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Hux:
OK
I exhaled, relieved that he’d agreed without a fight. Quickly finishing up my breakfast and skilfully avoiding my mum’s questions about my weekend plans, I dumped my plate in the dishwasher and made my way to my bedroom.
Me:
What time?
Hux:
20 mins. I booked an Uber
After a quick shower, I grabbed my phone, wallet, and sunglasses. I thought for a minute and then headed to his room. There was no answer when I knocked, so I pushed inside, immediately spotting the item I wanted.Huxley’s guitar. I carefully placed it inside its case and zipped it up and then tugged the straps over my shoulders. There was an idea prodding at the back of my mind, and I didn’t know if it would help, but I had a feeling it might.
When I saw Huxley waiting by the front door, he frowned at me, his mouth opening, but I shook my head at him. “Trust me.”
He huffed out an irritated breath but remained silent.
Good.
* * *
Huxley’s hands trembled as he placed them on the steering wheel.
“Hux.” I curled my fingers around his thigh. “It’s going to be okay. I’m here.”
He gave a short, jerky nod, staring straight ahead with his jaw clenched.
“We’ll go slow, okay? Follow the satnav instructions,” I said, trying to keep my voice low and calm. It worked with spooked animals apparently, and Huxley may not have been an animal, but he was definitely spooked. I couldn’t blame him. Scenes of that crash flashed through my mind for the hundredth time, and I unconsciously tightened my grip on his thigh. If I were his boyfriend, I’d—
Never mind that, because being his boyfriend wasn’t an option. All I was here to do was to support him through this.
His breaths came hard and fast, and I rubbed my thumb up and down over the seam of his jeans. “We’ll go slow,” I repeated as he turned the engine on.
A choked noise fell from his lips that he instantly stifled by clamping his mouth shut, his fingers gripping the wheel like it was a lifebelt. When we began moving, I loosened my hold on his thigh but kept my hand where it was. It felt like he needed it, needed to know I was right here with him.
His brow furrowed in concentration as he slowly and carefully navigated towards the outskirts of London, until we were seeing more greenery than built-up areas. I’d set the satnav destination to Coulsdon Common, almost on the border of Surrey, a huge green area far enough south of the centre that we could avoid the heavy traffic and far enough that it would give him a chance to get used to driving again.
When we reached our destination and Huxley had cautiously parked, I took his guitar from the boot and set off so he had no choice but to follow me.
“Where are we going?” His voice was a little breathless, and I really, really wanted to hold him in my arms and tell him that I was so fucking proud of him for not only facing his fears but for driving all the way here. This infatuation I had for him wasn’t going away anytime soon. And I couldn’t really even call it an infatuation because it was turning out to be so much more than that.
Why did he have to be my fucking stepbrother?
Sliding my sunglasses on to hide my eyes, I glanced over at him, hoping my voice wouldn’t give away the feelings I was doing my best to push aside. “I thought we needed some fresh air.” He nodded, accepting my response easily.
When we’d been walking for a little while, I stopped. We were in an open space filled with tall grasses and flowers—maybe a meadow or something, I didn’t know. The sun was shining, and there was no one else around other than a few dog walkers in the distance.
“Here,” I said, removing Huxley’s guitar case from my shoulders and setting it down. “Let’s sit.”
He flopped down onto the grass next to me, leaning back on his elbows. “Cole.”
I turned my head to meet his gaze behind the barrier of my sunglasses. “Yeah?”
“Thanks.” His smile was small but genuine. “I don’t know how you knew when I wasn’t even aware of it myself, but I really needed this.”
The way he was looking at me…
