Everything about this space just screamed Riley. It was exactly the kind of place I’d always pictured my friend spending his time in. It gave me such comfort to know he was living his dream.
When I turned around to leave, I saw a few paintings leaning against a storage cubby in the corner. They beckoned me to them, pleading to be seen. I saw a couple of Lady and Quinn, one of his grandfather, a sailboat, and…
My heart skipped a few beats as I tentatively reached for the final one, the largest of the bunch. It wasus.The painting was of Riley and me.
We were teens, sitting by the open window in the tree house staring out at the night sky while comets shot across overhead. It wasn’t the scene itself that caught my eye, though. It was the way Riley was looking at me, his hand on my chest. There was so much joy and contentment in his expression, as if he knew he was exactly where he belonged. There was a certainty, too, telling me he wouldn’t have traded that moment for anything in the world.
It felt like I was seeing his heart for the first time, it moved me beyond words. I couldn’t resist tracing my finger along the hand that rested on my chest, wondering what was going through Riley’s mind as he painted this.
Footsteps sounded in a rush down the hall before skidding to a stop as Riley entered the room. His face was flushed, hair askew, and there was a bit of panic in his expression. He cursed softly when he saw what I was holding, then turned his back to me. Clearly, he’d meant to hide this and forgotten. I had to suppress a smile. Twice today I’d seen the adorable flustered side of Riley and I was growing quite fond of it.
I carefully set the painting down and went to him, taking his hand in mine to gently turn him back around. Lacing our fingers together, I gently squeezed, but Riley still didn’t look at me. His cheeks were bright red and I could see him chewing on the inside of his lower lip nervously. I hooked a finger under his chin and tipped his head up. Those eyes I knew so well, the eyes I’d looked into a million times when we were kids, were now showing me a side of him I’d never seen before. Longing. Desire. Admiration. Hope. Fear. Heartache. There was a hurricane in his gray depths I never knew existed… all for me.
I didn’t know what to say. My heart was beating too fast, too surprised that Riley had felt the same way I did. Hope bloomed in my chest as I wondered,does he still feel it now?
“I felt it then, too,” I whispered. “And I’ve felt it every day since I’ve come back to you.”
The relieved sigh that escaped him was all the confirmation I needed. Dipping my face to his, I slowly brushed our lips together. Once, twice, three times, before he finally began kissing me back. Hesitantly, softly, as if we both couldn’t believe it was real. Ten years of missing this man, of longing for his touch. Ten years of wondering what could have been and now…now,I was given an entirely new world of possibilities.Riley wanted me. Holy fucking shit. Riley wanted me!All this time, he wanted me the way I wanted him.
He broke the kiss and slid his arms around my waist, holding me with both tenderness and promise. I put a hand to his neck, gently stroking his jaw. His eyes were filled with such wonder and hope when they met mine, a shy smile touching his soft lips. I dipped my forehead to his, taking a moment to just soak in the magic ofus.We stayed that way for a long time, breathing each other in, until a loud blaring from the other room made us jump.
“OH, SHIT! The French bread!”
