Page 32 of All the Promises We Break

“I’m no doctor, but it was a migraine-induced PTSD nightmare mixed with repressed memories. Happy Saturday afternoon.”

“Are you serious? Fuck. Does that happen often?”

“It used to be every day. Now it’s random, especially when I’m tired. Can you grab some water for me out of the mini fridge?”

“Yeah, sure.”

I can feel Wes’s worried eyes boring into my head on the way over and back. He sits down next to me, opens the bottle, and places it in my hand. “Got it?”

“Yeah. The fog doesn’t last long.”

“I wish I could make this go away. I’d take it if I could.”

“I wouldn’t wish this on anyone. Dylan will freak out if she knows this happened and she wasn’t here.”

“I’m here. Let me get you home okay.”

“Wait. What are you even doing here?” I drink down a bit of water to wash away the fear still lingering and the nausea from the headache trying to win.

“When you don’t answer your cell on a Saturday afternoon, that means one of two things, you’re with Dylan, which I knew you weren’t, or you were here. I was hoping to find you working, but not like this. I had something I wanted to talk to you about.”

“I think I’m done working for the day. I can listen. That will feel more normal. What’s going on?”

I get the feeling that he wishes I am willing to listen while also distracted by work. I don’t know if it’s what he has to tell me or the fact he’s got my full attention that’s bothering him the most. Wes leans forward, resting his elbows on his knees. His hands rub open palms together in a motion that sounds like the quiet shuffle of feet.

“Mav. It’s just me. I can’t think of much you could say that would surprise me. Is it about Hannah?”

“What? No. Why would you think it’s about her? I haven’t spoken to or seen her in a few weeks. I uh, well, I’m seeing someone, I think.”

“You think? Shit. That tells me you know. You practically salivate to tell me about the women you’re dating. What’s the issue? Who is she?”

“I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I can’t tell you.”

“What? That can only mean one of three things then. She’s a cougar, she’s nearly jailbait, or she’s married.”

“Fuck it. I knew this was a bad idea. Let me take you home.”

“Wait. Whoa. Hold on. You really have feelings for her, don’t you? I wasn’t trying to be an asshole. I was trying to get you to relax. I see now that won’t happen. You don’t have to tell me who.”

“I want to keep it to myself for now, just until I figure out what or if we are.”

“I can’t give you real advice unless we call her something. I gave Dylan Viper. Give her a call sign.”

“Merlin.”

I laugh. “Merlin. Out of all of them you pick Goose’s replacement?”

He smiles a bit. “I pick Merlin because it’s some wicked sorcery she’s got. She’s someone I’ve known for a while. We’ve been friends. Being more than friends just sort of happened. We’ve kissed a couple of times. I don’t know. This just feels different.”

I rest back on the couch, processing what he just said. “You mustreallylike her. Look, there’s no timetable to these things. You could bring her around. She can meet Dylan and me. Would that help?”

“I appreciate that. I do. I’m just not ready to do that yet. I just need to know if I want to talk about her, I can.”

“Of course you can. Tell me what she’s like.”

“She’s the most confusing, infuriating, smart, funny, caring, beautiful girl I’ve been with. She chart tops in many categories. I just don’t know if we can make it work. I don’t know if I’m good enough for her.”

“That’s bullshit. You’re Wes Fucking Taylor. Slayer of the meetings, schmoozer of the clients, seriously fucking hilarious, and you’re loyal as fuck. Plus, you’ve got me.”

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