Free Fate Interrupted by Kaitlyn Cross

away.”
    Jon fanned a
hand through the air and turned back to the TV. “He’s not in love.”
      “I don’t know man, you shoulda seen the way he was drooling all over this
girl last weekend at Panera .”
    Dean leaned back
in his chair and massaged his face with both hands, unable to even respond to
something so ridiculous.
    Shaun swallowed.
“You wanna talk about it, big baller ?”
    Dean pulled his
face from his hands and found Shaun’s expectant eyes. “Talk about what?”
    “What you’re
feeling.”
    Dean laughed out
loud, his face flushing with nowhere to hide.
    “Don’t do it, Deano ,” Jon said, locking his fingers behind his head and
stretching out in his chair. “I’ll pay ya not to talk
about your feelings.”
    “I’m not talking
about my feelings.”
    Shaun’s face
wrinkled. “Why not? Carrie took the girls to the mall.
I got all afternoon!” He cleared his throat and took a drink of his beer. “So what
happened after you guys left Jon hanging?”
    Dean leaned his
elbows on the table and rubbed his hands together, still feeling her skin on
his. “We kissed.”
    Shaun leaned
back and whistled loudly. “Now, we’re getting somewhere. Did you see
explosions?”
    “He didn’t even
see boobs!” Jon laughed, nudging Dean’s shoe and nodding behind him. “How about that hostess? She’s pretty hot, man.”
    Dean hesitated
before twisting in his seat. The brown haired girl smiled at him, coming closer
with a tall glass of dark beer in her hand. Dean turned back around and started
checking his phone.
    “Look at him!” Shaun
laughed. “He doesn’t even care. Evy has him whipped already.”
    Dean looked up
from his phone with a frown. “No, she doesn’t.”
    Shaun coughed
into his hand. “I think she does.”
    “Here ya go,” the hostess said warmly, setting a coaster down in
front of Dean and then the beer on top of it. “Anything else I can get for you?”
    Dean sat up
straighter and cleared his throat. “How bout your number?”
    A bashful smile
slid across her smooth complexion. She scrawled something down on a napkin, her
face blushing, and set it next to his beer.
    Dean raised his
glass to her and smiled. “Thanks for the beer. Put it on their tab,” he said,
taking a quick sip.
    She laughed
lightly and floated back across the patio as Dean waved the napkin in Shaun’s
face.
    Shaun watched
her disappear back inside, shaking his head. “Man, you could have any girl you
wanted.”
    “Exactly!” Jon said,
tipping his Corona back and swallowing with a loud sigh. “You have a gift, Deano , and so much more left to do. You cannot waste that
gift on just one woman. That’s not fair to anyone.”
    Shaun snorted. “Yeah, especially you, because once Deano is out of the game it’s all over but the cryin .”
    “What are you
talking about? Did you just miss my nice little threesome story?”
    Shaun dug into
another wing. “Dreams don’t count.”
    “Did that really
happen?” Dean asked.
    Jon nodded proudly
and tipped the bottle back, sending a lime wedge tumbling through the golden
liquid in slow motion. He swallowed and wiped his upper lip. “Shit got crazy,
too.”
    Shaun stopped
chewing. “You roll tape on that?”
    “Had
my hands full, dude.”
    Shaun pursed his
stained lips and added another napkin to the pile. “One of you guys has got to
start rolling video! I see the same woman naked day in and day out. The least
you could do is help a brother out.”
    Jon jerked a
thumb at Shaun while staring glumly at Dean. “See what you have to look forward
to when you squander your gift?”
    Shaun belched
into his fist and ignored him. “Dean, I’m tellin you,
you can’t let this one get away without giving it a decent shot. Trust your feelings ,” he said, doing his
best impersonation of Obi-Wan Kenobi.
    Dean watched beads
of sweat trickle down his pint glass, Evy’s smile running through his mind. He
was way ahead of Shaun but didn’t want to let on. He and Jon would