“Something wrong?” Clint stepped into the kitchen, no longer holding his baby daughter. Eyes narrowed in concern, he stared at Cochise.
“No,” Cochise mumbled and turned his back to the man.
Clint looked to Kane for confirmation.
“It’s okay,” Kane whispered, unable to conjure much conviction.
Clint didn’t believe him, but apparently decided this wasn’t the time to press the issue and exited the kitchen.
Kane crossed the floor and flattened his palms against Cochise’s back. He kissed him between the shoulder blades and touched his brow to the man’s warm, tense muscles. “You should talk to Clint… you know he’s feeling the same way.”
“Why talk to him?” Cochise faced Kane. “He can’t do anything about it any more than I can. We shouldn’t talk about it—we should forget it. Forget them. What good is remembering them when there isn’t a fucking thing we can do to help them?”
Tears burned Kane’s eyes. “Sometimes… just knowing there are people out there who care, even if they can’t do anything… it helps. It helps them to not feel so alone, or unloved… unwanted. There is power in love—even when it’s given from a distance. We can’t forget them. We can’t stop caring—ever—even when it hurts. It’s selfish to hide from that pain. Doing so isn’t for them—it’s for us, so we don’t have to think about it and, in thinking about it, suffer with them.” He touched Cochise’s face and brushed away a rogue tear. “But you already know that. I don’t have to tell you to care. You do, and you won’t stop, because that’s the kind of man you are. That’s the man I fell in love with.”
Cochise stared at him, eyes wet, then hugged Kane and crushed him in his arms.
CHAPTER 4
Refuge
Axel spotted Cal as soon as he stepped out on the back porch. He made his way to the younger man. “Hey. You’re here.”
“Yeah.” Cal scanned the yard, his eyes halting on Zoe, who stood near the barbecue talking with Savannah as some of the boys broke into teams for a game a football. “Cochise told me what happened with her boyfriend.”
Axel nodded. “You should’ve seen it—she dropped him like a sack of potatoes. Pretty awesome.”
Cal stared at her, longing and affection in his eyes. “Is she okay?”
“She will be. I talked to her afterward. So did Cochise. I mean, she isn’t feeling too great right now. No one likes to find out they’ve been cheated on. It’s humiliating.”
Cal shifted and looked at Axel. “Why should she feel humiliated? That asshole is the one in the wrong.”
“I know. Zoe knows it, too. But even when a worthless piece of shit does it to you, it can still cause that feeling of I’m not good enough. I think it’s a natural reaction for anyone. It’ll pass. She knows he was the one not good enough for her. And we’ll never let her forget that.”
Cal sighed. “I wish Cochise would’ve messed him up.”
“He wasn’t easy on him.” Axel smiled. “Walked right into the Zodiac and dragged his ass out of there and threw him in the trunk of his car, brought him here.”
“What?” Cal blinked. “No shit? He really did that?”
“Scout’s honor.”
“Holy shit.” Cal looked a little happier. “Wish I could’ve seen that.”
“Yeah, me, too. You gotta know that prick was two seconds from shitting his pants.”
Cal laughed low. “I wish he had.” Another sigh as his gaze drifted back to Zoe. “How could anyone do that to her? How was she not his whole fucking world? What is wrong with people?”
“I guess some people just don’t know a good thing when they see it.” Axel rested his arm on Cal’s shoulder and grinned. “And some people do.”
Cal cast him a sidelong glance. “Just because I know what she’s worth, doesn’t mean she’d go out with me. She barely knows I’m alive.”
“Well, that’s your fault.” Axel chuckled. “You got to make an effort, make yourself more visible. She’s a free woman now, so you don’t have to tiptoe around her boyfriend.”
“What am I supposed to do? Walk up to her and be like, now that you got dumped, you wanna go out with me?”
Axel laughed. “No. That might get you decked. And right now, she isn’t up for dating. But she can always use another friend. I think you and her would hit it off. And later, when she figures out what an awesome guy you are and she agrees to go out on a date with you—at least you know you’re preapproved by her terrifying gangster daddy.”
Cal exhaled. “That is a plus. I’d hate to be a new guy who had to work for his approval. I know how scary he can be.” Cal grimaced. “Our first encounter was a tad terrifying.”
Axel grinned. “I remember.”
“Shit, I thought he was gonna kill me.”
“Yeah, first encounters with these guys can be a bit… terror inducing.” Axel chuckled. “I pretty much thought the same thing with Clint. I didn’t think I’d live to see another sunrise.”
“I guess first impressions can be deceiving—thank God.”
Axel laughed. “Amen.”
●●●
As captain of one of the football teams, Cory invited Manny to be on his team. Fluent in Spanish, he convinced the young man—after much gentle coercion—to join them. Manny was clearly nervous about leaving Jax’s side but both Jax and Clint assured him it was okay, and they would stay right there, in plain sight.
“So, uh…” Clint cleared his throat. “How was your first night in your new home?”
Jax rubbed his mouth and smiled. “So subtle. Manny and I… we didn’t…”
“No?”
Jax shook his head. “I know he wanted to. I did, too, but…” He sighed. “I keep thinking about what he went through inside that prison and… and I don’t know if we should have sex so soon after. I was thinking, maybe he should talk to someone first. You know, like a therapist or something. I don’t want to hurt him by going too fast, you know. Does that make any sense?”
“Yeah. Perfect sense. You’re putting his welfare first. It shows you care.”
“I wish I understood his language better. I want to talk to him about it—privately, between us—but the only Spanish I know is what you taught me, and he barely understands English.” He rubbed his eyes. “But his welfare is the most important thing to me. So, if I have to, I’ll get someone to translate for us.”
“Do you want me to talk to Anthony or Angelo? Either one would be a great choice.”
“Yeah,” Jax murmured. “Yeah, I… I think I would be comfortable with one of them.”
“They’re good men. They’ll be glad to help.”
Cruz approached with Sanchez and Matteo. “Where’s Cochise?”
“Inside,” Clint said.
“Why?” Cruz asked. “Everyone’s out here.”