River was wearing his gray sweatpants, and his chest was bare. He’d pulled his hair back in a ponytail, and there was a cute, sleepy look on his face.
He caught my eye, and we both smiled and glanced away. We hadn’t run into each other at all the day before, and catching him now made my stomach flip.
“Oh hey,” Kai said to me. “What about camping?”
My eyes got wide. “Camping,” I answered. I searched my mind for a way to respond as River stood there, a soft smile playing on his lips, tempting me without trying.
“You want to join us next weekend?” Kai asked River. “We’ll leave Friday afternoon and get back Sunday. It’s just a quick trip with Cass and Shawn. You met them when they stopped by the other night.”
“I don’t have any equipment.”
“I can help you out with that stuff,” Kai said, suddenly animated by the idea. “Don’t you think that would be fun, Leo?” He caught my eye and gave me a knowing nod. “Shouldn’t we have River along for something like that?”
Of course it was a good idea. I knew that Cass and Shawn would enjoy River’s company, and it would obviously make Kai happy. Having both of our brothers there would be fun, and getting our families together hadn’t been possible when River was still back in Italy.
If I couldn’t handle hanging out with River after our hookup, I shouldn’t have done it in the first place. It would be unfair of me to put up a fuss now.
“Camping is a great idea,” I answered. “I’m sure Shawn and Cass would love to have you, River.”
River smiled. He wasn’t nearly as worked up as I was, which should have calmed me down, but looking at his slim muscles and bare chest in front of Kai resurrected all my guilt.
“Morning, Leo,” he said.
“Morning.”
River pushed a hand through his hair, then nodded. “Sure, camping sounds great. Is there more coffee?”
“In the pot,” I answered as I stood. “Here, take my seat. I’m going to jump in the shower.”
I brushed by, my nerves lit by even the suggestion of his touch, then hurried away before I said something I’d regret.
I managed to keep myself busy and out of the house well into the afternoon. After a day spent running errands, though, I got home to find River stretched out on one of the couches and reading a book. He was wearing a plain white T-shirt that hugged him tightly and a pair of cotton-candy shorts that rode up his thighs.
“Leo, hey.”
I smiled, happy to see him even if it did make me feel all twisted up. “Hey.” I looked over my shoulder. “Kai around?”
“He’s out.” River closed his book and placed it on the coffee table. “I was kind of hoping I would catch you.”
“Everything okay?” I took a seat at the couch across from him. If he was starting to regret our hookup, I’d hate myself for taking advantage.
“Yeah, I’m fine.” He folded his legs under his body. “But I did want to check in to make sure you’re feeling okay about everything. You kind of ran away this morning.”
“Oh.” I blinked and realized that I could have seemed like a dick. “Sorry about that.” I began to search for an explanation but realized that I was starting a bad habit of covering for myself. “Kai was asking me about you, and I guess I got a little flustered.”
River pursed his lips. “He asked me where I was after I got back from the office Friday. I felt like an asshole when I lied to him.”
“Yes,” I said, relieved that he was feeling the same way. “Even though it’s not really his business.”
“Exactly.”
We shared a look, then laughed. A ball of tension uncoiled between my shoulder blades.
If I was going to have to hide a secret from my best friend, at least I had someone to share it with.
River tilted his head down but held my gaze. “Well, he never has to know about it.” He used both hands to sweep his hair behind his ears. “Just another boring night at the office.”
I laughed. “I wish all the boring nights at the office were like that.”
