Chapter Twelve
“Isaac?” Julian asked as he reached the front door of his apartment building, finding Isaac leaning against the wall and holding two pizza boxes as though he had nothing better to do with his life.
He’d taken the scenic route away from work today, and now he wondered if that had meant leaving Isaac waiting.
Despite the fact that they hadn’t arranged to meet, Julian felt a stab of guilt.
“Hey,” Isaac said. “Perfect timing, I was just about to text you to ask you where you were.”
He grinned broadly, and Julian felt the guilt melt away.
“Sorry, I took the long way home,” Julian said. “If I’d known you were coming…”
“It’s fine, I’ve only been here like… five minutes, maybe? Pizza’s still hot.”
Julian’s stomach rumbled as he breathed in the smell. He’d skipped breakfast this morning, and then worked through lunch.
Which made Isaac easily his favorite person right now.
“Should you be eating pizza while you’re training for a tournament?” Julian asked, swiping his keycard and holding the door open for Isaac.
Isaac shrugged, then followed Julian to the elevator. “Pizza is basically the perfect balance of carbs, fat, and protein for muscle recovery. It’s a health food.”
Julian wasn’t entirely sure he believed that, but he didn’t know enough to argue the point. Maybe what Isaac was saying was true.
Maybe, like everyone else, he just needed a break every now and again. Either way, it wasn’t Julian’s place to judge.
Isaac followed him all the way into the living room, putting the pizzas down on the coffee table before shrugging his coat off and hanging it up by the door. Julian’s apartment wasn’t huge, but it was more than big enough for his purposes, and it was home.
“This is nice,” Isaac said as he headed back to the couch, pausing in front of a large photograph framed on the wall. “And I love this.”
Julian’s heart leapt. “Thanks. It’s one of mine,” he said.
Isaac turned to face him, surprise written all over his face. “I didn’t know you were a photographer.”
“I wouldn’t go that far,” Julian said. “I picked it up for a while, took a couple of classes,” he shrugged, heading for the fridge to extract two beers.
If Isaac was having a night off, one beer wouldn’t kill him.
“This isdefinitelynot training food,” Isaac said as he accepted it, settling down on the couch. Julian sat next to him, humming in agreement.
“Well, you’re only allowed one, ‘cause you’re driving.”
Isaac chuckled. “Thanks, mom,” he said, flipping open the lids of both pizza boxes.
Julian claimed a slice of pizza immediately, remembering that he had to be quick if he wanted to get his share. Even with two pizzas between them.
He made a soft, happy sound at the first mouthful, sitting back and letting his whole body melt into the couch cushions.
He was always tired at the end of the day, but it was nice to have a friend around. As much as he hated to admit it, he’d been getting increasingly lonely over the last few months, spending too much time in his own company.
And then Isaac had shown up, as if on cue, to drag him out of it.
No wonder his teenage crush on the guy had surged back to full force pretty much instantly.
“So is this where I ask about your day?” Isaac asked, working his way through a second slice of pizza already.
“Not much to tell. My boring office job continues to be boring. Fraud analysis sounds way cooler than it actually is.”
