Page 117 of Two for Charging

Luca shook his head, his hair tickling against Chris’s skin.

The last of the tension in Chris’s body seeped out, and he relaxed into the sheets. “I wish I’d met you then.”

“We probably did meet on the ice at some point. Winnipeg plays Montreal, no?”

“Oh, yeah. I wish I’d noticed you. Maybe I could have helped.”

“We would have been teenagers on far-apart, rival teams. It would never have worked.”

“I don’t know…enemies on the ice, lovers in secret…that would have been kind of sexy,” Chris teased, though he knew Luca was right.

“Sounds like one of your movies.”

“They’re not my movies; they’re Lifetime Channel Original—”

“Yes, yes, whatever.” Luca waved his hand impatiently. “I am glad I met you when I did and how I did. And I am even more glad we are here now. But I will be most glad if you make me food.”

Chris stretched, contemplating getting up. It didn’t sound fun, but his stomach growled, making the decision for him. “Breakfast in bed?”

Luca yawned, clearly intending to stay right where he was. “My hero,” he said with a sleepy smile.

The rest of their lives sounded good.

Epilogue

Breezy: Welcome to our apartment!

Luca: Technically, it is still your apartment.

Breezy: We can talk about you buying in some other time.

Luca: Really?

Breezy: Yeah, I’m never going to charge rent, but I’d be cool with you owning half the place. If you want.

Luca: I don’t know what to say. I thought you would never let me contribute.

Breezy: Yeah, when I thought you were going to leave. I was trying to, like, entice you to stay.

Luca: You…you…

Kayleigh: How about a tour, guys!

Breezy: Oh, right! So, this here is the living room. We’ve been on a decorating kick, so let us know what you think of all the lights and stuff. Over there is the kitchen. My bedroom’s on the left, and Luca’s is on the right, although these days—

Kayleigh: And is that a gaming console under the TV there?

Breezy: Yup. We have a couple. Don’t film the back of the TV. It’s a huge mess of cables.

Kayleigh: So who’s the gamer?

Breezy: [laughs] I wouldn’t call either of us gamers. We play a round or two of Mario Kart sometimes when we have friends over. We did a Counter-Strike marathon with Fedorov the other night.

Luca: When it’s just us, we usually find a movie to watch. Chris enjoys romcoms.

Breezy: And Luca thinks they’re dumb.

Luca: I’m coming around on them.