Page 36
He blinked, realizing he had no idea how long he’d been standing there, caught in the fantasy.
She’d been assisting Dr. Hitchcock, who was much in need of a nurse. While she was a little skittish around the guys in the dining room, from what Wyatt saw she was totally in control in the infirmary, confident in ways she wasn’t any other time.
He moved to his door at the same time she moved to hers. He finished buttoning his shirt as she gathered her dreadlocks off her neck and confined them in an elastic band. The ends stuck up at odd angles that only made her look more adorable.
He fixed his gaze on her lips and drowned in all the ways he wanted to kiss her.
In the doorway.
Bent over his arm.
Lying back on the bed.
He darted his attention to her eyes and found her stare focused lower on his face.
On his lips.
A low, grating noise escaped him, and she met his stare, a flush climbing her throat.
“Meet downstairs for lunch?” he managed to ask.
“Steak sandwich on ciabatta rolls? You know it.”
They shared a grin and walked out together, same as most mornings now. Outside the lodge, they parted ways—her toward the clinic and him toward the training facility.
What he hadn’t told her was why he’d been spending so much time at the training facility. Gabe had arranged for him to get extra training, giving him a head start so he’d be better prepared when he joined the next class.
He found Gabe in his office. He rapped lightly on the open door and Gabe waved him in.
“You’ve been standing in my office for less than two seconds and you already look like you have a question, Rhodes.”
With a grunt of amusement, he crossed the airy space with tall windows overlooking the training ground. The class he’d left when he went to the mountain was running drills, and the sight of them gave him a pang of regret.
He stood at attention before Gabe’s desk. “Sir. I do have something on my mind. I appreciate the accommodations you’ve made for me.”
He resisted the urge to tug at his cowboy hat. It was his personal preference, and returning to his roots felt more natural than many things he’d attempted over the past few months, which gave him the ease to bring up a sensitive topic.
He went on, “The earbuds. The oral testing. It’s helped so much. But is there a way I could actually learn to read? Not work around it. Get better at it.”
Gabe rocked back in his chair, eyeing him. “There’s a handful of strategies for adults with dyslexia. Felicity actually has a few books on the topic in the bookstore. From what I read so far, we’d have to try a few things and see what sticks for you.”
Wyatt dipped his head. “I want to try.”
Gabe’s eyes glinted approvingly at the determination in Wyatt’s voice. “Then let’s get started.” He was already pulling folders from a desk drawer, as if he’d only been waiting for Wyatt to ask.
They spent the better part of an hour going over materials. He had flash cards with letter combinations and a phonics workbook meant for little kids. He tried not to feel too embarrassed because anything worth having took work, and he of all people knew it. None of it felt natural yet. Hell, maybe it never would.
But the door that used to feel permanently locked had cracked open just enough to let some light through.
Wyatt left the office with the cards tucked into his back pocket and a feeling about reading he couldn’t remember ever having before.
Something closer to hope than dread.
He met Whitley for those steak sandwiches at lunchtime but they’d barely settled at the table when Carson appeared.
His gaze pinned Wyatt. “Conference room. Now.”
Wyatt’s brows shot up.
