‘Don’t get me wrong,’ Jack said quickly, ‘Maeve is a remarkable woman, but honestly, this was only meant to be a bit of fun. Maybe I’d get a good bit or two for my stand-up, but I didn’t think I’d last a week.’
‘But you and Maeve are so good together,’ Niall said.
‘I have no clue what she sees in me, but I’ll be spending the rest of my life trying not to bugger it,’ Jack said, slinging his arm around Oliver. ‘You probably don’t care about the money either, now Eavie’s here.’
Oliver laughed and made a face at Declan. ‘Spoken like someone who’s taken up with a rich solicitor.’
‘And you?’ Niall said, turning accusingly to Declan. ‘You’re here for more followers?’
‘Come on,’ Jack said, saving Declan from having to explain the concept of dishonesty to Niall, ‘that can’t be surprising to you. The man is a walking Instagram ad.’
‘Hey! I have depth!’ Declan protested.
Jack rolled his eyes. ‘Of courseyoudo, but does Declan King?’
‘He can put on quite the performance,’ Oliver said, but he sounded more impressed than judgemental. ‘He even hadmeconvinced he was into Zoë.’ He shot Declan a wry look.
Declan’s attempt to respond was interrupted by Stella and Maeve calling for their men to join them ahead, leaving Oliver and Declan alone.
They walked in silence as the trail snaked inland, falling further and further behind the others.
Declan nudged Oliver the moment the rest of the group had drifted out of eyesight. ‘I wonder if there’s a nice view up that way,’ he said, pointing towards a massive boulder to their right. It was a razor-thin excuse, but Declan was desperate to get Oliver alone. ‘Wanna go check it out?’
They scrambled up the boulder, stopping at the top to look out over the expanse of ocean. It was Declan’s first glimpse of the sea since the day at the beach, and the sight of the cresting waves unknotted some of the tension in his shoulders. He breathed in the salty air as Oliver absent-mindedly lifted his shirt to wipe the sweat from his brow. Declan stared at him, forgetting the view entirely.
Oliver grinned at his expression. ‘Should we sit?’
Declan didn’t understand how Oliver was acting so calm when he was vibrating out of his skin. ‘Uh-huh,’ he managed.
They sat. Oliver was unnervingly close again, his side brushing Declan’s. They looked out at the glistening sea for a moment, and Declan was struck by how content he felt, maybe for the first time in his life. He sensed Oliver’s eyes on him and turned towards him instinctively.
‘Hey,’ Oliver murmured, the midday sunlight filtering through the sparse trees casting his face in soft speckled light. After days of concealed glances in front of the cameras, seeing him like this, staring at Declan with such open affection, felt miraculous.
But Declan had looked for long enough. ‘Come here,’ he said, leaning in.
He could feel Oliver’s smile against his lips as he snuck a hand into his hair, pulling him closer. It seemed impossible that he could already miss the feeling of Oliver’s lips against his own, but he had. Declan gripped the nape of his neck and Oliver moaned, the soft sound in his throat vibrating against his lips. He grabbed at Declan, hands skating up his arms, long fingers digging into muscle.
The warm scent of amber invaded Declan’s senses, and he was overcome, lost in the feeling of Oliver’s hands on him. Six weeks, that was how long it had been since he’d first laid eyes on Oliver – six weeks of avoiding him, hating him, holding in his feelings, driving himself mad with want. Now he had him. Oliver was in his arms, hair a mess, eyes wild, lips pressing at Declan’s neck, nipping at the junction where jaw met throat.
Oliver’s hand drifted to his hip, pulling Declan firmly on top of him, thighs slotting on either side of his hips. Declan kissed him again, biting gently at his bottom lip, feeling a burning deep within him. Having spent his whole life either in pain or trying to dull it, the pleasure of feeling Oliver move against him was completely new to Declan. He ran reverent hands along Oliver’s body. His fingers ghosted up Oliver’s neck, resting on his cheek, his thumb grasping Oliver’s chin to pull him even closer, pressing their lips together.
Oliver huffed out a laugh, leaning back. ‘I thought I was going crazy,’ he said, his fingers tightening on Declan’s arms. ‘That night you almost kissed me’ – he pressed a lingering kiss onto Declan’s lips – ‘and then pretending like it didn’t happen. And all that shit with James. I thought… honestly, I don’t know what I thought, just that I must be mad.’
‘Fuck,’ Declan said, leaning his forehead against Oliver’s shoulder and then sinking his teeth into the skin there. ‘I’msorry. I couldn’t help it. After that day on the beach, when I acted like a drunken fool… Hell, even from the first day on the plane. You looked at me and I was gone.’
‘From the first day on the plane?’ Oliver murmured, his eyes wide.
‘Yeah…’ Declan said, sitting back to look at him properly. He took in Oliver’s dishevelled appearance, insides knotting at the state of his hair and the pink of his cheeks. Oliver cocked his head to the side, waiting. ‘I’m gay.’
Oliver didn’t respond immediately, turning to look out over the water, and Declan moved off him, suddenly apprehensive. He watched Oliver’s profile; it looked like he was considering his words carefully.
‘I take it you’re not,’ Declan said slowly. ‘Unless you were lying about your ex.’
Oliver shook his head. ‘No, Sophie is real.’ He paused for a moment, turning to consider Declan. ‘That doesn’t mean this’ – Oliver gestured between them – ‘isn’t.’ He looked back at the ocean, and Declan stared at where the tendons of his neck folded into his jaw. ‘I suppose I figured if I liked men I would’ve noticed by now. But it was impossible to ignore how I felt about you. I mean, when I saw you kiss Eavie…’
Declan couldn’t help but laugh. ‘That’s what did it?’
Oliver grinned. ‘It was confusing at first. I kept getting mad at you and I couldn’t understand why. First, because you stole Zoë from me, then I thought I was jealous of how well you were doing. But when you kissed Eavie, I realised I was just jealous. You’re like no one I’ve ever met before. So infuriatingly hot and absolutely annoying – I didn’t stand a chance.’
