“Merrick.” Bryce climbed off the wall and brushed sand off the backs of his thighs. Holden stayed seated, expression watchful.
“What’s going on? You two looked?—”
“Close,” Bryce offered.
“Close.”
Merrick’s eyes narrowed, and he looked from Bryce to Holden and back again. Merrick was on a longboard, a paper bag that looked a lot like the one Bryce had just thrown away in his hand.
“Holden?” Merrick asked, and Holden glanced up, shoulders heaving with a deep inhale.
“Merrick.”
“What are you two doing here?”
Bryce’s brother had apparently turned his attention to Holden after not getting the answer he wanted out of Bryce himself.
“Having lunch,” Holden answered.
“And a snuggle?”
“Hardly.”
“It looked close.”
“I told you it was,” Bryce interjected.
Merrick’s gaze drifted back to his brother. “You’ve been staying with him, haven’t you?”
Holden swung his leg over the wall and stood beside Bryce, shoulder to shoulder. He stared down Bryce’s brother like he would fight the man if he had to, but Bryce knew it wouldn’t come to that.
“He has,” Holden answered, brushing his fingers against Bryce’s. A shiver of already familiar electricity coursed up his arm, raising the hair up to his elbow.
Something that looked a lot like hurt flashed across Merrick’s face and his stare drifted back to Bryce.
“You didn’t say anything,” Merrick said.
And in that moment, Bryce felt bad about not telling his brother about his relationship with Holden, but he wasn’t going to apologize for wanting something for himself.
“I know,” Bryce said. He tangled his fingers with Holden’s and held on for dear life. “And I don’t want to talk about it now. Can we do this later?”
For the first time in his entire life, Bryce saw his brother at a loss for words.
“Later.” Merrick rubbed the bridge of his nose, dragging his finger over to rub his eye.
“We can talk at work,” Holden said. “If you want.”
“Oh, I’ll want.” Merrick seemed to remember himself, squaring his shoulders and squinting at Holden. Bryce didn’t see any malice in the look, though, just weariness.
“It wasn’t about you,” Holden added. “For what it’s worth.”
Merrick swallowed hard and nodded. “Heard.”
“We’ll talk soon, I promise,” Bryce said. “I love you.”
Holden squeezed his hand and Merrick jerked his chin in agreement with the sentiment. Bryce and Merrick looked at each other for another beat, then Merrick turned forward again on his longboard and skated toward the pier. Once his back disappeared into the crowd, Bryce let out a breath and smashed his face against Holden’s chest.
Holden was quick to embrace him, wrapping both arms around Bryce’s shoulders and pulling him in for a much-needed hug. Bryce breathed in the calming smell of Holden’s laundry detergent and his body wash, counting his breaths until he felt like he could speak without his heart jumping out of his throat.
