Riley’s stomach sank as he thought about any of the guys seeing Josh like that. That part of Josh was for him, and him alone.Wait.
Fuck, I need to sit down.
He couldn’t think straight and he could feel his mind exploding with this development.
Was it possible that he could be…
Oh, hell.
5
“USUALLY, I HAVE TO confirm I’m over eighteen before I see someone take a ball to the face. You okay, man?”
Riley blinked at Cole, wondering what it was like being in his head, then nodded. A few drops of freezing water dripped down his face from the bag of ice he held against his eye.
Josh reached over and brushed the drops away from his cheek, offering a sympathetic smile that warmed Riley from the inside.
“I still can’t believe you scored off your face. That takes real talent, Ri!”
He bumped his shoulder against Josh’s and took a swig of his beer. The Cherry Stems had an indoor soccer game that night, and Riley caught a ball to his eye as it ricocheted off the wall right above the goal. It bouncedoff his face into the back of the net, surprising both him and the opposing goalie. The guy was kind enough to check he was okay instead of caring about the goal Riley had scored.
That was the nice thing about playing in adult recreational leagues. Yeah, they were there to win, but no one wanted to sacrifice their bodies when they all had to go to work the next day. One of the benefits of playing with a bunch of thirty-somethings.
The ball had hit him right in the corner of his eye, which now stung like hell. He didn’t seem to have a concussion, and the ice was more of a precaution forced on him by his worried group of friends gathered at Hero’s Pub, Cherrywood’s go-to neighborhood bar.
Hero’s had a welcoming atmosphere that made it perfect for a laid-back, casual hangout, yet it was nice enough for a date night. A huge granite bar sat in the middle of the room, with stools and tables surrounding it on all sides. Servers walked around with smiles and delicious food as games played on the flat-screen TVs above the bar and along the walls.
Their team always gathered here after a game, trying to sit away from others so their sweat-soaked clothes didn’t bother anyone.
“I’ll live,” Riley said as he turned his attention to Abby and Emilio at the other end of the table. “Are you two getting excited for your travels?”
Abby’s blonde curls bounced around her face as she nodded excitedly, leaning into the man next to her, an Italian she fell in love with while touring the country over the summer with the girls.
“Yeah, we think we’re all set at this point. We’re going to go north first and make our way up the coast, and then hit Canada before heading to Iceland and then Scandinavia. We’re hoping to see the Northern Lights.”
“That sounds so amazing. I wish I could follow you the whole time,” Josh said, which made Riley think about CJ Rollins again. What were the chances this guy was really following them around? He tried to block it from his mind—for now—so he could enjoy this time with his friends.
Since Emilio was an experienced tour director and Abby had hit a rut in her writing career, they decided to tour the world together and blog about their travels. It didn’t hurt that Emilio was the heir to a toppled mafia empire and had plenty of money to take them anywhere they wanted, but that was another story.
It warmed Riley to see Abby so happy, and it was great listening to someone without a South Jersey accent.
Riley vaguely remembered Josh having a Chinese accent when they were young, but he eventually grew out of it once his parents were gone. Apparently, it was hard to hold onto that accent when nearly everyone around you said things likewooderinstead ofwater. Emilio always tried to hide his shudders when any of them mispronounced water.
“Okay, yeah, we’re all excited to hear about Emilio and Abby’s travels, or the entity I will now refer to asAbilioto save time, but let’s not forget we have our own travels first. Who’s ready for the Poconos next week?”
Quiet cheers erupted around the table as they tried to keep down the noise so as not to disturb other patrons in the bar. That meant nothing to Josh as he shouted, “Hell yeah!” and drew most of the bar’s attention. He didn’t have much of a noise filter when he was excited. Which was often.
He couldn’t help it, though. Josh was legitimately excited for life. Riley loved seeing him so happy, and long ago he made it his mission to keep him that way, despite his tragic past.
“I finalized our housing. We should be able to see fireworks for New Year’s from there. Elena and I found a place with mountain views, a hot tub, three bathrooms and four bedrooms with double beds, so each set of partners gets their own room.”
Riley’s heart stuttered as Cole made eye contact with him when he said the wordpartners.
“Josh and I aren’t partners,” he said, a little too quickly based on Cole’s smirk. Elena glared at Cole from her spot at his side.
“We’re not?” Josh said, pouting as Riley snapped hisattention to him and took in the devastation on his face.
“Uhh…”
