Page 37 of Rescuing Dr. Marian (Made Marian Legacy #1)

FOSTER

I had to admit, I was feeling pret-ty good when I walked out of the woods after the trail sex.

My legs were nice and loose, my brain was calmer than it had been in days, and I was even grateful one of my students had volunteered to keep Chickie back since she’d be involved in the search and rescue exercise later in the day.

So maybe that was why I didn’t have my guard up when the attack came from an unexpected angle.

“You’re expected at the cookout tonight,” Trace said as my team huddled around the table in the makeshift command tent during the exercise.

“What cookout?”

“Over at the Marian lodge. The family’s celebrating Hazel’s recovery, and they wanted to include everyone who had a hand in her rescue. I told them you’d be there.”

I scrambled for a reason I couldn’t go, but he was onto me .

“I told them you’d be there,” he repeated more slowly, giving me a flinty look as if challenging me to argue with him. “And since the Marian family donated the land we’re standing on for the establishment of SERA, I would consider it a kind of… oh, let’s say command performance .”

I breathed out through my nose. “Yes, sir. Looking forward to it, sir. Sounds amazing.”

He rolled his eyes. “Simmer down, asshole. No one ever died from a backyard burger.”

I chose not to tell him about the time I had to respond to a natural gas fire at the Majestic River campground. “Sure. Sounds safe as fuck,” I said instead. “My kind of event.”

At least that got a laugh out of the man. “Thanks. I’d offer to keep the pup, but I’m sure you’ll want to use her as social lube.”

I shuddered. “Don’t make it sound nasty.”

He shrugged. “It’s either that or alcohol, and I don’t recommend getting drunk around some of those folks.

One time, Teddy Marian got drunk and woke up with a tiny tattoo of a squirrel nestled in his pubes.

Almost ruined his marriage. Oh! And stay away from anyone over the age of eighty.

They’re the ones you need to watch out for. ”

I stared after him as he sauntered away.

Tommy’s voice appeared low in my ear. “Staring at another man’s ass already? It’s only been an hour since you had your?—”

I spun around and clapped my hand over his mouth again, making his eyes flare hot enough to harden my cock again. I quickly yanked my hand away, glancing around to see if anyone had seen. Thankfully, everyone was too busy focusing on the exercise .

“I need you to stay here tonight,” I blurted.

His eyes widened even more. “I can’t. I’m due at my family’s place for a dinner thing. I’d invite you, but I know you?—”

“I’ll come!”

“You will?” The surprised expression turned suspicious. “Why?”

My breathing was coming fast. “You sure you don’t want to stay here?”

“With you?”

“No, I…” I blew out a breath. “Your family invited me to the cookout.”

Comprehension dawned on his face. “And you’re freaking out.”

“Pfft. Pffttttt . Pft.”

Tommy’s grin was offensively wide. “Oh man, this is going to be incredibly fun.”

It wasn’t fun. Not one single bit of it was fun.

“Your great-great-aunt is going to give me a tattoo in my private places,” I whispered as we walked around the back of the giant log building that had been in their family for several decades.

I’d already known the family was wealthy based on things I’d heard from Trace and around town, but seeing the scale of it still took me by surprise and didn’t help one bit with my nerves.

Tommy snapped his head around. “I’m sorry, what ?”

“She’s going to call me Sergeant Man Meat or Thigh Mountain.

And she’s going to fix you up on dates, probably in front of me.

She’s been dying to set you up with people, and she definitely doesn’t like me.

I’m guessing she already has someone here to set you up with.

The fire marshal, maybe. He’s good-looking, if a little mature for you. ”

“The… fire marshal? Is too mature for me? Are you saying I’m immature?”

“Tommy,” I urged. “Focus, okay? We need a plan. Like, a signal or something. If Tilly starts asking me about my feelings, I’ll make this sign.”

I tapped two fingers on my forearm. “You know this one, right? It means I need help.”

He laughed. “It means medic .”

“Same thing. And if you need rescuing, all you need to do is— oh hi !”

I forced a grin at Tommy’s cousin Ella, who approached us as soon as we rounded the corner of the lodge.

People were standing in clusters across a low, wide deck and the stone patio beyond.

Music played from hidden speakers, and lit tiki torches wafted the faint scent of citronella into the evening air.

The sun hadn’t dropped behind the mountain yet, and it lay fat, golden stripes on the grass between the trees.

“So, I take it this means we’ve progressed past the ‘roommates who only kissed that one time in Hawaii by accident’ stage?” Ella asked, her gaze darting between us.

“Twice,” I said without thinking.

Tommy closed his eyes and groaned. “She did that on purpose to get you to correct her. It’s her favorite trick.”

Ella snapped her fingers and pointed at me. “Gotcha. ”

I shot a pleading look at Tommy. “See? See why I keep saying no? I’m outgunned.”

Ella frowned in sympathy. “You brought a knife to a nuke fight. Listen, I get it. It must be intimidating to walk into a group of forty to fifty people who saw you wearing Tommy’s shirt in Hawaii and would literally murder anyone who made Tommy cry, but?—”

Tommy muttered an apology before grabbing Ella and dragging her a few feet away. While they spoke, I glanced around to see if I could find any friendlies in the crowd.

Tilly was making a beeline for me with a red Solo cup in each hand. Following behind her at a more dignified pace was an elegant-looking older man who looked familiar, but I couldn’t place him.

“Chest Almighty,” she said, shoving a cup of draft beer in my hand. “Here ya go. Liquid courage. Don’t say I never gave you nothin’. Come find me later.”

As soon as she was there, she was gone again.

I took an appreciative sip of the beer and relished the crisp coolness as it slid down my throat.

An older guy with strawberry blond hair approached and reached out a hand to shake. “You must be Foster Blake,” he said. “I’m Blue Marian, Ella’s dad. Nice to meet you. I’ve heard good things about you.”

Before I could say a word, a stream of people joined him. First, another attractive older man appeared and slid his arm around Blue. “I’m Tristan. Whatever Blue is telling you, ignore him. We’re happy you’re here.”

A tall guy with a beard and a flannel open over a tee that said, Only Hunt with a Zoom Lens , eyed me up and down. “This him?”

I stood up a little straighter and tried to remind myself I was a Wyoming sheriff. I didn’t get intimidated; I did the intimidating.

“Thank you for having me. It’s nice to take a break from SERA. Trace said you serve a mean burger.”

A shorter man I recognized as a famous country music singer shot me a friendly smile. “We also have a lovely beet salad and a giant fruit bowl.”

I felt like a bug, not under a microscope but smashed flat on the windshield of a vehicle doing a hundred miles an hour in a speed zone.

“How’s Hazel?” I asked, looking around in hopes of finding her somewhere nearby, beckoning me over with a wild wave of her hands.

A woman with reddish hair streaked with gray came barging through the crowd, elbowing people out of the way. “Everyone give the guy a break, alright?” She met my eyes and beamed. “You must be Foster?”

Before I could finish nodding, she threw herself against me and hugged me tight. “Thank you so much for saving my daughter.”

Her voice was full of emotion and gratitude. I realized I had Tommy’s mother in my arms, and I carefully hugged her back, suddenly wanting to thank her for gifting the world, gifting me , the miracle of her son’s existence.

“You’re very welcome,” I said instead. “I didn’t do much. Honestly, it was your son who?— ”

She pulled back and held on to my shoulders, eyes full of unshed tears. “I already thanked him, too, don’t worry. But he said without you keeping a cool head, you might not have gotten there before someone made a mistake.”

I shook my head. “It’s my job. And I was proud to be there to witness Tommy in his element.”

She squeezed my arms before throwing herself into me for another quick hug. “I’m so, so happy you’re here. Ignore all these idiots and come with me. I’ll find you something to eat. Tommy says you like tomatoes on your hamburger, so Avery and I saved the best from their garden just for you.”

I let her lead me away, shooting one last look over toward Tommy, who was done talking to Ella but was now standing off to the side, talking on the phone.

Once I’d been seated among the scattered outdoor sofas and chairs, Hazel wheeled over in a mobility scooter. She still looked pale, but she was obviously feeling much better.

“How are you doing? It’s good to see you out of bed.”

She reached over and squeezed my arm. “I’m only allowed to stay out here for an hour, but I’m very happy to thank you in person.”

“Everyone keeps saying thank you to me. I didn’t do anything but get Tommy there safely so he could help.”

Avery came up behind Hazel and rubbed her shoulder. “Don’t listen to him, babe. He worked side by side with the firefighters to get the door off the car. I was there, I saw everything. He was amazing. Foster also kept the media away.”

Out of desperation, I did what my mother and cousin had always taught me never to do. “When are you due?” I asked them. Thankfully, I had solid proof Avery was actually pregnant, so I figured the question was justified.

They both beamed. “Four more weeks.”

That was enough to get the subject fully off me. Everyone around us began talking excitedly about the baby. I was able to pitch in every now and then since I’d recently become a kind of uncle to my cousin Sheridan’s baby.

Tommy finally joined me, sitting down with his own plate of food and a muttered “I’m starving.”

As he ate, I realized this big group of Marians reminded me of home, of my cousin Way and his group of friends. I’d envied Way the family he’d accidentally married into, the group of guys and their husbands who’d formed a brotherhood of sorts in Majestic.

They’d done a good job of including me in most things, but I’d still never truly felt a part of the group.

I was usually good at getting along with most people, and I felt like I was doing a fine job of it here, too.

Everyone was friendly and kind. I appreciated watching the little moments of teasing, flirtation between spouses, and snarky banter between siblings.

As I watched the family dynamics play out, I was struck by how amazing it was to be among this many examples of happy marriages between two men.

Tommy had grown up surrounded by gay men, and yet he’d never dated one before. Why in the world had he picked me?

I glanced over and caught him looking at me. “What?” I asked.

“Making sure you don’t bolt and leave me without a ride back to SERA. ”

I reached into my pocket and pulled out my keys, handing them over easily. “I go when you go, Doc.”

As my fingers brushed his hand, he clamped his around them, pulling me in so he could whisper something in my ear. I tried not to look around guiltily to see if anyone had noticed the intimacy.

“I’ve been watching for the international distress signal,” he teased, the breath warm against my ear. “So far, so good.”

I patted my chest and gave a thumbs-up, the SAR signal for “I’m okay.”

He grinned. “Gotta admit, I enjoyed seeing the big, bad sheriff intimidated by my family.”

“Intimidated? Pfft. Hardly. Oh shit.” I spotted Tilly making her way toward me. This time, she was flanked by the other old ladies from Hawaii. “Abort, abort .”

I didn’t wait for him, only mumbled something about finding a men’s room and took off. Unfortunately, Tilly was lying in wait for me when I came out of the hall bathroom.

“Major Denial,” she said, eyeing me up and down.

I couldn’t determine whether it was another nickname or simply a statement of my current emotional situation.

“Ma’am.”

Her eyes narrowed. “You worked things out yet? And before you answer me, I can already tell it’s a big fat no .”

“Nothing to work out,” I said, way more easily than I felt.

She nodded. “Alright then. I guess it’s a good thing he accepted the job offer this evening. Nothing more to say.” She patted me on the chest. “Take care of yourself, Foster. ”

Instead of sticking around to provoke or needle me further, she simply walked away.

I didn’t know what bothered me more: hearing that Tommy had taken the job in California or hearing Tilly call me by my actual name.

Both things were devastating.

But only one made me feel like I’d lost something irrevocably precious.

I spent the rest of the evening trying to figure out how to be happy for Tommy. How best to support him. If he’d made his decision—and after seeing him at the scene of Hazel’s accident, I could understand why he had—I wouldn’t stand in his way.