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“Stop it!” My dick gives a valiant twitch, and I slap my hand over it before reaching through the crack in the door to grab my towel. I hold my breath for a second as I peer around the corner, but I was right before.

No one is in here.

Rune was long gone, and there was no way he heard that.

TWO

RUNE

I think I might be dying. I think this is actually a heart attack. I’ve never walked so fast in my life, and I don’t know how the fuck people survive those speed-walking groups because there is no way I’d be able to maintain doing that every day. My calves are on fire as I make my way past my office, past Teddy’s office, and out into the parking lot.

I can hear my heartbeat thundering in my ears as the reality of the situation hits me.

I just heard Easton jerking off.

And then I heard him say my name, which isn’t possible because he’s straight, and there’s no way he was rubbing one out to thoughts of me.

He was probably saying Rose or…Rube? God, is Rube even a name?

Is it even a word?

Is it⁠—

“Rune!”

I jump half a foot and spin, my gaze settling on Teddy, who’s making his way toward me. He looks concerned, which is not something I need right now. Ripping my hair tie from my hair, I gather it back up into the same exact bun I just disordered. It’s a nervous habit, but it helps me feel better.

“Are you okay?”

I blink at him. “What do you mean? Why wouldn’t I be?”

“Because you just ran out of there like a bat out of hell?” he says, the sentence more a question than a statement. “Is everything okay? Is your son⁠—”

I hold up a hand, shushing him. My son is the one thing we don’t talk about at the station. Ever. He’s my single weak link, and while I don’t mind one or two people knowing about him, I would not be able to handle the rest of the guys meddling.

They’d all mean well, and it would turn into some big fucking disaster, just like their attempts at a potluck.

I cannot have that in my life.

“Elio is fine,” I tell him swiftly. “But do you mind?”

Teddy’s cheeks go faintly pink, and he lifts his hand, rubbing a fist over his chest in a circle. ‘Sorry.’

‘It’s fine,’ I answer back in sign. I’m one of the few people at the station who had any sort of sign language foundation. When Elio was born, his hearing tests came back with moderate loss, so I threw myself into ASL classes until they told me it was a Eustachian tube issue that needed surgery.

But I went forward with it, and weirdly, it’s come in handy more than I ever thought it would.

Teddy tilts his head to the side. “What happened?”

“Oh, just Easton,” I start before realizing what a terrible thing that was to say. I’m the world’s shittiest liar.

Luckily, Easton’s been a thorn in my side for long enough that Teddy just assumes it’s more of his computer bullshit. He offers me a smile full of pity.

“Got it. Well, I was just about to head out and grab some dinner with my cousin if you want to join me.”

I blink at him. Teddy’s always been kind of a loner, and he’s not exactly on good terms with his family, so it’s weird to hear him mention a casual dinner like that.

“He works over at the Fifth Street Florist, next to the pharmacy,” Teddy says. “He just moved here a few months ago.”