CHAPTER 20
DIEGO
The next morning, Diego awoke early to find Wylie already up and climbing the walls, eager to get back to Sunset Village to assess the damage.
But the streets were still flooded and powerlines were down, which made the roads treacherous.
The old folks were going to wait until the roads were cleared before returning home.
The power was still out with no word of when it might be restored, but everyone was safe.
They spent the morning caring for the animals, feeding them and taking turns walking them up and down the breezeway since the parking lot was still flooded while the other person brought their kennels outside and hosed them off.
Some of the dogs needed baths too. His apartment smelled like literal dog shit due to all the animals having diarrhea because of their fear of the storm, but they’d all survived it.
Nearing afternoon Wylie was starting to spiral, so Diego figured out a safe-ish route to the beaches to visit the trailer park, having to make several detours due to floodwaters and downed trees.
When they got there, they discovered that all of the trailers still had their roofs, and only one home had severe damage due to a tree landing directly on top it. The tree must have come from somewhere else entirely, uprooted by the storm and deposited there in the Village.
Wylie called the owner of the trailer and documented the damage with his phone.
There was a chainsaw in the maintenance shed and Wylie powered it up to cut off the largest of the tree’s branches while Diego hauled them away.
Then, with the aid of Mac’s 4-wheel drive and some ropes, they dragged the remaining trunk off the trailer, then used tarps to cover the hole in the roof, securing it tightly to the frame until it could be repaired.
There was a lot of debris around the property, including several more downed trees and fallen branches, so they worked into the night chainsawing and piling up yard waste for an eventual trash collection.
Eventually, residents began filtering back in, surveying their homes and checking in with the two of them.
They were anxious to be reunited with their pets, so Diego and Wylie drove back to his apartment to collect the animals and deliver them to their owners.
Since they were still without power, they decided to have a big barbecue in the yard to grill the meat that was in danger of spoiling.
The meal was good, the company even better, and Diego was dead on his feet by the time he and Wylie made it back to his apartment somewhere around midnight.
“So,” Wylie said to him after they’d showered the sweat and toil of day off of them and were lying together in bed. “There was something you wanted to talk about?”
Despite his bone-deep exhaustion, Diego rolled onto his side and grabbed hold of Wylie’s hand.
He’d been wanting to pitch this idea since the bus ride back from Gainesville, but he wanted to do it in person, and then there was the hurricane and its aftermath to get through.
Even with that threat having passed, he was still just a bundle of nerves, worried he might say the wrong thing or accidentally be an asshole about it.
The stakes were high, and what if Wylie had decided he wasn’t worth it?
Keep it simple.
“I love you,” Diego said, staring intently at the man he hoped would soon be his. “And I want to be with you.”
Wylie’s eyes scanned his face as if searching for any points of weakness. Any doubts. “Give me your best argument for why we should be together,” Wylie said.
Diego’s mouth quirked because this was so typical of the man he’d come to know and love.
He’d need evidence to back up his claim for his lawyer-in-training.
Well, he was going to give it his best shot.
“First off, you can’t cook for shit, so you really need me if you’re going to survive law school,” Diego said as a matter of fact.
Wylie opened his mouth wide in mock offense. “Excuse me?”
“You know it’s true.”
“I make a mean scrambled egg.”
“Yeah, and that’s about the extent of it.”
“Does this mean you’re going to cook for me, then?” Wylie asked, sounding interested.
“Cook for you, care for you, let you work me over for orgasms and praise.” Diego didn’t usually pull the sex card, but he’d do that and more to convince Wylie to give him another chance.
Wylie smiled, seeming to like where this was going, which encouraged Diego even more. “The sex is pretty incredible,” Wylie admitted. “Okay, what else you got for me?”
“Well, I did just save your life during a major storm event,” Diego reminded him.
“Um, I think that spacious shower stall saved our lives,” Wylie teased.
“But you have to admit, you were a lot less scared because I was there with you.” Diego didn’t mention that the same was also true for him.
“Yes, that’s true.”
“And I dealt with Jelly Bean’s explosive diarrhea without even a single complaint,” Diego said. God bless that dog’s delicate bowels and curse whatever it was that she’d eaten.
“It was your idea to keep the animals here,” Wylie pointed out. “Which was sexy as hell, not gonna lie.”
Diego smiled, enjoying their banter, but he wanted Wylie to know he was serious about this commitment and that he was thinking long term.
“When I think about my future, I want you in it. I want to be the one standing in that picture right beside you, helping you achieve your dreams. I think we could be really good together. I always have. I just had to get past my own bullshit.”
“And, are you past it?” Wylie asked with one eyebrow quirked and an expression that was half-hopeful, half-scared.
“I’m working really hard on it,” Diego swore. He’d forever be an ex-con and a recovering addict, but he was trying really hard not to let those parts of his identity define him moving forward. To focus on the future. To want things and go after them.
“Do you think you’ll change your mind about this, about wanting me?” Wylie asked and seemed to brace himself for the answer. He didn’t need to point out Diego’s inconsistency. They both knew it already.
“I’m in it for as long as you’ll have me. And I’m going to work really hard to be a good partner,” Diego said, a vow he took seriously.
Wylie reached out to squeeze Diego’s shoulder in encouragement, probably knowing how hard this was for him to be so open about his feelings and desires. “What if you get spooked again?” he asked.
Diego took a deep breath. It was always a possibility that his head would do him in, try and convince him he wasn’t worthy or deserving of love or whatever good things might happen to him, but he knew now that he didn’t have to tackle everything alone.
They were a team, a good team, and Diego would learn to rely on his partner when things got tough.
“I’ll talk to you about it, and you can tell me that it’s all in my head. ”
“And you’ll believe me?”
“I’ll try. I’m sorry I pushed you away. I didn’t mean to hurt you.”
Wylie smiled and reached over to smooth out his hair. “You needed more time, I get it. I can be impatient and I tend to rush into things head on. We’re a good balance, I think.”
“I have a few more arguments prepared,” Diego said.
“Really? Well, let’s hear them,” Wylie said gamely and gestured with one hand for him to continue. Diego grabbed his hand and tugged it to his mouth, kissing the open palm that Wylie offered.
“In a world of assholes, you’re the person I like the most. You fuck like a demon. And like my cousin said, hot, mouthy twinks don’t come along every day.”
Laughing, Wylie looked only mildly offended as he insisted, “I’m not a twink. Maybe a twunk.”
Diego smiled because not all arguments needed to be won. “How do you feel about this? About me? And us?”
Wylie gave him one of those soul-deep stares, the kind that cut right through the bullshit and dove to the center of his soft, squishy core.
“I’ve wanted you since the moment I first laid eyes on you,” he said, drawing his finger along Diego’s jaw where the stubble was starting to grow.
“But I honestly didn’t know then how special you were.
You’ve impressed me with your grit and your loyalty and your work ethic.
I’ve never had a man before who would do what you’ve done for me and my family.
The way you care for others, the way you pay attention.
It’s rare. So, yes, I feel pretty fucking good about you.
And us. I’d like to keep you for a very long time. ”
Warmth bloomed inside Diego’s chest and his cold, stubborn heart gave an unexpected little kick.
He’d been wrong before about love and cocaine being the same.
This feeling was so very different from that empty, short-lived high, the craving, the mania.
This was deeper, more mellow, and longer lasting.
No shame and no regrets. Love was measured in what you were willing to build, not what you were willing to burn.
“That’s just what I was hoping to hear,” Diego said.
“Great so, now that we’ve got that sorted out, when are you moving in with me?” Wylie asked.
Diego laughed because trust this man to move a million miles per minute. “I don’t know. When we’re both ready, I guess.”
“You’d move up to Gainesville?” Wylie asked, looking pleasantly surprised.
“I want to be where you are. I’ve already started looking at jobs. I spoke to my probation officer about it too.”
Wylie’s mouth split into a huge, dimpled grin, and a moment later, Diego was tackled onto his back against the mattress.
“This is the best news ever,” Wylie said and kissed him everywhere—his forehead, both his cheeks, the tip of his nose, then finally a big, wet one on the mouth. His octopus arms wrapped around Diego’s shoulders to hold him tightly.
“I’m glad you think so,” Diego said as he brushed his cheek along Wylie’s soft hair.
“I’m probably going to have to marry you one day,” Wylie said, sounding not at all upset about it. “So, you might want to start processing that now.”
“I’ll put it in the queue,” Diego replied, his heart light.
He belonged to this man. He trusted this man.
And he could be honest with him too. This thing between them had built quietly like warm air rising over open water.
Diego hadn’t noticed it at first, the shift in pressure, the pull he couldn’t quite explain.
Then suddenly it had a name, a direction, a force.
What started as something invisible became impossible for him to ignore.
And now that it had hit, the strength of it was overwhelming.
These feelings had rushed in, loud and consuming and uninvited, bending his routines, his priorities, even his sense of self.
And at its center was a strange calm. Moments of quiet understanding, like this one, where everything felt certain and steady, even as the world outside tore itself apart.
Love had reshaped Diego. It tested what he could endure, what he must challenge about himself, and what was worth holding onto once the storm had finally passed.
“Whatcha thinking about?” Wylie asked, propping himself up on his elbows to gaze down at him with an open, curious expression.
“I was thinking how that hurricane should have been named after you,” Diego said, smiling at his own private joke.
“Because I rocked your world and gave you the best sex of your life?” Wylie asked.
“Because you’ve torn me down to the studs and rebuilt me.”
Wylie contemplated that for a moment, a soft smile curving his lips, then said, “No, you did that yourself.”
His love for Wylie had rearranged everything–his life, his outlook, and his future. But he’d been the one putting in the work, day in, day out. And he would continue to strive to be a better partner, a better son, and a better person, not only for Wylie but for himself too.
“I’m going to do my best to hold onto you,” Diego said with a raw honesty that still surprised him.
Wylie squeezed him tighter and said with a satisfied grin. “You’d better.”