Chapter Thirty-Two
Taine
When coffee didn’t help get his mind in gear, Taine wandered out into the freezing weather. He let the bracing wind wake him up. With a clearer head, it occurred to him that tea probably wasn’t just tea.
Bollocks.
He had managed to hold his anger by the skin of his teeth at the Whittle farm. Another extended afternoon with Freddie’s fathers might be more than his slow-to-rise temper could handle. He wondered if perhaps he had gotten far more attached than he was ready to admit.
He walked up the hill, managing it better than the previous night. His breath puffed out in front of him with each exhale. What am I doing? Aside from freezing my arse off.
The Cornish coast shone in the winter sunlight. It almost tempted him to walk the path down the beach itself. He couldn’t help enjoying clear skies—despite the beyond freezing temperatures.
“Tenner for your thoughts?”
Taine waited until Caddock had joined him at the top of the bluff. “How’s Francis? Did the beer bother him last night?”
His old teammate’s husband tended to suffer panic attacks around drunks, for good reason as he’d been attacked twice by drunken men. They tried to respect his wishes. None of them had been surprised when the married couple left for Looe before they broke into the heavier liquor.
“His granny’s a bit under the weather, so he stayed home.” Caddock didn’t bother to answer the question, which hopefully meant Francis hadn’t been overly bothered. “Is there a reason you’re doing your best impression of Jack Frost?”
“Curing my hangover.”
“By icing your brain?” Caddock shivered beside him. “Have you made up with your nurse?”
“He’s not mine.”
“Lying to yourself is pathetic.” He punched Taine hard on the arm. “Look, remember after my brother died, you pulled me aside and gave me the kick in the arse I needed to look after my little nephew properly?”
“Of course I remember. You stopped talking to me for months.” Taine hadn’t actually heard from Caddock until a week before his wedding. “What does that have to do with anything?”
“As Francis would say, you’ve a lovely young man in Freddie. And as I would say, stop acting like a sodding idiotic prat. I thought we designated Scottie as the group moron.” He nudged him with his elbow. “Freddie’s a good lad. He’s sweet. He’s halfway to falling in love with you and has no idea, so don’t bollocks it up any more than you already have.”
“Caddock.” Taine rubbed his temples firmly, trying to soothe the sudden return of his headache. “He can’t possibly be falling in love with me. It’s too soon.”
“Maybe not there yet, but if you stopped trying to end things before they started, he’d bloody well be there.” His friend sounded far too confident for Taine’s mental stability. “Does Freddie know you had a word with your friend at Scotland Yard, who had a talk with his friend in Cardiff, who made sure the homophobic twats never step foot near him again? A lot of effort for someone you’re done with.”
“I never said I was done with him. When did I say that?” Taine whacked Caddock in the chest. “What exactly is the point of this conversation?”
“You did ignore him for two months.” Caddock turned towards him, out of the wind that suddenly kicked up. “The point of the conversation is to ensure you maintain your reputation as the intelligent and thoughtful member of our little group of retirees. BC’s too busy having a laugh, Remi’s too French, and Scottie is—well—Scottie.”
“And you?”
“I’m the Brute. No one’s ever going to look at someone with a nickname like that and think, ‘oh he’s got a good head on his shoulders.’ All I’m saying is, if the nurse is giving you a second chance, take it.” Caddock grabbed him by the sleeve to tug him towards the inn. “It’s sodding freezing out here. Let’s get inside before we catch a cold.”
“Catch a cold?” Taine couldn’t help barking out a laugh at his old friend. “Marriage has changed you. Remember the time we all played naked rugby because we’d lost a bet to the Scottish national team?”
“I’ve expunged it from my memory.”
“Definitely been around your husband too long.” Taine rubbed his hands together in an attempt to warm them up. “I can’t recall ever hearing you use a word like expunge.”
“Oi. Have you seen my trousers?”
Taine glanced over at Scottie and quickly turned away. “I’d like to expunge that from my memory.”
Flipping him off, Scottie shuffled down the hallway, obviously still hunting for his clothing. Taine chuckled with Caddock, who pointed towards a bag tucked into the rafters in the living room. Idiots. He should’ve known the Brute had been part of stealing their volatile friend’s trousers.
“When are you going to put him out of his misery?” Taine hoped they’d return the clothes eventually. Scottie didn’t tend to take jokes all that brilliantly. “He’ll blow a gasket if you don’t.”
“It was BC’s idea.”
“Of course it was.” He dragged his fingers through his hair roughly. “You don’t think it might cause a fight?”
“Talk to BC.” Caddock shrugged.
“I need more coffee.” Taine left the idiots to their pranks and returned to the kitchen to see if anyone had refilled the kettle. Scottie would hit the roof when he found out. It was best to be completely prepared or out of range of his fists. “Right. Better find Freddie.”