Chapter Three
Chris needed to do something , but it was so much easier to hide in his bedroom. Did that make him a coward? Possibly, but right now, he didn’t care.
He didn’t feel at home anywhere except in his bedroom. Even that was a bit strange, because it was much bigger than what he was used to and much emptier since he hadn’t been able to bring most of his things along. It was also odd to always hear people around the house laughing and talking, or even only walking down the hallway outside the door. Chris felt like everything was changing—everything was —and he didn’t know how to deal with that.
He definitely didn’t know what to do with Drake. What was he supposed to tell him? How was he supposed to explain that he’d run away from his mate, and he didn’t even know why? That he panicked at the thought of having to face him and talk to him?
He buried his face into his pillow and groaned. He wanted to scream, but he didn’t dare. He was pretty sure that his siblings would rush into the room and use his screaming as an excuse to drag him out. He hadn’t talked to them since a few days ago, and he was fine with that. He knew they loved him and that they’d support him, whatever he wanted. The problem was that he didn’t know what he wanted.
He rolled to his back, hugged his pillow to his chest, and stared at the ceiling. Actually, he did know what he wanted. He wanted to go home to the pack, to a time when his mother had been alive. He wanted his old life back.
He would never get it. He had to make his peace with that, and most of the time, he felt he had, but meeting Drake had sent him into a downward spiral that he wasn’t sure how to recover from. Hiding in his bedroom was easier and less messy than whatever else Chris would be able to do. Even though he wouldn’t be able to do this forever, for now, it helped.
It wasn’t just Drake that he needed to deal with, though. Gal had been nice and had given him and his family time to get used to living with the pride, but he wouldn’t support them for the rest of their lives. The pride would always be there for them, possibly in a way the pack had never been, but they needed to contribute. That meant they had to find jobs and become productive members of the pride.
Chris snorted. He freaked out at the thought of leaving this bedroom. How was he supposed to find a job?
He would. He couldn’t afford for Gal to regret welcoming him into the pride. It would be horrifying if the alpha decided to kick him out and keep the rest of his family. Not that Chris wouldn’t deserve it, since he hadn’t made an effort to truly become a member of the pride, but he wouldn’t survive leaving his family behind. Even if it was only to move to Green Hill proper, he couldn’t let it happen.
So where did he start?
He grabbed his phone to make a list. The first item was easy—he had to take a shower and get dressed. He’d been living in his pajamas for days, and while he did shower and change every day, he still wore pajamas.
The second item on the list should be to leave the bedroom. He wasn’t sure he was ready for a meal with the rest of the pride, but he could visit the kitchen when most people were at work in the morning and grab some food, maybe even have a stilted conversation with the cooks.
That wouldn’t be awkward at all.
What would be the third thing? Talking to his family? Jennifer had been texting him, but beyond telling her that he was okay, he hadn’t answered. Kyle was still mostly focused on Dennis, but with Chris’s mate being one of Dennis’s friends, Kyle had turned some of his attention to Chris. He and Dennis wanted to know why he didn’t want to see Drake, which was why Chris wasn’t answering their calls or texts. If he knew why he was avoiding Drake, he wouldn’t be doing it.
It wasn’t like Chris didn’t want to settle down with his mate and his new pride. The pride was his future, since his family had decided to stay. He wished that settling down here was as easy for him as it had been for Kyle and Jennifer, but something in him was wary at the thought of the pride being his family. He half expected them to betray him the way the pack had. The wolves had always followed the alpha’s lead, which was why Chris and his family had been isolated. Chris didn’t have to go through that now. His siblings definitely weren’t. They were taking advantage of everything the pride had to offer, making friends and finding mates.
One of the many items on Chris’s list had to be stop moping around.
It wasn’t helping, only making things worse, which was the last thing Chris needed.
So showering, getting dressed, getting food, and reaching out to his siblings. It was a good start, but Chris had to stick Drake in there somewhere. He didn’t know Drake well, obviously, but he’d seemed like someone who fretted, which meant that was probably what he was doing right now.
Chris would know that for sure if he reached out to Kyle and Dennis, or even better, to Drake himself, but he was scared. This felt like too much all at once, and he didn’t know how to deal with it. That was why his list was a good idea. He could focus on one item at a time without being overwhelmed.
A brisk knock on his door made him jump. He rolled his head on the pillow and glared, but the person in the hallway couldn’t see him, so it didn’t help. There was another knock, and even though Chris didn’t know who was there, he could tell they wouldn’t give up.
He groaned. “What?”
“Let me in,” Jennifer said.
“I don’t need you to check on me. I’m fine.”
He stared at the door, silently counting. He didn’t even reach ten before the door swung open, and Jennifer walked in. “You don’t look fine to me,” she said as she took in the room.
Okay, so maybe it was a bit messier than usual, but still, there was no need for her to make that horrified face. “What do you want?”
Jennifer put her hands on her hips. “For you to stop hiding.”
“I’m not hiding. I’m resting.”
“You’re hiding, although I’m not sure from what. Drake? The pride? Me and Kyle?”
Chris went back to staring at the ceiling. “How about all of them?”
There was a moment of silence before Jennifer sighed. “You’re gonna have to explain better than that.”
The bed shifted as she climbed onto it. Chris lifted the blankets, welcoming her in his warm cocoon. She settled on her back and stared at the ceiling like Chris was. She was silent, not demanding an explanation or pushing Chris into anything, but it was almost worse. The silence was heavy and pressing Chris to say something. “I don’t feel like I belong,” he blurted out.
“Maybe it’s because you’re keeping yourself apart. I swear, if the cooks hadn’t assured me that you were eating, I would’ve thought you were starving yourself. No one’s seen you around the house.”
“I know it’s partially my fault.”
Jennifer snorted. “ Mostly your fault.” She rolled on her side. “This isn’t like you. I know things aren’t easy with the pride, but we have a second chance, all of us, but you’re acting as if you don’t. Why? I don’t understand, Chris.”
“You don’t understand because you left me behind. You have your new, shiny life, and you should have it. You shouldn’t have to worry about me.”
“I thought we’d already had this conversation. I’ll always worry about you, okay? I know that things have changed and that we’re not each other’s everything like we were at the pack, but that’s not a bad thing. We both deserve more than the pack has ever given us, and the pride can be that for us. You’re going to have to give it a chance, though.”
“I’m not sure I know how to do that,” Chris whispered.
Jennifer took his hand and squeezed hard. “I know that telling you to make friends isn’t going to help. How about talking to your mate, though? If there’s one person who will like you no matter what you say, it’s him. He might not be a pride member, but he lives in town, and he’s friends with Dennis. You don’t have to bond with him, but maybe give him a chance? Allow him to take you on a date and get to know him, you know?”
Chris did know, but it wasn’t any less scary.
* * * *
Drake was tired, and he wasn’t even doing anything tiring. His soul was tired.
Tired of wondering what Christopher was doing and why he was staying away. Tired of Christopher hiding. Tired of himself resisting the urge to storm the pride house, knock down Christopher’s door, and make him listen to him.
That wouldn’t exactly go down well, so instead of doing what he wanted during his lunchtime, he was at the coffee shop again, staring down at his hands.
Was he sure that Chris wouldn’t appreciate him knocking down his door?
He sighed. Every time he got angry, he switched from Chris to Christopher. He couldn’t help but wonder how Chris would take that. He hadn’t sounded like he hated his name, so it should be fine. Besides, it wasn’t like he was calling Chris that to his face. It just made him feel better, almost as if he could separate Christopher from Chris. Christopher was the guy who was afraid and hiding away from Drake, while Chris would hopefully want to be Drake’s mate.
Once he managed to kick Chris back from wherever he’d come from.
He didn’t understand why Chris was freaking out so badly. It wasn’t like Drake expected them to bond tomorrow or even next week. He didn’t have any expectations. He wanted to get to know his mate, for them to become close, and eventually, when they were both ready, for them to bond. Unfortunately for him, it looked like it wasn’t going to happen anytime soon.
That was really fine with him, but it was the only thing he was fine with in this situation. He hated that Chris was hiding, as if Drake was a serial killer running after him with a chainsaw. He hadn’t even talked to him since the coffee shop. Drake had begged Dennis to give him Chris’s number, but Dennis had refused. He didn’t want to get in trouble with his mate’s family, which was understandable, but Drake felt a bit betrayed. Dennis was one of his best friends, so shouldn’t he be on his side? It wasn’t like Drake was going to start blowing up Chris’s phone. He just wanted to text him, maybe talk to him for a bit.
Something would have to break eventually. They couldn’t continue like this, or rather, Drake didn’t want them to continue like this. If Chris was going to reject him, he wanted to know. If Chris was doing this because he was afraid and freaking out, he wanted to know that, too. He would be happy to give Chris more time or to leave him completely alone as long as he knew what the fuck was happening.
The only way to get answers would be to talk to Chris, and Drake was done waiting. He’d given Chris time, but didn’t he deserve things, too? If he wanted answers, why couldn’t he get them?
He grabbed his coffee, drank what was left in the cup, and got to his feet. He’d already used almost his entire half-hour of lunch break, but he didn’t care. His boss would understand that talking to his mate was more important than returning to work on time.
Hopefully.
Drake texted his boss as he walked to his car. He was nervous, and he had no idea what would come out of this, but he didn’t care. As long as Chris was honest with him, he could start thinking about what came next. Maybe his life wouldn’t change just yet because Chris would need more time and space. Maybe his life would change completely, and he’d feel like a different person. Either way, he didn’t really care. He just wanted to know what was happening.
But what if Chris didn’t want him at the house? That was a possibility that he hadn’t allowed himself to think of yet. Chris could ask for Drake to be kicked out, and the alpha would have to do so because Chris was a pride member while Drake wasn’t. Alphas always put their people first—when they were good alphas, anyway. From everything Drake had heard about Gal, he was a good person, so he had no doubt that Gal would support Chris.
Drake wasn’t planning to upset Chris or doing anything stupid. He just wanted a conversation. Hell, he’d be fine with both of them standing in the same room, completely silent. He just needed to reassure himself that he wasn’t going nuts and that he actually had met his mate. As the days went by, it felt more and more like he might have dreamed it, and he wasn’t ready for that.
Luckily for him, it wasn’t the first time he’d visited the pride. He usually came around to spend time with Dennis, Taylor, and Jacob, so he even had the gate code. He might not be a pride member, but he supposed he could consider himself an honorary tiger or something.
He parked the car as close to the house as he could, then stared ahead for a moment. He’d come all the way here, which thankfully wasn’t far. What did he do now? Did he march inside, demanding to talk to his mate? Did anyone besides Dennis, Jacob, Taylor, and Kyle know about the bond? Drake didn’t think Chris had told anyone else, except maybe his sister.
He wasn’t taking it personally. He understood that Chris was trying to find his footing with the pride. Had he already had time to make friends? Was he talking to them at this moment, perhaps making fun of Drake and how goofy he’d been at the coffee shop?
He couldn’t think like that. He didn’t care what people thought of him or said behind his back.
He got out of his car and strode toward the house before he could panic and go home, but he paused at the front door. He’d come in easily through the gate, but this was different. It was still pride territory, but it was their home, and Drake didn’t want anyone to think that he was invading it or something.
He knocked and took a step back. He didn’t have to wait long for a little girl to open the door. She couldn’t be more than four or five, and she stared at him with big brown eyes.
“Hello,” he said, wondering what now.
“Do you have my food?” she asked.
“I’m afraid I don’t. I’m here to see Chris.”
The girl pouted. “Mommy! My food still isn’t here!”
Dennis appeared from an open door on their left. He grinned at the girl and leaned down to pick her up, swung her up in the air, and made her laugh. “I think your mom’s already warned you about opening the door to strangers,” he said.
“I’m hungry.”
Dennis winked at Drake and put the girl down. “Why don’t you go to the kitchen? I’m sure someone will have a carrot for you.”
The little girl beamed and ran away, leaving Drake feeling even more exhausted than a few minutes in her company warranted.
“You look good with a kid in your arms,” he teased Dennis.
“You look good in the pride house.”
Nope. “Seriously. You have your mate now, and I always wondered if you wanted kids.”
Dennis’s eyes narrowed. He’d always been able to read Drake way too easily. “Why are you here? And don’t tell me it’s to discuss me having kids, because I don’t believe that.”
“I’d like to see Chris, or at least to talk to him.”
Dennis’s expression turned a little sad. “That’s what I thought. I don’t know if he wants to see you, Drake.”
“Then I’ll talk to him through the door.”
“And if he doesn’t want to talk to you?”
“Then I’ll talk to the door. I just need him to listen. I promise I won’t do anything stupid, all right? I’m not willing to sacrifice my mate just because I want answers.”
“I wouldn’t say sacrifice, but Chris isn’t in a good place right now.”
“Then he needs his mate.” It was as simple as that, even though Chris was complicating everything.
Dennis sighed and gestured at Drake to follow him as he moved toward the stairs. “Fine, but don’t tell him I was the one to lead you to him. He’s going to nail my balls to the wall.”
“I think Kyle would have something to say about that.”
Dennis snorted. “The way he babies his siblings, I don’t think he feels either of them can do any wrong. He’d probably tell me I should be more careful with my tools or something.”
Drake laughed, but it didn’t last long. He followed Dennis upstairs in silence, and eventually, they stopped in front of a door.
Drake stared. “This is it?”
“It is. He’s probably not going to let you in.”
“Like I said, I don’t need to be let in.” Drake raised his hand and knocked. “Chris? It’s Drake. I’d like to talk to you, and I’d rather do it face-to-face, but if you’re not up for that, we can do it through the door. Just give me a sign, all right?”
Drake held his breath, wondering what that sign would be. He got his answer when Chris swung the door open.
* * * *
Chris’s first instinct when he heard Drake outside his bedroom had been to hide in his bed. If he didn’t answer, Drake would go away, and Chris wouldn’t have to deal with him.
But part of him wanted to deal with him. His wolf yearned to spend time with their mate, maybe even to shift and go for a run with him. It had been too long since Chris had allowed himself to shift and play around, mostly because he didn’t feel secure in his position here. He doubted any pride member would attack him or do anything stupid like that, but he was trying to protect himself.
Maybe he’d been going about this wrong. Maybe instead of protecting himself, he should allow himself to be happy. Was there a chance he’d get hurt? Of course there was. Even though Drake was his mate, they would still fight and yell at each other. Hell, Kyle’s relationship with Dennis had started on shaky legs because of what Kyle had done, yet Dennis had still fallen in love with him. At least Chris hadn’t done something stupid like try to take over the pride.
So Chris had taken a chance. He didn’t know how things would end, but they hadn’t even started yet, and it was because of him. He needed to be the one to take that first step. Drake had already taken half a step for him since he was here. He was so close that Chris just had to reach out, and he’d have him.
His bedroom was a mess, but Drake might as well see Chris as he really was. Hopefully, Drake wasn’t a neat freak. Even when Chris felt good and actively kept his living space neat, he was a bit of a mess.
Drake beamed as if Chris was the best thing he’d ever seen. “I wasn’t sure you’d open it,” he said.
Chris shuffled his feet. “I wasn’t sure I’d open it, either.”
Drake nodded seriously, as if he understood.
Maybe he did, but Chris couldn’t know since he didn’t know his mate.
“I get it. It’s overwhelming, isn’t it? One day, you’re on your own, and the next, your mate is thrown at you, and you don’t know what to do with him.”
“Pretty much,” Chris said with a smile.
“There’s also the fact that you just arrived in town. You probably don’t know anyone here. Well, you have the pride, of course, but I can’t imagine that you instantly became best friends with the members. I don’t know about you, but it always takes me a while to warm up to people. Maybe I’d be hiding in my bedroom, too, if I were in your place.”
Like last time, Drake was a mess. Words seemed to spill out of his mouth without any control on his part. Chris had found it slightly annoying when they’d met, but now, he thought it was adorable. It helped him feel more comfortable, especially since Dennis was standing there, his gaze bouncing from one to the other like a ping-pong ball.
“I wasn’t sure I should show him where your room was,” Dennis said slowly.
“It’s fine. He’s fine.”
Drake wiggled his eyebrows. “I am, aren’t I? Can you believe that Karl suggested I needed to lose weight?”
Maybe if Chris focused on beating Karl’s ass, it would be easier for him to leave his bedroom. He wanted to ask the guy what the fuck he was thinking. Drake didn’t need to lose weight. He was perfect just the way he was. “Did he?”
Drake laughed. “He did, but he was an asshole, so I’m not surprised I wasn’t the right person for him. After all, I’m the right person for you .” He seemed a bit shy as he looked down at his feet, and Chris’s heart stuttered.
This was his mate, the man he was supposed to spend the rest of his life with. He’d been afraid of that, but spending a few minutes with Drake was enough to show Chris that maybe he didn’t need to be.
He stepped to the side. “Why don’t you come in? You’re here to talk, aren’t you?”
Drake’s eyes went wide. “I am, but I don’t have to be in your bedroom to talk to you.”
“Does that mean you don’t want to come in?”
“It means I don’t want you to feel like you have to invite me in just because I’m here. I can stay in the hallway, or we can go downstairs or even leave the house.” Drake’s gaze flickered over Chris’s body. “Although you might want to change if you want to go into town. I like your style, but most people don’t usually wear pajamas to walk around.”
Chris huffed. “I’m wondering if you should have been my sister’s mate. What do you have against comfortable pajamas?”
“Nothing,” Drake said. “They’re just not the height of fashion.”
Chris shook his head and gestured at Drake to come in. “Good thing only you and my four walls will see me, then.”
“You do realize I’m still here,” Dennis said.
Chris grinned at him. “Not for long. You can run to my brother and tell him about this. I’m sure he’ll be happy to know that Drake’s finally here to drag me out of bed.”
“Or keep you in it,” Drake teased before slapping his hand over his mouth. “I’m sorry. I tend to talk a lot when I’m nervous, and you make me very nervous,” he confessed.
Chris was still laughing as he closed the door in Dennis’s face. He looked around the room, but it was still as much of a mess as it had been five minutes ago, so he gestured to the bed. “Why don’t you sit down?”
Drake’s eyes were huge as he looked from Chris to the bed. For a moment, Chris wondered if he’d said something wrong, but he was sure he hadn’t propositioned him. He’d remember that.
Drake sat on the very edge of the mattress, as if he was ready to bolt. Maybe he expected Chris to kick him out once they had their chat. Chris hated that he’d pushed his mate away so hard that Drake felt that way, but this was his chance to fix that.
“How are you feeling?” Drake asked instead of getting straight to the point like Chris had expected him to.
“I’m fine. I mean, physically, there’s nothing wrong with me.”
“There doesn’t need to be something wrong with you for you not to feel okay. You don’t have to lie to me, Chris. No matter what you say, I’ll be there to support you, and I won’t tell anyone.”
“Not even Dennis and my brother?”
“Especially not them. I know how nosy family can be.”
“You have a big family?”
Drake shrugged. “Not really. I had a pack, but I’m kind of a loner, so I’d rather have only a few selected people in my life.”
“And I’m one of those selected people?”
“You, Dennis, Taylor, and Jacob. Oh, and Kyle now, too, although not everyone is convinced he isn’t going to kill Gal in his sleep to take over the pride.”
It was said with a smile, so Chris was pretty sure Drake was teasing, but still. “People still think my brother wants the pride?”
“Not really. He’s happy with Dennis, and Dennis would kick his ass if he did something like that.”
“What about becoming a pride member? Would you want to do that?” Chris had doubts, considering Drake had just told him he was a loner, but Chris wasn’t going anywhere. The pride was where his family lived, and he had no intention of abandoning them.
Not that moving into town would be abandoning his family, but it wasn’t something Chris was willing to consider. The pride was his home now, and hopefully, it could be Drake’s home soon, too.
* * * *
Drake wasn’t surprised by Chris’s question. Chris had only recently become a pride member, as had his family. It made sense that he wouldn’t want to leave anytime soon.
“I wouldn’t say no if I had a good reason to become a pride member,” Drake offered. “I’ve only heard good things about the pride and Gal since I moved into town a few years ago, but I know things aren’t always like that.”
Chris shrugged. “I wouldn’t know. The old alpha is my brother’s father, but I never knew him, and Gal was already in charge when we arrived.”
“I guess I can visit more often and see if it’s something I might like. I don’t think I would say no if you asked me, and Dennis and the others have been trying to convince me since I arrived in town. They really want me to be a pride member.”
“I think I do, too,” Chris murmured.
“Then I’ll think about it. I’m not making any promises, but I’m pretty sure my answer will be yes.”
“Because your mate is asking?”
“And because it’s not like I hated being part of a pack. I’m pretty sure I disliked the pack members more than being part of the pack itself. When people are insufferable, it doesn’t get any better just because they’re part of a pack.”
Chris’s lips twitched as if he was repressing a smile. “Oh?”
“I have many stories if you ever want to hear them, but I think that right now, we should be talking about something more important.”
Chris grimaced. “I guess we should. Where does this leave us, then? What do you expect from me and from our bond?”
“Well, for one, I don’t want you to think that we have to bond.”
Chris blinked as if he didn’t quite understand what Drake was saying.
Drake knew why. He’d just offered not to bond with his mate, and it probably didn’t make a lot of sense.
“What do you mean?” Chris asked.
“Exactly what I said. Both of us are shifters, which means we’ll live long lives. We don’t have to bond to a human mate to ensure they won’t age faster than we do. We can take our time, even if it takes years, or you can decide you don’t want to bond, and that’ll be fine with me, too.”
“How can it be fine? Don’t you want to bond with me?”
“Of course I want to bond with you, but not if it’s going to scare you and push you away. If I have to choose between being bonded to you but not having you in my life because you’re too scared and not bonding with you but being happy, I know what I’ll choose.”
“I don’t understand you.”
Drake snorted. “I think a lot of people don’t understand me. It’s why they tend to run away once they get to know me a bit better.” Drake hesitated. He’d sworn to himself that he would do his best to change to make it easier for Chris to accept him and welcome him into his life, but maybe he should still give Chris a warning. “I can be a lot,” he confessed. “My last boyfriend dumped me because he thought I talked too much.”
“Do you happen to know where he lives?” Chris asked casually.
“No. Why?” The less Drake thought about the guy, the better he felt. Why would he want to know where he lived?
Chris shrugged. “I don’t know. I was just curious, I guess.”
“Well, be curious about me, not about my ex-boyfriend.”
Chris gestured at Drake to continue, but it took Drake a second to remember what he was talking about. “Right. I’m not going to talk about my exes, but you should probably know that most of them felt like I was too much to deal with. It’s why they left me.”
“You still don’t remember that address?”
Drake couldn’t help but smile. He couldn’t believe that Chris was already making him happier than he’d ever been in any of his past relationships. “I’m not letting you go there and beat him up. It doesn’t matter anyway, because he’s in the past, but you’re in the future.”
Chris’s cheeks flushed. “You really think so?”
“We’re mates, aren’t we? Of course I think so. I don’t know what the future will be like and how things will be between us, but yeah. I want that with you.”
“So let me get this straight—you want whatever I’m willing to give you, and you don’t care if you have to wait for weeks or even longer. You can even accept that you might never bond with me.”
Drake leaned closer. “I only care about you and your happiness.”
He suspected it would take some time for Chris to believe him. He looked like he hadn’t had a lot of happiness in his life, and Drake hated that for him. Luckily for Chris, he was here now, and he could help him.
He’d make Chris the happiest man on earth.
“It’s hard to believe that,” Chris murmured.
“Well, I’m your mate, so I’m kind of supposed to be interested in your happiness. I guess I know that mates don’t always work out, but the majority of them do, and they’re very happy. I’ve met many mated couples over the years, and you know when they’re happier? When they’re doing something that makes their mate happy. That’s what I always think about when I think about my mate and what I aim for when it comes to you.” He cringed. “And I’m talking a lot again, aren’t I? I’m really sorry. You need to tell me if I’m taking over conversations. You could even smack me. Usually, that’s enough to get me to shut up, but I should probably not tell you how I know, because you would threaten another ex if I did.”
Chris reached for Drake.
For a second, Drake expected to be hit. Carson hadn’t smacked him hard, but it had still hurt, mostly Drake’s heart and soul. He’d deserved it, though. He couldn’t keep his mouth shut to save his life.
But Chris didn’t smack Drake. Instead, he hooked a hand around the back of his neck and pulled him forward.
Drake yielded easily, allowing Chris to manhandle him until he had him where he wanted.
Apparently, that was close enough to kiss, because the next thing Drake knew, their lips were pressed together.
The kiss didn’t last long. Chris let go of Drake almost as soon as their lips touched, and while Drake lingered for a second, wanting more, he already knew he would need to do this at Chris’s pace. If all Chris wanted was to press his lips together, that was fine with Drake.
It had to be.
When Chris leaned back, his cheeks were flushed. “I’m not going to smack you because you like talking,” he said.
“Thank you. It wasn’t great when it happened.”
“Am I going to want to strangle all of your exes? Because so far, it doesn’t sound like you have any good ones.”
They both leaned away, but Chris slid his hand off Drake’s neck and linked their fingers together instead.
That made Drake’s heart race. He told himself to stop being an idiot. This wasn’t his first crush. It was his mate, and he didn’t want to make a fool of himself.
He suspected he already had, but still.
“I told you that I’m a lot to deal with,” he explained. “Most of my exes didn’t want that. They’d stay with me for a few months before fleeing. I can’t even blame them for not wanting to stay with someone they couldn’t stand. Besides, it’s for the best, because it means I was single when I met you.”
“You almost weren’t,” Chris muttered under his breath.
“I never would’ve gone home with Karl. He was obnoxious and rude, even though he was pretty.”
“You’re prettier.”
Chris’s cheeks flushed again, and Drake had to resist the urge to lean over and kiss him. Clearly, coming here had been the right decision. Chris was still holding his hand, and they’d kissed. If this was all Chris was willing to give Drake, Drake would be happy. In fact, he couldn’t be happier.
Things were finally moving forward. He didn’t need them to rush ahead, just to keep taking tiny steps toward their future.