Chapter Four

“YOU’RE A MATCH.”

The words hung in the air, weighted with more than the medical science. Dylan was a perfect donor candidate for his nephew. Nephew. Family. He fought back another wave of tears. He’d cry again later. Right now, he needed to pay attention to the doctor sitting across from him at the small table in the consultation room.

The simple swab on his cheek that Dylan gave for the Be the Match registry was repeated, along with more extensive blood tests. Dylan worried that his sexual orientation would disqualify him as a donor, but the doctor reassured him that gay men had been able to donate stem cells since 2015. Dylan sent a silent thank you to Mr. Cooper for insisting on educating him about safe sex practices. The first time he took Dylan to a gay men’s health clinic, he’d been too embarrassed to take condoms out of the large bowl at the reception desk. Kevin gave him a stern lecture, saying there was no shame in prioritizing his and any potential partner’s health. Hookups weren’t really his thing, but he wasn’t a monk either. He’d been tested recently and tested again as part of the matching process.

“What happens next?”

“You’ll need to go to Seattle and meet with the transplant doctors. The procedure will also take place there.”

“How long will it take?” Dylan calculated the time off he had. He hated the idea of leaving his kids with a long-term substitute. The school year was over in ten days. Could he wait that long? Could Leo? His nephew’s health came first. If he had to leave now, he would.

“Recovery time will vary. Can be a day or up to a week. This will be a surgical procedure, and you will need time to recover. The procedure will weaken your immune system. It usually takes at least two weeks after the procedure to make a full recovery. And you’ll have to be monitored for any sign of infection.” The doctor referred to the tablet in his hand. “According to the oncologist’s notes in Seattle, Leo will be ready in about a month.”

Dylan swallowed, his already frayed nerves ticking up a notch. He nodded. “Okay.”

He stopped at the reception desk when he finished with the doctor. Fishing his insurance card out of his wallet, he said, “I haven’t received any billing information yet. I don’t know if my insurance covers this kind of thing. Can you tell me how much I’ll owe for the tests?”

The receptionist pulled up his information on her computer and smiled at him with a shake of her head. “You don’t owe anything, Mr. McKenzie. Mr. Blackstone has taken care of everything.”

“I see.” Dylan bit the inside of his cheek. He should be thankful, but it irked him the way Leo’s father kept orchestrating things without consulting him or including him in the decision-making. He didn’t like feeling like a pawn.

His phone rang on his way home. Ryan Blackstone’s name flashed on the screen. Based on his experience so far, he figured Ryan already knew about the latest test results. Since he’d refused to leave with Ryan that first day, the one thing Dylan agreed to do was sign a HIPAA waiver so Ryan could stay updated on the test results. It made it easier for Dylan too, wanting to keep his involvement with Ryan to a minimum.

His meeting with Ryan consumed Dylan’s thoughts. Ryan Blackstone wasn’t what Dylan expected. He’d always thought Lindsay would end up with some jock, not a tech guy. A tech guy with mesmerizing blue eyes and dark blond hair that enhanced his chiseled face. At first glance, Ryan seemed tall and imposing. But there was a look in Ryan’s eyes that exposed a vulnerability Dylan hadn’t expected. He could see the anguish and fear in their blue depths, and it made him want to know what else Ryan might be holding back.

Dylan hit the speaker button as he carefully maneuvered through LA traffic back to his apartment.

“Have you made your decision?” Ryan said in a clipped voice.

“You know what my decision is.” His voice became thick with emotion. “I won’t deny my nephew a chance to grow up.”

There was a pause before Ryan replied. “Thank you.” He cleared his throat and continued in his brusque business tone. “I have the jet on standby to bring you to Seattle. I’ve called your school and they’ll arrange for a sub—”

“You did what?” Dylan ignored the honk from the car he cut off as he pulled over to the side of the road.

“You don’t have to worry. I’ve made all the arrangements. A car will pick you up—”

“No. This is not how it’s going to work. You don’t get to take over my life so you can get what you want. I may be nothing more than a bundle of cells to you, but I am a person with a life that I have worked hard for. I won’t let you control it. You don’t need me in Seattle until two weeks before the donation. I’m going to finish the school year with my kids, and then I will come to Seattle.”

“Dylan, I don’t think you understand.”

“I understand.” He cut Ryan off. “Your son has leukemia, and I can make him better. You control a lot of things, but you can’t control science and time. Leo needs time for his body to be ready for the procedure. When I get to Seattle won’t change that.” Dylan drew in a steadying breath. “I found out I have a nephew I didn’t even know existed. I need to figure out where I’m going to stay while I’m in Seattle. Someone to water the plants and bring in the mail here. So you need to back off and let me figure this out.”

“I’ll arrange a service to take care of your apartment while you’re gone, and you’ll stay at my house when you’re here.”

Dylan clenched his jaw. Ryan had completely ignored what he said.

“I won’t come until the end of the school year.” They’d argue the rest later.

Following a lengthy silence, Ryan finally spoke. “Fine,” he said and ended the call.

Dylan dropped his head to the steering wheel with a muttered curse. He removed the phone from its holder and dialed the contact that was always at the top of his list.

“Dylan. Carl and I were just talking about you. We were thinking about coming out to see you this summer. What do you think?”

“Hey, Dad.”

“What’s the matter?”

He’d called to tell Kevin what was happening, but he couldn’t bring himself to burden him with the news. He’d be fine. He could do this on his own, and there was no reason to worry Kevin and Carl.

“Nothing. End of the year stress, I guess. I’d love to have you visit maybe later in the summer? I was thinking of taking a few weeks and going camping when school gets out.”

“Of course. I’ll send you some dates. A camping trip to decompress after a busy school year is a good idea. I remember those days well,” Kevin said in a wistful voice.

“How’s Pops?”

“He’s good. Insisting on planting more roses even though our yard already looks like a David Austen garden display.”

Dylan smiled, thinking of the little gray shingled cottage his dads moved to in Rhode Island. Carl was a landscape architect and had an obsession with roses. He’d packed the tiny yard so that it overflowed with color in the summer, often making folks stop in their tracks to take pictures.

“Well the last time you and Carl went to the nursery to buy the two roses you said he could buy he came home with six, so….”

“They had the David Austen Juliet. Do you know how hard those are to find? We had to get two of those, and then they had these double yellow shrub roses that we could put in pots by the front door.”

“Okay, Dad.” Dylan chuckled.

“You know I can’t say no to Carl,” Kevin muttered.

Kevin and Carl were Dylan’s role model for what a caring, loving couple looked like. They supported each other no matter what. If Carl announced he wanted to be an astronaut tomorrow, Kevin would start researching space camps. They had the kind of relationship Dylan longed for. They gave him the first glimpse of what a family should look like.

There was never a formal adoption; they’d shared a moment during dinner when he’d flown to Providence for a visit where he’d asked if he could call Kevin Dad. Both Kevin and Carl had gotten up and came around the table, enveloping him in a hug. When they’d all dried their tears, Carl asked if he could be Pops and that was it. They were Dylan’s parents, his family.

Even though Dylan hadn’t told him the truth, talking to his dad when he was upset centered him, as always. Dylan hung up with Kevin and drove to his school to talk to the principal.

The principal was relieved to know he wouldn’t lose a teacher this close to the end of the year. Dylan would be gone for a month, the first time he’d been anywhere other than visiting Kevin and Carl since leaving college.

Replaying the conversation he’d had with Ryan, Dylan’s anger returned. The man was a jerk. If he thought he could throw money around and get Dylan to do whatever he wanted, he had another think coming.

Even though he had the love and support of Kevin and his husband, Dylan knew that the only person he could ever depend on was himself. His independence was hard fought, and he wouldn’t let Ryan come in and take over his life. He would go to Seattle and help his nephew, but he wouldn’t jump when Ryan Blackstone snapped his fingers.

“EARTH TO Dylan.” Alexis snapped her fingers in front of him.

Dylan looked up from the papers scattered across his desk. There weren’t any shouts or laughter coming from the playground. The schoolyard was quiet; all the kids had been picked up hours ago.

Alexis perched on his desk, looking at him with a frown. “What’s going on? You haven’t been yourself for weeks now. I’ve heard rumors you’re leaving.”

Her statement snapped him out of his daze. “No, that’s not true. I’m not leaving.” He pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. “I am leaving, but it’s only for a couple of weeks.”

Alexis eyed him with a worried look. “Talk to me, Dylan.”

Dylan peered at his friend. He wasn’t planning on saying anything. He didn’t want anyone to feel like he needed help—he was fine and could handle this on his own. But Alexis was stubborn and could be like a dog with a bone when she sensed trouble.

“I have a nephew.” His voice quivered. “He has leukemia, and I’m his match for a bone marrow transplant….”

Alexis got up from her perch, grabbed a spare full-sized chair from the corner, and pulled it close. She sat next to him and wrapped her arms around him. “Tell me everything,” she said.

Dylan told her about the phone call notifying him he was a match, leading to Ryan’s visit and the events that followed.

“Why didn’t you tell me this sooner?”

“I don’t know. Maybe because I’m having a hard time telling it to myself. I didn’t want you to worry….” He swallowed, fighting back a wave of nervousness.

“Oh, Dylan, I wish you didn’t always feel you had to handle everything on your own. Gabe and I love you, and we’re here for you.”

Dylan rested his head on Alexis’s shoulder. Alexis and her husband, Gabe, were two of his best friends. He shouldn’t feel like he was burdening them, sharing what was going on with his life. It was a defense mechanism. He knew that from therapy. He had a fear of being a burden to others, afraid of experiencing rejection again. But knowing where the fear came from didn’t always mean he could keep it at bay.

He sat up, wiping his eyes. “I’m sorry.”

“Noting to be sorry for. Your friends want to support you, but we can’t if you don’t share with us. “Now—” She stood up. “—pack up your stuff and let’s go. Gabe is off tonight. You’re coming over for dinner, and we’ll talk about what’s going to happen next.”

“Thanks, Alexis.”

“That’s what friends are for.”

DYLAN COULDhave kicked himself for not telling Alexis and Gabe sooner. They gave him their unwavering support in the weeks that followed as he finished out the school year and prepared to leave for Seattle. He’d meet his nephew, make the donation, and be home in a couple of weeks. He would have the rest of the summer to find that perfect, peaceful lake to kayak across.

They threw him a goodbye dinner with their small circle of friends before he left for Seattle. Dylan boarded Ryan Blackstone’s private jet the following morning. As the plane circled over Seattle before it began to dip and descend into Boeing Field International Airport, Dylan fought his rising panic. Even though his sister was gone, he was about to enter her home and the memories of her that lingered there. What made him even more nervous was facing Ryan Blackstone again.