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Everything had changed now. And I was the luckiest dude on Earth.
After a while Mom started to yawn. “It’s been a beautiful evening, boys, but I’m about ready to crash. How are you all holding up?”
I still felt like I had electricity surging through my veins, and I could tell Theo was wired, too.
“Hell no, I’m not ready to go to bed yet,” Brody said.
“You read my mind,” I said.
“Well, since it’s our first night back in Amberfield, I know what Logan and I are going to do,” Brody said, rubbing his hands together. “Logan’s the designated driver for a reason. I say we go party at Red’s Tavern.”
“Absolutely,” Theo said.
“Mom, you can come along, too,” I told her, which she responded to with a loud, long laugh.
“Very funny,” she said. “My late-night bar days are long over. I’ve got a date with my mystery book and my bed, thank you very much. But you guys will have a great time, I’m sure of it. Have fun. Don’t do anything I wouldn’t do.”
“Thank you for the best dinner party I’ve ever attended,” Theo said.
“And thank you for making my son the happiest I’ve ever seen him,” she said. “Now get your asses out of here and to the tavern.”
After a few minutes of goodbyes and putting out the fire pit, we all loaded into Brody’s truck, which Logan was driving.
“This is my real reward for being the designated driver,” Logan said. “I get to drive Brody’s truck. He doesn’t let me do this, usually.”
“My boyfriend is hot, but he’s full of shit,” Brody said. “You can drive this anytime, my love.”
“You guys want to take bets on what my cousin’s tank top is going to say tonight?” Logan asked. Sam, the flirty bartender at the tavern, was Logan’s cousin, and no matter what day it was, he had on some sort of wild tank top.
“I think it’ll say cutie with a booty,” I told him.
“Maybe a purple tank top that says free rides, or something,” Brody offered.
“I’ll go for a simple classic,” Theo offered. “A white tank that says blink if you want me.”
“Okay, all bets are in,” Logan said. “I think he’ll be wearing one of the Red’s Tavern tanks. I’m Red’s Hot, or something.”
“Whoever ends up being the closest guess has to buy a round for the table,” Brody said.
“Deal,” Logan told him. “You’re all going down, by the way. I know he wears the Red’s Tavern tanks all the time. I’m going to win.”
As we drove, I reached over and let my palm rest on Theo’s leg. He moved his hand down to lace his fingers through mine, and we held hands, like two kids with crushes, for the rest of the drive.
It felt thrilling. Like I was breaking a rule I’d had forever, but had now been smashed to bits. I could do this. I wasn’t just allowed to hold his hand, I was meant to, as his boyfriend.
We all piled out of the car like a group of rowdy college students and headed into Red’s. As we walked in, tunes were already cranking on the jukebox, a few people were dancing on the little wooden dance floor, and the bar was lively.
I could tell, just for a moment, that Theo was hesitating. Nobody else would have noticed it, but by now I knew him: he purposely stayed behind Brody, walking in between the two of us as he scoped out the slightly crowded bar. It was sad that this part of Theo’s life would never really disappear. He would always have to be a little bit wary of crowds, even if there was no real danger. Anywhere he went, he would be recognized.
I wrapped my arm around him, pressing a kiss to the side of his head. “You all good?” I whispered close to his ear.
He took a long, slow breath, centering himself. “I can’t believe I have to use a meditation technique just to enter a fun bar, but… it’s working,” he said.
“No shame in that game,” I said.
After a few breaths I watched as he relaxed a little, a small smile appearing on his face. “I’m ready. I’m more than ready.”
“Fuck yes, you are,” I said.
“Okay, it’s the moment of truth,” Theo said to the others in front of us as we approached the far edge of the bar, where there was space. We all peeked over the bar, not seeing Sam just yet.
“Evenin’, boys,” Red said from behind the bar, giving us a nod. He wasn’t wearing a cowboy hat right now, but he was in his boots as usual, and seemed to be in good spirits. I had noticed that Red was always equally happy if his bar was full and crowded or if it was chill and calm—Red’s Tavern could be both, and that was one of the best things about it.
