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I nodded without answering because of course he could survive without hanging out with me for a weekend. What the hell had I even been thinking, asking him that? I checked my watch as we reached the part of the jogging track where we'd started our walk and realized I only had fifteen minutes of my lunch break remaining. "Time to get back to work."
"Me too," Luke agreed. "Well, see you at home, then." He gave me a short wave before walking backward towards the second gate of the park that opened near the bus stop.
"See you at home." I smiled at him before turning around and walking away. When I reached the gate, I looked back once and saw Luke standing near the gate, looking up at the yellow-green leaves of the maple trees with the sun lighting up his face. I'd honestly never seen anything so beautiful. I sighed softly before turning away, wishing I could capture that moment and keep it with me forever.
On my way home after work on Thursday night, my phone rang. When I saw that it was Mike, I received the call on the car’s Bluetooth as I drove. He’d left work a couple of hours earlier today, so I figured he was calling to settle our plans for tomorrow.
“Hey, Scotty.”
Uh-oh. He only called me that when he wanted something. Or when he was trying to butter me up.
“What?” I answered warily, wondering where this was going.
Mike sighed on the other end, sounding tired, and I immediately straightened up. “You okay?”
“I’m at the hospital. I’m okay, but Zoey took a fall at school today. She’s got a broken arm and a sprained ankle.” Zoey—his daughter and my goddaughter—was a bubbly, six-year-old kid I loved more than anyone else in the world.
“Oh, shit. Is she okay? What can I do to help? How’s Roch?”
“She’s okay, don’t worry. Both of them are fine. They’re keeping her here overnight. I called because I can’t go hiking with you tomorrow. I’m sorry.”
“Don’t be an idiot, Mike. Of course you can’t go. Zoey and Rochelle need you there. It’s okay—we can go some other time. I’ll come by the hospital first thing tomorrow.”
“Actually, you won’t.”
“What? What do you mean?”
“Well, the cabin I booked is nonrefundable. And there won’t be good hiking weather for a good while after this. And you’ve been working too hard for a long time. You deserve this break. Oh, and Ro told me to tell you that if you don’t go on the trip, you won’t get to eatanyof her desserts for a whole year.”
I gasped. “That’s insane! Why would she do that to me? I thought she loved me!”
“Because she does love you and wants you to take this break and relax for a bit. Now will you go, or should I tell her you won’t be needing the desserts?”
“You’re both so mean.” I huffed. “Fine, I’ll go.”
“Good. I’ll send you the directions to the cabin, though it’s near the same trails we used to hike before, so it won’t be hard to find. You can go alone or take someone. Just have fun, okay?”
“Yup. Let me know how Zoey’s doing. I’ll FaceTime her tomorrow before leaving.”
Mike chuckled on the other end. “Will do. Have fun this weekend!”
Once I ended the call, I contemplated going alone, but the idea of hiking by myself didn’t appeal to me much. Honestly, if Mike couldn’t come, there was only one person I wanted to take, but I wasn’t sure if it was something he’d be up for. Especially since it was a weekend trip.
I guessed the only way to find out was by asking him.
9
Luke
ThewalkwithScotton Tuesday had been so confusing that I still couldn’t get it out of my head. As I made a simple dinner of pasta and garlic bread, my thoughts turned back to the strange emotions I’d felt when talking to Scott. When he’d told me about going on a trip with his friend for the weekend, the first thing I’d felt was disappointment. I was disappointed because I wouldn’t get to spend the weekend with him like we usually did. When he’d told me they would be sharing a cabin, I’d felt the weird, unfamiliar tinge of jealousy in my stomach. I still couldn’t figure out why I’d felt the way I had. Was it because I hadn’t wanted to share my friend with someone else?
The thing that confused me the most was the relief I’d felt when he’d told me his friend was straight andhewas gay. Why had I felt such joy when he’d admitted that? He was just a close friend, right? He couldn’t be more than that becauseIcould never be more than that to anyone. Especially not someone as good and kind as Scott. He deserved so much better than a broken, damaged man like me.
I tried to shake away the thoughts as I turned the stove off and headed into the living room. Picking up my phone from the coffee table, I was about to call Scott to ask him if he’d be late when the front door opened and Scott walked into the room, his shoulders slumped in exhaustion from the long workday. Hopefully, the food would help get some of his usual cheerful energy back into his system.
“Hey,” I greeted him as he removed his shoes, placing my phone into my back pocket.
“Hi.” His sad-sounding reply reminded me of Ross’s drawling ‘hi’ fromFriends.
