AllFreeNovel
Share Us
“Thanks for letting me come by.” I say, taking a step back toward Sam, who’s standing silently behind us. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”
“Yeah.” Troy says, biting his lip. “See you tomorrow.”
The front door is visible from the kitchen, so I have a clear visual of Troy as I pull my shoes back on. I rub a hand over my face as I step outside, exhaustion settling over my shoulders like a coat. The door clicks closed behind me and I turn around to face Sam, who followed me out. He’s standing with both hands tucked into his pockets, expression subdued.
“Fuck.” I say, emphatically. I want to scream it. “He thinks I was keeping it from him because I don’t trust him. Because he’s not important to me.”
“Yeah, probably.” Sam admits, grimacing. “He just needs a minute to figure things out. It feels personal because the pair of you are so close, and you being gay is a big deal. Especially to Troy.”
“I feel like such an asshole.”
“You’re not an asshole, Corwin. You weren’t ready to tell anyone, so you didn’t tell anyone.” He shrugs. “Troy knows that. He also knows you keeping it a secret wasn’t personal; he just needs torealizethat he knows it. I’ll help him.”
I bark a laugh, quick and sharp. “I probably could have explained better.”
It’s Sam’s turn to laugh. “You did much better than me, when I came out to my parents. Barely ten feet through the front door, and I pretty much shouted at my mom that Troy would be sleeping in my bed during our visit.”
My lips twitch, a smile trying to form despite my mood. “That was my backup plan. Walk in and announce that Nigel St. James was sleeping in my bed.”
“Tried and true coming out method.” He jokes, grinning. Sobering, he takes a step closer to me. “You’re happy?”
“Yes.” Is happy the right word? It’s one word, certainly, but not enough. I’m elated. Over the fucking moon. Nobody in the world is as fortunate as I am. “Yeah, I’m really happy.”
There is understanding in Sam’s golden-brown eyes. “Found your Troy?”
“Yeah. Yeah, I think I did.”
Nigel
It feels wrong to be here without Corwin. Even without the absence of his vehicle in the driveway, I would have known he wasn’t here the moment I walked through the front door.Doesn’t smell like a restaurant, for one thing.
I bring my bags upstairs, but leave everything against the wall in his room, for now.Our room. Smiling, I head back downstairs to wait for Corwin to get home. Filling a glass of water, I stand at the counter to drink it.
“This is fucking weird.” I tell the empty room.
I don’t think Corwin would mind if I unpacked my clothes, seeing as he cleared space for me. But making myself at home, withouthimhome, feels strange. Hell, even the idea of sitting on the couch and watching TV feels strange. Feeling ridiculous, I drink the rest of the water and place the glass in the dishwasher. I go back upstairs to unpack.
Back in his bedroom—our bedroom—I decide to do the dresser first. Sliding open the bottom drawer, I’m surprised to see it filled with neatly folded socks, underwear, and pajamas. The drawer above is filled as well, and I take a moment to run my fingers over the tops of the soft shirts. Shaking my head, I pull open the top two drawers. Empty.
I’m equal parts exasperated and charmed. I’m sure I’ll find something similar in the closet—prime real estate left open for me. I consider moving his clothes back to the topmost drawers; it’s his house, after all. His space. Sighing, I decide against it and go grab one of my bags. This is what he left for me, and it would be ungrateful not to use it.
I work my way through my luggage slowly, knowing it will likely be a while before Corwin gets home. Even so, it’s not long before my clothes are all put away and I’m once more feeling uncomfortable and out of place. The rest of my stuff is more a random assortment of things I’ve been carrying around during trade deals: books, a handful of framed photographs, and the puck from my first NHL goal. I’m sitting on the end of the bed, turning the puck around in my hand, when I hear the front door open.Fucking finally.
Tucking the puck into my pocket, I jog down the stairs in time to see Corwin placing his shoes into the front closet. I’m so happy to see him, you’d think he had just returned from war overseas. I hop down the final two steps, and am close enough to grab him into a hug by the time he stands back up.
“Oof.” He says, as I pull him into my chest and tighten my arms across his back. He wraps his own arms around my waist, one hand snaking underneath my shirt at the small of my back. His skin is cold.
“Hi.” I greet him, and take a deep inhale of his hair. I feel the warm press of his lips against my neck, and hug him closer.Good lord, I missed him.
“Hello.” He replies, voice low. Beneath my shirt, he strokes his hand over my low back.
“I missed you. Might be best not to leave me home alone anymore.” Chuckling, he pulls back. I rest my hands on the tops of his shoulders, ensuring that he won’t go far. I get a good look at him, stomach dropping. His eyes are sad.
“Oh, mon coeur.” I say, and he sighs, dropping his head forward against my shoulder.
“I bought groceries to make some stew for dinner.” He mumbles, head still down. “It’s cold outside.”
“That sounds good.” I rub a hand over down his bicep and back up to his shoulder. “I’ll help you.”
