“It might not be him takin’ it there, making a move on her,” Boone told him. “Told you all, Cisco’s got a thing about the women. He’s taken them on. Feels responsible for them. Probably guilt he scared the shit out of them when he abducted them. But I gotta admit, maybe it’s just that he’s a nuanced guy and he’s a piece of shit out there in the world, but he knows the right way to treat women.”

“The man fired on Axl,” Mag, jerking his head toward Axl, reminded Boone of the firefight Axl had with Cisco’s associates while they were taking Ryn.

“They’re either the worst shots in history, or they had orders not to hit me,” Axl said and all eyes came to him. “There had to be nearly eighty rounds exchanged in that and there was a lot of damage to the vehicles parked in that parking lot, but no one was even grazed.”

“So now you’re on the same bent as Boone that there’s more that makes this guy when he’s picking up Hattie from work at two o’clock in the morning?” Mag demanded.

“I think it’s clear I got more work to do with Hattie and it’s not gonna help me, not even having taken her out to dinner, bein’ that guy who’s an even bigger ass to her, I jump to conclusions about what’s going on with Cisco when, right now, strictly speaking, it’s none of my business. But she knows I want it to be my business, so I ask, and she can decide if she wants to tell.”

“I do not see Hattie with Cisco,” Mo mumbled.

Obviously, Axl didn’t either.

He saw her with him.

He saw all that curly hair of hers on his pillow in the morning and in his lap when she was blowing him.

He saw himself wading in and finding a way to guide her out of her father’s life, no matter what fucked-up reason she was still in it, so he could help her find a road to healing.

And he saw himself finding ways to make her laugh and finding others to give her a life that, the next time she pulled a mold from set concrete, seeing what she wrought might bring joy, not cut you to the quick.

That’s what he saw.

And if once, just once, she gave him a shot to kiss her like he meant it, she might see it too.

“Me either, I barely see her with Axl,” Auggie stated, taking Axl from his thoughts. “She needs an accountant or something. Boring and no drama.”

“And I’m drama?” Axl asked.