After the hugging session, they went into the small eighties style kitchen, where Vernon was eagerly stirring a pot. As he turned around to greet them, he wiped his hands on his pink apron which saidIf I got smart with you, how would you know?Henry, trying to contain his grin, reached out and shook Vernon’s hand. As he looked to his left, he could see that Colton was about to explode at the sight of the balding, middle-aged man wearing what was beyond a doubt Tilly’s apron.
“Oh, you can just go on and say it,” Vernon grinned at them both as he looked down at the apron. Simultaneously, Colton and Henry burst into a laughing fit, and Tilly went to her husband and gave him a peck on the cheek while he squeezed her waist affectionately.
“Dinner’s just about ready, boys,” Vernon continued as he furiously stirred the saucepan and proceeded to open a can of cranberry sauce. His face was sweaty from the effort, but he was humming along as if cooking at home after an entire day working at the diner was the second-best thing in the world. The best thing was clearly Tilly smiling at him fondly while shaking her head. Yeah, Henry wasn’t envious at all.
“You boys want a cold beer?” Tilly asked, reaching for the door to the fridge.
They nodded in unison. They were hardly boys, were they, but once again Henry ate up the fact that Tilly referred to them as a unit.
Once they were seated in the dining room in front of the pot roast, Henry looked around at the room where he’d sat so many times before. It was a modest place but with an undeniable homely feel to it. Everything looked comfy and Henry couldn’t help but feel like this was the way a home ought to be. It was clear that this was a house where people lived and loved each other. Over the blazing fireplace were pictures from camping trips and birthday celebrations, along with graduation photos of the children. Small, kitschy holiday memorabilia lined the one side of the fireplace mantel as well.
Suddenly, Henry was confronted with everything he’d always wanted for himself. He wanted a family, a husband and children perhaps. Not yet, but one day. That was the one thing he’d always hoped for. He and Chad had even spoken about it. A house with a family, maybe a dog. Someone to come home to. Someone to share all life’s little mundane things with and all the big occasions as well. Birthdays, holidays, Christmases. Barbeques on hot July afternoons. Picking out a Christmas tree, feeling the chill in the Nebraska air just minutes before it began to snow. He wanted all of it one day.
“Well, dig in, boys,” Vernon exclaimed clapping his hands together. “The food ain’t gonna get eaten all by itself.”
Tilly started passing around potatoes while Vernon carved the roast. Henry felt Colton looking at him and turned his head to meet his eyes. For some reason, Tilly had insisted that the two of them were seated next to each other across from her and Vernon.Like you were a real couple,he thought to himself.
“Potatoes?” Colton asked with a smirk as if guessing Henry’s thoughts which was of course impossible.
“Thank you,” Henry replied with a puzzled frown. It was strange, but Colton seemed to be smiling at him constantly. Had he missed something or was this just Colton’s way of stressing that they were now in fact friends?
“This is really good,” Colton proclaimed after almost inhaling half of his plate. “Much better than the Army grub.”
“Well, thank you, hon. I’m glad you like it. We always make it for the kids when they’re home,” Tilly wiped at her now moist eyes.
“Aww, c’mon now, sweetheart,” Vernon squeezed her shoulder lovingly. “They’ll be home soon enough for the holidays, and you’ll be able to fuss over them as much as you like.”
Henry, who sensed Colton’s eyes burning on his left side, smiled at the older couple. It was evident to everyone that they were just as much in love now as they’d probably been thirty something years ago when Vernon had blazed into town and swiped Tilly off her feet.
As he turned his head and looked at Colton, he immediately recognized the same kind of longing in the other man’s eyes. Staring into Colton’s serious eyes, Henry expected him to look away. To break the connection. But while Henry felt his own cheeks heating and his heart almost beating out of his chest, the fine lines around Colton’s eyes crinkled as he continued to smile at Henry. So, it ended up being Henry who looked away first.
CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
Colton
“DO YOU WANNAgo for a beer?” Colton surprised himself by asking as they stood outside Tilly and Vernon’s house. It had been all he could think about the entire evening as they were having dinner and afterwards when they’d played cards. It had been a recurring thought buzzing around in his head all damn day like a persistent fly. That he wanted to be alone with Henry. Colton didn’t allow himself to think too hard about why.
“Sure, but not much is open at this hour,” Henry smiled briefly as his gaze connected with Colton’s. The usual sky-blue had turned almost indigo in the faint glow from the porch light.
“I have a six pack in my car if you don’t mind driving some place,” Colton said as he put his ball cap back on to cover up his unruly hair. He’d taken it off during dinner, but now he suddenly felt naked without it. At this point he wasn’t sure if he wanted Henry to say yes or no. He was nervous yet hopeful at the same time.
“I don’t mind,” he heard Henry reply almost through a fog. He bit his lower lip as he continued. “We could drive up to the creek.” Henry rubbed his hands against his denim clad thighs, and Colton exhaled a deep breath he hadn’t realized he’d been holding.
“Okay. You wanna take the truck?” He didn’t think that Henry had taken his car since he lived really close by. Henry nodded at him but didn’t move.
“Let’s go,” Colton nodded at the truck and Henry followed him. “It’s a bit messy since I use it for work,” he smiled apologetically as he opened the door to the passenger side.
“No worries,” Henry grinned at him while he got in the car and started fastening his seat belt. “You’re talking to a vet, you know. Messy doesn’t cut it.”
As usual when he was around Henry, Colton felt a strange calm settle around him. The other man somehow never made him feel wrong or out of place. Sure, Colton felt his heart pounding a hundred miles an hour and his palms were clammy as he started the car and headed for the creek. But somehow everything also felt right. Like all the uncertainty and the doubt washed away for just a little while at the mere presence of Henry. The drive wasn’t long, and they passed it in silence. It was anything but uncomfortable, though. There appeared to be a mutual unspoken agreement that nothing needed to be said during the drive since they were both filled up from hours of conversation over dinner.
When Colton parked at the small site near the creek and turned off the engine, he felt Henry’s burning stare. He quickly opened the door and let himself out, hearing the passenger door close as well. Grabbing two beers from the back of the truck, he trailed after Henry towards the water.
Holding one beer out in front of Henry, he looked out at the creek, its mirror still surface reflecting the lights of the exploding night sky. Accepting the beer with athank you,Henry continued, his soft voice breaking the silence of the quiet night.
“The stars are out,” Henry stretched his arms above his head and looked towards the sky. As he stretched, his shirt rose and revealed a smooth, pale stomach. The muscles weren’t defined like Colton’s own, but they were leaner.You dreamt about that pale skin the other night.The thought came out of nowhere, triggered by the glimpse of Henry’s skin as if it had been dormant inside him, waiting for a reason to wake up.
Colton quickly looked away and gazed towards the night sky instead. There was no light pollution at the creek, so it almost felt like they were consumed by the entire universe and its vastness.
