Nico nodded, taking it all in. “Does it give you hope that someday you can be out and open?”
Cooper’s eyes shifted to his lap. “I don’t know that it’s possible and I’m not willing to gamble with it.”
“When this first started, almost three years ago, I was just finding myself. I’m still finding myself, but when I realized I was most certainly bisexual, I wanted to scream it from the top of my lungs. I wanted the whole world to know. If it wasn’t for you scaring some sense into me, I probably would have and most likely, I would be sitting on a bench somewhere until my four years ran out. Never to be seen again.”
“I meant it. I didn’t want this life for you.” Cooper’s gaze lifted again, but not with understanding. It was something else, more akin to sorrow. “The secrecy and all the shit that comes with it, but we are in unique positions that nobody else in the world can understand.” He bit into his lip and shook his head. “A wide receiver or a running back? Could be palatable to the public butthey’re not the face of their teams, of their cities, of their states.”
Nico understood exactly what Cooper was talking about. This fucking cage neither of them could break free from, but if he had to be imprisoned, he was at least content to be caged in it with someone that made his heart flutter… sometimes.
“If it wasn’t for Elon, I think I would have cracked by now.” Nico ripped the straw from his drink and tossed it onto the table. He grabbed the glass, tilted it against his mouth, and chugged half of it. When he had his fill, he wiped the back of his mouth with his palm, and let out a belch. “I have to finish what he started.”
Cooper smiled. “You’re going to get that ring someday.”
“Yeah, and hopefully before you.”
“Fat chance,” Cooper said, and it sounded like another fucking bet.
And Nico fucking hated losing bets.
Cooper stood above Nico and reached his hand out to him. “Have you ever danced with a man before?”
Nico took Cooper’s hand and let him guide him to his feet. “Is it any different than dancing with a woman?”
Cooper pulled Nico away from the table to the empty space where the rest of the tables had been shoved out of the way. Suddenly, Nico understood the reason for the reorganization of the dining area was for this moment.
For this dance.
Cooper dropped a firm hand to Nico’s waist. “Someone has to take the lead.”
“Since you paid for dinner, I think it’s only fair I let you have this moment.”
“Don’t get it twisted. I’m always in control. I always take the lead.”
Nico had no incentive to object. Still, he considered doing so because that’d be the bratty thing to do. If he was nothing else, he was a brat. But he let Cooper win this battle because truthfully, this is what he wanted. It was the rare occurrence where one winning meant the other was also winning.
Cooper stood in place.
Nico stood in place.
Why weren’t they moving? Why weren’t they dancing?
The lights dimmed all around them, casting shadows upon the empty space. But the light right above them broke through the darkness like a spotlight fixed right at them. In one of the loudest cities in the world, it was just the two of them trapped in the beauty of silence.
A song began—Wingsby Birdy. It played over the speakers, soft and quiet.
Cooper’s other hand met the other side of Nico’s waist, and Nico’s hands fell over Cooper’s shoulders like pieces of a puzzle sliding into place.
Cooper moved first, his feet bumping against Nico’s.
Nico swallowed a nervous lump in his throat but smiled through it as he tried to adjust to the slow movements.
His feet bumped into Coopers.
“Have you ever danced with a woman?” Cooper choked on a laugh.
“Not like this,” Nico said deadpan.
Slow dancing wasn’t his thing. He was more of a bumper and grinder, the kind of guy felt more comfortable getting jiggy with it than he was dancing in slow circles.
