Breathing heavily, Leo blinked back to awareness. The grinning faces of Peter, Marla, Georgie, and a couple of other guys he’d gone a few rounds with over the years greeted his eyes, and his only hope was an earthquake that would open the ground up and swallow him whole.
“Shit. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to do that.” Avoiding Morgan and everyone’s stares, he gulped his beer. His brain went fuzzy, and he closed his eyes to stop the slight spinning.
Morgan paled, then flushed bright red. “No? You could’ve fooled me. It felt like you knew exactly what you were doing.”
“No—yeah, I mean I shouldn’t have done it.”
Morgan wiped his mouth with a napkin and edged away from him. “Forget about it.”
Forget about it? Fuck no, his body screamed. How can you forget about a kiss like that? A kiss that woke your body up from the cold, like a seed in the frozen ground waiting for winter’s bleakness to melt and give way to the warmth of spring. Leo had spent his life in winter, and Morgan’s kiss was his spring awakening.
“No, I’m not saying this right, Goddamn it.” Leo pounded the table, and Morgan jumped, his face tight and frightened.
“Stop it. I said forget about it. It’s fine.” Without another word, Morgan took off across the yard and into the house. Marla rushed after him while Peter, his face a mask, joined Leo at the table.
“Care to explain what the hell just happened?”
Surprised at Peter’s controlled anger, Leo pushed his hands through his hair. “I have no fucking clue. None at all.” He picked up Morgan’s beer and drank.
“Stop that. Drinking isn’t going to help.” Peter pushed the bottle away from him.
“I know. Nothing will. Now fuck off.”
Despite Peter’s protestations, Leo downed the rest of the beer. It was the only way to erase the memory of the hurt on Morgan’s face. This time it mattered, and he had no idea how to fix it.
