“It’s not complicated, you’re supposed to like your boyfriend.”
“Do you always like Charlie?”
“Fuck off,” Eden snarks, the hint of a smile playing at the corner of his lips. “Charlie’s a pain in my ass but—but he’smypain in the ass.”
“You like when he annoys you.”
“Yes,” Eden admits. “But don’t you dare tell him that.”
“I would never. A little humility would never hurt Charlie. He knows he’s our favorite.”
Eden nods, as if the acknowledgment of their shared love of Charlie soothes something in him.
“But Nicki?—”
“He likes Nicholas,” Andrew corrects, clearing his throat. “From anyone besides me.”
“Nicholas,” Eden corrects. “How long have you been together?”
“It’s not like that exactly.”
“It’s complicated. It’s not like that exactly. What the fuck is going on, Andrew? You’re freaking me out. I don’t care how massively scary he is or how rich and famous. If he’s hurting you or coercing you somehow, I’ll fucking kill him.”
“That won’t be necessary.”
“It might,” Eden says.
“Hey, it’s okay.”
Eden opens his mouth then closes it, angrily shoving his palms into his eyes.
“Eden.”
“We didn’t know what was going on,” Eden says behind his fists. “You were all over the gossip sites, and you weren’t answering your phone, and there were photos of you with some guy we’ve never seen. I didn’t know.” He drops his hands, unshed tears in them.
Swiftly, Andrew pulls him into another hug. Since Eden got together with Charlie, and even before they were officially a thing, he and Eden got close. He knows exactly how difficult it is for Eden to trust anyone, especially men. At six foot six, with his handsome yet brooding features, chiseled muscles and a body covered in tattoos, Nicholas Whitmore is intimidating.
His appearance coupled with his less than positive reputation means that to a guy like Eden, he’s probably a walking red flag. He kind of is a walking red flag, but Andrew is hard pressed to deny the sides of Nicholas he’s seen when no one else was looking are something he likes. Not that it matters because this thing isn’t real, something Eden deserves to know.
“If I tell you something, can you keep it a secret,” Andrew asks into the top of his head, “even from Charlie?”
“You never keep anything from Charlie.” Eden steps out of the embrace to peer up at Andrew.
“I know. This is…different. There are extenuating circumstances, and I’m going to explain everything to him when I can.”
“But you can’t yet.”
“Exactly.”
“But you’re telling me, why?”
“I made a promise to you once,” Andrew reaches out to smooth Eden’s hair off his face. He really does love Eden just like one of his own. “I told you I’d never hurt you.”
“Everyone hurts people,” Eden shrugs.
“I fucked up and I’m sorry. I didn’t really think you guys would be this worried.”
Eden’s head snaps up. “Andrew.”
