by Jaime Reese
"Why don't you just call him on that little radio of yours?" Robert Stackman said to a serious-faced Stacie who looked as if she had been ready to leave the shop.
His father had worked with Robert closely for almost a decade, teaching him, training him on the ins and outs of the business and industry. Robert had been responsible for running the shop, working with the vendors and the service end of things while Ty worked on the restorations and customizations. Now, there he stood, two years later in a sharp, gray Armani suit and polished leather shoes he wouldn't dare wear to another auto shop in the tri-county area.
"There he is," Robert said when Ty approached. "How are you, Ty?"
Stacie immediately stood by Ty. "Sir—"
"It's fine," he said to her. He looked over to Robert, hoping to convey his irritation. "What do you want, Robert?"
"Wow, you were always the polite one in the family. What happened?" Robert asked. He leaned in closer to Ty. "Been hanging around with your brother I see."
Ty crossed his arms and straightened to his full height. "How about you tell me what the hell you want so you can leave."
Robert stood in front of Ty and looked up to him, invading his personal space. "We've discussed this. You know what I want. I want you to make a decision."
Ty scowled. "I'm not playing your game."
Robert arched an eyebrow and crossed his arms. "You don't have much of a choice," he said with a grin.
"There's always a choice."
Robert's grin twisted into a sneer. "You don't have one. You do what I need you to do or I'll ruin the Calloway name. Work with me and we'll both win."
Ty's heart beat so hard he could barely concentrate on what he wanted to say next. He tried not to let Robert get to him, but the slimy son of a bitch always seemed to get under his skin and strike the nerve that hurt the most. "I t-t-told you already. I'm n-n-n-…not g-g-go-go-" He paused when he felt a supportive, hand on his lower back. He tried to level his breathing so he could rein in the anger coursing through his veins. Cole's fingers gently moved up and down his back, calming him. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, focusing on the steady up and down stroke of Cole's fingers. Finally, calmer and in control, he spoke again. "I told you already. I'm not going to do it."
Robert's jaw muscles flexed and his gaze snapped to Cole, burning with a fury that obviously bubbled within. "Who the hell are you?" He asked.
"I'm Cole. Who the hell are you?"
Robert inched closer and squinted at him. "What's wrong with you?" he asked before bursting into laughter. "You can't even pick out matching eyes! You're a freak."
A surge of rage rose within Ty. He could see Cole in the periphery of his vision, standing stock-still, glaring at a laughing Robert. Ty lunged forward but Cole immediately reached for his arm, stopping him. His heart was racing and his skin was on fire. "Get the fuck out of my shop!"
Robert slowly straightened and stopped laughing. "What did you say?"
Ty stepped forward and stared down at Robert. "Get the fuck out of my shop," he said, enunciating each word slowly.
Robert looked at Ty then to Cole and back. "We're not finished and you will do what we've discussed," he said. He glared at Cole again then turned and walked toward the exit.
Ty clenched his jaw, trying to bite back the boiling rage.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Calloway. I tried to—"
"I know, Stacie. He wouldn't have left until he spoke to me. It's fine, please go before the storm gets worse," Ty said, his voice hoarse from the anger that wanted to erupt.
Stacie nodded and handed him the radio before exiting the shop.
Ty turned to Cole, his anger dissipating when he saw a flash of pain in Cole's eyes before he looked away.
"I'm sorry," Cole said quietly, shoving his hands in his work pants.
"For what?" Ty asked, scowling.
"For being an asshole."
Ty reached out and pulled Cole by the shoulders to turn him. He cupped his face, trying to draw Cole's focus to him. "Where did that come from?" he asked gently, stroking Cole's cheek.
Cole evaded Ty's eyes. He tried to pull his face from Ty's hold but couldn't.
"Cole, talk to me. Please."
"I hurt you," Cole said, with an uncharacteristic crack in his voice.
"When do you think you hurt me?" Ty asked, hoping to coax Cole out of his somberness.
Cole finally made eye contact with Ty, the pain in those mismatched eyes cut through Ty worse than the injuries from the accident. "What he said. I said the same to you."
"What are you talking about?" Ty asked, trying with more effort than usual to follow Cole's train of thought.
"He wanted to know what was wrong with me. I had asked you the same thing when we first met. I hadn't realized how badly—"
"Stop," Ty said, stroking Cole's cheek. "You and that asshole are not the same. He said that to intentionally hurt you, to piss you off, and get a rise out of you. You would never say something with that intent."
Cole pulled his face from Ty's hold and turned away.
Ty came up to Cole from behind and wrapped his arms around him, bending over to nuzzle the side of Cole's neck. "Please say something," he whispered in Cole's ear as he trailed kisses along his neck.
"I don't know why you like me so much after some of the things I say—"
"Cole—"
"Let me finish. You wanted to talk, let me say what I need to say please."
"Okay."
"I'm sorry for the stupid things I say. Sometimes I tease, but other times I say things and I hurt people even when I don't know I do it. I'm getting better. Well, at least I hope I'm getting better. I'm damn sure trying. But I would never hurt you."
"I know that," Ty said, tightening his hold around Cole's waist.
Cole turned in the embrace and looked at Ty. "And anyone who says anything like that to you to hurt you, they are going to pay for it. One way or another, they are going to regret hurting you."
Ty smiled and reached up to stroke Cole's cheek.
"Whatever it is he's talking about, let me help you," Cole said.
"I don't think you can," Ty said.
"How will you know if you don't let me," Cole said. He reached out and grabbed Ty's waist. "Please."
Ty sighed. He didn't have a clue how to get out of this black hole that kept pulling him in and he certainly wasn't going to drag Cole along with him. "I'll deal with it, let's just work on making sure everything is secured and locked down before the weather gets worse."
Cole stared at him with fire in his eyes. His lips thinned to a straight line and his jaw muscles flexed. He mumbled something under his breath then turned and walked toward the service areas. Ty watched as he checked the tool chests and rolled them against the wall.
Ty sighed. He didn't want to piss on Cole's happy world, yet somehow, it seemed as if that's exactly what he had done. He folded the tarps and stacked them in the bin.
Cole moved efficiently, picking up the remaining items and sorting any of the boxes that were out of place, his booted stride firmer than usual and just as loud as the occasional gust of wind hitting the metal bay doors. "Why won't you let me help you?" he said, packing up the last of the equipment.
"You do help. You helped me with the Drayton rig and the service—"
"That's work," Cole said. "I'm getting paid to do that. I'm talking about whatever the hell is going on with Mr. Asshole. I want to help you and you're shutting me out."
"I don't want to drag you into this mess," Ty finally said.
"Just stop it," Cole said, closing the box he had packed.
"Stop what?" Ty asked, cocking his head.
"This whole stupid shit you do where you play the victim."
Ty inhaled a sharp breath. "I'm not playing the victim."
Cole threw the box of parts on the floor. "You are. Man up and realize that's what you're doing," he said with a glare that would rival Aidan's. "I know I suck at sugarcoating shit, but I'm sure you
got a sticky note in my file about that too. I'm sorry. But I'm tired of seeing you do this to yourself."
"Don't think—"
Cole raised his hands. "Don't tell me what to think, and don't think you know how I'm going to react to something. You've been wrong almost every time. You don't have a fucking clue if I can help or not but you're not even willing to give me a chance. I'm not an expert at this relationship stuff, but I know it's a two-sided deal. I can't be the one always trying to make the effort here," Cole said firmly.
Ty stilled. "You think I'm not trying? You think—"
Cole stepped up to Ty and spoke through gritted teeth. "Don't fucking tell me what I'm thinking. You shut me out when it's convenient for you. You have this dark storm cloud over your head all the time because you wallow in your misery and block everyone out who wants to help you. I'm willing to give you time because you asked for it. I'm more patient with you than I've ever been about anything in my life. But even I have my limits." He backed away and paced a few steps then stopped, placing both hands on his waist. "I need an equal, Ty. I'm not easy, you know that. I need someone who's strong as hell by my side, someone who's a fighter."
"You think I'm not a fighter? You think it doesn't take effort to get out of bed every morning when I can barely reach the alarm clock because the scars on my torso contract?"
Cole immediately jabbed his finger in the air toward Ty. "Stop it. There you go again. The accident happened, it's done. Don't relive that shit every day. You need to focus on how to move past it. This victim thing, it isn't you. You're not the type of guy who gives in and quits. I can see the real you. That guy with the twisted sense of humor who loves to drive me crazy with the teasing. The tough guy…the one who doesn't give up. He's the guy who won all those awards hanging on the walls. The stubborn fighter who battled through all that shit and didn't quit, proving the doctors wrong and walking again. He's the guy I think about every day, that amazing guy with all those qualities. The same one who gave those doctors the finger and told them to fuck off when they didn't believe he could do it because he knew, deep down, he could fight the odds and get past all that. He didn't quit."
Cole took the few steps needed to stand directly in front of Ty. The muscles in his jaw flexed and his gaze was more intense than usual. "That strong guy, that fighter, he's the one who drives me crazy. You need to tap into yourself and bring him back. He's in there and he's fighting to break free," he said, reaching out to stroke Ty's cheek. "If you need a little help, you have a hell of a lot of people willing to be there for you. But don't you fucking dare give up or let an asshole like that take you down a notch. And you better not come up with bullshit excuses to slow down. If you can't reach the alarm clock, then fucking move it closer. Don't let that stop you. You can't change what happened or the scars you've got from it, so you need to adjust."
"I am trying to get my life back under control."
"You can't control everything, so stop trying."
"I'm not trying to control everything. I'm just trying not to let it all control me!"
"Yeah? And how's that working out for you?" Cole said, crossing his arms.
Ty exhaled dramatically, not wanting to let Cole's words hit their mark.
Cole shook his head. "You're shutting everyone out who cares about you and wants to help. I'm fucked up enough for a small village, but I'm working on it. And I won't turn away help if I can't do it on my own. Dammit, I'm trying," he said, slapping his fist against his chest. "But even I know you can't fix someone who doesn't want to be fixed. So if you want to shut me out because that works for you, then fine," he said, raising his hands in surrender. "But it doesn't work for me."
Ty stilled. His head hummed with the pounding of his heart. Each breath took effort and he couldn't move his weakened limbs. "What are you saying?"
"I want you, Ty. More than I've ever wanted anyone or anything. I'm not looking for a fuck buddy or I would have had you under me on that first day. We work together and make out and play around and that's all fun and nice, but that's not enough for me. You won't do this relationship thing all the way and I don't know what else to do. I'm fucking tired of being the only one trying here. It's too hard to sit on the sideline and watch you do this to yourself. I just can't do it. I can't force you and I would never force you, but I feel as if you don't trust me enough to give this a chance. To let me in completely."
"I do trust you."
Cole shook his head. "If you did, then you'd let me help you. I know I don't act like a normal person but I'm not some fucking kid," he said, walking toward the exit door.
"Where the hell are you going?"
"I'm leaving. I'll see you tomorrow, boss," Cole said with a backward wave. He grabbed the keys off the hook by the door for the errand car and exited the bay.
Ty walked toward the door quickly but not soon enough. All he saw was the back of the small sedan drive away in the rain and turn the corner. "Shit!" he yelled, gripping the railing of the stairs. The one steady thing he wanted—no, needed—in his life had just driven away. He looked up and squinted to block the rain as a wave of anger began to swell.
Fucking rain.
One of the display sign's ropes had come loose and whipped with the wind. There was no way the sign would remain intact with the storm. He immediately grabbed a ladder from the storage closet in the bay and returned outside to loosen the other straps and remove the sign before the winds worsened.
He stretched and tried to reach the strap, pissed he hadn't asked his crew to remove it earlier. He had never removed one of these display signs alone and, in the back of his mind, had no reason to believe this time would be different. But it was. It mattered. He had to do it alone. He wasn't playing the victim. He had to know he could do without the help of others—whether it was this sign or every damn task that came along in the day. He had to get the sign down. He was on a mission and had picked the one thing he had never done alone to benchmark his independence.
He was a fighter. Dammit. He sure as hell wasn't going to let the rain beat him down.
Again.
He reached a little more but the tips of his fingers barely grazed the vinyl rope. The rain strengthened, mocking him. He shook his head defiantly, hating the way the rain beat down on him like tiny punches across his face.
He hated rain storms.
Lightning lit the sky and a crash of thunder echoed loudly in the air. The storm was a quick mover, and it seemed as if the sky had darkened in a few seconds and the rain was now falling at a steady rate.
In a flash, every physical limitation he now had, every change he pushed through since the accident flickered across his mind like a high-speed photo presentation.
He stretched that inch farther, trying to wrap his fingers around the vinyl rope. His other hand slid against the wet metal of the ladder. "Fuck," he yelled. He thought about every word that had been said and let the anger, frustration, and desperation mix, hoping to channel that extra bit of adrenaline to wrap his hand around that fucking strap.
A crash of thunder echoed in the air.
He had to finish and get out of the rain. His brain knew that and registered the stupidity of hanging on to a wet metal ladder in the middle of a lightning storm. But some other part of him didn't care. He had to do this, to prove something to himself for some stupid, ridiculous reason; this moment and this task was critical.
The rain mocked him.
He locked his jaw, focused on the rope, and reached again just as his body tightened. He slipped on the wet step and he lost his grip and fell.
* * * * *
Cole pounded on the steering wheel, willing the slow as molasses, eco-friendly car to move faster. He wanted nothing more than to slam on the accelerator and race away from the anger. He replayed the conversation in his mind. He hadn't lied to Ty or said anything deliberately to hurt him. But somehow, he knew his words had stung.
And it ate away at him.
He didn't understand why Ty was so stubb
orn. Why he deliberately shut everyone out. Maybe the reason for the strain between Aidan and Ty was more on him than his stubborn brother? Cole had easily put the distance in their relationship on Aidan, but now it seemed he had managed to fall for the truly stubborn Calloway of the clan. He drummed his fingers on the steering wheel, waiting for the red light to change.
He couldn't leave things the way they were. Yes, he was angry, and yes, Ty was stubborn. But so was Cole. He didn't have experience with the relationship thing but he remembered one of his conversations with Julian…we never go to bed angry. Period.
Angry didn't even begin to describe what he was feeling. He was livid. He was upset and frustrated with Ty but was pissed off that life had mixed in circumstances that kept standing in their way. Shit happens. He'd have to find a way to convince Ty that he needed people to help him deal with the crap life was throwing his way.
Could he stand not kissing Ty anymore? Not touching him? Not teasing him? Not having him close enough to feel the heat of his body or the graze of his fingers against his skin?
No fucking way. He'd go insane.
"Dammit!" he yelled, turning the car around. He didn't know how he was going to get through this, but dammit, he was going to try until he had exhausted every ounce of energy he had. He wasn't going to give up on his first attempt at a relationship with the first man who actually made him want to be a better person. Ty Calloway was stubborn, but if he wanted to meet his match, then so be it. Cole could put his game face on and channel that stubborn asshole that lay within.
He turned each corner with more care, unsure how the small car would handle the quickly flooding streets. He guided the car through the traffic, trying to avoid the side streets with more water build up. He cursed the car. Another one of Ty's stubborn positions to be more earth friendly. A pickup truck would have been more practical for shop errands.
Cole made the last turn onto the warehouse road and his heart stopped when he saw Ty lying on the ground, unmoving, lit only by the flash of lightning across the sky. He pushed the accelerator and sped down the street as fast as the hybrid could manage under the stress of his boot on the pedal. He slammed on the brake, stopping only inches away from where Ty lay on the ground. He quickly exited the car, and within seconds, was on the ground by Ty's side, grabbing his face and pushing the wet hair out of his eyes.