That was the night when Liam and I had first chatted—really chatted—outside Eric’s condo building.
Jesse pulled his glass away from his mouth, laughing. “Not planning on drinking that much tonight, but maybe if you promise to carry me, I’ll change my mind.”
We stood inside one of our local gay bars, after having had dinner with Liam at a nearby Vietnamese restaurant. Chatting by the dividing wall between the two parts of the bar, I had deliberately positioned myself beside Liam so that my elbow would occasionally brush up against his arm, something he either didn’t notice or worked not to draw attention to.
I wondered if he’d had the same issue I had throughout dinner—working to avoid looking at him. Struggling and failing.
He hadn’t made much eye contact with me throughout, something that was more than a little disappointing and kept me throwing back drinks right along with Jesse.
“So we’ll meet around four tomorrow for a little one-on-one?” Eric asked Liam.
“Just like the good ol’ days,” Liam joked.
Over dinner, they’d mentioned possibly shooting a few hoops while Liam was in town.
“That’s how we met,” Eric added, talking to Jesse and me. “In a gym in San Diego all those years ago. We both happened to come in at the same time, and we’d play some games and then spot each other at the gym. God, how long ago was that?”
“We can just pretend it was a few months ago.”
“Some days it feels like that’s all it’s been.”
Eric offered Liam a warm, friendly smile, and I could imagine them back in the day, neither open, with so many secrets on their minds, but respecting each other’s space in that regard.
We had a few more drinks before Jesse said, “I gotta get outta here before I have another and can’t do shit at work tomorrow.” He glanced around before leaning into me. “Plus, if I drink much more, your dad isn’t gonna want to—” He stopped himself and smiled awkwardly. “Okay, maybe I’m already a little more lit than I thought.”
“It’s all good, Stepdad,” I said playfully, patting him on the back. “You guys just need to get home safe.”
I inspected Liam’s expression. Was he going to bail with them? Or would he stay…because God, I wanted to be on my own with him again.
I had a feeling nothing would happen, nothingcouldhappen, but it didn’t change how much I wanted to spend time with him.
Eric and Jesse said their goodbyes, and Liam offered them hugs, his feet staying rooted to the bar floor as they headed off, Eric hooking his arm around Jesse before turning and sneaking a kiss on his forehead.
“To the happy married couple,” Liam said, his gaze finally turning to me, and he tapped his cocktail against mine.
We drank to Jesse and Eric, sharing a good bit of silence amid the blaring beat from the dance floor on the other side of the dividing wall. However, as usual, there was nothing about it that made it weird or unsettling. It was like the most comfortable space to coexist with Liam.
With the beat blasting, inspiration stirred within me. “Come on,” I told him.
I wasn’t going to ask. I took his hand, and despite his stature and how effortless it would have been for him to resist me, he followed willingly as I guided him to the dance floor. It took a little bit of navigating through the crowd, but considering Liam’s size, most people were willing to part, or even just back away to get a look at his sexy self.
I found us an open space and spun around to him. “Just like PV,” I said, raising my voice to make sure he’d hear me.
I moved close to him, finding my way into the rhythm of the music.
His eyes narrowed ever so slightly, but he didn’t fight me on it.
My mind raced back to those moments when we first met and danced. There was something so right about the way we moved together, something I could feel in the core of my being as I had my ass against his pelvis, his hand on my waist.
He went with it, moving with me in a way that came so naturally to him. We continued on before the music changed, and I recognized the song.
“Holy shit!” I exclaimed, turning to the TV screens behind the bar and seeing a slideshow as the familiar tune played. “You know what this is?” I asked, and he shook his head. “Nicole Scherzinger’s ‘Say Yes.’”
“I don’t even knowwhothat is.”
“Yes, you do. The Pussycat Dolls. She was the lead singer. She had this solo album. No one’s ever heard of it, I swear, but it was so good. Maybe the best pop album of all time.”
“If you say so.”
