Farzan didn’t want to.
“I love you,” he whispered back, and felt David relax against him, the long, slow exhale.
Farzan held David tight, laid kisses along his back and shoulder, nuzzled that soft spot behind his ear.
Farzan was in love.
Fuck.
forty-two
David
David would’ve spotted Rhett’s red hair, even if the owner of said hair hadn’t been flailing his arm out the driver’s side window like a Muppet.
David tossed his carry-on and backpack into the trunk, then hopped into Rhett’s extremely clean Prius. Back in Chicago, Rhett’s terrible old Corolla had been the butt of many jokes for the amount of crumbs and plastic wrappers littering the floor, not to mention the fact that different parts kept breaking down. David and the other waiters used to joke that one day Rhett would pull up to Millennium with the steering wheel clutched in his hands, hovering in mid-air on the driver’s seat, as the rest of the car had fallen apart around him cartoon style.
“Who are you and what have you done with Rhett Donnelly?” David asked as he buckled his seat belt.
Rhett flicked the dangling vanilla air freshener. “New city, new car. You know they never have to salt the streets here? I bet the undercarriage is sparkling.”
David rolled his eyes, but he couldn’t stop himself smiling. “Thanks for having me out here.”
“Don’t thank me. Shyla bought the tickets. She said to say sorry she couldn’t be here. She’s in New York this week.”
David shrugged. There’d be plenty of time for that. Right now, he just wanted to see the city.
As Rhett joined the endless line of cars trying to escape LAX, David pulled out his phone.
David
Made it safe and sound!
In the car with Rhett now
Love you
Farzan
That doesn’t sound safe OR sound
Say hi to Rhett
Love you
David pressed his phone screen against his heart. He was such a goner.
“Did you do an edible on the plane?” Rhett asked. “Drink too much wine at the Sky Club? You know being on a plane gets you drunk faster.”
“I’m pretty sure that’s a myth,” David said. “And no.”
“Then why are you smiling like that?” Rhett eyed David at yet another stoplight.
Good lord, if they were back in Kansas City, they’d already be on the highway by now.
“I’m not,” David insisted. “Just letting Farzan know I landed.”
“Ahhhhh.” Rhett’s whole face softened. “You look happy.”
