Page 95 of Tough Guy and the Show Off

“We should.” I pull him closer. “In a minute.”

“Okay.”

I’m in no rush to get up at all. I have everything I’ve ever wanted right here.

THIRTY-EIGHT

SHOW

“I’m sweating my balls off,” I complain. “Please tell me that Chicago is cooler than this in the summer.”

I lift my shirt and use it to wipe the sweat off of my face while Beau chuckles. As much as I’ve always loved Boston, summer in a historic building without any central air is no fucking joke.

“No, man, it’s about the same weather there. I’m pretty sure our new place has central air though, unlike this one.”

“Thank fuck for that.” I let my sweaty shirt fall back into place and take a second to admire the sight of my man’s bulging muscles as he picks up his side of the couch and waits for me to grab the other end.

“You know we could have hired a company to do all this for us, right? I know you ended up taking a bit of a pay cut on your new contract, but I’m pretty sure we could still afford it,” he teases.

“I hate the idea of other people touching all my shit. Plus, this is like ten workouts in one day, it would be stupid to pass that up.”

He snorts a laugh. “Unless I drop the couch on my foot and end up on the bench all season with my foot in a cast.”

“Well, don’t drop it, then,” I helpfully suggest with a smirk.

I pick up my end with a grunt and we carefully maneuver the couch through the hallway, down the stairs, and into the moving truck we rented. Truthfully, my idea to do this ourselves was less about the money or feeling possessive over my stuff and more about wanting a chance to say goodbye to the apartments where it all started. Sin City Cars marathons, thunderstorm cuddle sessions, cooking dinners together, hanging out, and slowly falling in love with my best friend… it all happened right here. Plus, it sounded fun to rent the truck and take our time driving back, maybe hit a few cheesy tourist spots on our way, swing by Cedar Point and see if I can convince Beau to go on a roller coaster.

I lean against the side of the truck and look up at the building for a second, letting the realization that I won’t be back in Boston any time soon really sink in.

“We don’t have to sell them, you know,” Beau says, leaning right next to me, letting his shoulder bump against mine and our hands brush. “We could keep yours and come stay here during the offseason every year.”

I shrug. “It feels like it’s time. Maybe after we retire we can get a place in Boston, but I don’t see any reason to hang on to these now.”

Beau is quiet for a second, his fingers twitching against mine. “What if you miss being here?”

I take a risk and twine my fingers around his for just a second. We already agreed that we’re not going to go out of our way to hide that we’re together, but I’d like to at least play a few games in a Huskies uniform before speculation starts. Aside from the rumors and gossip that already started after the Magic was out of the playoffs and I immediately flew to Chicago to sit front row at the rest of Beau’s games until the Huskies lost the cup to LA. It’s okay, we’ll definitely win it next year with Beau and me back on the same team.

“It can’t be worse than how it felt to miss you,” I remind him. “This is just a place, Beau, you’re my future.”

He squeezes my fingers before we let go.

“Back at you, Trav,” he says gruffly, giving me the kind of look that says he’d kiss me if we weren’t standing on the street.

I grin at him and push myself off of the truck.

“Come on, we’ve got a few boxes left. If we hurry up, we’ll have time for a shower before we’re supposed to meet the guys.” I waggle my eyebrows at him so he knows I don’t mean separate showers.

As soon as we’re back in my apartment, I grab the back of his neck and pull him in for a slow, tongue-heavy kiss. After weeks of finally having the chance to sleep next to each other almost every night and touch each other as often as we want, there’s less urgency to every kiss now, but that doesn’t mean I crave Beau any less, it just means that we’re both finally able to relax and know there isn’t a deadline hanging over our heads.

Before the kiss can go anywhere, Beau’s phone chimes in his pocket. He pulls back with an apologetic grin and wipes the dampness of our kiss off of his mouth with the back of his hand.

“That’s my mom’s ringtone.”

“Answer it.” His mom would never let me hear the end of it if she thought I was the reason he ignored any of her calls, and I’m still angling to become her favorite son so I can’t afford any bad press.

He hesitates just a second. “Last time I talked to her I said something that I guess made her think there was someone special in my life, and she got all excited about me finally settling down…”

My stomach sinks a little. “A girl?”