“Please, no mention of my kid brother looking good.I’mthe good-looking Holbrook brother.” Aaron puffs out his chest as Dennis snorts a “Right.”
“Together,” Amanda draws out the word. “I said they look good together.” She rolls her eyes, reaching for her pink drink with an umbrella in it.
“Did you just roll your eyes at me?”
She shrugs, sucking on her straw as she loudly slurps her drink. Then she scoots the empty glass in front of Aaron. “Go get me another, good-lookin’.”
Aaron taps my shoulder, and I slide out from the booth and stand while he gets out. “You want another?” He nods at my half-finished bottle.
“Yeah, I’ll come with you. You want another, Den? Wes?” I hold up my bottle, swinging it between my fingers.
“Sure, thanks, man,” Wes says. “And shots.”
Dennis groans. “We’renotdoing shots. Remember what happened last time we did shots?”
“No! That’s why we’re doing them!” Wes rubs his hands together, cackling. “Just because you’re all lovey-dovey and set for the rest of your days, doesn’t mean we can’t party like old times.”
“All right! One round of shots,” Dennis sighs, then mouths at me, ‘Only one round, babe.’
We go and grab the drinks and a tray of Jägerbombs, and return to Wes and Dennis, who are doing high fives, and Amanda offering a “Congrats.”
Aaron looks between his brother and Amanda. “What’s going on?”
Dennis is literally beaming, quickly grabbing two shots from the tray, handing one to Wes. They quickly knock their glasses together and slam back the shots, wincing loudly. Dennis laughs at me. “The Outdoor Science Schoolout in Hillsboro just called. I applied for their Field Instructor position. They’ve had a cancellation for Monday, so they asked me to come in for an interview. The job is perfect because it’s not a permanent one, but four months long. And I get to teach kids, which will give me much-needed experience.” Dennis eyes me, trying not to frown as he takes a sip of his beer. “But I’ll have to live on-site during the week.”
“Fuck, that’s amazing!” Aaron high-fives Dennis. “I know you really wanted that job. That’s great, man. I’m so proud of you.”
“Thanks. I mean, I still have to do the interview, but hopefully I can make a great impression.” He walks over and stands next to me, leaning his head against my chest.
Five days a week. For four months. If he gets the job, he’ll be away for so much time. “Congrats,” I mumble into his hair. He looks up at me with something in his eyes that I can’t read. My chest tightens, my heartbeating faster as I take in his beautiful face, his hesitant smile, and his eyes that I could just lose myself in forever. As much as I feel the insecurity building inside, I can’t take this moment from him. I recognize the fear tugging at me, the familiar sensation of falling, but I’m not a selfish person. Never was. I want all good things for Dennis. I love him so much. Even if those things don’t include me, I still want them for him. I lean down, whispering against his lips, “I’m so proud of you, baby. They’ll love you.”I love you.Then I kiss him, savoring the feel of his plush lips against mine. As long as I get to kiss him, everything’s okay. It’ll be okay.
Chapter 26
Dennis
Themorningiscoldand foggy, a not-unusual occurrence for this area, even at the beginning of August. Mike and I take Willow to the beach and toss around her ball. The place is deserted, except for a few tourists taking misty pictures of Haystack.
My head hurts a little from too much drinking last night at the bar, like a dull ache, and Mike doesn’t look much better, but we suffer for Willow, who’s highly energetic and needs to get her exercise and playtime in.
Even though I feel bleh this morning, last night was fun. It was awesome to be out in the open as boyfriends with Mike in front of Aaron, Wes, and Amanda. Hell, even in front of the locals.
Then the night got even better when I got the call to come in for an interview. But as I woke up this morning, it really hit home that if I get this job, I won’t be able to see Mike as much. The program I’ll work for, if hired, is all-encompassing. This job, even a temporary one, will give me the necessary experience that I can apply to my own program once I start it. Hopefully, by the time I wrap it up, I’ll havemy documentation, licensing, and grants ready. It’s fucking exciting, but at the same time, I dread being taken away from Mike just when we’re starting this relationship.
Mike and I walk hand-in-hand along the beach, wearing the hoods of our hoodies over our heads to keep the cold out. You can hardly see anything out past Haystack, and the water is turbulent. Some people get sick of it, needing the sun, but I love it.
Willow bounds over to us, drops her ball, and Mike picks it up and tosses it down the beach again. She instantly sprints off after it. Because the beach is virtually empty, we keep her off her leash.
She gets her ball and runs back to us, bouncing around. I take it from her mouth and toss it into the water. She loves splashing in the ocean.
Since we’ve been out here, Mike hasn’t said a word. Hell, I haven’t either. I want to chalk it up to our hangovers, but I know it’s more than that. It’s my job. I can’t say what’s in his head, but while he was excited for me last night, he also seemed off. His smile never reached his eyes. I’ve known Mike my entire life, and I know when he’s not feeling right, even if he never says a word.
I squeeze his hand, and he looks at me, smiling softly, and again, that smile never reaches his eyes. I swallow around the lump in my throat. My body shivers as the mist starts to penetrate, chilling me. Maybe it’s more than that. Mike lets go of my hand and wraps an arm around my shoulder, pulling me close, and I snake my arm around his waist.
“I probably won’t get the job,” I finally say.
“They’re going to love you. They’d be stupid not to.”
I smile at that before I frown. “God, I wish I could find something here. The drawback of living in such a small town, I guess.”
