Chapter Forty-Four

Tommy

I dropped onto Jamie’s couch once he had let me into the room. I folded my arms over my chest and tried to scowl, hoping my happiness didn’t shine through. My normal broody attitude had disappeared. Not that I was complaining. I hadn’t laughed, smiled, or loved life as much as I had now that Blake was back in my life.

“So.” Jamie smiled at me as he opened his laptop. “How was the wedding?”

I huffed. “Fine.”

His brows dipped, and he pressed his lips into a thin line.

“I was the best man, so that came with obligations. I had to stand up in front of their friends and family. There were pictures.” Which I didn’t hate as much as I thought I would. “I had to make a speech.”

“And how did that go?” Jamie’s eyes flashed with worry as he typed into his computer.

I shrugged. “Fine.”

“Fine again?” Jamie leaned back in his chair. “Tom, I thought we were making progress. What happened to make you retreat this way?”

I tried to hide my smile, but I couldn’t. I started laughing as Jamie’s eyes went wide. He stared at me as I shook my head, held up my palms, and gathered myself together.

“I proposed to Blake.”

“You...Proposed?”

“Yeah, we’re going to get married. We love one another.”

Jamie nodded. “And all that fine business?”

“Bullshit. Everything was fucking perfect. I even danced with Blake. Laughed, had fun, and then decided to buy him a ring. I wasn’t sure when the perfect moment would be to propose, but when it hit me, I did it.” Warmth spread through my body.

Jamie broke into a smile. “He said yes.”

“Oh, he said yes.” I felt like my face might split in two, I was so happy. “Blake’s coming back to Canfield. We’re going to live in his house. I think, over time, I might be okay to leave. But he wants to be with me, and he’s willing to come home.”

Jamie clacked away at his keyboard, and the noise filled the room. If I was ever able to leave, I wanted to continue to see my therapist. He was a good dude, put up with my bullshit, and I liked him. Maybe in other circumstances, we might have been friends. I didn’t even know anything about Jamie other than he was my therapist. Did he have a wife and kids?

I stood up, and Jamie’s eyes shot up to look at me. “I wanted to show you this.” I unlocked my phone to show him the picture I had taken with Blake. Or rather, one of the pictures. We were both smiling happily, heads squished together. I hadn’t felt that carefree since before my accident.

“Would you look at that?” He smirked. “He’s good for you, your Blake. Makes you smile a lot.”

Wasn’t that the truth? “He’s looking for a therapist. I was hoping that you would be able to help him, like you’ve been helping me.”

“I have a few openings.” Jamie held out his card. “Ask Blake to call me, and we’ll set something up. You know I can’t talk about you with him. What we say here is stays between us. Just like what I discuss with him.”

I smiled. “Thanks,” I mumbled. “Yeah, so you want to see some more wedding pictures?”

“I thought you’d never ask,” Jamie answered.

***

Blake was still out with Dean and Killian when I arrived back at his house. Or should I call it my house now? I wasn’t sure. I hadn’t been back to my parents’ place since before the wedding. I knew I would have to tell them my plans. How I was going to live with Blake now. Move away from Canfield when I was ready. I glanced over at the house as memories hit me.

Meeting Blake for the first time.

Kissing him.

Tasting him.

Fucking him.

The way Blake screamed at me the day he found out I had tricked her into going to rehab. Told me to leave him alone. Before he left without saying goodbye.

“Hey.” Beau stepped out onto the front porch. “You okay?”

I nodded as I brushed my hand over my eyes. “Never better.” A lump had formed in my throat, and I tried to push it back down. I could feel him hovering behind me, and I waved at him to sit down. We sat in silence for a while until Beau finally broke the silence.

“I went and spoke with Dean’s parents earlier.”

“You did what?”

Beau’s baby blues had turned icy. “I wanted to see where Dean grew up. What made him the way he was. It was much worse than I imagined. There was religious shit everywhere.”

“They’re assholes,” I muttered.

He grunted. “That’s being nice.” He dragged a hand through his inky black hair. “His dad told me he didn’t care about them, and I quote, ‘because his homosexual sons were dead to him.’ I’ve never wanted to punch someone so much in my entire life.”

“He was always a charmer.” I twisted my body to face Beau. “Tell me you didn’t leave it at that.”

He shook his head. “I told them both I loved Dean. That I had plans to marry him if Dean would have me. That he was the reason I got up in the morning and the reason my life felt fulfilled for the first time in my thirty-eight years on this planet.” Beau ducked his head. “I also told them they missed Maverick’s wedding. That despite how horrible they were as human beings, Jax and Mav had gotten their happily ever after. That they were going to be grandparents. They were visibly disgusted.”

“Maybe we should go light their house on fire while Maverick is away.” I chuckled, but when Beau just narrowed his eyes, I stopped. “You didn’t, did you?”

“I thought about it. Thought about a lot of things while I sat in that driveway after their father threatened me. Told me I was going to hell.” Beau snorted. “Pretty sure their mother is sick, though.”

My brows dipped. “Why do you think that?”

“Even though I couldn’t get past the front door, I saw things. The sign on the door read no smoking, oxygen in use. The pill bottles on the kitchen counter. The gaunt look on their mother’s face. Her skin was oddly pale. Paler than it should have been.”

I was surprised I hadn’t heard anything around town, but then again, I didn’t normally socialize with people these days. “Are you going to tell Dean?”

“No, I don’t think I will. If they wanted to talk to him, they could. They know his phone number.” Beau’s lips curved into a smile. “I hear congratulations are in order.”

I felt my insides bloom with happiness. “Thank you.”

“You look happy, Tom.”

“So do you.”

Beau shook his head. “You look different, but happy. Does that make sense? The last time I saw you was before your accident, and you weren’t”—he waved a hand at me—“radiating like this. You were miserable, broody, and just unhappy.”

“Blake makes me happy,” I answered.

Beau chuckled. “Just like Dean does me.”

“You’re going to be good to him, right? Dean, I mean? You’re not going to break his heart?” Beau’s eyes narrowed. “I just want him to be happy. He’s kind of my brother-in-law by proxy now and friends with Blake. Dean’s a good person. He’s had a few rough moments.”

Beau dragged his teeth over his bottom lip. “I love Dean. I realized it the day that I shared my time with the Stanley Cup with him. I’ve never actually been in love before, but with him, yeah, I know it’s real. He makes me feel alive, and at first, I was scared. When he left, I realized how he made my apartment a home. That Dean made me a better man. I never thought I wanted to settle down. I know ghosting him wasn’t the right way to go about things. I had shit to figure out, and I still do. I’ve apologized hundreds of times. It was a long few weeks without him. My heart felt heavy. I won’t let that happen again.”

“He’s your person.” I saw the love that shone in his eyes. “I get that.”

He grinned. “I know you do, Little Olson. It wasn’t supposed to be that way with us. Jax didn’t want me anywhere Dean when we first met. There was this pull, like some sort of invisible thread.”

We both saw the rental car at the same time. It slowed down before it pulled into the driveway. Dean climbed from the passenger’s side just as Beau got to his feet. I watched in fascination as Dean rushed up to meet him and leaped into his arms, pressing kisses against Beau’s face.

“Gross, please spare me.” Killian made a motion with his finger to his mouth like he was throwing up, but then winked at me.

“You’re just missing Matty.” Dean shot him the middle finger without even turning around.

Killian snorted. “You’re not wrong. I wonder if I could just crash the party he’s having with my sister.”

I tilted my head up to Blake. “Have fun today, baby?”

“I did, but I missed you.” He climbed into my lap and straddled my thighs. He leaned forward to ghost a kiss over my mouth.

I hummed. “Did you now?”

“Mm.” He slid his lips over mine again. “Are you okay?” he whispered into my ear.

I pulled him closer. “I’ve never been better.”