Page 24 of Harry

“Hey, everything okay?” Bear asked.

Harry checked his phone, making sure he didn’t get a text while he was driving. There was nothing from Rory. “It’s nothing.”

“Rory hasn’t contacted him since Sunday,” Wild said from behind him.

“Sunday?” Bear rubbed his hand over his face. “Were you expecting her to call or text?”

Harry shrugged. “We’ve been texting back and forth. She usually texts me when she gets off work if I’ve sent her anything. I’m just surprised. I’m probably making too much of it. I mean, it’s not like she has to stay in contact with me.”

“Maybe start worrying tomorrow. Like go by her place,” Bear said.

Harry nodded. “I don’t know exactly where she lives, but I know which area she’s in.”

Bear gave a sharp nod. “I’ll go by with you tomorrow after we get off work.”

Harry appreciated Bear’s willingness to check up on Rory. “Thanks, man.”

Bear pulled him into a hug and slapped him on the back twice. “Anything for a brother. I’ve got to get home, but I’ll see you all in the morning. If she contacts you, just shoot me a text. I’d like to know.”

“Sure. And thank you.”

“Anything for you.”

Bear took off as Emma and Lila came racing out. They both were talking so fast and clinging to Wild like he was a jungle gym that it was hard to keep up with what they were saying. He wondered if Rory would want kids. She was a little older than he was, and from what he knew, she didn’t have any kids. Maybe she didn’t want to reproduce, which was a valid thing. He wouldn’t mind it either way.

There was so much they needed to discuss and find out about each other. When he’d first seen her, he’d been attracted to her for so many reasons, from the way she looked to what he’d seen in her eyes. After talking to her for a while, he realized he wanted more. Maybe he was short-sighted by not asking questions and figuring it all out before he fell for her.

“Harry, how are you doing?” Ava asked as he stepped into the kitchen. Wild had lucked out big time with Ava. When she’d moved in to help with the kids, Harry had wondered if anything would happen with them. They’d just seemed so well matched. He’d been thrilled when Ava and Wild finally got together. He knew Wild would treat Ava right because the man was just that sort of guy. He hoped to be as good for Rory as Wild was with Ava.

He leaned in and hugged Ava. “Hey, it’s good to see you. I’m good.”

“Dinner will be ready in about thirty minutes.”

Wild came over and hugged Ava before giving her a sweet kiss. “Thank you, darling. You’re the best.”

Ava chuckled. “You keep saying that, and I might start believing it.”

“You should believe it. You’re amazing. Can I help you with anything?”

“Figure out what you want tomorrow night for dinner and get the meat out of the freezer and put it in the refrigerator.”

“Sure,” Wild said as he opened the freezer, looking at what they had for meals. He closed the freezer and moved to the pantry. “Would you be willing to make shepherd’s pie?”

“Sure, babe.”

Harry liked how easy it was between them. Living together, they’d learned to share the load. After they’d gotten together, Wild had asked the group how they thought he should help share the mental load with Ava instead of pushing everything off on her. They tossed ideas around, and all of them agreed that deciding what to fix for dinner would be helpful because they all appreciated the times in training when making that decision was taken off their plate. Deciding what to cook and eat, especially for others, was taxing. He wondered how he and Rory would deal with that.

Of course, Wild did other stuff to make Ava’s life easier. Harry wanted to be like Wild. He wanted to respect anyone he was in a relationship with and make sure they never felt like he wasn’t a partner in their lives.

That’s what bugged him so much about Rory not contacting him. He felt like they were creating something beyond a normal relationship. Sure, they didn’t know each other very well, but they were trying. Now she’d gone no contact. It didn’t sit right with him. He felt like something else was going on.

He helped the girls set the table, enjoying hearing their stories about school and dogs, and the youngest made up a story about a horse who didn’t like peas. Harry couldn’t help but think the story was really about her not liking peas, but he didn’t say that.

Dinner was exceptional, like every other time he’d ever eaten food Ava cooked. She was happy, and it was obvious she and Wild got along well. After dinner, he and Wild played with the kids in the yard, doing some mixed-up game that was a combination of tossing a ball and pony rides. He was exhausted when Ava called the girls in for bath time.

“Dude,” Harry said as Wild handed him a beer. “Are they this active all the time?”

Wild shrugged. “Not every night. They were excited to see you. They will probably be totally chill tomorrow night, and we’ll play a board game. But pony rides on Uncle Harry are fun.”

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