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Back in the bedroom, he retrieved his dopp kit from his suitcase, brushed his teeth, then slid under the covers to take a nap. For some reason, he was hopeful about this evening. Either that, or he was relieved to get away from Brody for a bit.
Chapter three
Greg
Thetexthittheirphones at the same time, which meant Luis and Darius saw the photo as soon as Greg did. They let out a collectivewhat the fuck?!?!then gathered in the living room to exchange incredulous shouts of disbelief that their friend Micah had gotten married. And over Valentine’s Day weekend, no less.
“If it takes twenty years for a guy to put a ring on it, count me out,” Luis said. “I ain’t got time for that kind of bullshit.”
“Preach,” Darius said and offered a high five in solidarity.
Greg kept himself from rolling his eyes—barely—since, at the rate Luis was going, it already had taken twenty years and counting.
He looked down at Micah’s and Jake’s smiling faces as they posed with their matching rings held out to the camera, then typedcongratulations.
“Ricky is going to go ballistic when he sees this,” Darius said. “Do you think Micah told him?”
“Well, if he didn’t, I sure as hell will not be the one to do it.” Luis shook his head and put up his hands. “I thought I was a drama queen, but that boy puts me to shame.”
“We’ll know about it soon,” Greg said. “He’s due back tonight.”
The volatile redhead who’d taken Micah’s place in the apartment had nursed a wicked crush on him while they were flying the LAX-to-Sydney route together. Ricky didn’t hide the scorn he felt for Jake, or that he thought Micah had been an idiot for waiting for him and was more than willing to express those thoughts after he’d moved in. Greg didn’t have the energy to inform him of the whole story about Jake and Micah’s relationship, nor was it his to tell, but he was thrilled Micah had gotten his happily ever after.
“…out later, right, Greg?” Darius asked.
“Sorry. What?”
“I said we should probably take the little shithead out later to distract him, what do you think?”
Greg shrugged. “Yeah. Sure. That sounds like a good idea.”
Neonwascrowdedandloud, even though it was a Wednesday night. The dance floor was wall-to-wall men packed so tightly Greg didn’t know how anyone was actually dancing. His three housemates were lost somewhere in the middle of it.
Contrary to expectations, Ricky had been subdued when he arrived home. So much so that Luis asked him if he’d heard from Micah and had gotten an affirmative without any additional commentary. However, as soon as they’d walked through the doors of Neon, Ricky made a beeline for the bar, downed a couple of shots of tequila, and grabbed the first guy with whom he made eye contact. Greg hadn’t seen him since and figured Ricky wouldn’t be coming back to the apartment that night. He just hoped Ricky was careful with his choice of fuck buddy.
Luis and Darius, likewise, had stayed at the high-top the three of them found in a corner long enough to finish their drinks, then waded into the crowd. The last Greg had seen of them, they were having a bear sandwich and grinding away on the big guy, totally oblivious to how much more attention they paid to each other than their third. It wouldn’t be the first time they ended up sharing a guy or the first time Greg was likely to go home by himself, especially not since Mason.
In the six months since that relationship blew up in his face, Greg hadn’t tried to date again. He was tired of digging up the energy and enthusiasm to get to know someone, only to have them turn out to be just another asshole. He still went out with his friends, but unless one of them asked him to dance, it was safer to stay at the high-top and watch. Micah had understood that, and Greg felt a wave of loneliness flow over him. He took out his phone, snapped a picture of the crowd, and texted it to Micah with the messagejust not the same without you.
A text came in almost immediately.You okay?
What he missed most of all now that Micah was in San Francisco was the acceptance he gave so easily and the way he ran interference for Greg when they went out. He’d never discussed his asexuality with either Luis or Darius because he didn’t know if they’d understand. Luis, for one, was definitely allosexual and quite willing to dish about his hookups, his orgasms, and his preferred sexual positions as well as the performance, equipment, and hygiene of his partners. While Darius was equally active, he wasn’t quite as open about his encounters. And the thought of opening up to Ricky was…well, Greg wasn’t any closer to getting to know him, though Luis had had some good conversations with him over the past few months.
Just feeling… Greg chose the shrug emoji.Probably shouldn’t have come out tonight, but Ricky needed it. He nearly erased that last part but went ahead and sent it. Micah wasn’t going to be surprised.
Micah:Yeah. Sorry about that. I figured it was better for me to tell him than find out from you guys.
Greg:No worries. He’s fine.
Micah:Good. You should get out there, though. Find someone to dance with tonight. Doesn’t have to be anything more than that.
Greg:I’ll try.
Micah sent another response, but Greg was prevented from reading it by Luis and Darius’s return to the table. They were accompanied by their bear, who was even bigger up close than he’d been on the dance floor. Greg wasn’t short, but this guy made him feel like he was standing in a hole. Luis barely came up to his shoulders, and he seemed to take up all the air surrounding their table.
“If you’re going to stay here for a bit, I’ll get another round,” Greg offered.
The guys gave him their orders, and he headed off to the bar. As usual, it was at least three deep, and Greg had to wait, angling his way in as people got their drinks and got out of the way. He pulled out his phone to look at Micah’s text, but someone bumped into him, and he lost his grip on it. It tumbled to the floor, and Greg winced when a heavily booted foot came down on the screen. It was much too loud to hear the crunch of glass, but Greg was pretty sure he had anyway. He bent to pick it up, but someone else beat him to it, pushing another guy away just in time to prevent it from getting stepped on a second time. Squatting, he retrieved the phone and stood up quickly.
