“Hey, sleepyhead. Wake up. Got you coffee.”
Tyler stirs a little. “Coffee?” he mumbles.
“Just the way you like it.”
Ty sits up and throws his legs over the edge of the bed, rubbing his scruffy, handsome face. He reaches for his glasses on the nightstand and slips them on then makes a grabby hand gesture while bending his head forward, stretching his neck and back. “Gimme gimme.”
I hand it to him but before he can take a drink, I lift his chin and bend to kiss him.
“Mmh.” Tyler pulls his soft lips from mine.
“Don’t worry. They’re gone.” I straighten and take a sip of coffee.
Ty takes a drink. He stares at his mug. “I’m not sure about this, Alex.”
“Not sure about what? Didn’t I make it right?”
“Not the coffee.” He looks up at me, green eyes tired and worried but bright as the sun streams through the cracks in the blinds. “Us.” Ty rakes his fingers through his dark, sleep-mussed hair. “Mom and Ben will find out eventually, and what happens when they do?”
I sit on the bed beside him. “Hopefully they’ll just be happy for us.”
Tyler cocks his head, giving me a sideways look with a silent “seriously” attached.
“Oh, speaking of Mom and Dad, Dad wanted me to make sure you could be home for dinner tonight. He wants to have us all together to celebrate Mom’s promotion at work.”
“Okay, but seriously, back to us.” Ty lets out a deep sigh.
“Look, Ty. I love you. Like all-in balls-deep love you. We’re related by marriage and that’s it. I think if we’re just upfront and honest with them, they won’t object to us being together.”
Tyler stares at me, his eyes blown wide.
“Dude, what?”
“You just said you love me.”
“Don’t look so shocked. Guys fall in love all the time.”
“Yeah, but that’s the first time you told me that.”
“Get used to it. It won’t be the last.”
Tyler inhales deeply and takes a sip of his coffee.
I can see the gears in his brain grinding. “Stop it.”
He looks at me, brows pinched. “Stop what?”
“Over-analyzing. Everything will work out.”
“So you say.”
“Because I know.”
Tyler sucks his bottom lip under his teeth.
“What’s holding you back, Ty? I thought you wanted this. You were the one who argued against us splitting apart before.”
“Because it fucking crushed me!”
