Page 54 of A Very Titan Christmas
Bryce nodded. “True. Balls of steel.”
“Takes ’em for this kind of life. Doesn’t it, man?” Roman asked. “What does Rachel think about you joining Titan?”
“We haven’t talked about it much. We wouldn’t. It’s not… This isn’t real.”
Roman didn’t look as though he believed Bryce. “I can’t imagine Eloise Porter as my mother-in-law.”
Bryce held up his hands. “That’s not what’s happening here. Not in real life.”
“Isn’t it?” Roman arched an eyebrow. “Coulda fuckin’ fooled me, watching you practically sell your kidney to nail that dinner reservation.”
“It’s fake. Pretend—”
“That’s why you were off the clock at some fancy-ass restaurant last night?”
Bryce settled back in the chair. “We’re pretending, but… it’s starting to feel real. Or at least reminiscent of real.” He ran a hand through his hair. “I mean, she and I did this already.”
“Fucked or fell in love?”
“Jesus fuckin’ shit, Roman. Give me a break.” Bryce tried to ignore the meat of the question but couldn’t. “You know, I can’t figure out if this is a mistake.”
“What’s a mistake? You haven’t done anything yet. Or have you?”
“Not really.” But he could have. They had toed up to the line and, if they weren’t careful, would cross it. “I don’t know how to do something that lasts.”
“Eh, that’s bullshit.” Roman picked up his mug and sipped his coffee. “You may not want to. But not knowing how is a load of crap.”
“She’s got her life. I’ve got mine. We live states apart. Our careers are pulling us in different directions.”
“All manageable,” Roman pointed out. “So what’s the real problem?”
He liked that Roman was always ready to cut through the BS. “All I can think is what if it ends in a crash like Montana’s?”
Roman leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms. He worked his jaw, sipped his coffee again, and stared at Bryce asthough he understood where he was coming from. “Montana didn’t die because he took a chance. He died because life blindsides all of us eventually.”
Wasn’t that the damn truth?
“You know what?” Roman stood up. “Montana would kick your ass if he saw you playing it safe with a woman like Rachel.”
Another truth bomb. “Yeah, he would.”
“Guess you better decide what to do about that.”
All the cell phones in the cabin dinged and chimed. Roman groaned. “That can’t be good.”
Cash stumbled down the stairs, rubbing his eyes. “Parker needs to talk to us.”
Bryce scrubbed his hand over his face. This was the reminder that he needed. They were in Vermont for work. They could be reassigned at any moment, or a problem could throw a wrench into his day.
Jax joined them at the kitchen table. “Does he ever sleep?”
Cash tossed his phone on the kitchen table after he dialed, announcing after Parker answered, “You’re on speakerphone. What’s going on?”
“The weather.”
Bryce raised his eyebrows and glanced out the window. “Just about as gray and gloomy as it has been.” They’d been briefed about the impending snowstorm. Lucky for him, it had cleared his schedule of Eloise Porter’s activities for the day. But for the most part, no one in Vermont seemed to blink an eye at snow, sleet, wind, or ice.
“The warm water in the Gulf Stream has been relatively mild…”
