He shakes his head. “Go out and chat with Liam. I’m gonna shower and brush my teeth. I feel so gross from being out there. Plus, I gotta piss like nobody’sbusiness.”
“Didn’t you go out there topee?”
“Well, something cameup.”
“Tell me about it,” I say, reflecting on exactly how much came up and spilled across the asphalt. “Okay, I’ll beback.”
I slide off the bed and stand, when a tug on my hand makes me turn to see Jesse looking at me, his gaze filled withconcern.
“Tell Ty you lovehim.”
“What? Now I really know you’redrunk.”
“Just…remind him. Sometimes we all need to hearthat.”
When Liam and I stepped outside, it was clear Jesse and Ty were in the middle of a discussion, and I can’t help but wonder if Ty was talking to him about me…about Ty’s and my relationship. I even noticed when I told him I loved him at dinner. I don’t say thatenough.
“I will,” I say, relaxing my hand on Jesse’s. “Thank you. I’ll be right back,okay?”
I kiss his forehead again and head back into the livingroom.
Liam’s sitting on one part of the sectional sofa, Ty on the other. They’re quiet, surely both a little drunk and tired after the night we had. I wonder what they think about my drunk-ass boyfriend…no—my drunk-assfiancé.
God, that feels a hell of a lot better thanboyfriend.
“How’s our Jesse doing?” Tyasks.
“He’ll befine.”
“Yeah, I figured,” Liam pipes up as I approach and take a seat beside him. “He could walk fine until you went allRomancing the Stoneon him, carrying him around like a damsel indistress.”
“It was kind of overdramatic, wasn’t it?” I acknowledge that perhaps I was a little too concerned. “But better me being overly protective and carrying him than he winds up stumbling and tripping, seriously hurtinghimself.”
“Fair point. On that note, I’m gonna slip out of here,” Liam says, rising to hisfeet.
“You don’t want to stay for adrink?”
“We’ve all had about as many drinks as we should for the evening. And you need to go tend to yourman.”
That’s the reason Liam and I have been able to remain friends all these years. So many things he gets about me without me ever having to saythem.
I lead him to the door, and then it’s just me andTy.
He fishes through the bottom drawer in the fridge for a bottle of water and grabs another, offering it to me. “Might want to make sure Jesse downs some more before he heads tobed.”
“Thank you,Ty.”
“Aw, naw, it’s just a littleDasani.”
“Not for the water. I mean, yes, for that too. It was thoughtful of you. But thank you for coming on this trip. For all the support you never had to give. I was thinking tonight, I never say it enough, but I love you. I’m not very good at showing it, but…no matter what, Ido.”
He inspects my expression as though he’s searching for something…I can’t imagine what. “Thank you,” he says, then shakes his head. “But you have to get in there and take care of your drunkie man. Go on. I’ll see you bright and early, and I expect omelettes to help me recover from thishangover.”
“That sounds like a greatidea.”
There’s this silence again between us, and I move toward him and put my arm around him, pulling him close, and for the first time in a long time, he hugs back, not like he’s trying to get it over with, the way he sometimes does, but a real, meaningfulhug.
We hold one another, right there. I appreciate his allowing me to stay this close to him for this long. As I figured had to happen sooner or later, he initiates pulling away, and a wry smirk slips across his lips. “Guess I’m gonna head to bed, then.Night.”
