secondhand store, and after a moment’s hesitation, I lead the way through the bakery door, Korren trailing behind me like a lost puppy hoping for handouts.
I order for us both this time, and when Rowan holds out his hand for payment, I turn to Korren.
“You’re treating us today, right?” I ask with a sly smile.
The look of complete betrayal on his face makes me feel like an ass.
“Check your pockets,” I hiss.
Korren shoves his hands in his pockets, and when he finds the twenty, so many expressions flicker across his face that I can’t tell if he wants to punch me or kiss me.
Rowan is watching this whole exchange with undisguised amusement, so I don’t say anything until we’re safely back outside with our pastries and coffees.
“You shouldn’t have done that,” Korren says in a low growl. But he’s already biting into his cinnamon roll, so he’s obviously not too upset.
“Sorry. I was just messing with you. I didn’t mean to make it awkward.”
Korren grimaces. “Do you even have enough money for this? Or for furnishing the place?”
“My uncle gave me a bit of cash. It’s not much, but it’s better than nothing.”
“I’ll say.”
Then we’re busy eating as we walk, so I just soak in the morning stillness and the views up to the glacier-encrusted mountains behind the lake.
I’ve always dreamed of meeting some girl in the lower 48 and bringing her up here to live with me and introducing her to everything that’s amazing about Copper Creek, but when I was actually down in Oregon, none of the girls I dated would’ve dreamed of moving somewhere like this.
There isn’t a single girl here that I could see myself ending up with—and I know, because it’s a small enough town that I’ve gone out with everyone who’s halfway decent—so I’m starting to think I’ll either have to leave town or end up forever alone.
That’s a depressing thought. But maybe Korren will let me introduce him to the joys of Copper Creek and I’ll get to live out at least a small part of that dream.
We finish our pastries by the time we reach the secondhand store, which is tucked beside the supermarket. It’s not the same as the used clothing store, unfortunately—the prices are way higher, so I don’t think the money Uncle Rhodes gave me is going to stretch very far.
“Those are the mattresses,” Korren says as soon as we pass through the doors. There are about twenty of them leaned up against the wall at the back of the store.
“Of course you choose the most boring thing first,” I say. “Can’t we have a look around?”
Before Korren can object, I lead the way past a solid wooden chest of drawers that I totally want.
My dad builds log cabins, including the really fancy kind with massive windows overlooking the bay, and I want to live in a house like that someday.
This chest of drawers would look perfect in my dream home.
“Look! We need chairs, don’t we?” Korren asks, leading the way to a very basic pair of dining chairs.
“Can we afford them?”
Korren checks the price tag. “Depends on how much the mattresses cost. Oh, and maybe we should get bedside tables, too.” He wanders toward a few sets.
“Bedside tables? D’you think I’m a fucking CEO? I don’t have money for this shit!”
Korren laughs.
It’s at that moment I realize we’re not alone in the store. A woman with a headful of black waves is now checking out the drawers I had my eye on, and before she turns, I have the sinking sensation I know exactly who it is.
Yep. It’s Indigo, my former high school crush.
She’s fucking gorgeous, which is why I was obsessed with her, but I never got to date her or even hold her hand.
It’s because her family is deeply religious, and my dad made a big deal about leaving the church because it did something he didn’t agree with.
I can’t even remember what it was, but at the time I was pissed because it ruined my chances with her.
Now I’m glad I escaped. She ended up marrying her high school sweetheart, and now they have five kids and make a living as influencers promoting some kind of frontier parenting aesthetic.
You know, wearing fashionable leather clothing while hunting and chopping wood and cooking over open fires. That sort of crap.
“Dex!” Indigo says, eyes wide as she takes in the fact that I’m shopping with a guy. Then she’s giving Korren a once-over, her lip curled in distaste. “Who is this?”
“He’s another firefighter. We’re moving into my uncle’s cabin for the summer.”
“Oh, I see,” Indigo says in a knowing voice. “How are you liking Copper Creek, um—”
“Korren,” Korren supplies, slouching over to my side with his arms crossed. He doesn’t look pleased.
“Did you two meet down in Oregon? I know things are a bit different down there, so—like—”
“We’re not dating,” I interrupt.
Her eyebrows draw together. “But you’re going to live together? In a one-room cabin?”
“Not for long,” Korren says with a flinty smile.
“He’s right. We’re doing this stupid game, competing for who gets to own the cabin, and one of the rules is we have to live together for now.”
“Oh, that makes sense.” Her look of relief makes something twist inside me, and I can’t even understand why. “Well, if you’re free later, would you be able to help me get these drawers home?”
I’m feeling uncharacteristically spiteful right now, so I say, “Sorry, but I’ve got a date with someone very cool and very attractive. Besides, don’t you have your own husband and child labor to enlist?”
“Of course. Bye, Dex. I’ll see you around.”
Then she sashays out the door with a flick of her lustrous hair.
In the silence that she leaves ringing in her wake, Korren says, “You have a date?”
“I absolutely do not. Indigo and I have a history. Not that way, I mean, but—yeah. I was trying to sound cooler than I actually am.”
Korren snorts. “Good. I was almost worried.”
“What, are you jealous?”
“No, but with your track record, I didn’t want to end up living in a hideaway for stolen goods.”
“Fuck you.”
Korren is laughing, and I try to smile as well. For some reason Indigo’s assumptions really got to me.
“Let’s find some mattresses,” I say with false cheer. “We should probably make sure we can afford the essentials before we go overboard with anything else.”
“So practical,” Korren says. “I guess that means you’re not going to buy those drawers before Indigo comes back for them?” He grins at my surprise. “I saw you pining over them. I promise you this—if I’m ever not broke, I’m going to buy you some fucking carved drawers.”