There was no way he could let Gannon walk away from him now.

Cam didn’t think he’d survive it again.

Thirty-Four

Gannon couldn’t feel his hands. Hell, he couldn’t feel anything at all. He was numb all over.

From the moment he’d stepped inside that shed, seeing Roan and Cam standing so close, he’d had a hard time breathing. But when Roan had admitted to Cam that he was in love with him…

Did this remind anyone of a movie? My Best Friend’s Wedding, maybe?

Uggh!

Gannon’s heart was breaking all over again. The fear he’d experienced throughout the day had eased somewhat after he’d talked to Dare in the office, but now … it was back full force, threatening to pull him under again. And now that he was standing face-to-face with Cam, he couldn’t stop thinking about what he’d seen.

Was that why Cam was ignoring him? Had something happened with Roan today? Or had it been building for a while? The thought of Cam and Roan together… It made Gannon’s stomach lurch.

“Is that why you haven’t answered your phone today?” Gannon asked bluntly, pointing in the direction they’d just come from.

“What?” Cam frowned. “No. My… Shit. My phone’s in my apartment charging. The battery died this morning.”

Well, that made sense. Sort of.

“Please talk to me,” Cam said, his voice low, his hand coming to rest on Gannon’s arm. “Let’s go up to my apartment and talk.”

“Not sure there’s anything to talk about,” Gannon rasped. He could hardly breathe. The pain was unbearable. Worse than that, it had felt like a sucker punch. So totally and completely unexpected…

“There’s actually a lot to talk about.”

Oh, shit. Gannon did not like the sound of that.

Was Cam about to break up with him again?

Gannon did not like this flip-flopping emotion. Love, fear, elation, fear. It was making him crazy. The two of them seemed to be riding a tidal wave. When one crested, another picked them up and carried them farther, only to crash once again.

Gannon was trying to come up with a reason to leave, but he didn’t get the words out before Cam was stepping closer, erasing the distance between them completely. Cam’s warm hands came up to cup Gannon’s face, forcing him to look into those stormy blue eyes.

“Don’t walk away, Gannon. Trust me, remember?”

The edge in Cam’s tone reflected the same trepidation Gannon felt. As though he was letting Gannon know that if he did, they’d be finished. Part of him wanted to tell him to go to hell, to turn and get into his car, drive away, and never look back.

But the other part of him loved this man.

Loved.

Him.

And walking away again would likely break him.

“Should you go talk to Roan?” Gannon asked, trying to calm himself enough that they could have a civil conversation.

“I will. Later. He’s my friend, and I have to address the issue with him, but you’re more important.”

Did Cam mean right now? Or always?

Gannon wasn’t sure he wanted to know the answer to that. Since he couldn’t come up with a rebuttal, he simply nodded his head, allowing Cam to lead him away from his car, toward the stairs on the side of the building.

With leaden feet, he followed Cam up, then down the hall and into Cam’s apartment. Once inside, with the door closed behind him, Gannon’s stomach did a strange, painful flip. He didn’t know what was about to happen, but he knew without a doubt that he was in love with this man. And the mere thought of losing him…

Gannon wasn’t sure he’d be strong enough to handle that. Not again.

Okay, so Roan didn’t feel the amount of relief he’d thought he would. When he’d admitted to Cam that he loved him … the words hadn’t felt right. He’d thought that getting it out in the open would clear the air, possibly help clear his head, but instead, he was only more confused now.

Didn’t mean he wasn’t pissed. Cam had walked away from him.

Roan stormed into the marina office in time to see Cam leading Gannon toward the stairs up to his apartment. He had an overwhelming urge to stop them, to force Cam to hear him out. Before he knew it, he was lunging for the door, but before he could skirt the counter, Dare was grabbing his arm, pulling him back.

“No fucking way,” Dare snapped. “You’re not goin’ out there.”

Roan spun around to face his friend. “Fuck you. Stay the hell outta my business.”

Dare pointed toward the door, his eyes shooting fire. “That’s not your fucking business.”

“The hell it ain’t.” Roan couldn’t let Cam turn his back. He needed Cam to understand how he felt, that he’d be the man who could make him happy.

“Roan!” Dare yelled. “Get a grip, man.”

“I need to talk to him,” Roan declared, peering out the door in time to see Gannon and Cam slip out of sight. “Need to explain.”

“No,” Dare roared. “You don’t.”

Turning to face Dare, Roan let his anger build.

“Hit me if you want,” Dare told him. “But I’m not gonna sit back and let you fuck this up for him.”

“Me? I didn’t fuck this up for anyone.”

“He’s your best friend, bro. You’re not in love with him.”

How the hell did Dare know? And who was he to say how Roan felt?

“Cam’s happy, man. Seriously. Have you looked at him lately? Have you ever seen him that fucking happy?”

“Happy? How the fuck is he happy when the man he’s dating runs off and leaves him?”

“Gannon didn’t leave him. He went on a business trip.”

“And you know how that hurts Cam. He can’t deal with that shit.”

“Have you ever thought that he needs this? He needs someone who forces him out of his comfort zone?”

Roan didn’t want to hear this. Jerking away from Dare, he stalked toward the back door.

“Roan, I’m serious. You need to think this through. You want to lose Cam forever? Fuck this up for him and he’ll never forgive you.”

Roan stopped walking but didn’t turn around. “You don’t know how I feel.”

“I know that for the first time in years, things are changing around here, and that bothers you. Cam met this guy who makes him happy. He deserves to be happy.”

“I can make him happy,” Roan snapped, even though he didn’t really believe that. Not anymore. Not after he’d professed his love and ended up feeling … awkward, selfish even.

Dare was behind him. “Yeah? Then why the fuck didn’t you lay this shit on him when he was single? Why now, huh?”

“Because…” Roan didn’t have a retort. It was the same question he’d been asking himself all along. It hadn’t been until Gannon Burgess had made an appearance in Cam’s world that Roan had felt threatened. As though he were running out of time.

Roan turned to face Dare.

“When did you start feeling this way about him?” Dare asked, not an ounce of condescension in his tone.

“I don’t know.” It was the truth. He didn’t know when he’d fallen in love with Cam, or even if that was real. Something was definitely off. The only thing he knew … he didn’t want to lose the chance. If Cam wasn’t with Gannon, then Roan would still have a chance.

“You aren’t in love with him,” Dare repeated. “You’re scared that Gannon will come between you and Cam. That you’ll lose that friendship.”

“How the hell do you know how I feel?” Roan countered, hating that Dare could even possibly be right.

Roan hadn’t been able to untangle his thoughts for days, weeks. But Dare was right, this hadn’t started until Gannon had come into the picture. Until Cam had…

Oh, fuck.

Dare’s voice pulled him up short. “Because I’ve been there.”

Roan’s gaze swung to Dare’s. The lighthearted, carefree playboy had never looked as serious as he did right then. And that was when it hit Roan … someone had broken Dare’s heart before.