Page 5 of Midnight Mooring

As I drew to a stop in front of him, we were almost the exact same height.

There!

I preferred taller men.

I mean, I’d dated men of all heights, even men a few inches shorter than me, but I could tell myself I preferred taller men.

“Cameron,” Forde greeted as Quinn rounded his truck to put my luggage in the back.

“Hi.”

Forde lifted his arms and stepped forward, drawing me into an awkward hug that made me feel worse than ever. Trying not to breathe in the scent of him, I patted his strong back and retreated. Then I pasted on a bright smile to prove all was well.

Forde’s expression tightened. “Did you have a … good time?”

Well, if you count having wildly horrific suspicions about someone I used to know as a good time, then aye. However, since my suspicions were only triggered a week ago, I wasn’t lying when I responded, “Amazing.”

“Are you glad to be home?”

“Of course.”

“Cameron, I’m sorry you felt you needed to block me.”

Shocked at Forde’s bluntness, I could only gape at him. While Forde had never been shy about sharing his opinions with me when it came to the men I dated or silly, shallower things, he avoided more serious confrontations in a way that was infuriating. Especially for someone like me, who needed everything out in the open.

However, I’d done a lot of soul-searching over the past six months and realized I had a very bad habit of expecting honesty and openness from everyone else but hid my deeper feelings from the people closest to me. Honestly, even from myself. I vowed to be better about that because one was never too old to adjust behaviors that were negatively impacting their lives and relationships.

To say I was surprised Forde brought up that I’d blocked him was an understatement.

Quinn grew nearer, so I muttered, “We’ll talk about it later.”

“Ready?” My brother glanced between me and his friend.

“Aye, I need some shut-eye. Nice to see you, Forde.”

He scowled. “I need to get back to the garage, anyway.”

“Aye, you didn’t need to shut the garage to come say hello.” I kept my tone light. “We’ll see each other later.”

“I didn’t shut the garage. I’ve got help now.”

More surprises.

An unpleasant sensation shifted through me as Forde nodded goodbye and strode off. What other changes had happened around here while I was gone?

Quinn guided me into the passenger side of his truck. I only lived a few streets back from the harbor, so I could have walked home, but I let my brother chauffeur me because it was in his nature to be overprotective, and I secretly loved it.

“So … what made you finally come home?” He did a three-point turn to maneuver us off Main Street.

I didn’t know if he meant for the question to sound pointed, but it kind of did. Truthfully, I understood. I’d told my family and friends I was leaving for a three-month sabbatical to travel around Europe, and I kept delaying my return until finally six months had passed.

Perhaps I would have delayed coming home even longer if it hadn’t been for Copenhagen.

I couldn’t tell Quinn the real reason I’d come home.

Because I could be utterly wrong about my suspicions.

Goodness, I hoped I was wrong.