“Shit!” Okay, now Gray had definitely burned the omelet. Dammit all. He winced and plated the piece of charcoal.
“Need any help?” Darius asked.
“No, I need a new brain,” Gray muttered. Walking over to the fridge, he hoped they still had some eggs left. “The one I have now is busy cataloguing every move you make.”
Darius chuckled and went over to wash his hands.
Thankfully, there were six eggs left. The third shelf in the fridge was all theirs, and they’d stocked it with chicken, eggs, milk, vegetables, ground beef, and cheese. Darius had been in charge at the store, though Gray was the one who’d made sure they got enough greens. That didn’t seem to be as important to Darius.
Gray finished the mixture to a new omelet and poured it into the sizzling pan.
“We should think about heading off soon,” Darius said.
“I know.” Gray didn’t wanna think about it, though. He liked it here.
Okay, it was weird with Leah sometimes. She seemed to carry a torch for Darius, who was completely oblivious, leaving it up to Gray to be subtle about them. Other than that… Leah kept her distance too, maybe because she wouldn’t be getting the reunion she’d hoped for, but also because she worked a shitload. She and one other employee ran around preparing for the spring, when more guests would show up. There was a lot of snow to clear too. Both Darius and Gray had helped her yesterday.
It was how this place was run. The cost of staying wasn’t pricier than an average roadside motel, but you helped out and pulled your weight when you had the chance.
Darius walked over to stand behind him, and he dropped his chin to Gray’s shoulder.
Rivers of contentment flowed through Gray. He wanted to close his eyes and just enjoy Darius’s strong arms around him—but he didn’t wanna burn another omelet.
“You should stay with me for a while when we get back to Camassia.” Darius pressed a kiss to Gray’s neck. “It’d get you away from the town centers, and we could continue your training. Some target practice, some fightin’… You could teach me how to grow tomatoes.”
Gray felt his face split with a grin, and he tilted his head back. “Really?”
“Really.” Darius kissed his mouth. “You and me in the woods.”
Holy crap, the mere idea… Gray couldn’t think of any place he’d rather be if he had to go back to Camassia. “It’s still too early to grow tomatoes.”
Darius smirked into another kiss. “Depends how long you stay.”
Jesus. He was dangerous. He couldn’t say those things. Gray cleared his throat and faced forward again, flipping the omelet before he ruined this one too. “Count me in. I’ve never visited a proper homestead before.”
He’d meant it as sort of a joke to lighten the tension. Maybe only he felt it, which wouldn’t be awesome. He couldn’t fall for Darius. It was too soon, and the goals and dreams Gray had once had definitely didn’t match with what Darius wanted.
“Can you go get Jayden?” he asked. “Food’s ready. I’m just gonna reheat the chicken.”
“Sure.”They were back in the kitchen around six.
Jayden was sitting on the counter next to Darius’s workstation, and he was FaceTiming with Father O’Malley. The boy was rambling a mile a minute about everything they’d done and all the cool things he’d seen.
Gray didn’t have much to do. The ground beef was seasoned for their tacos, the vegetables were chopped and sliced, and the cheese had been shredded. So, he watched Jayden—and Darius—and realized something. In his quest to make sure he didn’t fall head over heels in love with Darius, he’d kinda fallen for the boy. Jayden’s cocky grins and goofy smiles had become essential to Gray’s well-being. And he loved taking care of the kid. He loved being there for him, sharing new experiences, teaching him things…
Handing him over to Adeline was going to be rough.
“No, we didn’t,” Jayden answered, “but we saw the tracks, Malley! Right, Darius? Didn’t we see bear tracks?”
“We did,” Darius chuckled. He’d just placed the two loaves of bread on a tray to go into the oven.
Gray eyed his own phone on the counter where he’d chopped vegetables, and he chewed on the inside of his cheek.
He’d run out of excuses for not reaching out to Mom.
He picked up his phone and hesitated. He’d unblocked all numbers a while ago, and he had to give Mom credit. The few times he’d texted her, she’d only responded with a single message in return. She understood that he couldn’t handle more.
He went with mildly sugarcoated honesty.
Hey. Just wanted to give you an update. I’m feeling a bit better, and we’ll be heading toward Camassia soon. We’re in Colorado right now. Darius has been great to me, and Jayden is amazing. You’ll like him. I’m sorry about keeping my distance, but it really has helped. I love you all, and I miss you.