‘I felt the same way,’ Declan said, absently thumbing his wrist. He was having a hard time reckoning with how coming out could feel so monumental and yet inconsequential in all the ways that mattered. ‘Living like that wasn’t going to be enough for me any more.’
Oliver put his drink down. ‘But you didn’t have to quit boxing.’ Declan felt too hot under his gaze.
‘No,’ Declan said, ‘but I wanted to. And I don’t have a lot of practice knowing what I want, so I figured I should seize the opportunity.’ He could no longer stand still, moving slowly forwards.
Oliver took two steps, meeting him in the middle of the room. He was close enough to touch, and Declan was overwhelmed with relief at not having to hold himself back any more.
He reached out and grabbed Oliver’s sides, digging his fingers into the flesh of his hip bones. Oliver inhaled sharply, his hands skimming Declan’s arms, one stopping to drape over his shoulder as the other snuck up the back of his neck.
Declan closed his eyes as fingers grasped at the ends of his hair. He let out a long slow breath, feeling himself lean more fully against Oliver.
‘And what else do you want?’ Oliver murmured into the skin of Declan’s throat, teeth grazing along his Adam’s apple.
Declan shivered, feeling his hands tighten involuntarily, rucking up the hem of Oliver’s shirt and feeling a hot flash of skin.
‘I thought it was obvious,’ Declan said, running his hand over Oliver’s bare spine.
‘Humour me,’ Oliver said, and Declan could feel his smile against his cheek.
He pulled back to look at him more closely, taking in Oliver’s green eyes, lit dimly from the streetlights outside.
‘You.’
Chapter 29
Oliver
Six Months Post-Finale
Oliver sat idling outside King’s Gym, rubbing his hands together while making mental calculations of their arrival time. He glanced down at his phone, thumbing at the last message he’d sent in the earnest hope that refreshing would result in a new message.
A knock at the window made him jump, and Oliver turned to see Declan’s grinning face.
‘Hi, you,’ Declan said, as Oliver opened the door and stepped out to greet him. The kiss he dropped to Oliver’s cheek made him instantly forget his worries about their tardiness. ‘Sorry for the wait.’
‘It’s fine,’ Oliver said, leaning into the warmth of Declan’s neck for just a moment and breathing in the familiar scent of him. ‘Better now.’
‘Old softie,’ Declan teased, deftly stealing the keys from Oliver’s hand. ‘Let me drive. You had a long day.’
Oliver walked over to the passenger side. ‘Just two more weeks and then the season will end.’
Declan flicked on his turn signal to merge onto the motorway. ‘Which reminds me, Dad asked about your next show. Shall I bring him?’
Oliver blushed at the idea of Declan’s dad seeing him in tights. In the last few months, Jim and Oliver had bonded over theirlove ofBake Offand he’d even designed Oliver a few training programmes to help him with his lifts.
‘Of course, I’d love for him to come.’ Oliver reached out to clasp Declan’s hand resting on the gearstick. The cold March rain pattered on the windshield, drowning out the low static of the radio. ‘And your day?’
Declan shrugged. ‘Good. I taught swimming to the under-eights.’
Oliver laughed, delighted by the image of Declan surrounded by children in arm bands. ‘And how did that go?’
‘Well, no one drowned,’ Declan said, glancing at him with a grin.
‘I’m adding swimming teacher to the list,’ Oliver said, pulling out his phone. His and Georgia’s shared note where they kept all of Declan’s potential careers grew daily. In the weeks following his retirement, Declan had fielded multiple brand campaign offers and sponsorship deals, but ultimately decided to take a step back from public life altogether. He’d since disabled his social media channels, and was threatening to turn his iPhone in for an old flip phone.
‘Oh, would you stop it?’ Declan grumbled. ‘I don’t like how chummy you two are getting.’
‘You’re just jealous that she likes me more,’ Oliver teased. Georgia absolutely adored the Royal London, and had been attending nearly weekly with Declan always by her side. Soon after he’d caught her eyeing his outfit with distaste, PR packages of designer clothes had begun showing up at the flat mysteriously. Georgia claimed to know nothing about how brands had got their address, but Will was taking full advantage.
