Chapter 8 Possessive Instincts #2
Specifically toward the front office.
Where Finn sat reviewing paperwork for a workplace injury assessment.
The doctor had agreed to stop by after finishing several clinic visits.
A decision Deck was pretending not to appreciate.
The pretending wasn't particularly convincing.
"Deck."
The mechanic blinked.
Tyler stopped talking.
Apparently he'd missed something.
"What?"
The teenager frowned.
"I asked if that wiring looked right."
Deck glanced toward the engine.
Immediately identified the problem.
"Move the harness three inches left."
Tyler nodded.
"That's what I thought."
The kid walked away.
The mechanic looked back toward the office.
Instinctively.
Automatically.
And discovered Riot watching him.
Wonderful.
The older mechanic leaned against a nearby truck.
Arms folded.
Expression suspicious.
Deck immediately knew he was in trouble.
Kane Whitaker noticed everything.
Always had.
The realization felt exhausting.
Riot pushed away from the truck.
Approaching slowly.
Like a predator.
Or an asshole.
Usually both.
"What?"
Deck asked the question before Kane could.
The older mechanic smirked.
The sight never meant anything good.
"You tell me."
The answer sounded far too pleased.
The mechanic looked away.
Bad move.
Riot's grin widened.
"You keep staring."
There it was.
Deck immediately regretted existing.
"At what?"
Kane laughed.
Actually laughed.
The reaction felt deeply offensive.
"The doctor."
The words landed perfectly.
The mechanic remained silent.
Unfortunately, silence counted as confirmation.
The older mechanic looked delighted.
Entirely too delighted.
"I knew it."
Deck considered leaving.
Possibly the country.
The conversation already felt unsalvageable.
"I don't know what you're talking about."
The lie lasted approximately half a second.
Riot rolled his eyes.
"Sure."
Another silence followed.
The older mechanic studied him.
Thinking.
Observing.
Analyzing.
The attention felt uncomfortable.
Because Kane wasn't looking for entertainment anymore.
Something else had replaced the amusement.
Understanding.
The realization made Deck uneasy.
Riot had experienced this before.
Recently.
With Elias.
The thought alone felt dangerous.
"You like him."
The statement arrived casually.
Matter-of-fact.
Like discussing weather.
The mechanic stared at him.
Neither spoke.
Then Riot sighed.
Long.
Exasperated.
"Deck."
"What?"
"You look at Finn the same way I looked at Eli."
The comparison landed hard.
Much harder than expected.
Because Kane wasn't wrong.
The realization settled heavily inside his chest.
The older mechanic continued.
"You stop talking when he walks into a room."
Deck frowned.
"I do not."
"You absolutely do."
The answer arrived instantly.
Certain.
The betrayal felt personal.
Riot pointed toward the office.
"Half the time you're watching him."
The accusation sounded offensive.
Mostly because it was accurate.
The mechanic folded his arms.
Defensively.
A reaction that helped nobody.
The older man smirked.
Again.
"Thought so."
The silence stretched.
Busy garage sounds filled the space between them.
Engines.
Tools.
Conversation.
Life.
Meanwhile, Deck contemplated murder.
Eventually Riot spoke again.
Softer this time.
Less teasing.
More serious.
"What's got you so scared?"
The question caught him off guard.
Because beneath all the sarcasm sat genuine curiosity.
Genuine concern.
The mechanic looked away.
Toward the partially rebuilt garage.
Toward the future.
Toward uncertainty.
The answer should have been simple.
It wasn't.
Because fear came in layers.
Fear of rejection.
Fear of vulnerability.
Fear of losing something important.
The emotions tangled together.
Difficult to separate.
More difficult to explain.
Finally, he settled on honesty.
At least partial honesty.
"He deserves better."
The confession emerged quietly.
Unexpectedly.
Riot stared.
Then laughed.
Not mocking.
Disbelieving.
"Jesus Christ."
Deck frowned.
"What?"
The older mechanic shook his head.
The expression suddenly reminded him of Elias.
The same look the doctor wore whenever Kane became particularly stubborn.
Understanding mixed with frustration.
"You sound exactly like me."
The observation landed uncomfortably close to the truth.
The mechanic hated it immediately.
Because Kane had spent months convinced he wasn't good enough for Elias.
Months pushing people away.
Months making himself miserable.
The comparison felt dangerous.
The older man stepped closer.
Lowering his voice.
"Finn's an adult."
Deck remained silent.
"He can decide what he wants."
Still silent.
"And from where I'm standing..."
Riot glanced toward the office.
Where Finn smiled at something Rebecca said.
The sight instantly captured Deck's attention.
Again.
The older mechanic noticed.
Obviously.
A knowing look crossed his face.
"...looks like he likes you too."
The words hit harder than they should have.
Hope flared unexpectedly.
Bright.
Sharp.
Terrifying.
The mechanic crushed it immediately.
Hope created problems.
Experience taught him that.
Still.
The possibility lingered.
Refusing to disappear.
The conversation eventually ended.
Work resumed.
Life continued.
Yet Riot's words remained.
Following him.
Hours later, Deck sat alone on the farmhouse porch.
Night had settled over Willow Ridge.
Crickets filled the darkness.
The air felt warm.
Peaceful.
The kind of evening he normally enjoyed.
Tonight his thoughts remained restless.
The front door stood open behind him.
Light spilled across the porch.
Inside, Finn moved around the kitchen.
Preparing something.
Cleaning something.
Living.
The familiar sounds drifted into the night.
Deck listened.
Without meaning to.
Without trying.
The realization arrived slowly.
Then all at once.
Like pieces finally falling into place.
He thought about Finn constantly.
He noticed every smile.
Every laugh.
Every habit.
Every mood.
He worried when the doctor worked too much.
He looked forward to seeing him.
Missed him when he wasn't there.
Felt irrationally protective whenever someone else got too close.
The firefighter.
The memory resurfaced.
Embarrassing.
Ridiculous.
Revealing.
The mechanic rubbed a hand across his face.
Because there was no denying it anymore.
Not after the jealousy.
Not after the late-night conversations.
Not after everything.
The truth had become impossible to avoid.
This wasn't a crush.
Wasn't simple attraction.
Wasn't temporary.
The feelings had grown far beyond that.
Dangerously far.
The screen door opened behind him.
Footsteps approached.
Familiar footsteps.
Finn.
The realization alone warmed something inside his chest.
The doctor settled into the chair beside him.
Close.
Comfortable.
Natural.
Neither spoke immediately.
They rarely needed to.
The silence felt easy.
Deck stared out across the dark fields.
Thinking.
Accepting.
Finally admitting what he'd spent weeks avoiding.
He was falling.
Hard.
Harder than he'd ever expected.
Hard enough to scare him.
Hard enough to change everything.
And as Finn's shoulder brushed his for the briefest moment, Declan Harlan privately acknowledged the truth.
He was completely, hopelessly falling for Dr. Finn Ashford.
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