Watching Frankie’s cheeks pink with pleasure, I could’ve kicked myself. It took so little to make him happy, and that made me angry. Not at him, but with myself. The compliments should be flowing off my tongue for him. Frankie was gorgeous and sweet. He unfailingly supported me no matter what job I tried for, and since I came back and we agreed to work things out, he stood up to not only his friends, but his family, choosing me over them.
No one had ever done that before.
Now I understood how spectacularly I’d failed Frankie. The months I spent in prison divided my life into two parts: the old Aaron before, and the new, hopefully improved Aaron after. Before prison, I never did the right thing or made the right choices, whether it was blowing off a job to hang out and lying about it, or treating Frankie like his sole function was to be there for me to use. I never gave Frankie my full attention; I was too busy getting cozy with the next bottle of Bud. I didn’t give a damn about consequences because there’d been none. Now, I had so much to work on, but the first step in making over a new Aaron would be to show my guy he was my everything.
“I love it when you come watch me. Austin and Rhoades might be there, and I don’t want no problems between you guys.”
The microwave pinged, and he retrieved the dish he’d put inside and separated the food onto two plates. “Wanna get the waters?”
I did as he asked, and we sat down to eat. The food, as always, smelled delicious, but I found I had little appetite after all and set my fork down after only a few bites.
“I don’t plan on trouble. But Austin—”
“Isn’t gonna be a problem no more either. He and I had a talk.”
“Yeah? What’d you have to do, threaten to stop being friends if he don’t wanna talk to me?” I stabbed at the pasta.
“I would, you know,” Frankie said softly.
“I don’t deserve you.”
“So prove them wrong. Show them you do.”
His eyes challenged me, and I found myself nodding.
Another night atMan Up meant another night of nursing club sodas. Only this time, I didn’t sit at the bar. Moments after I walked in with Frankie, Austin and Rhoades showed up and invited me to sit with them. Guessing this was part of Austin’s reconciliation tour with me, I had no choice but to accept, and surprisingly found myself having a good time.
“Does this bother you?” Rhoades halted pouring himself a scotch and set the bottle back on the table. “I recall you said you weren’t drinking.”
Funny enough, I liked Austin’s boyfriend, even though he was the type I normally hated—rich, well dressed, and with that untouchable aura of power surrounding him that screamed, “I can do whatever I want and not give a shit about you.”
“No,” I said firmly. “You go ahead. I gotta learn to be around it and not pretend it doesn’t exist.”
Dressed in a button-down and sharper than I’d ever seen him before, Austin traced the rim of his glass with his fingertip, looking thoughtful. “I guess that’s all you can do. I give you credit.”
Whoa.NowthatI didn’t expect, and the shock of his words must’ve shown on my face because Austin grinned at me.
“You’re surprised. Is it the compliment? I can be nice. Occasionally.”
“More than occasionally, I’d say.” Rhoades slipped his free hand around Austin’s neck and rubbed his collarbone. Austin shifted closer.
“Well, only with certain people.”
That got him a smile from the normally reserved Rhoades. Fascinated by their dynamic, I watched them interact. Frankie had explained how Austin hadn’t planned to fall for Rhoades and fought against it. He’d left a privileged life to live on his own terms and pushed almost everyone else away. Earning Austin’s trust would be a huge step in redeeming myself.
“I want to do what’s right. To show Frankie I’ve changed. But deep down, I know it really ain’t Frankie I gotta do this for. It’s me. I gotta do the heavy lifting.”
A smile tipped up the corners of Austin’s lips. “I’d say you’ve already made a damn good start. Half the battle is recognizing what you’ve said right here.”
“Yeah, well.” I gulped down some of my soda to hide my embarrassment. I didn’t show my cards to most people. “He’s worth it.”
“Yeah, he is. Frankie’s the best friend I’ve ever had. He’d take a bullet for you, but don’t mistake his good heart for being a patsy. He’s strong as hell.”
The music swelled, and I could hear clapping in the distance. Somehow I knew that it was for Frankie, and sure enough, he came onstage, leading the pack of dancers. The overhead strobes picked up the gold of his crown, and his chest gleamed from the glittered oil he’d told me he planned on using. And like the star he was, Frankie shined.
“How is everyone tonight? Are you ready to get it on?”
Whistles and shouts greeted his callout.
