I think that was the first time I felt like I was smiling with my entire body. As in I felt that smile in every fiber of my being, and I blurted out, “Holy shit. I mean, I’m in love with you too. How could I not be?”
You flashed that intoxicating grin of yours and kissed me hard.
CHAPTER 2
Seventeen years ago
Boston
Ash Riley
“I’m still torn,” Mr. Mills was saying. “I do want grandchildren one day, but the fact that you’re moving to Boston the same month we move to Virginia is just a cosmic slap in the face.”
I chuckled breathlessly and carried the next two boxes into the apartment.
“Focus on the grandchildren, Dad,” Nathan said. “It’s not forever.”
Definitely not. Philly was home. I mean, Nathan could even pronounce Schuylkill correctly these days.
“Besides, Mr. Mills, we’ll come visit you in Arlington,” I added.
“How many times do I need to tell you to call me Keith, son?”
I smiled. “I’m working on it.”
I was getting there. In my defense, Nate’s folks were still a new feature in our lives. I’d first met them shortly after he and I had celebrated our one-year anniversary. Then right before our third, they’d started visiting more frequently because they wanted to travel the coast and see which city they’d like to relocate to. Nate’s stepmom wanted to be closer to family, and his dad wanted to be closer to Nate.
Eventually, they’d found DC. Or Arlington, rather. And yeah, it was close to Philly, but Boston wasn’t a world away.
I reckoned we’d like it here. I had a decent job lined up, and Nathan had a nice résumé and several interviews scheduled. Our apartment was nice too, with big windows overlooking the river six flights up. A small one-bedroom just for us.
I returned downstairs, where my brother was wrestling our couch out of the moving truck.
“Theo, you gotta lift it in the back. It’s stuck in?—”
“I see it, I see it,” he grunted. “Do you think it’ll fit in the elevator?”
I fucking hoped so.
With help from our dads and my brother, we emptied the two moving trucks and got all our shit into our new place in a few hours. After that, Theo was drained and wanted to catch the game back at his hotel, and our dads were on a bonding quest, so they ditched us to find a sports bar or steakhouse, whichever.
I was fine with that.
More than fine with it.
While I ordered pizza, Nathan found a chair for our stereo, and he put on some music and lit a few candles. We currently had our two nightstand lamps providing most of the light.
The living room and combined kitchen were a maze of moving boxes and furniture.
“Come here, baby. You gotta see this.”
I zigzagged between boxes and climbed over his reading chair before I reached him and what could be the best feature of the condo. Those big, arched windows.
He pointed east and grabbed my hand. “Look at the river.”
It’d gotten dark. The city center glittered along the river edges, and I took a deep breath. This was it. This was our next step. I’d once thought this was going to be primarily my own fight, but Nathan had gotten involved in local politics more and more this past year. He’d told me about six months ago that it was time. Our votes could do more good in Massachusetts now.
“It’s beautiful, isn’t it?” he murmured.
