I hide my smile. “It was nothing.”
“To you, maybe. But not to me.”
I pull some plates down and dish up the food.
Dinner is quiet, but in a good way. Fletcher complains about the heat, which makes the girls giggle, but he loves the food,regardless. He goes in for seconds, and the girls devour the rest of it. Afterward, we play cards at the table with Georgie and Avalon. I show Georgie a couple of simple card tricks, and she laughs like I’ve just revealed actual magic. I’ll save my real card tricks for later.
Fletcher keeps looking at me as if he’s trying to memorize something—like this moment matters more than he knows how to say. His smile hasn’t left him, and his shoulders relax all evening.
It’s all I wanted. To give him a break, just as he’s given me. For the first time, I don’t feel like a burden to him.
“Dad, can Avalon stay over?”
Fletcher snaps his attention back to her. “Not tonight, hon.”
“Why not?”
“Because her mother already texted me, saying she needs to be home by nine.”
They both sigh.
When they finally head to her room, Fletcher quickly moves in. He doesn’t even try to hide it, kissing me square on the lips. “You’re an incredible man, Vince. I hope you know that.”
I’m not sure how to reply, so I just kiss him again, holding his face. My fingers tickle his beard, earning a soft moan.
When footsteps echo in the hallway, we jerk apart, wiping our mouths. Fletcher turns back to the sink, pretending to rinse glasses.
Georgie and Avalon talk loudly amongst themselves as they grab a couple of sodas from the fridge, then rush back to her room.
Fletcher and I stifle our laughs.
“That was close,” he mutters.
“Sorry.”
He shakes his head. “What are you sorry for? I kissedyou, remember?”
He reaches for me, squeezing my hand. After looking toward the hall, he says, “I don’t hide things from her usually, but I just don’t want her to get the wrong idea either.”
My heart sinks. “What would that be?”
He pulls away, chewing his lip. “Well, it would probably be therightidea, as far as I’m concerned,” he says softly. “But I just mean, we haven’t talked about anything, so until we do, I don’t want her reading into this too much.”
I swallow hard. Fletcher’s right. We need to talk about where this is heading, and soon. The more we play around, the more we kiss or take our clothes off, the more we’ll risk getting hurt in the end.
But is a relationship even possible?
If we’d met before my body started failing me, it would’ve been an easy decision. Our connection is that deep. But now, everything is so uncertain. It’s heavy. And it’s downright scary.
If this is multiple sclerosis like my doctor thinks, then that means there’s no cure. Sure, medication might slow the progression down, but my body will continue to fail. How can I be a fair partner to him like this?
Fletcher steps into my space, cupping my face with one hand. His blue eyes dart between mine before he kisses me. It’s a different kiss than before. Deeper and full of meaning. Like he knows exactly where my mind is.
I lean into him, afraid this will be ripped away from me too soon. Fletcher is the first good thing I’ve had in… god, I don’t even know how long. I’ve stopped counting the years.
I think about Ace, about what our stupid fling was in the desert. Those nights don’t even compare to that one time with Fletcher—toallthe times I’ve spent with him. Ace and I had fun, sure, and he’s still a good friend now. But this? No, the connection I feel with Fletcher is something else entirely. He’sbroken through my barriers without even trying; he’s seeing me at my lowest, and he’s still here.
Fletcher hasn’t just been a friend—he’s been a support, just as he promised. But a part of me knows he could be something more too. If I wanted him to be.
