He rubs a hand over his jaw, and the sound of his stubble brushing against his palm makes me shiver. “Would you like to do it again? Hang out sometime?”
I try not to let my eagerness for that idea come through in my voice as I nod. “Yeah, I’d really like that.”
“Cool. Good night, Elliot.”
“Night, Hunter. I hope you can get some sleep.”
I’m unable to wipe the smile from my face as I jump out of the truck and make my way inside, Hunter’s number burning a hole in my pocket. How soon is too soon to text him? Should Itext him tonight or leave it until tomorrow? Are there rules for this sort of thing?
Instead of getting out on my floor, I hit the button for two floors above. I knock manically on the door, not letting up until I hear the flick of the lock and the door open to reveal a flustered-looking Alex.
“Elliot? What happened? Are you okay?” he asks, his wide, blue eyes scanning me from head to toe.
“I don’t know,” I say, running a hand through my hair.
He steps aside for me to go in, and I begin to pace around the living room, Ernie following at my heels.
“I’ve just spent the evening with Hunter, and now I have his number, and I don’t know what to do. How soon do I text him? Do I text him now? Tomorrow? Is there like a time frame I need to leave it? What should I say?” My heart rate kicks up as all my words come tumbling out in a rush.
Alex moves to stand in front of me, grabbing hold of my biceps and pausing my pacing.
“Okay, first of all, take a breath,” he says calmly.
I take in a big, deep breath through my nose before letting it out.
“Good. Let’s sit down, and we can unpack everything one at a time.”
Nodding, I fall back onto the couch. Ernie jumps up next to me, smothering my face with kisses. I give him some love before turning back to Alex, and realize he’s only wearing pajama bottoms, and his hair is a mess.
I cringe. “Did I interrupt your sexy time?”
He snorts. “Something like that. Blaine will probably be out in a few minutes. He’s having a sulky moment.”
I gag, and Alex laughs.
“So, let’s start at the beginning. Tell me everything. So, you saw Hunter?”
His eyes light up as I tell him about my night. His smile grows wider with each minute, and I can’t help but match his energy.
“Elliot, this is amazing.”
“Is it?”
“Yes! Okay, so this is what we’re gonna do,” he says, and I listen intently as he gives me all the advice I need to take that next step.
Chapter Seven
Hunter
After showing the ticket on my phone to the arena assistant, I make my way down to my seat. I haven’t been to a hockey game in a long time, probably not since I lived in Massachusetts, and I moved away from there eighteen years ago. Duncan and I used to catch the train into Boston and sit up near the rafters because it’s all we could afford, but it didn’t matter because we were young and excited to be out together.
I thought I would feel a level of guilt for how much I enjoyed spending time with Elliot the other night, especially given it was on the same night that has always been dedicated to reliving a fond memory with Duncan.
But I didn’t, and I’m not quite sure how I feel about that.
It’s not like I haven’t been with another man in the seven years since he passed. I’ve had plenty of hookups, but that’s all it was. No dates. Just meaningless sex. But that night didn’t feel meaningless.
I mean, fuck, I fell asleep around the guy. Sure, it was only for forty minutes or so, but that hasn’t happened outside of the firehouse. I felt a level of ease around him, and it didn’t take long to let the tiredness take hold.
