Sometimes getting your dreams came with a cost you never expected.
So you never got the chance to ask yourself if it was truly worth it.
The girl’s name wasAndrea Arossi, and she was a model. She was set to appear in the next Victoria’s Secret campaign, and her manager wanted to create someextra buzz for her before the show. So they’d gone through the trouble of flying her out from L.A. to wherever the hell Skyler was now in the middle of the country, just so she could sit across from him eating a salad with no dressing at a small metal table outside of a pizza restaurant.
And she could eat a salad if she wanted; nothing wrong with that. Except she wasn’t even eating it. She was basically moving lettuce around the plate with her fork. The only thing he’d seen her eat so far was a piece of cucumber, while he was on his second slice of pizza. If she’d wanted to eat healthy, Maggie could have picked a more appropriate spot for them to have lunch so the girl wouldn’t starve.
They hadn’t said much to each other after they’d awkwardly hugged hello. So Skyler just watched her, thinking it was a little annoying how she had blonde hair and blue eyes. Practically all the girls they set him up with looked the same. And yeah, he knew why. He remembered making those comments about his type that time in an interview when he was pushed to do so.
People were allowed to have a type, but they were making him seem so shallow, like physical looks were all that mattered to him. Like he couldn’t possibly be into someone for the person they were more than for their hair color.
It was a load of crap, because he didn’t even have a type, not really. His type wasn’t blond hair and blue eyes. His type was Trevor, Trevor, Trevor, Trevor.
And all he cared about was getting back to Trevor and apologizing for the way he acted.
So Andrea probably didn’t deserve his irritation. She was fine. Blunt in a way that bordered on rude—like when she commented on his and Trevor’s tattoos as if she thought she knew everything about their relationship based on what she could see on their skin—but fine. She was holding up her end of the deal, and he was sulking so hard through the meal that she eventually had to remind him that he was supposed to at least look like he liked her.
He did his best to finish out the date with a pleasant expression on his face, but now he was happy to be heading back to the hotel. He made his driver stop at a store so he could grab Trevor’s favorite candies and a tiny stuffed bear holding a heart that saidi love you. But when he got to their room, Trevor greeted him with a long hug and a soft kiss, and then led him by the hand toward the bathroom before Skyler had the chance to offer his apology gifts.
When Trevor opened the bathroom door and nudged him gently inside, Skyler gasped.
White candles burned on the counter beside the sink and on the wide ledge of the bathtub, filling the room with a soft glow. Rose petals were scattered on the floor and even inside the tub. A bottle of pink bubble bath sat waiting.
“What is this?” he asked, and if his voice sounded breathless, he couldn’t help it. Becausewow.
“This is me apologizing,” Trevor said from behind him, as his arm wound its way around Skyler’s waist, fingertips brushing up and down over his hip.
Skyler twisted in his hold so he could look at him properly. “No, I’m supposed to be apologizing to you. You didn’t do anything wrong.”
“Neither did you.”
He shook his head, unable to hold back a smile. Sometimes he thought Trevor let him get away with too much. He should be held more accountable for when he acted like a fool. But how could he argue in the face of this giant romantic gesture?
He leaned in for a kiss, then said, “Thank you. This is wonderful.”
“I’m glad you like it.”
“I love it,” he said. “And I love you. So let’s take a bath and relax and eat some of this candy I brought for you. And then after, for the rest ofmyapology, I intend to lay you on the bed and eat you out until you can’t feel your fingers or toes.”
Trevor visibly swallowed. It took him a moment to speak. “That. Yeah. Let’s do that.”
Skyler laughed and kissed him again. He’d never stop wondering how he got so lucky to be able to call Trevor his.
It didn’t matter what they had to say in interviews. That was a part of their job.
This was real.
TREVOR
Trevor was tired andwould have liked to sleep in longer this morning, but he’d promised Skyler he’d be here for his recording session. It was supposed to be a quick one, touching up some vocals for one song, and he’d figured the two of them would still have time to get back in bed afterward before they needed to head to the venue. But Skyler was clearly struggling.
Deciding he should settle in, Trevor toed off his shoes so he could pull his feet up onto the bed in this random hotel room that had become their makeshift recording studio for the last two days. He only barely resisted the impulse to climb under the covers and lie down.
They’d been busy working on their next album while they were still touring for this one. They’d recorded in studios in random cities, in hotel rooms, and even occasionally on the tour bus. It was exhausting.
“I’m sorry, I know that sucked!” Skyler called out from behind the plexiglass that had been set up in a corner of the room. He slid his headphones off his ears and onto his shoulders. “I don’t know what’s wrong with me.”
He sounded a mix of dejected and angry. And as much as Trevor wished he could still be sleeping, he felt awful for his boy.
