He remained ahead of Scott, which meant he could decide where to go and when to pull off. There weren’t any traffic lights on the parkway; it was just a long stretch of quiet, curving road with spectacular mountain views. Every so often, there were paved half-circle overlooks where people could stop and take in the scenery. Some of the overlooks were overgrown enough that the valley below was obscured by trees, but Rhys stopped at one at a lower elevation where the trees hadn’t grown up enough to block the view and which wasn’t high enough that they were driving through a low-hanging cloud.
Once Rhys cut off the engine, Thomas climbed off the motorcycle and headed for the edge of the paved semicircle, reaching for his phone. He turned this way and that as he held up his phone horizontally, either taking photos or a video of the colorful expanse stretched out before them. The trees served as a vivid autumnal carpet covering the mountains, mixed with the dark green of the evergreens. The winding switchback road peeked out, a thin black ribbon below, and the peaceful quiet was broken only by the occasional birdcall or the roar of a passing motorcyclist.
When Thomas lowered his phone at last, he turned to Rhys with an expression that bordered on reverential. “This is gorgeous.”
“We should go to Clingmans Dome,” Scott said, moving to stand beside Thomas, and Rhys had to force himself not to bristle. “It’s got an even better view.”
“When it’s not clouded over,” Rhys said. He knew it was childish to be contrary for the sake of it, but he couldn’t seem to stop himself when it came to Scott. If Scott had declared the sky to be blue, Rhys probably would have argued that it wasn’t. “The top of the dome is pretty amazing on a clear day.”
“Which today is,” Scott said, giving Rhys a pointed look.
Rhys was inclined to veto anything Scott suggested on principle, but Thomas’s eyes lit up with eagerness.
“Could we go?” Thomas asked.
“Sure.” Rhys tried to keep the grudging note out of his voice.
“It’s not that far,” Scott said. “We could have lunch there.”
“Okay, but I’d like us to get a selfie here first.” Thomas stretched out his hand toward Rhys, who found himself instinctively reaching out to clasp it, like it was the most natural thing in the world.
“Great idea!” Scott practically jumped to get on Thomas’s other side, and he sidled up as close to Thomas as he could, which made Rhys want to growl and warn him off.
He shot Scott a warning glare instead, but Scott was already hamming up a smile for the camera and paying no attention to Rhys. He slid his arm around Thomas — and bumped into Scott’s arm, and then hedidgrowl until Thomas wrapped his free arm around Rhys’s waist and pressed closer to him while leaning away from Scott.
Thomas held up his phone with the camera view flipped, and he smiled widely as he inclined his head toward Rhys, enhancing the intimacy of their pose. Rhys stared at their image on the screen, struck by how natural they looked together, as if they were a good fit despite their differences. Or perhaps because of them. Rhys was accustomed to comparing other men to Andy, but there was no comparison between Thomas and Andy. Rhys and Andy had been of equal height and size, and Andy had been much more reserved than Thomas. But maybe Charles was right: Rhys needed someone like Thomas.
The flash went off, jolting Rhys out of his wayward thoughts, and he stepped away from Thomas quickly. He didn’t needanyone, and he was content with Thomas’s friendship. But he couldn’t quite ignore the swift pang of jealousy that shot through him at the sight of Scott trying to draw Thomas closer.
“Here, see what you think.” Thomas extricated himself from Scott’s embrace and approached Rhys, holding out his phone so Rhys could see the photo.
“It looks fine,” Rhys said after a quick glance. He didn’t want to see how relaxed and content he appeared or think about the implications.
“I think we look good together,” Scott said, his gaze fixed on Thomas, who was watching Rhys.
“I do too,” Thomas said, meeting Rhys’s eyes briefly before turning his attention back to the screen, a tinge of pink staining his cheeks.
Rhys cleared his throat, eager to break the spell of this odd moment. “So… lunch at Clingmans Dome?”
“Let’s do it.” Thomas tucked his phone back into his pocket, and after one last glance at the overlook, he headed back to the motorcycle.
Before Scott could follow along right behind Thomas, Rhys grabbed his shoulder and fixed him with a stern frown.
“Back off, Captain Obvious.”
Scott widened his eyes and blinked at Rhys. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”
“Uh-huh.” Rhys pushed Scott toward the motorcycles only a little harder than he needed to. He told himself the little display was to maintain the illusion. If they were really dating, he wouldn’t like anyone trying to encroach on their relationship, especially not Scott, so he needed to act the part of a devoted boyfriend.
“Everything okay?” Thomas’s gaze was riveted on Rhys’s face as Rhys approached, and he looked away to avoid the scrutiny. He didn’t know what Thomas had seen, and he didn’t want to send the wrong message.
“It’s fine,” he said.
“We’re good,” Scott said.
Rhys didn’t look at Thomas while they mounted up, but he couldn’t ignore the little squeeze Thomas gave him once they were on the road again — or how reassuring he found it.
