Chapter Twenty-Three

Leo

I hadn't been late to the shop. In fact, I got there with five minutes to spare. And luck must have been on my side because Noel either didn't notice the hickey on my neck or chose to ignore it. I figured it was the latter since I knew my brother.

As I made my way to my RV, my stomach was clenched and in knots. Leaving Andy felt like all those times before when he would go on the road and I would stay home. Or when I would go to a race, and he'd have a show he had to go to. It hurt. I'd be a liar if I wasn't scared that I wouldn't hear from him again. Or that Andy would be gone when I got back to North Carolina. I wondered how long that would last, the hurt and the pain that he had caused. I knew he was trying, but it didn't fix the things he had done.

I unpacked my belongings just as someone knocked on the door. I figured that it was most likely Ezra. I didn't want to deal with him right now as much as I loved him, but I was pleasantly surprised to find RJ standing outside. He grinned at me as I let him inside and casually sat down on the sofa. He stretched out his long legs and grinned.

"So?" He wiggled his brows as he motioned to his neck.

I huffed out a small laugh as I joined him on the couch. "I'll tell you if you tell me." My friend blushed a deep red. "Aw, you're such a cute baby bi." I reached over and squeezed his arm.

"I want to date Felix and Ford. Get to know them better," RJ confessed. "What... I just don't know how."

I squeezed his arm again. "And the twins don't date."

Felix didn't like to get too attached to people. His brother was his confidant, and I wasn't even sure he trusted me or the Olsons that much. I had a feeling the reason Ford hung back was because of Andy. I gritted my teeth. How long had he had feelings for my boyfriend? Was that the reason he had pretended to be my friend in the first place? So he could steal him away?

"Yeah, I know." RJ looked defeated. "Felix told me that we could have some fun, but he wasn't going to be my boyfriend. I don't know the first thing about doing casual. I also get the impression that Ford is into someone else. I mean, sure, he kissed me, but Felix was the one who was all hands and tongue. Maybe Ford is doing this for Felix."

I knew, deep down, that Ford wanted someone to take care of him, love him, and cherish him the way he deserved. He had told me once.

"You could change their minds."

"And how do I do that?"

"Court them."

RJ's eyes widened. "Court them? Like this is the eighteen hundreds or something?"

"Yep, that's exactly what I mean." I patted his arm lightly. "Bring flowers. Take them out on dates, open the door, and pull out their chairs. Make them both see that they're worth it." Not that I felt Ford deserved that right now, but still...

RJ chewed on his lip. "I've never done that before. Frankie was just easy, you know? We started dating in middle school, although it was hardly dating. I basically carried her books to and from class, held her hand at lunch, that sort of thing. We didn't even have a real kiss until we were fifteen."

"A real kiss? You mean like tongue and everything?" I teased, just to watch him blush.

RJ nodded. "Yeah. Felix and Ford are much more experienced than I am. I've only touched my own dick and kissed three people. I have no idea what to do."

"Oh, boo, it's okay. Some of the parts are different, but you shouldn't feel overwhelmed. I'm sure that they would enjoy helping you out. Show you what they like and don't like."

RJ gripped the back of his neck. "I really like them. Is that crazy?"

"It's not," I said. RJ was such a teddy bear. Felix would be lucky to fall in love with him. "Do you have questions?"

RJ's brows shot up. "Questions?"

"Yeah, like top or bottom. Blowjobs, that sort of thing." I knew the perfect people for him to talk to.

RJ turned red as a tomato. "You're my friend and all, Leo, but that really isn't something I want to talk about with you. I've done a little research online."

"You're adorable, but I wasn't saying you should talk to me. I was talking about Ezra and Seth. Seth is in a poly relationship."

I was pretty open about my sexuality, but not like the two of them. Not to mention they had helped me.

RJ grimaced. "No offense, because I know you and Ezra are like besties or whatever, but he kind of scares me."

"He's harmless," I tried to assure him, but RJ looked unconvinced. "And Seth?"

He shrugged. "I don't know him as well as you do. I might be able to talk to him when we get back."

"Or this weekend. He and Wyatt are coming out for the race."

"Uh, yeah, maybe."

I climbed to my feet. "You don't have to talk to anyone if you don't want to. You can figure things out on your own with them. Do more research, everything you're curious about and what you're not. But Seth and Ezra were there for me when I was teenager and still trying to figure everything out. They can answer all your questions."

"I thought I might ask Killian and Watts," RJ muttered as I walked to the kitchen to grab a couple of waters. I stopped and slowly turned back around. "They're bi, you know, and they've been with women and men so, you know."

It wasn't a horrible idea. "Or all of them. You could talk to the four of them, the bi-boys and the gay boys. Get some input from both sides."

"Maybe," RJ mumbled. He raised his hip and slid his phone from his pocket. His face lit up like a lightbulb. "It's Felix."

I handed him a water. "I figured. Your entire face turned all sunshine and rainbows. You don't just like him. You really, really like him. And Ford."

"They're fun. So carefree and willing to do anything. They're... They're beautiful."

"They are all of those things and more."

RJ took a sip of his water. "I haven't told my parents yet. Mom saw me texting the other day and asked who the girl was. She said that Frankie never made me smile so hard."

"What did you say?" I knew Rand and Brooklyn would accept RJ and whoever he dated, no matter what. They were always so welcoming when I went to the house and never treated me differently than RJ's other friends.

He chuckled. "It was someone new. That's all I said. I never said he or she or anything like that. I told Parker."

Parker was the eldest child of Mason and London Pelletier.

"And? What did they say?"

Parker was an enigma to me. They were polite to me when we spoke, but they were elusive and kept to themselves most of the time. They weren't seen partying or getting into trouble when they weren't driving. I thought maybe Parker was shy, but so far, all the things I had done to get them open up to me hadn't worked. Maybe they just didn't like me. Or anyone. They were close to RJ, but that was about it.

"They were pretty supportive," RJ told me. And I knew that was all I was going to get about Parker. See? Enigma. "Told me to shoot my shot."

"Then we agree on something." I watched as he typed into his phone.

"I asked Felix and Ford if we could go out when I get back. To dinner." RJ wiggled his phone at me just as my own went off.

Surprise, surprise, it was Felix.

Felix: SOS! RJ just asked me out to dinner. And Ford. But I didn't think you were texting him, so I wanted to toss that in the mix.

Leo: What's the problem?

Felix: Neither one of us has ever been on a real date before. At least, not what he's talking about.

Leo: So, is that a no?

Felix: We're both kind of freaking out. What do we do?

I glanced up to find RJ staring at his phone, waiting for a response. He looked terrified.

Leo: I think you should do it. RJ's a great catch, and I know he'll treat you right. And if it doesn't work out, at least you'll get dinner out of it.

Felix: We can afford our own dinner, boo.

Leo: That's not what I meant, and you know it.

Felix: Fine, we'll do it.

He made sound like it was such a hardship. A good-looking guy wanted to take them out to dinner, and Felix was complaining about it? What if they had fun and fell in love?

"They said yes!" RJ exclaimed and chuckled nervously. "Wait, were you just texting with them?"

I nodded. "Be careful with Felix, okay? Ford, too."

I couldn't tell him anything more than that, but I hoped RJ would understand what I was putting down. If Ford wanted RJ to know about his feelings for Andy, that was up to him.

"You know I will." And that was the truth. "And Andy? Are the two of you back together?"

I smiled. "Yeah, yeah, I think that we are."

"That's all you're going to give me? Not even a little hint about that giant hickey he sucked into your neck?" RJ smirked and then I watched it slip right from his face. "Oh shit. You're not a virgin anymore."

I grew warm. "I'm not."

"Was it everything you thought it would be?" RJ's brows dipped. "I know you wanted it to be special and with someone you loved, so it only makes sense."

"It was everything and more."