Joshua Healy (The Mitchell/Healy Family #10)(21)

“You must have seen one of the twins if you know about that. They’ve got big mouths, and Wes never should have told everyone about it.”

“Your Uncle Ty told me about it last night.”

“Is it serious?” My mom interrupts.

I keep my head still while responding. “I only just met her a couple days ago.”

“You should bring her to Sunday dinner,” Aunt Miranda suggests.

“Yeah, maybe.”

My mom is shocked. “It would be great, especially if you plan on bringing her around the ranch again. We don’t have secrets here, son.”

“So I’ve gathered.”



Then I’m bombarded with questions.



What does she do for a living?

Who are her parents?

Have I met them?

Am I seeing her tonight?

Does she know about my track record?

Is something wrong with her?

Am I ready to settle down?



I’m drained when I leave the salon, but optimistic when a text comes through my phone. It’s from Tamsyn and I recognize it as her gamer name. The message says nothing else so I don’t respond. I know where to find her.



After a hot shower, I grab something to eat and head to my room. I should probably tidy up, but I’m too focused on seeing if Tamsyn is online to worry about the petty shit. It takes me a few minutes to plug in her information, and I’m disappointed when she’s not online, so I shoot her a message.

You playing? – Josh

Still setting everything up in my new dorm room. Oh yeah, I’ll tell you about it in a second. Give me five. – Tamsyn



I stare at the screen like my life depends on it, also reminding me how interested I am in this new woman. I couldn’t have picked her better if I had a selection. My only fear is that I’m going to screw it up, because I don’t know the first thing about being a boyfriend, if that’s even what I am. At this point I’m just taking it day by day and seeing where it leads.

My stomach jumps when I see her online. I immediately turn on the game we talked about and we start on a joint mission.

Then I hear her sweet voice on my headset. “You there?”

“You’ve got me.”

We start getting in to the game for a few minutes, me throwing some grenades, while she focuses on taking out some enemy forces hiding behind some metal storage bins. When we complete the task I pause my side so I can talk. “You say you moved into a new room?”

“Yeah. Someone isn’t returning this semester. She was in one of my classes, but I didn’t know her well. When I went to the housing office they told me I could move in right away. It was just a matter of paperwork.”

“That’s great, right?”

“I may still run into them, but it’s better. Now I can stay in my room and avoid them if I have to.”

“What about the new roommate? Is she hot?” I tease.

“Do you want me to bitch slap you through the television screen?”

“I might like it.”

“You would,” she laughs. “I met her this morning. She’s a sophomore. I’m pretty sure she’s into girls. If you saw her you’d think she was a guy. She dresses and talks like one.

“Maybe I should feel threatened. They say most girl on girl experiences are in college.”

“You’re ridiculous.”

I keep on her. “If it does, make sure you call me, or at least video it.”

“Josh, be serious.”

“I am, darlin’.”

“How was your day?” She changes the subject.

“Not good at all.”

“Why?”

“I was missing you,” I say with an ornery grin.

“You’re crazy. It’s only been hours. I’m sure you’ll survive.”

“I think I may need mouth to mouth. You better brush up on your CPR technique and come right over.”

After she laughs the line goes silent again, only the music from our paused game remains.

“Is it bad if I miss you too?”

“It’s real good to hear.”

My stomach knots up. I’m excited. It’s unlike me to react this way, and it’s how I know I’m going to be able to get over my unresolved feelings for Liv. It may not be with Tamsyn. At some point we could part ways, but at least I’ll know there’s a chance at me finding someone who wants me. It’s all I could hope for at this point.





Chapter 10


Tamsyn


It’s now been six days since Joshua Healy swept in to save me from myself. In that amount of time we’ve talked every single free moment. We’ve made a pact not to see each other until tonight, but it hasn’t been easy. I can’t remember wanting another man the way I crave him. Just hearing his voice over the phone or an internet connect gets me all hot and bothered, and heaven forbid some other person was listening to our online gaming conversations, because they tend to get a bit racy, and dirty.

He hasn’t told me where we’re headed tonight, but said not to get too dressed up. He’s also asked me to bring a change of clothes, so I can’t begin to guess what I’m about to experience.