I nip his bottom lip between my teeth, and he lets out a surprised gasp. His fingers dig involuntarily into the soft flesh below my ribs, and it’s the pinch I need to take a breath.
“Hi.” I smile, tucking a strand of hair behind his ear. It’s still damp from the shower he must have taken at the practice facility. I take off my boots, leaving them by the door.
“Would you like a drink? Or food? I have snacks,” he asks as I follow him down the hall into the spacious open-plan kitchen/living area.
There’s a large sectional couch facing the wall-mounted TV. A built-in electric fire sits underneath, and floor-to-ceiling windows give a panoramic view of the river. The couch cushionsare deep enough you could easily use them as a bed, and judging by the blankets thrown all over, it’s something Elliot does often.
I smile at the thought.
“No, I’m good, thanks,” I answer, shrugging off my leather jacket and tossing it over one of the stools at the kitchen island. “Did you get home okay?”
He moves to the couch, and I take a seat next to him, noting the four different drinks on the side table behind him.
“Yeah. I ended up going to Blaine’s place. He lives a few floors up, and I brought his dog back here, then we fell asleep on the couch.”
“Ah, so those times I saw you walking a dog, he wasn’t yours?” I ask curiously.
“No,” he laughs quietly, then ducks his chin in a sudden bout of shyness. His hair creates a curtain around his face, and my fingers itch to brush it back from his face. “I like to steal him sometimes. I’ve always wanted a dog, but I can barely take care of myself. So I get my dog fixes with Ernie, and we also have a team dog called Boomer. He’s a golden retriever, and I make sure to see him every time our PR lady brings him in.”
“I’m sure you’re not that bad.”
He scoffs. “Oh, I am. I have the same chef as Zach who prepares all my meals so all I need to do is heat them up, but I end up forgetting to actually eat them.” He points in the direction of the fridge. “Alex made me this calendar where I can mark off when I’ve had my meal, and I have timers on my phone to remind me to eat.”
I hold back my laughter. Not because it’s funny, as it isn’t.
No. I find it amusing because Elliot reminds me a lot of when Duncan was unmedicated.
“There’s nothing wrong with that.”
He tugs his sleeves over his hands. “I have to get a lot of help, which I know isn’t normal for people my age. It’s why I shouldn’t get a dog because it wouldn’t be fair.”
I shift in my seat, angling my body toward him. “El?”
“Yeah?”
I reach up, combing my fingers through his blond waves to reveal more of his face.
“Normal is overrated, and the only unfair thing on the dog would be the amount of time you travel. Because while I’ve only known you a little while, I already know you would love it so fucking hard, it would be the luckiest dog in the world.”
A blush creeps onto his cheeks. He digs his teeth into his bottom lip as the corners hitch up in a smile.
Fuck, I love being able to get this kind of reaction out of him. Like he beams at the smallest amount of praise.
“People have told me I’m too much, and I know being too much of something isn’t a good thing. Even the Spice Girls had a song about it.”
I scrub my hand over my mouth, trying to disguise my silent laughter.
“I don’t think you’re too much,” I tell him truthfully.
“I can be really loud too,” he adds, throwing his arms out wide before dropping them into his lap again. “But sometimes, I can be all quiet. It’s usually when I get tired, or I’ve had to be around a lot of people. People think I’m being rude, but I’m not.”
“I understand. You don’t have to explain yourself to me, El. You’re a lot like how my husband, Duncan, was, in a lot of ways.”
He blinks, and I realize my mistake. Fuck. I didn’t intend for it to sound like that. I don’t want Elliot thinking I’m comparing him to Duncan, or using him as a replacement. While they have similar traits, they are different.
Worrying he’ll take my comment the wrong way, I open my mouth to tell him, but then he shocks me as he sits cross-legged,angling his body to face me and asks, “Will you tell me about him?”
“Duncan?”
