Page 8 of Bloom: Part 1

“What works?” Crowe popped up over Saint’s shoulder. His jaw hardened, and he snatched my phone from Saint’s hand. “What the hell is this?” My face went hot, and I stepped back. “Don’t you dare move another muscle, Bloom.”

“I did nothing wrong!”

“No? Didn’t I tell you not to send any more dick pics to the doctor?”

I shrugged. “Technically, they’re not meant to be dick pics. My whole body’s showing.”

Crowe’s nostrils flared, and his chest expanded from his sharp inhale. He let out the breath slowly. “You can’t just send unsolicited naked pictures to people.” He slapped Saint upside the head. “And you should know better than to encourage him. What do you think you’re here for? You know he’s no good at social cues.”

Saint rubbed his head. “I wasn’t encouraging him. His therapist says he has low self-esteem. I was just trying to boost his confidence, that’s all.”

“Confidence, my foot.” Crowe shoved the phone back at me. “If you send him more naked pictures, Bloom, I’ll take the phone away from you.”

I squared my shoulders and glared while tucking the phone into one of my many pockets out of his reach. “You can’t do that to me anymore. I’m all grown up now.”

This wasn’t like that time when I was sixteen and had sent death threats to another biker’s son for making fun of me being mute. Crowe had taken my phone away and had me placed under involuntary treatment until they deemed me safe to be around others. The biker and his son had moved away before I was out.

“You know your development is years behind, so don’t give me that,” he said.

“You’re still being hypocritical. Max sends you naked pictures all the time.”

Crowe swiped a hand down his face. “You’re missing one crucial piece of information, Bloom. Max is mine.”

“And Dr. Collier is mine.” I puffed my chest out and raised my chin. Would I have gone to this great length if I hadn’t already claimed him?

“What he’s trying to say—”

“Don’t tell him what I’m trying to say,” Crowe snapped, eyes flashing daggers at Saint. “You weren’t helping earlier, so don’t try to be a parent now.”

“I just looked,” Saint grumbled and rose to his feet. “It’s hardly that serious. Like it or not, Crowe, he ain’t the little boy we found years ago. He’s all grown up, and frankly, he can fuck the doc if he wants. Without your permission.”

I watched Saint leave, grateful for his input. No one who knew Crowe would have guessed how strict he was with me. He wouldn’t even let me have my own apartment. I’d asked. Sometimes he was so stern I wanted to run away. The one time I had, he’d turned Riverton upside down until he found me. Those three days had been the longest days of my life. I wouldn’t tell him this, but I’d been relieved when he brought me back home. Being on my own had been scary. But Saint was right. I was different. I deserved to have somebody special the way they did.

“He’s right, you know. I’m not the same boy, Crowe. You don’t have to act like a father all the time. Sometimes you can act like a brother too.”

“Maybe Iamcoming off a little too strong, but I’m worried about you.” He ran a hand through his hair, and a twinge of guilt stabbed me over how much he’d had to put up with me for eight years. “You want to know why it’s okay for Max to send me naked pictures? He’s my boyfriend, Bloom. We are in a consensual relationship where that’s okay. You don’t have that with Dr. Collier. Didn’t he ban you from the hospital? What more do you need him to do for you to understand he doesn’t feel the same way you do about him?”

I sucked in a deep breath and clenched a fist over my aching chest. “You don’t know that.”

“It’s been weeks. Has he ever given you any sign he’s interested in you?”

“Of course. He…” I chewed my bottom lip, searching for a memory that could prove to him that despite Dr. Collier pushing me away, he wanted me too. “I just know, okay?”

Crowe crossed his arms. “What did your shrink say when you told him about it?”

I hung my head and focused on the shiny buckles on my boots.

“Bloom. You have been going to your therapy appointments, haven’t you?”

“Yes,” I whispered. Sometimes I skipped them, but I went most times.

“Bloom.”

“What?” I snapped my head up. “I have been going, but I don’t like him, so I haven’t told him anything about the doctor.”

“Well, isn’t that convenient?”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

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