Chapter Twenty-Eight
Lucas
So far, being Hunter’s boyfriend hasn’t been much different from what we were doing before, and honestly, I’m okay with that.
I don’t have to make a statement like that, don’t need people in my life and business when it’s something that really matters to me.
Sure, I’m loud in who I am, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t things I hold close to my chest, and I want Hunter to be that, partly because the more people we let in, the harder it’ll be.
But when we’re together, when we’re in bed, or cooking in his kitchen, or sneaking away to quiet places to hike, I’m basking in the knowledge that Hunter is mine. That he sees something in me I never thought he would be able to see.
He makes a muffled sound, sleeping beside me.
We’ve mostly stayed at his place. His last game was at home this week.
I didn’t go, though that’s something a boyfriend would do, but I watched at his house and was here waiting for Hunter when he got home.
I’d blown him the second he came in, and he’d joked about how lucky he was to come home to me, and I told him he might not feel the same when he saw the dirty dishes in the sink or photos spread out on his kitchen table.
Hunter just laughed, said the mess didn’t bother him, then asked me to show him what I was working on, so we went over every photo together, him asking questions, either being interested or a good fucking actor.
I’ve tried not to think too much about what he told me because I’m not sure how to feel about it.
Is there a part of me that feels better knowing Hunter’s feelings toward Ellis had changed?
Of course. Does it ease some of my concerns knowing he had broken up with Ellis?
I think anyone who pretends they wouldn’t feel that way in this situation is lying to themselves, but then there’s also the truth that it’s all so fucking sad.
It’s devastating to think of Ellis being so sad and alone when he died, that he’d just lost the man he loved, and that Hunter lives with the guilt, blaming himself for what happened.
That they were so fucking young when they got together, just kids, and then got wrapped up in this whole world that made them feel like they had to be a package deal.
Maybe if he’d lived, Ellis would have realized he felt the same way Hunter did.
Maybe he would have found someone better for him.
Maybe they would have realized they loved each other and gotten back together.
Maybe they would just be best friends, the way they started.
Hunter rolls over, his eyes fluttering open. We slept in today, something he’s not able to do very often. “Good morning,” he says sleepily.
“’Morning. What do you want to do today?”
“Stay in bed all day?” He smiles, then kisses me.
It’s the first day of his bye week, so Hunter has absolutely no responsibility for seven whole days. No practice, no games, no strategy meetings.
“I think that can be arranged.” I roll on top of him, and we do stay there for another two hours, talking, kissing, making each other come, then talking some more.
Eventually Hunter’s stomach growls, and he says, “Maybe we should get up. I might die if I don’t eat.”
“We wouldn’t want that,” I tease. The man can be a bottomless pit, but then, if I burned as many calories as he does on an average day, I would always need to refuel too.
We make a late breakfast together, then eat on his covered patio out back. Hunter’s house is secluded, his yard with a tall privacy fence that keeps away prying eyes.
“I wish I could see you work,” he says out of the blue.
“At a shoot?”
“Yeah. I’d like to see you in your element. You’re really fucking good, Lucas.”
I fan myself. “Aw, aren’t you sweet. And right.” I shrug. “One day,” I say. “It would be fun. I’m a dick when I’m shooting, though. Get lost in my head. Isla calls me a monster.” I chuckle.
“She sounds great.”
“Because she calls me a monster?”
“Because she loves you. She’s your best friend. She’s been there for you when I wasn’t.”
I roll my eyes. “It wasn’t your fault.”
“I could have still been there for you.”
I guess, but I’m tired of obsessing about the past. “She wants to meet you, and she’s safe, Hunt. She knows about us. I needed someone to talk to. I’m sorry if that was betraying your confidence, but—”
“Invite her over to dinner tonight,” he interrupts.
“What?”
“You heard me. Invite her over. Let’s…let’s hang out with someone. Be a normal couple. I want to give you that. I want to give us that.”
It’s things like this that made me fall for Hunter in the first place.
He’s always thinking of others. He’s looking for ways to make people happy and do what’s right, sometimes to his detriment.
He can try too hard and hurt himself in his efforts to protect others, but it always comes from a good place.
“Okay.” I smile. “She’d like that.” I pick up my phone and call her.
Isla answers right away. “If it isn’t my best friend who hardly has time for me anymore. What did I do to earn his phone call? That asshole better not have hurt you.”
“I didn’t!” Hunter calls out, making Isla and me realize he can hear her. “I promise.”
“Oh shit,” she says. “Warn a girl next time.”
“I didn’t know he could hear you either. I actually called because Hunter would like me to invite you to his house tonight for dinner.”
“I’ll be there in like thirty.”
“That’s not dinner, you brat.”
“Ugh. Fine. What time should I come over?”
I look at Hunter. He shrugs and says, “Three? We can hang out for a while.”
“Three it is,” Isla replies.
“Do the two of you just want to talk?” I ask.
“Oh, we’ll talk,” Isla says. “In fact, I might talk to him all day. Don’t be mad at me if I ignore you, babe.”
I chuckle. “I won’t. I’ll text you his address.”
“See you soon. Love you.”
“I love you too,” I tell her, then end the call. “Thank you…and sorry about that.”
“You don’t have to apologize. She cares about you, and I do too.”
*
I’m so excited for this. No one in my family has ever met Isla.
Bringing friends home was never really my thing.
Of course, I did when I was young, but the older I got, the less it happened.
My parents never liked my friends, not the way they did Ellis’s, and I never wanted anyone around my father so he could use them to try and get me to do what he wanted—Can you believe Lucas?
Throwing all that talent away. I bet you would play, wouldn’t you?
And even if football was the furthest thing from what they enjoyed, they would always say yes because no one says no to Ellis Blake Sr.
Plus, being around Isla, someone who knows about Hunter and me, makes it feel more real, like it’s not only my wishful thinking or a reality I’ve created for myself that doesn’t really exist.
The doorbell rings, and I look at Hunter. He’s wearing jeans and a nice button-up that fit him well, not too tight but not too loose. Definitely dressier than my T-shirt and jeans with holes in the knees.
“Why the fuck am I nervous?” he asks.
“I don’t know. It’s just Isla.”
“She’s not just Isla to me. She’s your best friend.” He looks bashful for a moment in a way that shouldn’t be so endearing. “I want her to like me.”
“Everyone likes you. She’ll probably wonder why you like me,” I say, heading to the door.
“No. She won’t,” he says, voice all soft and sincere and landing straight in my chest.
“Shut up,” I counter, and Hunter laughs, just before I open the door.
“Hey, babe,” Isla greets me, looking beautiful as always. She’s tall and curvy, with brown skin that’s always glowing, and she wears her hair natural, in tight curls perfectly placed and twisted.
“Hey, you.” I hug her, and Isla squeezes me tightly, mouth close to my ear when she whispers, “He’s hot.”
“You’ve seen him before,” I reply, but I appreciate the support.
When we pull back, she gives Hunter the once-over. “So cute. I never knew you had a thing for good boys, Lucas.”
“I’m not a good boy,” Hunter argues, which makes him sound like he’s exactly that. As if realizing how that came across, he chuckles and shakes his head. “That sounded better in my head.”
“You’re not his type, but then, he has been in love with you forever.”
I tense. Hunter’s gaze shoots to me, holding me captive.
Isla must sense she’s just dropped a bomb on us, or maybe it’s my deer-in-headlights expression. “Oh shit,” she says. “I’m so fucking sorry. I assumed you knew. You guys are like, a thing now, and I thought you must have talked about that.” She turns to me. “I’m so sorry, babe.”
It doesn’t really change things, and if Hunter really thought about it, he probably would have realized I’ve had feelings for him all along. Regardless, there’s nothing we can do about it now.
“Are we really surprised I would be the kind of guy to have a secret crush on his brother’s boyfriend his whole life?”
“Don’t talk about yourself that way,” they say in unison, then look at each other and smile.
Oh God. Is this going to be a thing? Are they going to gang up on me now with all this positivity? “That was weird,” I say.
“We’re serious,” Hunter argues.
“You literally just met. I changed my mind. Go home, Isla.” I pretend to nudge her toward the door, but she laughs and playfully fights me off.
“We love you,” she says, jump-starting my heart. Hunter never said he loves me, and he doesn’t say it now, but as I stand here with my best friend and the man I’ve always wanted, I can make myself believe he does.