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“Yeah, that sounds like Matty, alright.”
“It does, right? He’ll be back soon if you wanna wait. We were just getting a coffee, right Smitty?”
“Sure thing, Will,” Smitty brushed at his sweaty forehead, before heading towards his boat.
“Take a seat, son…” Will nodded at a wide, wooden beam on the docks. “Ah, that’ll be our boys. I see her now,Stella.Matty’s gonna shit himself when he sees you, that’s for sure. Only time he isn’t ranting aboutEthan thisorEthan thatis when he’s eating or Austin has his tongue so far down his throat, he can hardly breathe. Ain’t that right, Smitty?” Will nodded at Smitty who’d just emerged from his boat, a green thermos clasped in his hands.
“Right as rain, Will,” Smitty chuckled, “Them two boys are like goddamn catfish, always sucking on each other’s faces… Ahh yes, to be young again, right Will?” Smitty got a faraway look in his eyes while Ethan tried to wrap his mind around the strange turn the conversation had taken. Who the fuck was Austin and why was he sucking on his Matty?
“What…? Who’s Austin? Wh—”
“I’ll let Matty tell you himself,” Will smiled. “C’mon now, son, don’t just sit around with your mouth wide open…” The older fisherman nodded in the direction of a red-painted wooden boat that had just arrived at the docks. In delicate, white lettersStellawas written across the front. A very good-looking guy with a broad grin on his face beamed at Will as he jumped from the deck and onto the docks. Jet-black hair spilled into his vibrant gray eyes, while his muscles seemed to be attempting a jailbreak from his grey t-shirt. The upper body of his coveralls were tied around his waist, patches of sweat coating his t-shirt under his armpits and around the neck. Skin tanned, dimples popping, he looked like fucking Elvis come back from the dead. He was obscenely hot, and he was…
“Babe?” A soft voice sounded from the boat as a head of sandy-blond curls and a pair of familiar blue eyes emerged from the wheelhouse. Ethan knew that face like he knew the back of his own hand. It was imprinted into his mind and his heart. No doubt that it was Matty.HisMatty. The only question was, who the fuck wasbabe?
CHAPTER FIFTY-TWO
Matty - Now
“YOU’RE HERE,” HEbreathed into Ethan’s shoulder and a thousand memories flashed through his mind all at once. Little League practice under the Texas sun. Bicycle rides and apple pies. Busted knees and the smell of marshmallows roasting over an open fire. Even though his best friend had grown—a lot actually—the distinct smell that was Ethan and only him, engulfed Matty. Ethan chuckled as he sniffed against Matty’s forehead in return, perhaps breathing him in, too.
“I am,” Ethan’s deep, familiar voice washed over him, and Matty squeezed him even tighter, afraid that he would disappear just as quickly as he had appeared.
Standing on the boat a few minutes earlier, grinning at his boyfriend, Matty had immediately recognized the outline of his best friend before the details had filled in. The auburn locks glistening in the sun, the bright green eyes—greener than anything really—the large, muscular frame and the tall, lean posture, which Matty would’ve recognized anywhere. He’d blinked his eyes a few times in disbelief and fear that it was nothing more than a dream—after all, he’d often daydreamed over the past three years that Ethan would suddenly materialize in front of him, grinning, familiar eyes beaming with happiness. But nothing could have prepared him for this moment. For the unparalleled joy coursing through him, his heart attempting to break free from his chest, rip Ethan’s chest open and once again connect with his heart.
Matty sighed deeply into the soft fabric of Ethan’s t-shirt. Everything was just so much better than he’d imagined.
“You’re really here,” he whispered.
“Ireallyam,” Ethan chuckled as he squeezed Matty once more before releasing himself from their embrace. Curious eyes skated across Matty’s body, taking him in, a pink blush to Ethan’s cheeks. “You look good, man. Real good.”
“Thanks, Eth,” Matty whispered, still unsure if he would ever fully recover his voice again or if he would continue to whisper, in awe of this moment, for the rest of his life. “So do you,” he replied lamely.
“You’ve grown,” Ethan chuckled as he ruffled through Matty’s unruly hair, stiff from the salt water and the harsh wind at sea. “Not so scrawny anymore, huh?” he teased.
“Shut up, Eth,” Matty pushed at Ethan’s shoulder, “I was never scrawny,” he grinned.
“Wow, careful,” Ethan laughed, rubbing at his left shoulder, “know your own strength.” Ethan bit his bottom lip, a soft smile playing at the corner of his mouth. Nothing had changed, Matty thought, relief spreading through his body.You are still you and I am still me. We’re still the same two boys, only we’re not. We’re still Matty and Ethan. Brothers.His eyes suddenly burned, and he had to swallow deeply to hold back the tears. He wasnotgonna cry.I’m not gonna cry.And then Matty cried anyway. Because if he wasn’t gonna cry now, standing in front of his best friend, whom he hadn’t seen in three years, when then?
“Hey, it’s okay,” Ethan murmured as he once again pulled Matty against his chest, mumbling soothing words of reassurance into his neck. “I know, man. I know. But you did it. You fucking did it, Matty. You got away. You got away.” Ethan once again released him and held onto Matty’s cheeks with his warm hands, green eyes pinning him to the spot. Looking directly into Matty’s eyes, Ethan smiled. “I’m so fucking proud of you, Matty. So fucking proud. You’re the coolest guy I know.”
“Eth…” Matty blushed, feeling his heart swelling in his chest.
“No, you are,” Ethan insisted, his expression serious for a moment, “You’re the bravest fucking guy I know, Matty.”
Matty grinned, suddenly feeling shy. Unsure of what to say, he shuffled his feet, hitting a piece of rope lying on the ground.
“So,Stella, huh?” Ethan nodded at the boat, amazement and pride painted across his face.
“Yeah, there she is,” Matty beamed, a sense of accomplishment filling his chest. “She’s a beauty, right?”
“Sure is. A real beauty,” Ethan shook his head, grinning. “I can’t believe you actually did it, Matty. Your own fucking boat.”
“Yeah, me too. It’s pretty crazy,” Matty mumbled, suddenly realizing the craziness of the past three years. Running away, coming to Grant’s Harbor, living with Will and Millie, meeting Austin. The boat. The house. Cassie. It was fucking crazy, but it was his life now.Home.
“But there’s something, I gotta know,” Ethan looked serious, solemn almost. A deep frown lined his forehead as he looked around the docks.
“Yeah?” Matty whispered, tilting his head, squinting at his best friend.
