25. Owen

25

OWEN

Delilah slathers River in kisses, whimpering endlessly, jumping up into his arms on the front porch.

“Someone got spoiled by her aunt, but someone still likes you best,” Echo says to her brother.

“She knows who gives her gourmet biscuits,” he says, then stands, petting and scratching the dog as he circles his hand around my arm. “By the way, we’re a thing.”

Echo arches a brow. “Excuse me?”

“Owen and I,” he says, like it’s patently obvious. Maybe it is. “We’re together now.”

She shakes her head, like she’s processing this news. “You two?”

“Well, what other Owen would I be talking about?”

She points at me, then him. “You’re together? You’ve been friends for eight years, and now you’re together after one weekend?”

I shrug, give her a smile. “Snow. What can you do?”

River drapes an arm around me, then smacks his lips to my cheek. “Exactly. One road trip, one snowfall, and one cabin equals two very happy guys.”

Echo shimmies her shoulders, then lets out an epic squeal. She throws her arms around the two of us. Even though I’m not a hugger, I’ll happily take this one.

When she lets go, she says, “I was hoping you’d both see what was right in front of you.”

Once we’re back in the car, River doesn’t start the engine straight away. He turns around and sweet talks his dog for a few minutes as Delilah wags her tail, her tongue lolling from her mouth.

When he’s done lavishing attention on his dog wife, he turns to me. “You get the appeal of Paul Rudd now, don’t you?”

“I never didn’t. But I also get the appeal of Clueless . Sometimes the person you’re looking for has been in front of you all along,” I say, meeting his gaze.

River shrugs helplessly in surrender. “That’s it. You’re getting kissed senseless right now.”

He makes good on that promise for a hot, delirious minute, then turns the engine, and we cruise onto the highway to the city. Along the way, we tackle an important topic—safe sex. We’re both negative for everything, so we decide to ditch the condoms. Hallelujah. When River pulls up in front of my place, parking at the curb, he lets out a deep sigh. “So, cutie. Here’s the thing.”

I groan. “Nothing good ever came of the words here’s the thing .”

“Hello! Boyfriend pact. Have a little faith.”

River makes a good point. I should have faith. I will have faith. “What’s the thing?”

River leans in close to me. “I know we just spent forty-eight hours together, but I kind of want to see you tonight too. And not just for the whole come again thing. I want to spend the night with you.”

My chest flips, a loop-de-loop roller-coaster ride inside my body. “I like the sound of that.”

“Good. But I have this dog here, and I can’t quite leave her alone all night, so is there any chance you’d come over to my place, and spend the night with us?”

Easiest answer ever. “Yes. But I do have one request.”

“Lay it on me.”

“Can you use that forest rain shampoo again? I saw Nisha gave you some extra, and I have to say, it really turns me on.”

He smiles slyly. “I will use it every day then.”

Later that night, after Goldilocks allows me to pet her three times before she jumps on the range hood, then up to the highest cabinet to bathe—in her mind presumably—out of sight, I take a shower and shave.

I get dressed in jeans, tight boxer briefs, and a Henley. Then I order some Thai food without garlic, lock my apartment, and swing by the nearby restaurant to pick up the takeout.

I catch a Lyft to River’s place in Russian Hill.

My bones are buzzing as the car cruises through the city on a Sunday night. Even San Francisco looks different. The shops are brighter, the city bolder, the colors more vibrant. Everything feels a little more... alive.

Including me.

When I reach River’s place, he buzzes me in, and I bound up the steps. He swings open the door, Delilah at his heels.

“Hi, sexy,” he says.

“Hey to you,” I say, drawing a deep inhale of his hair. “Mmm. It worked.”

“Good to know.” River drops a kiss to my lips, then takes the food, setting it on the counter as he declares, “And along those lines, sex first, food second.”

I’m good with that. Very, very good with that.

Especially when he takes me to his bedroom and gestures to the king-size bed. A groan works its way up my chest. This is my first time in his bedroom as his lover, and I want anything and everything he has planned.

Because he definitely has plans, from the looks of it.

“I hope you don’t mind, Owen, but I took the liberty...”

A rush of heat spreads from my chest down to my groin as I survey the bed. He’s prepped. Simple and seductive. He’s a man who listens. Who knows how to read me. Who wants to give me what I crave from him.

“Nice tie,” I say, my voice husky already. The temperature in my body spikes as he moves behind me, kisses my neck, then whispers, “Would you rather be kinky or romantic?”

With him, there’s only one answer. “It’s both.”