Page 57 of Fractured Hearts

“Really?” Jo asks, shocked. I get it. I’d be surprised too if our roles were reversed.

“Yeah,” I say, looking into her eyes and almost confessing what I was looking at on my phone while stretching. I finally looked up what demisexual means, and I think Jasper might be onto something. I’ve never really felt any sexual attraction to anyone other than Maverick. So when I did, I just immediately labeled myself as gay and never questioned it again. Because to me it didn’t matter. Maverick was all that mattered.

But then this tiny blonde with one hell of a right hook and a beautiful heart that she hides behind a suit of armor came charging into my life, and I found myself thinking about her. Thinking about her naked and writhing under me. The first time that happened was right after we got drunk together, and I blamed the wine. But then I would wake up hard and aching from dreams about her. It didn’t matter the moment Maverick showed up because I thought I had to choose. Maybe I don’t.

Everything is too fragile right now to bring that up. What if it’s just something that passes for me? It would ruin whatever the three of us are going to try to build. I need to keep it to myself. Jo probably doesn’t even think of me in that way. It’s always been Maverick for her.

It’s always been Maverick for you too, my brain whispers. I promptly tell it to shut up.

“Great!” Jo says, looking both happy and confused at the same time. “Can we have another shooting lesson now?”

I laugh and shake my head. We’ve only been able to do it once with how the weather has been. The forecast keeps threatening snow, but we’ve been getting freezing rain instead. I’m sure I could find an indoor shooting range, but those are always equipped with cameras, and it would be difficult to make sure Maverick wasn’t spotted.

“I’m up for it if you are,” Maverick says, causing me to raise an eyebrow. He shrugs with a shy smile. “I don’t think I can shoot anyone, but Jo says if I’m going to be around guns, I need to learn gun safety.” That has me laughing again because she’s right and possibly the only person who can talk him into it. The last time we went outside to practice shooting, Maverick refused to come with us and watched a medical drama on his phone in the basement so he couldn’t hear the gunshots as well. This arrangement between the three of us seems to have unexpected perks already.

“Put on warmer clothes,” I say to Jo, squeezing her hand quickly before finally releasing it. She’s in one of my shirts and pajama pants that have cats eating cupcakes on them. She smiles, kissing Maverick on the lips and running upstairs. The hint of jealousy I was expecting at the show of affection isn’t there.

“You’re really coming out to shoot with us?” I ask him, feeling bold now that we’ve discussed things and walking the space between his legs that Jo just vacated. Maverick’s arms immediately wrap around me. That happy smile hasn’t left his face. He’s just so fucking beautiful it hurts to look at him sometimes.

“I really am,” he says before reaching up and pulling me down to him by my neck, sealing his lips to mine. The kiss starts off slow and sweet, our tongues moving softly against each other. Maverick groans into my mouth, and I kiss him deeper.

“Let’s go! We can all make out later. I need to take out that stupid fucking hay bale before the rain starts up again and you need to go grocery shopping,” she says, pointing at me while I try to contain my laughter. Jo’s first shooting lesson didn’t go well. I had picked up hay bales at a local farm and spray-painted targets on them. She missed every time. “Or I can go grocery shopping by myself.”

“No,” Maverick and I say at the same time. Jo rolls her eyes, but doesn’t contain her smile.

“I see how it is,” she says, already making her way to the door. “Last one there does the dishes.”

“Fuck!” Maverick yells, practically falling off the stool, since I was still between his legs and running after her. I just watch him go and laugh. He hates the dishes, but I don’t mind them. My cheeks hurt from smiling as I follow them.

fifty-four

JO

I’m not bad at things. I see things I want to do and master them. Yet here I am, missing a fucking hay bale with a bright red target on it from an embarrassingly close distance. Ezra is patiently trying to help me while Maverick lists off all the shows we need to watch together.

“We don’t have a TV, Mav,” I say over my shoulder. Putting on a movie I’ve seen so I can space out and not pay attention is one thing, but having to watch an entire series that requires concentration isn’t something three of us can do with only a laptop screen.

“Darren is dropping one off in an hour,” he says casually. I click the safety on and lower the gun before turning to face him.

“Please tell me you didn’t text Darren and ask him to go get us a TV, which you can only buy in the closest city, which is an hour from here, and then ask him to drive it to us, which is twenty minutes away from his house.”

“That’s why you asked for his number,” Ezra adds, sighing. “I’m going to owe that man an expensive bottle of scotch after this trip.”

“I wouldn’t do that!” Maverick protests. “I gave him money, and he had it delivered to his house. It showed up today, so he’s dropping it off.”

I feel like I should point out that as the only doctor in town, Darren definitely has better things to do than deliver electronics, but I’m too excited about a bigger screen to mention it.

“We can watch Jasper’s ass now,” I say.

“I don’t think I like you saying that anymore,” Maverick says with a frown. “But I can’t deny how much I love to stare at that man’s ass in those pants.”

“I hate this,” Ezra groans. “I’m calling Jasper and telling him to wear looser pants.”

“Tell him I say hi and that I miss him,” Maverick calls as Ezra walks away, chuckling when Ezra flips him off. “Alright, I’m cold.”

I am too, so I carefully put the gun back into the case and lock it with the code, before grabbing it with one hand and Maverick’s hand in the other. He pulls me into him and kisses me, his tongue feeling especially hot when it teases my cold lips. It’s so surreal getting to be with him like this.

“Darren’s car just entered the perimeter,” Ezra calls.