If you find yourself stranded, wherever you’ve run off to, all you have to do is let me know. I’m not going to change my mind because you’ve been around the sun a few more times than I have.
Mal tapped the toe of one shoe against the back of the other, dislodging a clump of compact snow from the space between the sole and the minuscule wedge heel. Tiny snowflakes began to drift lazily through the air, and, to Mal’s surprise, strings of white lights secured to the beams of the overhang blinked to life. A dreary January evening turned into something magical.
When was the last time he’d experienced wonder like this?
I will,Mal promised.Thank you.
At your service. I hope I’ll see you again soon.
It was unlikely, but even if it was a nicety, the sentiment was appreciated more than Mal could make known. He’d spent the last thirty years of his life overlooked or dismissed for one reason or another, and for the first time in decades he felt…
What was it that he felt, exactly?
Invigorated. Rejuvenated. Whole.
A little praise went a long way, and praise paired with an orgasm? Mal didn’t think he’d come down from his high any time soon.
The conversation had come to its natural end. Too embarrassed to reply, Mal tucked the phone back into his pocket and let out a long, flustered sigh. It froze when it left his lips, his breath rising like smoke.
There was no point in getting too attached. After the wedding, Vincent would head home, and their little fairytale would be done. It was safer to keep his heart closed.
But the warm, fluttering feeling remained.
The third IVF treatment would take. Change was on its way—Mal could sense it. The new year had just begun, and he intended to make it his best one yet. Vincent was a sign of the good still to come.
He’d make this happen. He’d live his dream.
And whether he became a single dad, or found a partner to settle down with, he’d find his happily ever after. He swore it.
5
Vincent
For the third time since blue glitter had rained down from above the door, Vincent watched Alex shake himself off like a dog, showering a laughing TD with the aftermath of his efforts. TD cried out in mock protest and swatted at the air, like it would keep the glitter away. Not all that far from them, Aaron supervised Bo as he scooped glitter off the floor and threw it in the air. KnotMyProblem stood as far away from them as he could without looking anti-social, his arms crossed. If it hadn’t been for the look on his face, Vincent would have thought he was angry—but the pain he tried so hard to hide behind his confidence gleamed like a newly minted penny at the bottom of a pool. What was going on? Vincent didn’t know, but it bothered him to see Knot so troubled.
He tucked his phone back into his pocket and was about to approach Knot when Gwynning and Harley beat him to it. Distracted by the company, the pained look in Knot’s eyes disappeared. With everyone in the group happy, Vincent’s job was done. No one seemed particularly interested to include him in the conversation, but he tried not to let it get the best of him. By nature, he was solitary. It was better that his friends have a good time together than drag himself into the spotlight in an attempt to be entertaining.
Maybe, since he’d found a second to himself, he could find Mal. Had he really left the party so soon? Vincent glanced around the room, but didn’t catch sight of his dark curls.
Maybe he had.
What a shame.
“xV!” TD exclaimed. Before Vincent could brace himself, TD had thrown an arm around his neck and tugged him close. “Oh my god, have you seen the pictures Aaron took? Did you go look?”
“No,” Vincent admitted. He freed himself from TD’s hold. “I’m guessing they’re good?”
“They’reincredible!Thank you so much for helping me organize this. The look on Alex’s face was priceless, and Gwynn is just…” He laughed. “All of it’s so good. It’s the very best first-ever Single Dad group picture we could have taken.”
“I expect they’ll be posted in the group?” Vincent grinned.
TD nodded. “If they weren’t stuck on Aaron’s fancy camera, I’d send them right now. I’m pretty sure it’s going to be the background picture on my phone for life.”
“I doubt I’ll need the picture to remind me.” Vincent held out his arm, which was speckled with blue glitter. “I’ve been infected. I’m going to glisten wherever I go.”
TD’s eyes lit up. “Me, too, but so are Alex and Gwynn. Totally worth it, in my opinion. It’s a wedding they’ll never forget… because the glitter won’t let them.” TD paused. “Who were you talking to, by the way? I saw you on your phone before, and I thought that was weird, because all of us are here.”
Vincent arched an eyebrow. “Are you saying that the only people in the world I talk to are in this room?”
