Chapter 5
Chapter Five
Meyer
“ R ide me, cowboy!”
I’d had weird dreams about riding a cowboy, being ridden by the cowboy, until we were exhausted and wrapped in each other's arms. Only it was always the same cowboy with warm blue eyes and a sneer that made me want to kiss it off him. I was tired before I’d even opened my eyes. Riding cowboys was hard work.
My bed felt strange, softer than the one I was used to, and the sheets didn’t smell of my lavender laundry detergent. I cracked open one eye and looked around the room. I had no idea where I was at first, only knowing I wasn’t in my California king bed, and this wasn’t my spacious loft in Chicago. It took me a minute, and then I spotted the firefighter my mawmaw had knitted for me when I was a kid on a shelf in the corner. The town was full of knitted aliens. I’d wanted a firefighter, so Mawmaw made me one for my birthday. I smiled as I remembered how excited I’d been to receive it. I’d carried it around for weeks until other boys laughed at me, and Mom had suggested gently that I kept it safe at home.
How weird it was being back in my tiny childhood bedroom, knowing I wouldn’t return to Chicago after a couple of days. It was as if I stepped back twenty years. Even Dex Chase was the same. No, not the same. Dex was a million times hotter. He’d been cute then, but now…whoa, I needed to stop thinking about him before it became something I needed to take care of. I couldn’t do that. Not in my mom’s house. I cringed at the thought.
I stretched my toes beyond the bed and scratched my chest. The first thing I’d need to do when I found a place to rent was get all my gear shipped here, especially my own bed. I was a big guy and not built for a single bed. One or two nights, a week maybe, but after that, I needed my California king.
A rumble reminded me I needed to fill my belly. I used the bathroom, dressed, and jogged down the stairs to find food and Mom. She didn’t return my call, so I veered to the garage to inspect my bike before breakfast.
Mom had told me where it was the night before. I found the bike behind an old cabinet and dragged it out into the light of day. Two flat tires, rust, and a lot of cobwebs, but nothing terminal. I could spend Sunday working on getting it roadworthy if I bought the inner tubes today. When I found a note from Mom pinned to the fridge saying she’d gone to the store because I’d eat her out of house and home, I decided to go buy the inner tubes and start work now. I could buy us something nice from the bakery too.
Mom had taken the car, so I walked into town. Someone would sell inner tubes. Although we were off the highway, plenty of tourists passed through Charming to take advantage of the bike trails. I knew from my mom that the town had voted in a new mayor, Liam Sandel, who had a business background and understood how to tap into the tourist market, from cycling and camping to the annual Dancing Chiles Food Fiesta and exploring the town's Mexican heritage. Now, stores selling camping clothes and gear suitable for the Butte, bicycle rentals, and more coffee shops than I’d seen in one place, along with bakeries and quirky stores. We were alien country, after all.
I was amazed at the change every time I returned home. My mom had mentioned the new mayor had ruffled more than a few feathers in his quest to modernize the town, but there was no doubt the effect was positive.
And it meant I could find inner tubes.
I walked into the bike shop and looked around.
“Can I help you, sir?”
I didn’t bristle at the sir…much. A young woman—no, she was late teens if that—smiled at me. “Hi, thanks, I’m looking for inner tubes.”
“Over here.”
She led me over to a display. It didn’t take me long to pick out what I needed.
“Anything else?” she asked.
I thought for a moment and nodded. “I need new lights. Mine are so old now.”
Ten minutes later, I had inner tubes, lights, a maintenance kit, and a new pump. I smiled wryly when she rang up my purchases. “I only came in for inner tubes.”
“It’s always the way,” she said cheerfully.
I thanked her and left. I was about to head home when I saw a familiar figure heading out of the bakery, holding a blue box and a takeout cup. Maybe I should go over and say thanks for helping me earlier. It was kind of him, even if he had been an ass to me. I still hadn’t forgiven him for revealing my big news to my mom.
You just want to talk to the hot guy.
Thanks, lizard brain. I don’t need you to state the obvious.
I wanted to talk to the hot guy. I couldn’t see his face under the hat and the hair, but his shoulders were slumped, and he radiated exhaustion. I frowned, not liking how tired he looked. Before I could reach him to ask if he needed my help, he got into a truck and drove away, not before spilling coffee over himself. Unseen by Dex, I smirked a little. Been there, done that. I guess we’re both dorks.
Mom would love a cake. Okay, I would love a cake. Maybe a buttermilk bar? I jogged over the street to the bakery, ready to push the door open, when something caught my eye in the window. Were they…alien butts? I peered a little closer to look. Green, butt-shaped, a little brown down the middle. Yep, they were alien butts. Charming Butte had certainly embraced the wacky since I left.
I inhaled the aromas of fresh bread, coffee, and cinnamon. I inhaled again because it smelled so good. The woman behind the counter smiled at me.
“Hi, hon, what can I get you?”
She was maybe forty, with bleached blonde curls escaping from a hairnet and wearing an apron with an alien butt dead center. I bet that upset some of the church-going folks. I thought it was great.
I looked along the rows of baked goods and hummed. What would Mom like? It had been years since I’d bought my mom a cake. Then I had an inspiration. I smiled at her. “Can you tell me what Lindy Jones would like?”
She tilted her head and narrowed her eyes. “Meyer? Meyer Jones. Is that you?”
“Uh…yes.” I frantically tried to remember her name. I should know it. Deborah? Denise? Destiny, that was it!
“It’s been years since I saw you. Rosie said you were in town. And you’re going to be the new assistant fire chief. Gary’s real happy you’re back.”
Who was Rosie? Mom was going to have to write me a list of residents and their jobs and if I went to school with them.
She must have spotted my blank look because she said, “Rosie is Chief Wally’s assistant.”
At least that hadn’t changed. Wally had been the police chief in Charming Butte forever. He had to be at least ninety.
“I remember him.” I smiled wryly as I recalled my frequent encounters with the police chief. “I swear he was always taking me home.”
Destiny snickered. “He was the same when I was a teenager, and my pops says the same. Anyway, good to see you again, Meyer. But I don’t think you need to worry about a cake for your mom today. Dex just bought her a dozen alien butt cookies. Maybe you could come in tomorrow and buy something for dinner.”
I stared at her. “Dex bought my mom alien butt cookies?”
“He’s such a lovely boy,” she said fondly. “He’s been so good to Lindy while she’s been ill.”
I didn’t need her to fill in the blanks there. I understood the implication.
Where were you, her son?
I was seething inside. He stole my secret, and now he stole my butts? That man was getting right under my skin. I was tempted to storm after Dex and tell him no way was he giving my mom cookies. I , her son, would be the one to give her treats.
I slumped against the counter. Now I sounded like a five-year-old having a tantrum. “I’ll come by tomorrow,” I said.
Destiny eyed me shrewdly. “How about a welcome-back coffee and a butt cookie on the house?”
I really needed a coffee. “That sounds wonderful, Destiny.”
She tilted her head again and regarded me as though she were divining my psyche. “You’re a Caramel Apple Coffee Slush, aren’t you?”
“I…”
Destiny burst out laughing. “Your face. I should have taken a picture.”
“I don’t even know what that is,” I admitted. “It sounds very…sweet.”
“You should remain in ignorance. Just a brew then?”
“Sounds great,” I agreed.
I drank coffee as it came. You had to, working in the firehouse. Coffee could be a loose term. But Caramel Apple Coffee Slush, was that even coffee?
I accepted the drink and the cookie, but only after I stuffed a few notes in the tip jar.
“Thanks, hon.”
I took a sip of the coffee, and my eyes widened.
“This is so good,” I said.
Destiny winked at me. “Best coffee in town.”
I grinned at her and left, juggling the bike parts, cookie, and the full cup. I didn’t spill anything over me. I was very proud of that.
I wasn’t surprised to find Dex leaning against his truck when I returned home, a blue box on the hood with the familiar saucer logo. His eyes were closed, and his face tilted up to face the sun. The fall temperature was mid-eighties today; I was overheating after Chicago, but he seemed happy baking in the sun. I watched him for a moment, wishing I could take a photo.
“You can quit staring at me,” he said. As far as I was aware, he hadn’t even opened his eyes. “Lindy isn’t in.”
“Mom must still be shopping. She needs to feed me. She’s been gone a while. Is she buying the whole store?”
Dex opened his eyes and turned his blue gaze on me. Damn, he was pretty.
“She usually meets a friend for coffee.”
I took a deep breath. Of course he’d know that. This would happen over and over until I settled down and discovered all my mom’s secrets.
Friend. What did that mean?
“What kind of friend?” I asked suspiciously.
Dex’s lips twitched. “I think she should tell you that.”
“You’re not telling me Mom’s got a boyfriend?”
“I’m not telling you anything,” he pointed out. “I’m not giving away her secrets.”
“You didn’t mind giving away my secret,” I grumbled because I was still sulking over that.
He gave me a wry smile. ‘Yeah, that was kinda mean. I’m sorry.”
“It was an ass move, man. But thanks for the apology. Do you want to come inside?”
Dex stood and rolled his shoulders. “I should get back to the ranch. I’ve got a calf who’s not doing so well. Will you give her the cookies?”
“I will.”
He handed me the blue box. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
I was so focused on the cookies I almost missed what he said. “What?”
“I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“What’s happening tomorrow?” I searched through my memory, trying to remember some arrangement that involved Dex. As if I’d forget something important like that.
“Lindy invited me for dinner,” Dex said. “Didn’t she tell you?”
“No, she forgot to mention it,” I bit out through gritted teeth, then I caught Dex studying me. “It’s okay. It’s just I’ve seen more of you these past two days than I did my boyfriend.”
I said it without thinking, but when I saw his expression change, I silently cursed. Was he going to give me grief for being gay?
“You’ve got a boyfriend?”
“I have an ex-boyfriend,” I said as lightly as I could manage. Only from the sudden pity in his eyes, I don’t think I succeeded.
“I’m sorry.” He sounded genuine, and was that a hint of relief in his tone?
I shrugged. “Me moving back here was the nail in the coffin.”
“You didn’t want to do a long-distance relationship?”
“He didn’t. Tom’s a city boy. When I suggested we move to a small town in the middle of nowhere, he laughed and broke it off the next day.”
“Is that the reason you came home?” Dex asked.
I snorted at the thought. “I don’t need my mom to mend my broken heart. I’m a big boy now.”
I thought he’d laugh and make some crack about my size, but instead, he regarded me for a long moment. “Is your heart broken?”
Now I had to think. Was it? “I’m not sure, to be honest,” I admitted. “Maybe there’s an element of relief. Tom’s fun to be with, but he’s high maintenance. There were times I just wanted to crash out and cuddle on the couch, not go to clubs and parties. Tom never understood that.”
“He was a party animal?”
“He would have partied 24/7 if he could.”
Dex raised an eyebrow. “He doesn’t sound much like you.”
I snorted out a laugh. “We’re total opposites.”
Dex nodded. “You know what they say.”
It took me a minute. “Opposites attract? I guess that was us. But there are times I want to be with friends who are like me and do the same things I like doing.”
“Like what?” Dex seemed genuinely curious.
“Cycling, camping, hiking. Cuddling on the couch to watch a movie. Sitting in silence reading a book.” A sigh escaped me. “I haven’t much of any of that in the past six months.”
“Maybe you can change that while you’re here,” Dex murmured.
“Maybe,” I agreed, wondering if that was a subtle offer to join me. Because I wouldn’t say no. “I need to find a new home first.”
His frown was immediate. “You’re not going to live with Lindy?”
I shook my head. “I love Mom, but I’ve lived by myself for over a decade.”
“You’ve come home just to move out again?”
I bristled at Dex’s angry tone. What was his problem? “But I’m not going anywhere. That’s why I got a transfer here. So I can keep an eye on my mom.”
“It doesn’t sound like it.”
Now I was getting riled. “Not that it’s any of your business, but neither of us want to share.”
He levered off the truck and shrugged. “Whatever.”
I clenched my jaw. This man was so infuriating. “If you’ve got something to say, Chase, spit it out.”
I stepped into his space, toe-to-toe, eyes locked on his, waiting to find out what his problem was with me.
But then Dex ducked his head and took a step back. “I’ve got nothing to say.”
That was a load of bullpucky if ever I heard it. The one thing I’d learned about Dex Chase in the past two days was he never had ‘nothing to say.’ But before I could push him further, I heard my mom’s car turn into the cul-de-sac.
Dex swallowed hard. I took a step back to give us both space. Had I scared or intimidated him? Despite my size, or maybe because of it, I really wasn’t that kind of guy, and whatever was going on between me and him was all him. He needed to work it out.
“I love my mom,” I said before she jumped out of the car, “and I’m here to stay.”
I wasn’t sure if that was a declaration or a warning. I’d leave Dex to decide.