“Thanks.” Thomas leaned closer to Rhys across the table. He wasn’t sure Rhys would remember any of this tomorrow, but at the moment Rhys didn’t seem like he was going to run if Thomas said what was in his heart. “I want to be happy. I want you to be happy, too. I want you to feel like living again.”
“You know, I’m kind of starting to want that too,” Rhys said, reaching for his glass again. “I didn’t think I ever would.”
A fist squeezed Thomas’s heart. Oh, how he wanted to be the one Rhys turned to, the one to help him rise above the grief that had consumed him for so long. “I’m glad.”
“I enjoyed today too,” Rhys said, and then he grimaced. “Once we got away from Scott, at least.” He picked up his glass. “It’s empty,” he said mournfully.
“Are you saying you want more?” Thomas shook his head in amusement.
“I do, but… Shit, how are we going to get home?” Rhys set down the glass and stared at his plate of barely-touched food. “This isn’t going to be enough to sober me up.”
“It’s a start,” Thomas said. He sat back, considering their situation. There was no question of Rhys getting on the motorcycle tonight, and Thomas didn’t know how to drive a motorcycle yet. “As I see it, we have two options. We could call a cab or your parents for a ride, or we could get a room here.”
Rhys scrunched up his face. “No parents,” he said. He thought for a moment, and then added, “No cab. I don’t want to leave my bike here overnight and have to come back for it. Too much trouble.”
“I guess that leaves staying here tonight.” Thomas smiled wryly. If things were different between them, it would have been incredibly romantic to get a room at the resort, to spend the night together, to wake up to the sight of Rhys in bed with him. Of course that was a foolish dream. “Let’s finish dinner, then we’ll see if they have a couple of rooms available.”
“Okay.” Rhys picked up his fork and began eating again, and Thomas was relieved that he appeared to be mellow and agreeable once he passed the threshold from tipsy to intoxicated rather than belligerent or maudlin.
There were too many conflicting emotions running through him for Thomas to have much of an appetite, despite the delicious food. He picked at his meal, wondering what he was going to do if there weren’t any rooms available.
When Rhys had finished his dinner, Thomas pushed his plate back, the food still mostly untouched. “Do you want dessert or maybe some coffee?” he asked.
“I’m satisfied,” Rhys said, pushing his plate away as well. Over the course of the meal, he’d switched to water. “If I’m not driving, I don’t need coffee to sober me up.”
Thomas signaled for the waiter, who brought the bill over. Thomas paid, and then he rose to his feet. “C’mon, Rhys. Let’s go see if they have a place for you to rest your tipsy head.”
“Okay,” Rhys said, sing-songing the word as he pushed back his chair, stood up, and pressed his hand against his forehead. “Whoa…”
Thomas shook his head, amused, as he moved to Rhys’s side and levered his shoulder under Rhys’s arm. “Come on, big guy. I hope you can walk, because I don’t think I can carry you.”
Rhys laughed — a more open, carefree sound than Thomas had heard from him before. “I don’t think you can either,” he said, his dark blue eyes crinkling with mirth. “But I can walk.”
“Okay, then let’s see it. One foot in front of the other,” Thomas said. After they left the dining room, he led Rhys into the lobby and over to the closest loveseat. “Okay, big guy, you stay right there. Don’t let anyone steal you.”
Rhys giggled — there was no other way to describe the sound — and settled into one corner of the loveseat. “I’ll try not to.”
“Good.”
Thomas crossed the lobby and smiled at the young man behind the desk, who had a wealth of curly brown hair and dark brown eyes. “Good evening. Do you have two rooms available for the night?”
“Let me double check before I say for sure, but I think we only have one room left.” The man offered an apologetic smile before turning his attention to a computer screen. “I’m sorry, sir,” he said after a minute or two of typing. “I was right. We’ve only got the one room tonight. Lots of people are in town to see the leaves changing color.”
Thomas hesitated, then nodded. “I’ll take it.” He supposed they were lucky anything at all was available, but sharing a room with Rhys was going to be problematic — and the problem would be not climbing in beside Rhys, cuddling up to him, and letting nature take its course.
“Great!” The man paused and studied Thomas with a puzzled frown. “Have you stayed with us before, sir?”
“No, this is my first time in the area,” Thomas replied. He glanced back over his shoulder to make sure Rhys was out of earshot. “But I certainly hope I’ll be coming back.”
“Huh.” The man shook his head, seeming bewildered. “I would’ve sworn I’ve seen you somewhere before. You look so familiar.”
No one had recognized Thomas up until now, so it caught him a little off guard. But a fan was a fan, and Thomas leaned closer to the man and lowered his voice. “Do you like TV shows about zombies?”
The man squinted at Thomas — and then his entire face lit up with excitement. “Eli!”
Thomas chuckled. “You know, I’m almost as used to answering to that name as my own. Though I don’t suppose you’d let me register as ‘Eli Fawkes and one drunk zombie’?”
“Not if you’re paying by credit card,” the man said, seeming amused — and a little star-struck. “But if it’s cash, we can talk.” He held out his hand. “I’m Caleb Haywood, and I’d like to welcome you to my resort. You’re our first celebrity guest.”
