Page 22 of Tameron

But even then, was that where I fit in? I wasn’t part of the Deaf community and didn’t consider myself deaf. Not yet. I was hard of hearing, and with my aids, I could function relatively well. But again, that was now. God only knew where I’d be fiveyears from now. ‘I’m glad you found your place,’ I finally said when Dax looked at me funny.

I had a habit of getting lost in my own head in the middle of a conversation. And that was something I couldn’t blame on my hearing loss, though it had certainly not helped.

‘You will find yours too,’ Dax said, and it took me a moment to realize he meant I’d be finding my place, where I fit in.

The appropriate reaction probably would’ve been a thank you or affirming that I had no doubt I would, but I couldn’t get those words out, not when they would’ve been a lie. ‘I hope so. It’s hard.’

Okay, being honest was one thing, but opening up to a total stranger? One who happened to be related to the one man I already clashed with all the time? That was a recipe for disaster.

But Dax put a warm hand on my shoulder. ‘You have a support system to help you. Dayton will be there for you if you ask him.’

Dayton? He would, but out of a sense of obligation, not because he genuinely wanted to. The man had offered me friendship out of some misplaced sense of pity, probably. Hadn’t he told me I looked like I could use a friend?

Duty. That was the word I was looking for. Dayton was all about duty and doing the right thing. Rescuing and saving people. And that was what I was to him—another guy to save. No thanks.

‘I have friends who are there for me,’ I told Dax. I fingerspelled Nash’s name. ‘He owns the house we live in, and he’s great.’

‘He is. I’ve met him.’

Right. Of course he had. Dayton and Nash were friends. I still wasn’t used to Nash having this whole life outside our group. Not that I was upset about it or jealous or anything, but it was weird. ‘Then you know I have all the support I need.’

He studied me for a moment, his eyes narrowing, but then he pulled up one shoulder. ‘It never hurts to have more friends.’

It did if they weren’t real friends but only helped out of a sense of duty, but I was spared an answer when I heard a key in the door and Dayton stepped inside. “Sorry, I was helping a neighbor move a heavy washing machine.”

He spoke and signed simultaneously, but if I truly wanted to practice, I needed to learn to rely on ASL only. Besides, it felt somehow rude toward Dax. ‘Dax told me.’

‘He’s gonna come to my shop and tinker with cars with me,’ Dax said.

Dayton’s face lit up with surprise. He hadn’t been kidding when he said he had the worst poker face ever. ‘You like cars?’

‘My father has a 1955 Chevy 3100 pickup truck that he has fully restored himself. He started on it when I was ten, and I helped him. We spent whole Saturdays on it, and I loved it. We finally finished when I went to Basic Combat Training, and he bought a 1964 Mustang convertible that he’s still working on.’

The memories of my dad and me talking and shooting the shit while painstakingly fixing that car were the best childhood stories I had. Even now, they brought a smile to my face. How I wish I could get that time back. My parents loved me, but they had no clue how to support me in this, how to handle my hearing loss.

‘Those are some classic cars,’ Dayton said. ‘That must’ve been great to share that with your dad.’

I nodded.

‘Ready for some practice?’ Dayton asked.

Right. I wasn’t here to make friends—though Dayton had offered that, which still baffled me. It had to be a pity offer, right? ‘Yes.’

‘I’ll leave you guys to it. Nice meeting you,’ Dax said.

‘You too.’

I followed Dayton into the living room, where, with a loud meow, Knives immediately came running toward us. I was on my knees before I realized it, and she didn’t even hesitate before coming straight to me. Her fur was soft as she rubbed herself against my hand, purring. I could feel the vibrations through my hand and grinned. She was a happy little thing, wasn’t she? “Aren’t you the cutest?”

She peered up at me with those big eyes and my insides melted. I picked her up and held her close to my chest, where she happily continued purring.

“Do you like it here with Daddy Dayton?”

A choked sound behind me made me turn around. Dayton was coughing, turning red.

I frowned. “Are you okay?”

He held up a hand as he coughed some more, then seemed to catch his breath. “Yeah,” he croaked. “The Daddy comment caught me off guard.”

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