Without preamble, Gage started the truck and backed out of the driveway, barely glancing left or right to see if there was any traffic coming. There were so many questions running through her head, but Kylie was scared to ask them because she didn’t know what was wrong with Gage. On top of that, Travis wasn’t speaking either which… well, that didn’t seem unusual for him. Since Gage wasn’t talking and was probably lost in thought, Kylie feared that whatever the problem was didn’t fare well for him.
After what felt like an hour drive, – the silence making it seem unbearably long – but was actually only ten minutes, they slowed as they turned onto a residential street and that’s when Kylie noticed all of the commotion.
Two fire trucks, an ambulance, several standard pickup trucks with flashing lights in their windows were lined down both sides of the street blocking anyone from trying to get close to…
Fire.
“Oh. God.” Her words were but a whisper, but realization finally dawned on her. Gage’s house. Oh God. Gage’s house was on fire.
“Stay here,” Gage barked the words as he scrambled to get out of the truck.
“You can’t go –” She was quickly cut off as Travis turned to face her from the seat in front of her.
“Stay here, Kylie. Don’t move. We’ll be back in a minute.” Although he wasn’t making a request, Travis was unusually polite with his order.
Kylie clamped her mouth shut and nodded as she watched Travis exit the vehicle, returning her attention to the flames that were leaping above the tree tops. The downpour didn’t seem to be helping, but she couldn’t see much from where Gage had parked the truck.
Glancing around, she tried to see if anyone else was around, but there weren’t any other civilians hanging out in the rain. Why would they be? It was pouring, and the lightning storm hadn’t let up either. She sat as still as possible, trying to catch a glimpse of what was going on, biting her lip as she did.
Travis.
Gage.
Fire.
Her heart began pounding like a bass drum right in the center of her chest, and for a minute, she worried that she wasn’t going to be able to breathe. Did it burn to the ground? Did anyone get hurt? Did he have any pets? The questions began running together, and Kylie realized she had tears forming in her eyes.
He could lose everything. Probably had already from the looks of it.
And yet, she could do nothing but sit there in the damn truck like an obedient little girl because they told her to. But what else was she going to do? It wasn’t like she knew how to put out a fire and the last thing she would want to do would be to get in the way.
Leaning her head back against the headrest, she took a deep breath, held it, let it out. After repeating that process several times, she began to feel better. Given the circumstances anyway.
Now if she could only figure out how she might be able to help Gage, she might just be in business.
Chapter Twenty Seven
♂♀
Gage stood on the curb and stared at the flames as they engulfed his house and everything in it. Not that he had much, and he’d never been more thankful that he didn’t have any pets because there wasn’t going to be anything left when the fire department was through flooding his house with water. Not even the rain was helping to slow down the roaring flames. No, Gage’s only hope was that the fire would eventually burn itself out.
Damn, this sucked.
He wasn’t a materialistic man, but there were a few things inside that he would’ve liked to salvage if at all possible. Like, oh, say, his stuff. Thankfully, he’d thought ahead, and most of his valuables – which weren’t much, and consisted of a few pieces of jewelry he’d inherited from his grandmother, some random paperwork, pictures – were in a safe deposit box. He was grateful that last year he’d had the foresight to put the most sentimental of items that he had from his parents there as well. Since he was rarely home, Gage figured that would be the safest place in the event some jackass decided to be stupid and break in while he was out of town. Which was more often than not these days.
Gage glanced over to see Travis talking to Chase Jameson – better known as CJ. Gage knew CJ well because he was a cousin to Kaleb and close to their age. They’d grown up together, but since they graduated high school, they hadn’t talked much. At least not until tonight when CJ had been nominated as the lucky bastard who had to give him the grim news. They couldn’t salvage anything. The fire was out of control when they got there. He’d gone on to say other things, but Gage had tuned him out at that point. He didn’t need a play by play, he could pretty well see for himself.
According to two of his neighbors, lightning had struck the house, and the next thing they knew, it was consumed by flames. By the time the fire department arrived, it was pretty much a goner they’d said. At the moment, Gage was too numb to care. Even the repeated “I’m sorry, man” that he got from random people, he could only stare as his entire world burned down in front of him.
They’d understand if he wasn’t much for talking. Trying to accept what he was seeing without feeling as though it were happening to someone else required all of the energy he had left.
“No, man. He’s got a place to stay, but thanks.” Gage didn’t turn his head when he heard Travis waving someone else off. There’d been numerous offers, which wasn’t surprising in the small town. Even Charles and Myrna Talbott – his landlords – had offered him a room at their house for the night. He’d politely declined.
He had a place to go, that wasn’t the problem. And even if he didn’t have the farmhouse, he knew Kaleb would offer up his couch.
The only saving grace was the fact that he wasn’t alone. Surprisingly, Travis wasn’t putting too much distance between them. And of course, Kylie was in the truck. Until Gage felt it was safe enough for her to be closer to the scene, he was hoping she’d stay there too.
A strong hand came down on his shoulder and Gage turned his head slightly to see who it was.
“You doing all right? Considering?” Curtis Walker’s deep, gruff voice had him turning away from the fire.
“I’m in one piece. That’s all that matters,” he replied.
“You’re right on that one, son.” Curtis stepped around to face him. “I’m not going to stand here and coddle you because I know all too well how space is all you’re looking for right now, but if you need anything, I expect you to come to me or Lorrie. Understand?”
Gage had always been close to Kaleb’s parents, having grown up around them. After losing his own parents, they’d welcomed him into their home and treated him just like one of their sons whenever he was there. Staring at one of the most influential men from his childhood, he simply nodded. Not that he would ask for anything from them, but Gage knew better than to argue with Curtis.
Curtis squeezed his shoulder. “If you don’t want to come to us, just let Kaleb or Travis know what you need, and I’ll ensure you get it.”
Gage hid his surprise. Kaleb he understood, but why would Curtis assume Gage would go to Travis for anything?
“Hey,” Travis interrupted as he stepped closer and Gage looked over to see CJ walking away.
Ok, maybe this was just a little awkward.
“Boy,” Curtis greeted. “You take care of him. Let me know if he needs anything at all.” With that, Curtis walked off as though he hadn’t just given the most profound order of his entire life.
As Travis stood before him, the connection Gage had felt between them earlier in the evening came back full throttle. To this point, Travis hadn’t shut himself down emotionally the way Gage would’ve expected. Travis had perfected the art of pushing people away, but tonight he wasn’t. At least not yet anyway.
For the last couple of months, Gage had thought of little else besides Kylie and Travis and the miserable life he was living, wishing like hell he had a chance with one of them. Thinking he stood a chance with both was just plain absurd, but that didn’t stop him from thinking it might just be
possible. He wanted them both, thought about them both. For different reasons and some of the same. And tonight, he was more than grateful to have them. Gage was used to being alone, but tonight, he wasn’t sure he would have been able to handle it.
He could sense that Travis was worried, and Gage wanted to reassure him that he’d be fine, but he didn’t. Rather than making Travis feel as though he were blowing him off, Gage was willing to accept whatever Travis had to offer.
As Gage watched the firemen get the fire under control, he let himself think about another blaze. One that happened just a short while ago. Ironically, that one had been in the shower and the water hadn’t done anything to keep the flames at bay there either. A sudden longing to be wrapped in the arms of a caramel haired angel with big blue eyes and a body to die for nearly leveled him flat.
“Hey.”
Gage turned to see Kaleb standing beside him, and he wondered how long he had been there. Travis was nowhere in sight, which Gage pretended didn’t bother him just a little.
Gage muttered, “Hey.”
“You all right?” Kaleb asked, sounding both worried and curious.
“Just fucking perfect. You?” His growl didn’t faze Kaleb in the least, but he hadn’t expected it to either.
“You want to come stay with Zoey and me tonight? We’ve got plenty of room. I’ll come back with you tomorrow so we can see if anything can be salvaged.”
“Nah. I’m good. I’ve got my grandmother’s place.”
“You sure?”
Gage turned to face Kaleb, looking his best friend in the eye. He wasn’t sure if he was just imagining it or not, but he felt as though Kaleb wanted to ask questions. One’s that didn’t have anything to do with fire or ashes or salvageable items. Was it obvious that something had happened between him and Kylie and Travis? If so, did everyone notice or just Kaleb?
Part of him hoped that Kaleb knew what was happening between Gage and Travis, only because it would make it so much easier to do what he needed to do. Since they’d always known their threesomes wouldn’t last forever, and truly, they were in it for Zoey’s pleasure, which she could find in the arms of her husband, it seemed only natural for them to expect the interactions to come to an end. Gage just hadn’t expected to be the one to put an end to them. And especially not because he’d found someone – in his case, two people – to focus all of his energy on.
Even if he couldn’t define what was happening between him and Kylie and Travis as a relationship, Gage knew he owed it to himself to at least find out where it was headed before he reinserted himself in someone else’s love life.
“I’m sure.” Not that he was sure about much of anything at this point, but he was certain that he wouldn’t need a place to sleep tonight.
Kaleb nodded, then glanced over Gage’s shoulder as though someone was standing behind him.
“Thanks for the offer, man. I’ll let you know if I need anything.”
“You do that.” Kaleb clapped Gage on the shoulder. “I’m really sorry.”
Gage didn’t know what to say, so he just tipped his head in acknowledgement. The rain and the fact Gage was once again soaked to the bone wasn’t nearly as disrupting as knowing Travis was standing behind him, so Gage politely dismissed Kaleb, hoping he’d go back home to his warm bed and his even warmer wife.
When Kaleb was out of earshot, Travis came up next to him. “Need anything?” That was Travis, abrupt and to the point. The answer to that question could’ve been a million different things, but Gage didn’t say a word. “Look man,” Travis began and Gage thought he heard the beginnings of another woeful “I’m sorry”, except Travis wasn’t known for such awkward expressions of emotion, so he opted to halt him midsentence.
“Don’t. Just… don’t.” Gage didn’t want to hear anyone else ask him if he needed anything or if he had a place to stay or… Shit, Gage didn’t want any more questions tonight period.
The two of them stood in silence for a few minutes, watching as the last embers burned, the shell of his house the only thing remaining, but even those were bowed and threatening to crumble to the earth. Charcoal black and water logged was how it was all going to go down tonight.
“Let’s get a beer,” Travis stated firmly, glancing over at Gage.
He couldn’t help it, he cocked his eyebrow, surprise written on his face. “A beer?”
“Yeah. This sucks, but it is what it is. Let’s head over to Moonshiners.”
“I’d rather go back to my grandmother’s house and get some sleep.”
“We can do that, too,” Travis added, but before Gage could retort, he was quickly cut off by more words. “You can try and push me away all night, Matthews. It ain’t happenin’. I’m not leaving you tonight, and before you go getting all righteous and shit, I’m not looking for anything.”
No? Well, Gage was. He was looking for a fight because his life was suddenly a pile of rubble. Literally.
“I need to get back to Kylie,” Gage stated firmly.
“She’s waiting for us in the truck,” Travis explained as though he’d already talked to her. Which he probably had.
Damn it.
“Keep pushing, Gage.” Travis’ words were low but nonthreatening as he took one step closer. “I can take anything you come up with. And in case you forgot, I was right there in that shower with you both, I know exactly what happened between us. The same thing that’s going to happen again.”
The fight immediately drained out of him and Gage dropped his head, staring down at the ground. He didn’t have anything left, not an ounce of anger to dish out. In fact, he figured he was about ten seconds away from collapsing.
“Come on,” Travis urged and nudged Gage with his shoulder.
Gage gave in and allowed Travis to lead him back to his truck. They were stopped a couple of times by more sorrowful neighbors as well as some volunteer firefighters and Gage forced himself to keep it together.
As soon as he laid eyes on Kylie still sitting in the back seat of his truck, he felt a relief he hadn’t expected.
“I’m driving,” Travis said as he took the lead, heading around to the driver’s side, leaving Gage with only one other place to go. Figuring it wouldn’t do him much good to argue, he headed to the passenger side, giving in to riding shotgun in his own damn truck.
“Hey,” Kylie greeted, her voice soft and concerned as she leaned up against the front seats when Gage climbed in. Her arms wrapped around him, pulling him backward. She was hugging him and damn it if he didn’t want to just lose himself in her arms for a little while.
Bless her, she didn’t ask him if he was ok and she didn’t let him go either. It took everything in him not to break down.
Chapter Twenty Eight
♀♂
Travis was tempted to check himself in the vanity mirror of the truck. For some odd reason, he thought maybe he’d see someone else peering back at him. Hell, he was surprised Gage agreed to go anywhere with him considering how out of character he was acting.
Damn it. Not a single one of his brothers was around to see it either. And Travis knew they’d never believe him if he told them.
Despite the levity of what happened to Gage’s house, Travis couldn’t stop the smile from creeping up to his lips. For the first time in years – many, many years – he didn’t feel like taking someone’s head clean off their body.
Didn’t mean it would last, so he considered warning Gage and Kylie that they better take advantage of it while they could. Hell, he’d be more than willing to let them take advantage of him. Right here in the damn truck if they’d like.
Travis kept his eyes on the road and forced himself not to look over at Gage. The man looked like hell, and knowing he’d just go stir crazy sitting in that big old house of his all alone, he had wanted to limit the amount of time that Gage would have to do so.
A few minutes later, they were pulling into Moonshiners, and the first thing Travis noticed was how empty the parking lot was. Not necessaril
y a bad thing, but he knew that would change once the volunteer fire department got things settled. If they were lucky, they’d grab a booth in the back and have a couple of beers before that happened. It was clear Gage was getting sick of hearing all the I’m sorry’s and if you need anything let me know’s although the people clearly meant well. Probably didn’t make it any easier to have just watched your house burn to the ground.
As soon as Travis put the truck in Park, he scrambled out and over to Kylie’s door. Neither of them had gotten out, so he went to her door and opened it for her.
Yes, it should be noted that he could be a gentleman when he wanted to.
“Ummm, boys…” Kylie drew their attention before they had a chance to travel far on the wet pavement that glistened from the oil and rain. “I’m not sure I’m dressed for this.”
Travis glanced down, noticed she was wearing Gage’s t-shirt, which came almost to her knees, and totally hid her shorts from view. Sometime in the last few minutes she’d put her boots on so… Well, the picture she made had Travis wanting to settle her cute little ass back in the truck and head over to Gage’s farmhouse anyway. Screw the beer.
Shit. And she didn’t have on a bra either. That little news flash was like a homing beacon, drawing his attention to her perky breasts beneath the soft, dark cotton. And his eyes weren’t the only thing paying attention either.
Kylie must’ve realized that they were both now staring at her chest because she cleared her throat to get their attention.
“Would you rather go back to…?”
Before Gage could finish the sentence, Kylie smiled as her hands disappeared behind her back. Seconds later, the t-shirt was pulling tight across her flat belly and riding at hip level, those tight jean shorts once again visible.
“Ok, let’s do this.”
Travis stared at her. He honestly had expected her to ask them to take her home, but instead, she’d somehow made that shirt look like it was made for her and now she was heading right for the front doors, finger combing her hair as she went. Suddenly, Travis was the one wishing they were heading somewhere private rather than the local bar.
Travis (Alluring Indulgence, #3) Page 24