Chapter 6
Chapter
Six
Devon couldn’t believe it. He and Laird had been dating now for…
Well, he wasn’t sure he could call it dating.
They’d been meeting for food and booty calls.
Which was good. It was very good. And amazing and wonderful.
And Laird made him stupid. The man kissed like he wanted to set Devon’s mouth on fire.
Both of them worked too much to really be dating anybody, and so this was a perfect solution. Devon had to admit that Laird was a hot guy. A really hot guy with layers of hard muscle and broad shoulders and thick thighs and amazingly adorable feet, even though they were really big.
He chuckled at that, feeling like an idiot, but as soon as he got off work tonight, he was going to meet up with Laird and go to Fuel for dinner, and then they were going to go back to his place.
He had discovered that Laird’s rental was a little soulless.
He understood Laird worked a lot. Most of his stuff apparently was still in his parents’ garage.
But Laird really seemed to like Devon’s house, and his bed was way more comfortable. And all his stuff was there, so it seemed like a perfect solution.
He took a deep breath and let it out, feeling ridiculous because he had so many nerves fluttering around in his belly.
He knew Laird pretty well now. He knew that he liked mystery and action-adventure books, but that he preferred shark and dinosaur movies.
He knew that he loved red sauce and pulled pork sandwiches and lumberjack breakfasts.
But he also knew that Laird loved his job and hated when he lost a patient and had the most expressive eyes and the kindest hands.
So why was he nervous about going to Fuel, he didn’t know.
“You’re looking very fluttery, Devon.” His partner at the birth center, Raven, smiled at him, a stack of charts in his hands. “Are you okay? Has something happened with one of the patients?”
“No, nothing like that. I’m a little flustered because I have a date with Laird.”
A tiny frown creased the area between Raven’s eyebrows. “Haven’t you had several dates with Laird?”
“Of course. I’m just…” He took a deep breath. “We’re going to Fuel, and I feel a little bit exposed about that, I guess.”
“That’s because that’s the place to see and be seen.” Raven chuckled a little bit. “Heck, I had to go out of town to hook up with somebody who lived here.”
“That’s true, but you are remarkably shy,” Devon patted his friend on the shoulder. “I just don’t know why I feel so unsettled.”
“Well, maybe you should sit and knit for a few minutes. That always seems to calm you down.”
Devon nodded; he was working on a stranded hat that had rainbow fleur-de-lis in a tan background. He thought it was going to work up beautifully.
Hopefully, whoever he ended up gifting it to would feel the same way.
Although, maybe this time he’d keep it—it could be his hat, his rainbow fleur-de-lis hat. Why not? He could wear it next winter.
If he made a hat for Laird, it would need to be bigger. The man was kind of a giant.
“See, you thought about knitting, and your shoulders came down from your ears.”
“I know it’s a hobby, but it does distract me. I do love having something for my fingers and brain to do together.” Devon winked at Raven. “How’s it going? You still managing all right on half days?”
Raven nodded. “Yeah, it’s tough leaving them both with Granny, but it has to be done. About half the time Ben can take them in the gym, so I don’t feel so much like I’m deserting them. Aspen is really only spending about four hours a week with the family, and Willow? She and Granny are besties!”
“Oh, I love to hear that. I’m gonna have to go see your Granny soon.
I’m glad everybody’s doing well. Feels like I’ve been out of the loop.
” It felt like he was just coming into work, going to see Laird, and coming back into work, which wasn’t all that different except for the going to see Laird all the time part.
“That’s because you’ve been dating like a wild man.”
His cheeks heated. “I have. Can I be honest, though?”
Raven stared at him. “Devon. Do you have to ask?”
He chuckled. “I worry I’m way more into him than he is me.”
Raven winced. “Oh that always hurts. I mean it’s always a little off, but if it’s way more, then that’s scary for you, I’m sure.” Raven shrugged, wrinkled his nose. “Maybe you’re just misreading?”
“It’s possible. Unlikely, but totally possible. I could just be reading the room wrong. However, you know my track record with hot guys.”
“Hmm.” Raven tilted his head, his long hair sliding over his shoulder. “I know your panic about how hot guys will get bored with you. But that doesn’t have to enter into this.”
“If I fall for this guy, and he doesn’t fall for me, then it does kind of enter into it, doesn’t it?” He didn’t want to be pedantic or anything, but it seemed to make sense.
Raven rolled his eyes. “Right now, you’re just having fun. You can allow yourself to just have fun. It’s all right.”
“It is. But he’s…” Devon sighed. “Nice. A little grumpy on the outside, but super kind. A med guy, so he gets me. He likes to watch me knit. Oh my God, I’ve already fallen for him…”
“Okay. Okay, in and out. Inhale deep breaths, don’t panic.” Raven helped him sit down, put his head between his knees. “You’ve got this. Just because you’re in love doesn’t mean the world is ending.”
“What? Of course it’s ending. I have a life. I can’t possibly—” But he was possibly and definitely too.
Totally fucked.
“I panicked just the same way, hon. Seriously. I had that weekend with Ben and then boom, we were here in town and I lost it. But it will all work out. I swear.” Raven patted his back like he was an expectant omega parent.
“Thank God I’m not pregnant.”
Raven blinked and tilted his head. “Devon, are you sure?”
He couldn’t believe what he just got asked. “What?”
“I mean, you’ve been having sex. Are you sure you’re not pregnant? I mean, it happens to the best of us.” Raven held up one hand. “Trust me. It’s happened to me twice. And I know what causes babies.”
“I am not going to be pregnant. This is not an option. How could you even ask me that? We’ve been using protection!”
“Okay, okay.” Raven held up his hands. “Hey, I’m sorry for asking. It was out of line.”
Except it wasn’t out of line because Raven was his best friend and his co-owner, and Raven was right. He’d been having sex. No birth control was a hundred percent effective. He knew this.
But surely that wasn’t the problem here. He didn’t really want to take a pregnancy test before he went to meet Laird at the restaurant, but he would take one tomorrow. That way he would stop wigging out about it.
“I’m sorry, Raven. I didn’t mean to snarl at you.
” Devon took a deep breath and then let it out.
“Of course, there’s always the possibility that I’m pregnant, but I’ve been really careful.
Laird and I—if nothing else, we just work so much, I don’t know how it would possibly work between us to have kids and try to live together. ”
Raven just nodded at him. Looking serious but sweet, which was really one of his superpowers.
“So,” Devon went on. “Besides, that’s kind of putting the cart before the horse, isn’t it? I mean, it isn’t like Laird has asked me to live with him or even to spend more time with him than dates.”
“Maybe you need to make sure he knows you want to. If you’ve expressed to him your doubts about yourself and hot guys, maybe he thinks that taking it slow is the way to reassure you that he’s totally into you.”
Devon frowned. “It can’t be that easy, can it?”
“Sometimes the simplest answer is the best answer.” Raven chuckled. “Anyway, knit for a minute. Breathe, and when it’s time to go meet Laird, put on your new relationship cap and say, ‘Do I want him to know how I feel about him?’ And if you do, give in and live a little, Dev.”
“I think I can do that. At least I hope I can.” He might as well put his heart out there on his sleeve and let Laird know what he felt. Because then if it didn’t work out, at least it would be over quickly, and this terrible hope that he had in his belly would go away.
He knitted until he left for Fuel, and when he pulled up at the parking downtown, Laird met him at his car, smiling and bending to kiss him. In public. “Hey, baby.”
“Hey, you, how’s it going?” He couldn’t stop his smile, and he didn’t want to. He just wanted to be here with Laird and have a good evening, possibly really get his rocks off.
“Better now.” Laird looped an arm around him and they headed to the restaurant, the little downtown area starting to bloom, even if it was still pretty cold.
“Oh, good. Did you have a bad day at work?” It warmed him a lot to know that Laird thought he was the best part of his day.
“It was just really busy. There was a car accident out on the highway and it wasn’t nice.”
“Oh no, tell me it wasn’t someone I know, or even someone I don’t know.” That sounded awful because he didn’t want to only worry about people who were in his circle of friends and acquaintances.
“It was not somebody local, if that’s what you mean.” Laird shrugged. “They were passing through on the way from Delta to Telluride, and they just flipped their car. A lot. But they’re alive and in stable condition at the hospital in Montrose.”
“Oh, that’s good. Still, that has to be so stressful. I always hate it when a patient is in trouble.” Devon patted Laird’s arm.
“Yeah, it makes for a rough one. And then there were a few other problems. There was a domestic over in Hot Springs Junction, and that’s always gut-churning.
” Laird’s voice took on a rough, almost angry quality, and he understood that meant somebody had been messing with an omega.
Laird really had that protective quality about him. Devon found that incredibly appealing.