Page 69 of Emil

“Then it’s settled.”

Rather than force the moment, I grabbed the TV remote and turned it on. I scrolled until I found Schitt’s Creek.

“This okay?”

“Always a yes.”

We spent the rest of the evening watching episodes we’d both seen more than once but never got old. Our Thai delivery was quick and exactly what we needed. Anders only texted the group chat once to say he was home and that he loved them.

After a few episodes, Anders yawned wide, his eyes drooping, his words slowing.

“Sweet boy, it’s time for bed.”

“All right. Ugh. I need to brush out my hair, or it’ll be a tangled mess in the morning. Do you happen to have a brush?”

“Yeah. My sister probably left a spare one somewhere. Let me look.”

I forced myself out of bed and down the hall to the guest bathroom. After a few minutes of rummaging, I found one. When I came back to the bedroom, Anders was sitting in the center of the bed, finger-combing his hair.

“Look what I found,” I said by way of announcing myself.

His grateful smile was everything.

“Come here. Sit on the ottoman.”

He gave me a puzzled look but slid off the bed in his borrowed sleep clothes and onto the padded seat.

“Why’d you need me to move?”

“Because I’ve had dreams about this.”

I made the first pass of the brush, slow and careful. I started on one side, worked my way around, then returned. Anders sat perfectly still, and even so, I felt the tension leave him.

A laugh slipped out before I could stop it.

“What’s so funny?”

“Back in high school, Lila was obsessed with reading auras. I learned about them by default. She would’ve said you’re blue. Cornflower blue, to be exact.”

“Exactly how long ago was high school?” he murmured.

“Twenty years, give or take.”

“And you still remember?”

“I do.”

I brushed his hair until it was smooth and tangle-free. My free hand rested on his shoulder when I wasn’t using it to smooth his hair. Truthfully, I could’ve stopped long before I did. I just wasn’t ready to let him go. His breath smoothed and evened out. Every instinct in me wanted to pull him closer. I didn’t. Wanting him wasn’t the same as taking him, and he needed this more.

The circumstances that brought us here weren’t great.

But the moment itself felt inevitable.

CHAPTER TWENTY

ANDERS

“Good morning.”