“But…” He nibbled on his bottom lip. I was tempted to free his lip with my own mouth.
“I think we deserve a good rest. Plus, I want to spend some time with my boyfriend.”
His smile returned. “Boyfriend? That’s the first time you called me that.”
“Does it sound weird?” I asked, scratching my temple. I’d never really done the dating thing, so it was all new to me.
“No,” he said with a shake of his head. His bangs flopped from side to side at the action. “I like the sound of that. I’m Hector Flores’ boyfriend, just as you’re Atlas Hart’s.”
We grinned at each other, goofy expressions probably on both our faces. Who knew how long we stood there like that, just looking at and holding each other? But with Atlas, it didn’t feel long enough.
Chapter Thirteen
ATLAS
Hector made another round through the diner to make sure every window and door was securely locked.
I followed him like a puppy. I was still shaken up from the day, and I didn’t want to be alone. Most importantly, I wanted to be near Hector.
He didn’t say anything about me practically hanging off his arm as he quickly did his checks. His indulgent smile reassured me, and soon we were back upstairs in the safety of our home.
It was crazy to think how much had changed in just the span of a year. I looked around the living room and tried to remember what it looked like when I’d first arrived.
There hadn’t been much in terms of furnishings and decorations besides the couch, TV, and dining table. The place was a lot fuller now, with paintings on the walls, throw blankets and pillows taking up half thecouch, and rugs covering up most of the floor. I’d even purchased a few cat towers for Shadow, though it seemed my bribes didn’t work.
The black cat jumped down from one of the cat towers and made his way toward us. His tail swished high in the air as he weaved through Hector’s legs.
Hector scooped the little baby up, and the cat looked at me with a smug look. I thought I’d gotten used to it by now, but I was feeling petty about him trying to hog my man.
I bounced to their side and slid into Hector’s arms too. Shadow let out an annoyed meow and whacked me in the head. I knew he didn’t really hate me, since no claws were used.
Shadow eventually jumped from Hector’s arms—probably tired of being near me—and slunk away into some dark corner.
“You two really have to learn to get along,” Hector said with an amused smile.
I grunted and pulled him to the couch so that I could snuggle up against him again. Hector obliged and wrapped his arms around my middle. He might not have rock-hard abs you could bench-press from, but he was perfect cuddle material. Being wrapped up in him was like being wrapped up in a warm cloud.
“Shadow started it,” I grumbled. Hector’s chuckle tickled my ear.
“He thinks you invaded his space,” he said softly.
I turned around so that I was still in his arms butfacing him now. I scooted onto his lap and let my legs hang on either side of him.
“I guess I did. I invaded your space too. You offered me a night, and I talked you into renting me a room indefinitely.”
Hector’s lips curved skyward. “You were pretty persuasive,” he said teasingly. He reached out a hand to cup my cheek, and I nuzzled against it. “And I’m glad you were. I’m glad you’re here.”
Hector had never been expressive. He was a man of few words, after all. I could guess he liked me based on his actions, but he’d never outright said how he felt about me, so today had been a shock for more reasons than one.
“You called melove,” I said. Hector looked confused, so I added, “Earlier. You called me love.”
“Oh, that.” Heat was blooming on Hector’s cheeks, and he couldn’t meet my eyes. “It just, um, slipped out.”
I was the one to cup his face this time, forcing him to meet my gaze. “It just slipped out? So it meant nothing?”
“No! That’s not…” He closed his eyes, and a deep sigh slipped through his teeth. When his browns locked back on me, he said, “I don’t know how to do this, Atlas. Love isn’t something I’m familiar with. I didn’t grow up with it.”
He’d told me a bit about his childhood. His parents were druggies who were unfit to take care of a kid. They were also to blame for their bad reputationattaching itself to Hector, and he never tried defending himself.
