Chapter 13
ZACH
For better or worse, the rest of the week didn’t bring any further revelations or heart-wrenching conversations.
Days blurred together in quiet domestic bliss, and even though Zach couldn’t stop himself from constantly tracking Miles’s movements out of the corner of his eye, he was slowly getting used to sharing his space.
It helped that Miles was an easygoing person, expertly diffusing any potential arguments.
When Zach got a bad grade on his assignment and stomped through the door on edge and frustrated, Miles had immediately shoved him into the bathroom with stern instructions for a long, hot shower while he ran to the store to buy enough sweet treats for an army.
And when Zach slammed his laptop shut and growled at the ceiling because the sound of the refrigerator humming kept breaking his concentration, Miles only smiled and hugged him, petting his hair while asking thoughtful questions about the paper he was writing until Zach was ready to keep working on it.
Being stuck inside all weekend while Zach typed on his laptop couldn’t have been much fun—it certainly wasn’t fun for Zach—but Miles didn’t complain.
In fact, he barely spoke at all. Every time Zach tore his tired eyes away from the screen, Miles was engrossed in his phone with a strange expression on his face.
More than once, a hint of pink tinged Miles’s face, making Zach wonder exactly what he was doing.
Texting a girlfriend he left behind in Montana?
Reading a racy romance novel? Shopping for a Fleshlight?
“You okay?” he asked when his curiosity had finally reached its peak.
“Hmm?” Miles didn’t bother looking up, his thumbs flying over the screen, and a pang of jealousy ricocheted through Zach.
“You look a little flushed. Is it too warm? Should I open a window?” he asked, tilting his head in mock concern.
“Oh. Umm. I’m okay.” Miles finally looked over at Zach with a guilty smile.
Zach rolled his eyes and went back to his paper. Taking summer classes had been, hands-down, the worst idea he’d ever had. Instead of going out and drinking or hooking up, he was stuck writing a paper on risk assessment and watching his best friend keep secrets.
And so it went all weekend, an endless loop of staring at the blinking cursor and stealthily eyeing Miles’s crimson cheeks.
Zach was ready for a break.
“I’m never taking a summer class again,” he announced on Monday morning after submitting the paper online.
“You didn’t have to take this one either,” Miles pointed out as he cracked six eggs into a bowl and whisked them with a fork.
“Oh, I meant to ask you about that. How did you know?”
Miles sent a questioning glance his way, so Zach clarified, “How did you know I didn’t need the class?”
“I know you, Zee. I know your tells.” Miles poured the mixture into a hot pan. “You breathe through your mouth when you’re lying, and you were basically panting when you told me about needing the credits.”
Zach tried to think back on his past lies, but tragically, he’d never thought to monitor his respiratory patterns.
Had he been gasping for breath every time he denied borrowing Jerry’s DS?
Or when he claimed not to know where the dent in his father’s truck came from, despite being in the passenger seat while ten-year-old Abe attempted a joyride and immediately clipped a tree?
What about those repeated, mysterious disappearances of his mom’s chocolate ice cream?
Had he been heaving while feigning ignorance?
He decided to try it out.
“Licorice is delicious. I know how to play guitar. Dogs are better than cats.”
The only result of this experiment was Miles’s shoulders shaking with laughter. “I don’t think it works if you know you’re doing it,” he said without turning around.
“I can’t tell if you’re fucking with me. Breathing through my mouth? Maybe I had a cold that day.”
“You didn’t.”
Zach sagged into the couch and pouted. If he really had a tell, did other people know about it? While he didn’t expect his parents to ask him uncomfortable questions and pause to watch his mouth, it didn’t hurt to be prepared.
He could always ask Joel.
ZACH: Do I have any tells when I lie?
JOEL: Are you saying you’ve lied to me? Gasp.
ZACH: Uhh, yeah. Those purple jeggings were not “fire” and definitely not worth a hundred bucks.
JOEL: I’m gonna forgive you for saying things you don’t mean because you’re clearly going through something.
ZACH: Yep, the truth is that I’m just super jealous I didn’t buy that monstrosity first.
The string of angry emojis Joel sent in response made him laugh.
Trading insults about each other’s fashion style was practically their love language.
He still remembered his first and only attempt at wearing a Hawaiian shirt—Joel had giggled so much that he got the hiccups and had to leave during class.
“What’s that smile for?” Miles placed an omelet and buttery toast in front of Zach.
“Nothing. Texting Joel to see if I have a tell,” Zach replied and put away his phone.
“I’m glad you have him. I wish I had someone like that at school.”
“There’s no one in your program who’s in the same classes as you?”
Miles sat down and took a bite of the fluffy eggs.
Zach was curious to hear the answer, but the slight movements of Miles’s throat as he chewed and swallowed were entrancing, distracting him until he forgot what they’d been talking about.
His gaze traveled from Miles’s throat to his jaw, appreciating the light stubble on the verge of becoming a beard, then further up to catch a quick peek of Miles’s tongue as it darted out to lick his lips.
A flash of heat shot into Zach’s groin, and he quickly averted his gaze.
“There are, but I haven’t gotten close to anyone,” Miles said after swallowing. “My roommate’s cool, but he’s an Engineering major, so we don’t have the same classes. I’ve hung out with some guys from class, but no one I really vibed with. And honestly, going home every weekend hasn’t helped.”
“Can’t you tell your parents you’d rather stay on campus? It’s kind of a waste for you to constantly drive back and forth.”
Miles shrugged and shoved another bite in his mouth. “Maybe.”
Zach checked the time, wishing he could stay and push for more answers. He’d been so wrapped up in himself—his secrets, his internal struggles—that he didn’t notice how much Miles needed him.
What sort of friend would do that?
Going back in time to fix it wasn’t an option, but he could start making up for it right now. After wolfing down his breakfast and dropping the plate in the sink, he grabbed his bag. “I gotta go, but I have an idea. Wear something comfortable and be ready to go when I get back.”
Miles perked up and grinned, eyes twinkling with anticipation. So sweet and innocent. So easily excited. How could anyone meet him and not want to be his friend?
Zach would give him the world—the stars and the moon—just to keep that smile on his face.
* * *
He rushed home after class, barely stopping to chat with Joel before making an excuse to flee. Joel gave him a knowing look and asked if his hurry had anything to do with a certain someone, and Zach couldn’t even be annoyed at the implication.
Miles was on the couch and ready to go, wearing a plain white T-shirt and gym shorts—a delicious combination that showed off his impressive physique.
Zach sighed in resignation. He would definitely embarrass himself by drooling over Miles’s flexing quads at some point tonight.
Miles was hot even when he was covered up by flannel and baggy jeans.
With his muscles on display—bulging biceps and sculpted calves, each vein begging to be traced with his tongue—he was impossible to resist.
Miles either didn’t notice or gracefully ignored Zach’s reaction, waiting patiently for him to dash into the bathroom and change his clothes.
They walked down to the bus stop, sprinting the last block as they spotted the bus overtaking them.
It was a short trip, and twenty minutes later, they were standing outside their destination.
“Rock climbing? This is awesome,” Miles said with awe in his voice. “I’ve always wanted to try it.”
“I feel bad about keeping you cooped up in my tiny apartment all day. It’s about time I took you somewhere fun.”
Zach stepped toward the entrance, reaching for the large handle in the shape of a mountain, when Miles grabbed his wrist and whirled him around.
“You’re not keeping me cooped up. I love hanging out with you, even if we’re doing our own thing.”
Zach grinned at Miles’s sweetness. “So you’ve told me. But I still wanna show you some of my favorite places that are not my couch.”
“Can’t argue with that.”
Miles’s hand settled at the small of Zach’s back as he steered them forward.
The contact made Zach stumble before he caught himself and kept moving, doing his best to act normal while his thoughts scrambled to catch up.
Miles was always touching him—that had long stopped being strange—but this was different.
Lower. Closer. More intimate. Miles, apparently, saw nothing unusual about it, his palm firmly planted two inches above Zach’s ass like it had every right to be there.
He warned himself not to read into it and yanked the heavy door open.
A soft gasp escaped Miles as he whirled around in awe. The gym was an impressive sight to anyone seeing it for the first time—a huge open space with tall ceilings, colorful walls, and an electrifying energy in the air.