Chapter 40
Dylan sighed as they pulled out of Gabriel’s drive. He had let Gabriel drive, since he didn’t know where the gun store was.
“I never told you about what happened back in Seattle, did I?”
Gabriel glanced in his direction. “Not exactly. You said Derek cheated on you with your best friend, but beyond that…” He gulped. “You didn’t really go into details. I understand why, and I don’t want them if you’re not ready to talk about it.”
Dylan nodded, chewing his lips. “I don’t know if I’ll ever really be ready, but you deserve to know everything.”
Gabriel gulped. “Okay?”
Dylan sighed. “Three weeks ago today. I took off work early, stopped to get some champagne and roses, and headed home to surprise Derek.” He took a deep breath and huffed it out. “I was going to propose.” His voice caught as the last word escaped his lips. He cleared his throat and continued. “The elevators were slow for some reason, and in a way, I’m glad they were.” A tear ran down his cheek.
“I ran into an older lady who lived down the hall, Mrs. Simmons. She was always good to me and Der. She knew what I was up to immediately.”
He choked back a sob. Gabriel rested a hand on his knee, but kept his eyes on the road. “It’s okay Dylan. You don’t have to do this if you don’t want to.”
Dylan sniffled. “I need to.”
Gabriel nodded. “Okay.”
“I slipped into the apartment as quietly as I could. I figured Derek would be in the shower and getting ready for work. Instead, I heard sounds coming from the bedroom.”
He paused, and looked over at Gabriel, who remained silent, gripping the steering wheel so tight his knuckles were white.
“I didn’t bother setting anything down. I just walked as quietly as I could towards the bedroom door, praying he was watching porn.”
He dropped his head. “But he wasn’t. As soon as I saw Ronnie’s blonde curls, I knew what was going on.”
Gabriel gulped. “Why are you telling me this?”
Dylan gave him a half-hearted smile. “Because I didn’t confront him. I just slipped out. I went to Mrs. Simmons’s apartment and told her everything. When Derek left for work, we slipped over and retrieved my things, and I left notes for him and Ronnie.”
Gabriel glanced in his direction. “Did you even talk to him about it?”
Dylan nodded. “Yeah, but not face to face. I told him I was leaving. That I saw them. He didn’t even try to deny it.”
“Did you tell him you were about to propose?”
Dylan bit his lip. “I thought about it, but figured it wasn’t worth it. He wasn’t worth it. I returned the ring, loaded everything in my car, and headed home.”
“But didn’t you have a good job? Friends? A life out there?”
“Yeah, but Ronnie was my boss. I called a friend I had in HR and told her what was going on, and she helped me out.” He let out a dry chuckle.
Gabriel sighed as he parked in front of a small nondescript building with no obvious signage. “I still don’t know why you’re telling me this.”
“Because when all this is over, I want us to start over. I want to fall in love with you. I want you to fall in love with me, scars and all. You need to know why I’m so damn defensive of my heart.” He dropped his head. “And why I’m afraid. Afraid of losing you. Afraid that I’m not strong enough to do this. I’m not good at confrontation. What should have been the biggest confrontation in my life was more of me just hiding and running away. But I can’t do that now. If I do, I won’t have anywhere left to go. I feel like my back’s against the wall, and I don’t know what to do next.”
“Dylan.” Gabriel spoke with a gentle voice. “You could have run away before this even started. Sealed the gates forever and left the other worlds to their fate. But you didn’t. You kept the gates open, for better or worse, you have to deal with it. I can’t. I could probably keep running for the rest of my life, praying I stay a step ahead. Maybe I could keep you safe doing that too, but it wouldn’t be living. If there’s one thing I learned from my fucked-up parents, it’s that sometimes you have to stand up for what you believe in. Mike never did, he just cowered and hid. That’s why he lost you. He threw you away, chasing after our dad’s love.” He shrugged. “Me? I told dad the truth and stood my ground. I don’t have a relationship with him anymore, but that’s his choice, and I’d forgive him if he changed his mind. Yes, there would be a lot of healing, but he’s still my dad.” He looked deep into Dylan’s eyes, but Dylan held his gaze. “I didn’t realize you were as full of self-doubt as I was, maybe more. But God damnit Dylan. You are the culmination of hundreds of years of planning to take back what belongs to your family, and you are more than you know. You are kind. Caring. Anyone who would take advantage of that, like Derek and Ronnie, are fucking idiots. You’re handsome. Sweet. Gentle. A good man. It’s not about whether you’re running away to protect yourself. Or me. Or your family. It’s about stepping in and standing up to protect those who can’t protect themselves. About a rabid dog that needs to be put down. Carina may seem strange about it, but it’s because you are her prince , and she is not used to receiving respect from people above her station. You have a chance here, not only to save these people, but to make their lives even better than they were before. Your people. Our people need us.”
Dylan wiped his eyes. “Holy shit. Where did that come from?”
Gabriel snickered. “Guess I’ve been hanging around Carina too long. Let’s get inside and look around. I need to get a few things before we head back to the house.”
Dylan opened his mouth but stopped before he could utter a word. He couldn’t stop thinking about his vision where he saw them in the store together, but leaving abruptly without buying anything, and followed Gabriel inside.