Page 30 of Eddie

Eddie felt a little guilty about his words when the smile slipped from his friends’ faces. Yes, he was the only one of them who was human, which meant he was the only one of them who wouldn’t live a very long life.

Or at least, he would have if he hadn’t met his mate. No matter what was happening between him and Matthias, Eddie was sure that they’d figure things out. That meant that eventually, they’d bond, and Eddie would live just as long as Matthias, Dennis, and Taylor.

The thought made him smile. He was going to be able to annoy them for years to come. Unfortunately for him, that meant the same went for them, but he’d take that over dying first.

“Come on,” Dennis said. “Come to dinner. That’s all we ask. We’re not going to go to the bar to drink or anything like that. It has to be better than staring at the TV for two hours, right?”

Eddie sighed. “Yeah, okay. I’ll come and have dinner with you, but I need a shower first.”

Taylor said something under his breath that sounded suspiciously like he agreed. Eddie playfully punched his shoulder as he pushed past them and unlocked his front door. They would make themselves comfortable, like they always did. He didn’t have to worry about them.

He only had to worry about himself, and now, Matthias.

They’d been texting throughout the day. Matthias had reached out that morning, explaining that he’d been woken up in the middle of the night by his brother. Eddie felt guilty about having been short with him, but he hadn’t known. They’d both apologized, and Eddie had realized just how right Valentine had been. Their relationship was a two-way street. Matthias wasn’t the only one who could make mistakes, and he wasn’t the only one who could reach out and help the other. Eddie could, too, and while he was going to try very hard not to invade Matthias’s personal space when it came to his family, he wouldn’t let this continue for much longer. He just needed a plan, but he’d already started thinking about one, and he was positive he’d find a way to make it work.

He quickly showered, then put on jeans and a t-shirt. He didn’t bother doing his hair or anything like that. There was no need when he was having dinner with his friends. When he came back to his living room, it was to find that Dennis and Taylor had turned on the TV. They weren’t watching what was on the screen, though. They were sitting on the couch together, whispering to each other, and they suddenly stopped when Eddie walked in. He narrowed his eyes at them, wondering if he should ask and afraid to. He had no doubt they were hiding something, but he wasn’t sure he wanted to know what.

“Ready?” he asked.

They looked at each other, then hopped off the couch almost at the same time. There was definitely something going on here. These two were too excited for this to be a normal dinner.

“What’s going on?” Eddie asked.

“Nothing,” Dennis quickly said. “What makes you think something’s going on?”

“The way you’re behaving.”

“We’re just worried about you, man,” Taylor said. “We want you to be okay and happy. We’ve been trying to brainstorm ways to make that happen, but we’re not your guys for this one. I don’t think there’s anything we can do to actually help.”

Eddie wasn’t sure he believed that, which made him feel guilty. He knew that he’d do everything in his power to cheer up his friends if they needed it. He was still suspicious as he climbed into Dennis’s car, and he stayed wary as the three of them drove to the diner. The way Dennis and Taylor were behaving was just too odd. It might just be that they were worried about Eddie, but he was sure there was more to it.

That was why he was careful when he climbed out of the car in the diner’s parking lot. He looked around, but nothing was weird or out of place. The same went for inside the diner and the people sitting there. They were behaving normally, unlike Taylor and Dennis.

Thinking about it made him want to call Matthias and ask him what he thought of the situation. Matthias didn’t know his friends, but he could give him some insight. Maybe Eddie would call him once he was home. He also wanted to know what had happened with Noah.

He moved to slide into one of the seats, but Taylor grabbed his arm and pulled him back. “I’m going first.”

Eddie blinked as he watched his friend slide onto the bench. What the hell was that about?

“What are you getting?” Dennis asked from the other side of the table.

“No garlic bread for him,” Taylor interjected before Eddie could say anything.

Had they been replaced by pod people? Eddie was used to them behaving oddly, but this took the cake. “Why can’t I have garlic?”

Taylor looked panicked and glanced at Dennis. “I’m sure garlic is bad for your health.”

“Actually, it’s good for you. And freaking delicious.”

“You might want to wait to order anything,” Dennis said. He was staring at something behind Eddie. Eddie was sitting with his back to the door, so he suspected it was someone who’d just come in, but he didn’t know who would make Dennis react that way—not until he turned around.

His jaw dropped. For a second, he was sure he was hallucinating, because there was no way that Matthias was standing there by the door, shuffling his feet and looking like he might run back out.

Eddie wouldn’t allow him to. He scrambled to his feet, moving before he could even think about it. Matthias was here, and Eddie would make sure he stayed.

MATTHIAS WASN’T SURE this was a good idea. He probably should’ve called Eddie to tell him he was coming, but he’d wanted to make it a surprise since Eddie didn’t believe he would leave his family behind. At the time, it had felt like a good idea to call the construction company where Eddie worked and ask to talk to one of his friends, who had given him the number of another one of Eddie’s friends. That second man, Dennis, had clearly been wary of Matthias, at least until Matthias explained that he wasn’t planning on hurting Eddie again. He wanted to be with him, and he’d told his family to fuck off.

Well, he hadn’t done it in those words, but he might as well have, considering the way his mother had taken his ultimatum. When he’d left the house, she’d tried to convince him not to, and when she’d realized that he wouldn’t change his mind, she’d told him that if he ever needed anything, he shouldn’t contact her because she wouldn’t help. He’d almost laughed in her face because when had she ever helped him? Even when he’d needed it, she’d been too focused on Noah and Jenna to even realize it. Hell, even when he’d asked, she’d ignored him and found something more important and urgent to do when it came to his siblings.