Are those…? Yes, those are lips.
Once his brain catches up with his mouth, Owen sighs hungrily and parts his lips to welcome Will’s tongue. He’s not sure if this is really happening, but he’s not going to question it. They both try to keep it quiet, but it’s getting harder when Owen presses Will against the shelf and grinds against him.
They both jump at the sudden sound of impact. Will dropped one of the books with his shoulder, and now the library has gone quiet.
“Sorry!” Owen calls. “We dropped a book. Hmm, carry on, please.”
Luckily, the conversation continues in the background.
Will seems flushed. “I’m sorry. I should have asked for your permission.”
“Let’s pretend that you did.”
Will smiles and wipes his eyes. “I don’t want to get you into trouble.”
“We dropped a book—not a bomb.” But he thinks he understands. Those people sitting close by won’t take kindly to having two men making out during a book club—or perhaps in general.
“When?” Owen asks quietly, still standing inches from Will’s face.
“When?”
“When can we do this properly?” He holds Will’s gaze, hoping he’s able to convey how serious he is.
Will licks his lips. There’s hesitation in his eyes, but he seems to push it away. “Tonight? After the book club.”
Owen has worked hard on making this event a success, but he’s seriously debating shouting,Fire!and putting a stop to it right now. He takes a breath and nods. “I’ll need to clean up while you take Julie back, then we can meet… where?”
Please say your house.
“I’ll come pick you up. Are you okay going back to my place?”
“Your place? Yeah, I think it’s fine.” He glances back to make sure the coast is clear, then he kisses Will again. “Best book club ever.”
Will shakes his head. “Nerd.”
*
When he started planning his book club, Owen worried people wouldn’t have enough to talk about, resulting in awkward moments of silence that would lead to an early closure of the event. His worries have been put to rest, because the people in this book club don’t want to stop talking.
Earlier, Julie apologized and said she needed her rest. She turned to Owen when everyone was watching and made him promise to set up another event in two weeks. He sheepishly nodded under so many gazes.
“Should we ask them to leave?” Owen whispers to Francie. “It should be over by now.”
“They’re having fun. You got any plans?” She eyes him suspiciously.
He shrugs, his cheeks warming because he feels she can sense something. “Nothing special.”
She crosses her arms. “Well, I suppose I can stay here alone to clean up once it’s over, but since you don’t have anythingspecialplanned with a certain William Thomas, there’s no need for me to do that.”
Now his cheeks are plain hot. “There’s nothing between us. I think.” He sighs. “I don’t want people gossiping. Were we obvious?”
“No, but I’ve seen how you perk up whenever you see him.” She clears her throat. “Will… has a history around here. It’s not for me to elaborate, but you should be careful, Owen.” She meets his gaze, worry in her eyes. He knows it has less to do with them being two gay men in a small town and more to do with what Nate had told him.
“Will isn’t a bad person,” he says, trying not to sound angry.
“Of course he’s not a bad person. A man who takes care of his sister like that, who sticks around after the crap people gave him, can’t be a bad person. But that has nothing to do with his ability to draw trouble.”
“Trouble is my middle name.”
