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A sad smile crossed Sloane’s face, and he nodded in the face of his mother’s breathless understanding. No doubt she wondered the same things Sloane had since Dean had dropped the news. How many times had Dean taken a hug from Sloane as a sign of something more? How often had Sloane unthinkingly paraded himself on display, teasing Dean? They had been friends for years, and Sloane had unthinkingly tormented his best friend with hopes of something else between them, and a piece of Sloane died every time he realized.

And he couldn’t help but wonder what Dean saw in that thread of possibility.

His mother cleared her throat. “That would explain why he was so slow to tell you about this new guy.”

“It does?” Sloane asked with an incredulous laugh.

“Because of his feelings for you.”

“Again, that makes sense?”

“In his heart, he’s still got feelings for you, Sloane. Feelings he never planned on telling you. Despite that, I think he took a big risk, privately, by seeing this new guy. I think, deep down, he felt that by committing to this new guy, he would finally have to leave what he felt he could have with you behind.”

Sloane frowned. “That doesn’t make sense.”

She laughed. “And when have people ever made sense? The heart wants what it wants, and we’re stuck riding out the waves it creates. He’s been living life knowing he has to let go of you, in that way, but afraid to do so.” She hesitated. “Though I can see what he saw.”

Sloane pulled the phone away from his ear to give it a bewildered look before replacing it. “Excuse me?”

“I just mean, the two of you are a good pair. You mesh well. Dean accepts you the way you are but doesn’t let you get away with murder. You keep him out of his head too much, but you make sure he’s still himself. There’s an ebb and flow to the way you both work. In all honesty, if you were even remotely interested in men, I’d be telling you you’re an idiot for not snatching him up while you have the chance.”

Sloane sat, letting her words sink in slowly. While it hurt his heart to remember the times he’d made a passing comment about how good he and Dean would be if he were into guys, he realized he had accidentally stumbled upon the truth in those moments. Having Dean around was soothing, comforting, a balm to Sloane’s frazzled nerves. And Dean always seemed somuch happier, so much more himself around Sloane. It was as though the two of them brought something to the table the other needed without any effort whatsoever.

They just worked.

“I’m not that person,” Sloane finally said, his stomach growing more leaden.

“I’m only saying it’s a pity you’re not.”

Sloane couldn’t find any argument with that.

“How do I fix this, Mama?”

“I’m sorry, Sloane, but you can’t fix his heart. You can’t give him what his heart desires, and he’s going to hurt over that. It’s inevitable.”

His heart sank, and he nodded, knowing it was the truth before she’d even said it but hating it all the same. Sloane already felt helpless in the face of whatever demons Dean had dragged back from the desert, and now this?

“How can I help him without making things worse?” Sloane asked softly.

“Be there for him, Sloane. When he’s ready to come around, when he’s ready to move forward, be there for him. You can’t fix this, but the worst thing you can do is hide from him or pull away. Right now, he’s revealed his darkest secret to you, and he needs time to make peace with that. When he does, you need to be what you’ve always been, his best friend.”

Was that possible after what Dean had told him? Sloane would gladly give Dean whatever he wanted, whatever he needed, but would Dean be able to look him in the eye again? Would the two of them ever be able to get back to what they had been, or had things between them changed forever?

Sloane’s gut twisted, and some part of him believed it was the latter.

“I just...want him back,” Sloane admitted.

“Then be there when he comes back, and he’ll stay.”

DEAN

Dean shoved his way through the double doors to the clinic, barely noticing as one of them bounced off the wall with a bang. At the end of the hallway, Troy stood, spinning around at the loud noise and staring at Dean.

“Uh, morning?” Troy asked.

“Morning,” Dean replied tersely.

It was then he spotted someone else with Troy and hesitated. Private John Simmons was standing in the doorway of one of the exam rooms, staring at Dean.