Page 28 of Needing More
Joel froze, a wary look crossing his expression while Hayden looked at Vic questioningly.
Vic cleared his throat and continued. "I heard James Bailey and his nephews are out of work on their farm."
Still dubious, Joel gave a slow nod. "Yeah, I heard something about that last night up here, a few people were talking about it."
"Yeah, well…" Vic began cautiously, the idea still a little new to him. "What if I hire them for my fields? You know—to run it and give me back a bit of my life?"
Vic didn't realize he had been holding his breath until smiles broke over both of their faces.
Joel reacted first. "Hell, yeah man, that's a great idea."
"It's about damn time," Hayden leaned on the bar with both hands and grinned. "Hell, you can even come back to the gym project a little more. It was your passion project to start with," he pointed out.
More than relieved, not only by their reactions but by the honest smile on Joel's face, Vic felt a weight lift from his shoulders. "That's what I was thinking. I'm really excited about this," he admitted. A surge of adrenaline ran through him as the idea solidified in his mind more and the possibilities that came with it. "I'm gonna call Bailey first thing in the morning, and if he can't do it for whatever reason I’ll find someone who can."
"Hell yeah, man," Joel slapped the counter and grabbed three beers from the cooler before handing each of them one. "I feel like this is the first time in a long time we're getting the three of us truly back together. Here's to bringing back the Three Heathens."
All together they clinked the three beers together, sealing their hope with a toast.
Chapter 10
"Iwon'tdoit!"The scream echoed through the hallway and down the stairs.
The man dressed in nurse's scrubs didn't look the least bit fazed by the older man's angry shouts. If Vic wasn't impressed before, he sure as hell was now.
"Could we sit in here and finish talking?" the nurse asked indicating the open dining room to the left of the front door.
Vic nodded and led the way, pulling a seat out from the table.
Sitting in the offered chair, the nurse sighed happily. He was a big man and Vic couldn't help but wonder why a man that looked as if he should be a linebacker on someone's football team was working as a home healthcare provider.
"Okay," the man began cheerfully as he opened up his clipboard and pulled out a stack of papers. "As I was saying before, it's a little amazing you've lasted this long giving your father palliative care, without even signing up for the state assistance program for family caregiving." The man gave him a quick reproving look. "It's not healthy for you to continue like this," he lectured gently, "and I'm glad you're seeking help now."
If Vic would have heard these words a month ago, they would have sounded like static to him. Just more unwarranted advice from people who thought they were being helpful and knew nothing about his life is what he would have said. Now, on the other hand, things were different.
It had been two weeks since that night with her. Two weeks since he crossed a line he could never come back from. Two weeks since he admitted to Joel that he wanted his girl. And in those two weeks, Vic's life had changed.
Bailey and his crew had taken the job offer with a chorus of relieved sighs and smiles all around. Vic had woken the next day to the sound of Krrsantan's barking and the low hum of men talking as they walked around the house and headed straight to the barn. Vic had just laid there in bed as he listened to the tractors powering up and the jumble of talking and occasional shouts as the men worked.
At first, he felt a little lost. He had debated going out to help nearly every morning for a week before savagely reminding himself that the whole point in hiring James Bailey and his crew was for them to manage the farm and give him the needed break.
And God did that break feel good. Without the added workload of the farm, Vic could not only focus on the business end of the lavender yield more but turn his focus back to the things he neglected—like his friends.
With the need to see her nearly overwhelming him, Vic had gone to the café the first chance he could with his new found chunk of freedom and was disappointed to find Finn working behind the counter. Throwing himself into working on the gym with the guys he didn't see Sapphire until later that afternoon.
Walking through the open gym door with the afternoon sun at her back, she looked like something out of a fantasy. The gold strands within her long brown curls seemed to glow while the natural severe set of her face only added to the lure of her beauty. There was no anger or recognition in her eyes as she looked at him, and Vic couldn't deny the pang of disappointment in his chest as she gave him a polite smile. But he wasn't deterred.
He made it a routine to come and work at the gym each morning with his brothers. And each afternoon after either visiting with Blanche or coming from the kitchen smelling of baked goods, she brought them all lunch. The routine was a Godsend. Just for a few hours a day, Vic could pretend she was here for him, too. That her thoughtful home-cooked meals and occasional sweet treats weren't just for his two best friends but for him as well, that he too could enjoy the warmth of her love that shined from her if he just stayed close enough.
That dream only shattered when he caught Joel's knowing look. Vic had expected hostility or worse, maybe even pity, from Joel after his revelation, but he wasn't prepared for the unreadable watchfulness the blond fixed him with. Like an opposing lion in the tundra, Joel watched him with a keen sense of alertness that sent Vic's hackles up. He could tolerate Hayden's possessiveness with Sapphire, that was to be expected. It was the cool assessing gleam in Joel's eyes however that put Vic's nerves on edge.
What was he thinking? And why hadn't he told Hayden? The questions were beginning to eat at him.
It was Sapphire's unexpected suggestion that curtailed his simmering need for confrontation. They had just gotten done framing the women's locker room when she appeared at the back door.
"Hey there, darlin’," Joel said, leaning over and kissing her hard on the lips.
Vic watched quietly from where he held up the beam Hayden was currently securing as Sapphire seemed to melt against the man. He noted how her proud face softened and her body leaned against Joel despite his sweat and grime. Wrapping her arms around his neck, she looked up at him with half-lidded eyes as Joel whispered something, most likely obscene, for her ears only. Her brown eyes widened a fraction and Vic watched her lips part with a sense of painful déjà vu.
