Chapter Thirteen
“Nate. Nate, wake up.”
“Mnnn,” Nate grumbled, pulling his pillow closer. There was a reason he didn’t often sleep in, and that was that the longer he did, the less he wanted to get out of bed. That went double after morning sex.
“Nate,” Aubrey hissed again, urgently enough that this time, Nate squinted into the bright morning light of the bedroom. Aubrey’s eyes were wild and his cheeks were pale. “Get your ass out of bed right now. Your parents are here.”
Nate’s brain went from warm and fuzzy to cold, almost painful clarity. “They’re not supposed to be here until Wednesday!”
“They got an earlier flight,” Aubrey bit out, scrambling around for the clothes he must’ve brought the night before. “They wanted it to be a surprise. Well, I’m surprised!”
It occurred to Nate as Aubrey frantically tugged on his underwear that he was very naked. “How surprised?” he asked, reaching for clean clothes of his own.
“Fully frontal surprised, Nathan!”
Nate winced. Okay, so that was bad. “Fuck.”
“You might say that!”
At least they seemed to have walked in after Aubrey showered, rather than before. Though considering Aubrey’s mood right now, Nate kept that thought to himself. “All right,” he said, thinking out loud as he hopped into a pair of sweatpants. “This is okay. We can fix this.”
“Fix what?” Aubrey said, throwing a venomous look over his shoulder as he struggled into a cashmere sweater that probably cost half a month’s rent. “I’m pretty sure we can’t go into your mom’s brain and remove the image of my dick!”
“Okay, yes, that’s awkwardness we’re just going to have to live with—”
“We?” Aubrey asked. “We?”
“—but it’s not like they have to know we’re, I don’t know, casually fucking or whatever.”
This gave Aubrey pause. “You want to just pretend I was staying here because of the broken heat upstairs?” His voice came down half a register.
“Oh no, they definitely won’t buy that. They’ve been hinting that they think there’s something going on for weeks. I’ve just pretended not to notice. But we could tell them we’re dating.”
“What!”
But the plan was coming together now, and the pitch of Aubrey’s indignant squawk couldn’t derail Nate’s train of thought.
“It’s perfect. The timing is right. They’ve been bugging me to move on.
I’ve been stalling them, but that could just as easily be because I wanted to keep the whole dating a coworker thing quiet. ”
“Nate—”
Nate loved his parents, and he knew they loved him. But they had certain expectations of their son, and casual hookups with a coworker didn’t fit them. He might be ready to adjust his expectations of himself, but he didn’t know if he was ready for his parents to see him differently.
“Please,” he said. “Hear me out.”
To his surprise, Aubrey sat on the bed and folded his hands in his lap. He looked uncomfortable, and his shoulders were hunched, but he was listening.
“Just for the week,” Nate pleaded. “If I tell them the truth, they’re going to think I’m having a midlife crisis a few years ahead of schedule.”
“Aren’t you?” He let that hang in the air for a moment and then continued, “Anyway, we work together, remember? You were there when Jess demanded not to change anything.”
“So we tell my parents it has to be a secret!” That was just obvious. “They had a gay son who played hockey. I wasn’t always out. They understand.”
Aubrey spitted him with a flat stare. “You want to have a secret fake relationship. You do know this isn’t a Hallmark Channel Original Movie, right?
Besides, I’m supposed to be on a plane to Hawaii in three hours.
How do we explain your beloved boyfriend jetting off to a tropical island paradise without you? ”
Shit. “Cancel it! I will pay you whatever it cost, okay, just….” He couldn’t articulate why this was so important. “Please.”
Aubrey stared at him, calculating. Nate was wearing him down. He could see it. Finally:
“All right,” he said. “All right! This is the craziest thing I’ve ever done. I’ve never met anyone’s parents. They’re going to hate me or think I’m a gold-digger or—”
Nate exhaled a long breath as relief flooded his system. “No, you’re good. Mom followed your skating career. She knows you have more money than I do.”
“—and we have to get rid of your fugly vase, okay? You can’t be shacking up with a boyfriend when you still have your horrible honeymoon trophy on display.”
That was a fair point. “Thank you,” Nate said.
Aubrey sighed. “I can’t believe I’m doing this. Come on. Let’s go hide the evidence so we can let your parents in. I can’t believe your mom saw me naked.”
“If you thought that was awkward,” Nate said grimly, “wait till she tries to give me a high-five.”
In point of fact, it turned out to be a fist bump.
A few moments after they finished hiding the ugly vase in the master bathroom, there was an actual knock on the door, and Nate and Aubrey went together to open it.
Aubrey wanted to die. He was making his own bed and he knew it. The problem was he was going to be lying in it alone after this week was over.
Nate cleared his throat. “Hi, Mom. Dad. You’re early.”
Nate’s father gave his son a look that Aubrey interpreted clearly as this was all your mother’s idea. “Nathan. We’re sorry to drop by unannounced.”
“So, so sorry,” his mother chimed in, stepping inside. Aubrey believed her—her mortified reaction hadn’t been fake—but she was beaming with a lot more than embarrassment. She flung herself into Nate’s arms and squeezed.
Aubrey watched with a mounting sense of dread, but he still wasn’t prepared for the speed at which she released her son and fell upon him, taking both of Aubrey’s hands. “You must be Aubrey. Oh, we’ve heard so much about you. I should have suspected….”
Aubrey attempted a smile. “It’s nice to meet you, Mrs. Overton.”
“Oh, no, no. It’s Diane, please.”
Nate’s father, Elliot, was more reserved, and within seconds, it was obvious where Nate got his sense of humor. While Aubrey was shaking his hand, Nate’s mother turned to Nate, mouthed, “Oh my God,” and held out her fist.
Aubrey had the pleasure of watching from six feet back as Nate went scarlet from his nape to the tips of his ears. He did the fist-bump, though.
Nate’s dad watched Aubrey watch this, his own amusement evident, and said, “On the plus side, it’s not like things can get any more awkward.”
“Bite your tongue,” Aubrey said automatically, then immediately regretted saying something so rude.
But Elliot laughed like Aubrey was hilarious and clapped him on the shoulder. “Come on, you can help me with the bags. She’s going to talk his ear off for at least the next fifteen minutes, and I swear she brought three outfits for every day.”
If Aubrey was expecting a shovel speech, he was disappointed.
He almost felt indignant on Nate’s behalf.
But he couldn’t really fault them. It was obvious the Overtons were warm, open people—a close-knit unit.
No wonder Nate had never really thought much about hooking up.
If Aubrey had grown up in a family like this, he would have been looking to build his own too.
He managed to make his escape after about an hour, citing a lunchtime social commitment. In actuality, he went upstairs to his frigid apartment, canceled his Hawaii trip, scheduled an emergency session with his therapist, and ate a sleeve of Oreos.
Then, feeling sorry for himself, he took out his phone and scrolled through the contacts.
Mom.
He left the name highlighted for a few seconds, deliberating. Did he really want to put himself through this? He almost always ended up hanging up feeling worse, irritated, even if the conversation had been fine.
He hit Dial before he could talk himself out of it, but the line rang three times and then went to voicemail.
Probably for the best.
Aubrey couldn’t have said what made him leave a message.
Maybe it was the happy-families scene going on downstairs.
“Hey, Mom. It’s me.” Wow, original. “Uh, I just wanted to let you know there was a change of plan and I’m sticking around Chicago this week.
Anyway, I was just… calling to say hi.” For the first time ever. “Maybe I’ll try you again later.”
Click.
Well, that went well. Aubrey sighed at his phone and winced when his breath fogged in the cold air.
Now what?
With Aubrey technically on vacation for the week, Nate spent Tuesday filming with Paul Mitchell, a guest star they’d had booked since the preseason.
Nate liked Paul. They’d never played together—Paul had retired a few years earlier than Nate, and they’d never been on the same team—but they’d met several times over the years, and he was easygoing and personable enough to run a successful web series of his own.
Maybe Nate had gotten spoiled filming with Aubrey, because it took him and Paul the first half of the show to find their rhythm, and even then, it felt lacking.
Nate would leave the airspace open for a quip, line it up perfectly for Aubrey, but Paul would miss it entirely or go in a direction so unexpected it left Nate floundering.
But it was the last show he had to do until Saturday. Thursday Kelly was hosting a combination clip show and commentary with Caley while Nate spent the whole holiday with his family. He hadn’t been able to do that in years.
Of course, this year would be a little different.
By the time he returned from the studio, his stomach was growling. He waved to the concierge and got into the elevator, vaguely hoping there was something left in the fridge. If not, maybe he could sneak upstairs and raid Aubrey’s cupboards.
But when he pushed open the door, he found the apartment rather more occupied than he expected.
Before he could do much more than say hello, Aubrey got up from the couch, leaving Nate’s parents alone in the living room, and tilted his head toward the master bedroom. Nate followed, bemused. “What’s going on?” he asked. “I thought they fixed the heat at your place this morning.”
“Yeah, they did.” Aubrey looked wild around the eyes. “I ran into your parents in the lobby when they were on their way back from the Art Institute. They insisted on inviting me up for dinner and a show. Our show, except without me.”
That sounded even more awkward than Nate’s evening. He winced. “Sorry.”
But Aubrey shook his head, some of the manic brightness receding from his face.
“It was mostly fine. Well, no, your mom wanted to make your ‘favorite’ for dinner, but I convinced her you’d mentioned a craving for sushi this morning, so we ordered takeout.
Your spicy tuna roll and whatnot is in the fridge. ”
Nate’s stomach growled on cue. “Thank you.” He’d loved his mother’s spaghetti growing up, but now the idea of white pasta in a sauce that was mostly ketchup made him consider a hunger strike. “How was the show? From the outside, I mean. It felt like a train wreck from where I was sitting.”
“Eh.” Aubrey waggled his hand back and forth.
“It wasn’t the best, but it wasn’t bad. I could tell Paul missed a lot of the cues you were feeding him, but it went smoother when you both stuck to the teleprompter.
” He scratched at his nape, looking sheepish.
“Your mom kept commenting on how much better we are together.”
“Well, she’s not wrong about that, even if she is wrong about why.” Nate wondered if the change of pace would have an impact on whether they got canceled. It didn’t seem fair, but that probably wouldn’t matter to the execs.
Then again, a more serious, less banter-driven show might have appeal with the market they’d alienated when John got fired. It could go either way.
“Anyway, I’m starving,” Nate said, which Aubrey would know because Nate was always hungry after a show. “So I’m going to eat. You want to stick around? Four’s the right number for a game of euchre.”
“God, I haven’t played since high school.
” Aubrey grinned as though reminiscing on a fond memory, but then he cut his gaze back to the living room, where Nate’s parents were studiously ignoring a commercial break via their cell phones.
“You’re sure you don’t want me to get lost?
I don’t want to, I don’t know… crash your family time. ”
“My parents literally invited you to family time without me,” Nate said wryly. “They like you fine.”
Aubrey’s grin dimmed a little at that, and he shook his head like he couldn’t quite believe it.
But then he said, “I guess I understand. I mean, I never brought a boyfriend home. Mom would probably cry tears of joy. She was always trying to pair me off with a society boy. You’d do in a pinch.
” He raised a hand and traced a faint scar on Nate’s cheek, a remnant from a stray slap shot.
“You’re a little rougher around the edges than those guys, but you clean up nice and respectable. ”
Nate fought not to shiver at the unexpectedly intimate touch, not to mention the level of personal sharing. Aubrey didn’t talk about his family much. “You say that like it’s an insult.”
The moment broke as Aubrey shook himself and winked. “Well, I do prefer you disheveled and debauched.”
That, Nate decided, did not require a response. “So, are you in or what? We always play at Thanksgiving, but Emily’s visiting Jurgen’s people this year, so we’re stuck without you.”
And anyway, in the quick glimpse he’d caught when he first came in, Aubrey seemed to be enjoying himself, sitting opposite Nate’s dad on the sofa, engaged with his mom in a discussion of something that had them both smiling.
Aubrey was certainly more than capable of turning Nate’s parents down when they asked him to come for dinner.
Maybe he was getting something out of this.
Maybe he was just humoring Nate.
“All right.” Aubrey lifted a shoulder in a shrug. “Where are the cards?”