Page 7 of Whirlwind

Did Taylor really think that badly of him? That he would do this as some sort of joke?

Before he could get his scrambled thoughts together, Taylor had turned on his heel. Only the temperamental latch on the gate kept him from escaping altogether.

“Taylor, wait!” He was running now, desperate to explain things before it was too late. If it wasn’t already.

He put his hands on Taylor’s shoulders, always surprised by how much taller the other man was since he worked so hard not to take up space. He loved those hard muscles, the warmth seeping through his thin shirt. “Please, let me explain. I didn’t mean it… like that. I meant…”

Taylor shrugged him off, and he reluctantly dropped his hands. He stared at his broad back, wishing that he could encircle it with his arms and make all this mess go away for both of them. What a fucking stupid idea.

Taylor was still struggling with the latch, for which Julio was profoundly grateful. Though if he pushed it much harder, he might just break the whole thing. Or the gate.

Now Julio just needed to figure out what to say. He’d better start with the basics. “Taylor, I’m really, really sorry. Like, really sorry. This was a stupid idea, and a terrible way to talk to you.”

But now it sounded like it had been a joke. Julio knew he had to keep talking. Lay it all out. “I guess I was hoping that if you saw my profile, you’d, maybe, think of me differently or something. Like, you’ll always be my best friend, but I thought maybe if you realized I… that we… that we could be...”

Oh, god. He was really fucking this up. How did one say I’ve been in love with you for almost half my life and I can’t stop thinking about you without sounding like a creep? How would their friendship ever recover if Taylor didn’t return his feelings?

He noticed, though, that Taylor wasn’t struggling with the latch any more, just gripping the wood of the fence. At least he was listening. But what was he thinking?

Julio took a deep breath and tried again. “I, um, I saw your profile this morning. On Grindr.”

Taylor wheeled on him. His face was red, and his eyes were wet. He was hurt and angry. But why? Shame about being discovered? Broken trust? Or worry that Julio was trying to mess with him or use him for a hookup?

“You had no right to read that.”

“I know. I know. We read each other’s texts and things all the time, but you’re right. I had no right to do that. But Taylor, I want you to know that…” He squeezed his hands into fists and relaxed them. “I liked what I saw.”

The words hung in the air, fragile like glass.

For a moment, no one spoke. Then, Taylor sucked in a breath, like he’d just remembered how to breathe. His words came out like a whisper. “What do you mean?”

Was that a good sign? That he was asking for an explanation instead of blowing him off?

Julio’s heart was pounding so loudly, it was a wonder that Taylor couldn’t hear it. “I mean that… I like you. I mean, I’ve always liked you. And I thought maybe there was something that you didn’t want me to know. But now I do know. And it’s… it’s hot. Like, really hot.”

He smiled winningly, even though he was forcing it. Taylor still wouldn’t smile back.

“So, if, you know, you were worried that I would judge you or something, I wouldn’t. I mean, I like the same things. Or, like, the inverse of the same things?” Yeah, really smooth. “I just… I’m really fucking this up.” And rambling. Fucking up and rambling.

But Taylor was still listening, still looking at him like he was trying to figure out a puzzle.

Julio tried again. “I… my profile? Did you read my profile?”

Taylor nodded slightly, once. He loved how Taylor could be so strong, and yet so vulnerable.

“It’s all true. I mean, it’s not a joke. I just wanted you to see that I…”

Taylor raised one eyebrow. It was one of his many talents. “Wanted someone to snuggle with?”

Julio could feel his cheeks burning, but it wasn’t the time to back down. “Yep. All of it. Someone to chain to my bed posts and torture into submission before we drive off into the sunset together. Or whatever I wrote.”

“You did not write that.” Taylor rolled his eyes. At least he was smiling a little now.

Hopefully they could at least fall back on their easy banter. “I should have written that, then.” He grinned. Then he leaned forward, changing the tone from playful to seductive. “Someone to kneel at my feet.”

Taylor’s eyes widened. He wanted that. Or at least the idea of it. But he kept his voice light and just a little mocking. “Maybe it’s me?”

“No maybe, Taylor. It is you. It’s, um, you’re it for me.”

The look Taylor gave him was still hesitant, still scared. But behind it there was surprised wonder. Thank God. It wasn’t just one sided.

“What do you want from me? I mean, what did you think this was going to be?”

Ironic how Julio was supposed to be the Dom, but Taylor was the one who could keep his shit together and guide the conversation. And it kept knocking him off his feet.

“I want… I want whatever you want. That’s what I put on that stupid profile that I never should have created. Friends, relationship, right now,” he made air quotes, “dating, whatever you want, I’ll take it. That is, if you, um, want me. If you don’t, of course, I’ll just, I mean, I won’t bother you again.” He trailed off lamely.

Taylor stroked his beard and pretended to ponder. At this point, it didn’t really matter what he said, because if Taylor was able to joke around, their friendship was going to be OK.

Though if Taylor was even the slightest bit interested Julio was going to romance the shit out of him until he gave in to the inevitable. “Maybe we could try, like, a date?”

Julio grinned. “How about two dates? Tonight’s the low-key date with the friends for trivia night, and tomorrow I take you out on the town.”

Taylor was beaming. That had been the right answer, and he was glad he knew him so well. There was only one thing that might make it more perfect. “And in between, you spend the night chained to my bed.”

Taylor shivered visibly. Maybe this could work after all.