19. Harrison

I arrive at Gordon’s and the party is in full swing, he’s standing by the DJ booth, and I head that way. He’s not going to be happy I didn’t bring my boyfriend to meet him. I mean, I didn’t have to. He lives here right now, but Arlo is right, we can’t tell him at a party.

“So where is he?” Gordon asks, glancing behind me.

I shake my head. “Sorry, he couldn”t make it.”

His smile turns into a frown, but he wraps an arm over my shoulder and swings me toward the booth, where two women are wearing headphones and vibing to the music.

“Don’t worry, man. I’m sure he’ll make it next time. This is Niki,” he says, and the woman closest to us takes off her headphones and holds out her hand for me.

“Hi, I’m Harry,” I say, shaking her hand.

“Gordie’s told me all about you, Harry. I hope you came to dance?”

“I’m not sure you should believe everything Gordie says, but I’ll be dancing if the beats are right, that is.”

Her eyebrows rise as does her lips into a playful smile. “Oh, they will be killer, you can count on that. Let me know if you have any requests.”

Gordon chimes in, “Nope, no Taylor tonight.”

“Mother is always welcome,” Niki laughs, and Gordon shakes his head. Niki slips her headphones on, nodding to the beat, and then after a few buttons the track shifts to become a mashup of whatever she was playing before and Blank Space. I knew I was going to like this girl.

Gordon drags me over to the bar and orders us both beers.

“So, what was his excuse?” he asks me, and I shake my head.

“No excuse, he just couldn’t make it. It was short notice.”

“Yeah, but it”s the weekend. Didn’t you two already have plans together?”

Arlo and I did have plans. We were going to persevere through this party until we could no longer stand it, then sneak off into his room or a bathroom to make out.

“Nope. I’ll be seeing him later in the week.”

“Well, feel free to invite him to a game. I want to meet the guy who has my best friend using the B word.”

I spot Arlo making his way down the stairs wearing black jeans and a dark blue Henley. His hair is styled with some kind of gel, and the rosy glow on his cheeks tells me this is all to drive me fucking crazy.

“He is pretty amazing.”

“I’ll be the judge of that. Seriously though, get him to a game. Or we could do dinner. Or bowling. You like bowling.”

“You like bowling. I liked the karaoke bar we hit afterward.”

“Fine, bowling and karaoke. Set it up and Niki and I will be there.”

“Sure,” I say, and he leaves to go back to Niki, and I try my best to not make it obvious that I’m tracking Arlo’s every move.

“Hey,” Ryan Tanner says, pulling my attention as he sidles up next to me.

“Hey,” I reply, leaning against the bar and nodding my head in time with the beat of the music. I let my gaze move around the room before it returns to Arlo.

“So, I hope it’s cool I’m here,” he says.

“Doesn’t bother me.”

“Good. I just don’t want things to be weird between us, you know with me asking you out and all.”

I let out a small laugh and glance his way. His cheeks have that rosy tint they had when he hit me up at the field. “Really, It’s cool.”

“Good, because if I had known you were seeing someone, I would never have even asked.”

Now my full attention is on him.

“Who told you I was seeing someone?”

He shrugs. “Some of the guys were talking and I overheard—”

“What did they say? What guys?”

He frowns. “I really don’t remember exactly, sorry. I think it was something about you stopped going out looking for hookups now you found a man.”

My heart is pounding. Did someone see Arlo and me together? We’ve been really careful, but what if someone has spotted us and what if they say something to Gordon before we get a chance to tell him, to explain?

Ryan smiles, but it”s one of those thin-lipped ones people do when they are forcing it. “Look, I just wanted to let you know I get it, either way. I think you were right before. Dating a player would be too tricky if things go wrong.”

“Yeah,” I agree, and he orders a beer, then heads to the side of the room toward where Tim and Dave from the Funky Monkeys are chatting.

I move to the living room and sit down next to Duckie and a few of the AC players on the couch. They’re chatting about how epic today’s game was, but as much as I try and act like I’m involved in whatever it is they are saying, my attention keeps going back to Arlo like there’s a magnet pulling me back to him. Then Ryan sidles up next to Arlo all smiles and deep dimples, and my stomach churns.

“You okay there?” Duckie asks, nudging my side.

“Fine,” I lie, and he laughs.

“You don’t look fine. You look like you want to kill Tanner.” He leans in close and whispers, “You know you’ll have to tell G about you and his little bro at some point.”

What the fuck?

“Ahh, I don’t know what you mean,” I say, looking around to make sure no one else heard what he just said.

“Dude, you brought him home three times last week to draw alone in your room.”

“He’s an artist, he needed sketches for the new book, I—”

“Didn’t remember that our apartment isn’t exactly soundproof.”

My cheeks burn.

“Did you tell anyone?”

“No, but you should. What’s the big deal?”

“Gordon will kill me.”

Gordon jumps over the back of the couch and lands beside me.

“Why am I killing you now?”

“Ahh,” I begin, but Duckie tosses a yellow duck at him and laughs.

“Harry thinks you’ll be pissed when you find out I’ve already met his new guy.”

My chest goes tight. Fucking hell, Duckie you dick. He wouldn”t tell him, would he?

“You have?” Gordon asks.

“Yeah, he was over earlier in the week, nice guy.”

“He can wait to meet him for himself,” I interject, hoping to end this, but Gordon waves a hand my way.

“No, tell me, what is he like?”

“He seemed…sweet. Quiet, compared to us, but nice,” Duckie says, and I swear I want to stuff his mouth with the freaking ducks I can see he has stashed in his pocket to hide here through the night.

“Yeah, ummm, he’s quiet,” I agree.

“I guess opposites attract. You’re the loudest person I know,” Gordon laughs.

“Am not,” I say, climbing from the couch. Leaving this seat looks like it will be the only way out of this conversation.

“Are, too. Remember when we played Pictionary a few weeks ago on game night. You were pretty loud then.”

“I still don’t know how you didn’t see that it was a rocket ship.”

“It looked like a dick.”

“Did not.”

I step over his legs and down the last of my beer on my way to the kitchen.

Arlo is still there grabbing water from the refrigerator.

“Hey,” I say, leaning on the counter, pretending to watch the party when really my focus is entirely on him.

“Hi, are you having fun?” he asks.

“Not really?”

“That’s too bad, why not?”

I turn to face him.

“My boyfriend couldn’t make it.”

He nods and tries to open his bottle of water but can’t seem to get the top off.

“Here,” I offer, and he hands it over. I unscrew the cap and hand it back, and he smirks up at me, batting those thick lashes.

“Sounds like your boyfriend is an idiot for bailing on you.”

I shake my head. “He’s an amazing guy. He’s talented, sweet, kind, generous, and amazing in bed.”

His cheeks blush and make the light freckles on his skin stand out even more. It’s so fucking adorable all I want to do is grab him and kiss him right here, right now.

“Would you like a tour of the house?” he asks, then bites his lower lip a little, and my dick twitches.

“Lead the way.”

Arlo heads upstairs, and I wait a minute to follow so it doesn”t look suspicious, but as I turn the corner at the top and glance down at the party, Duckie is grinning up at me. He lifts his glass and nods, then goes back to talking to his boyfriend, Ian.

I don’t wait to be spotted by anyone else so hurry up the hallway.

“Arlo?” I whisper as I move past the guest room door. “Where are—”

With an oomph, he pulls me into his room and shuts the door.

His mouth is on mine a second later, his long fingers sliding through the hair at the back of my head, the cast scratching the soft skin there and sending chills through me to my thickening cock.

“I’ve missed you,” I groan into his mouth.

He moans something back, but I don’t know what. It doesn’t matter. All that matters right now is this. Is us. It’s just so right. I hold his waist, lift him, and he wraps his legs around me. I move to the wall, resting his back against it as we kiss and moving my hands to his ass to help hold him up. His bulge presses against my hardening cock, and I roll my hips against him.

A smash startles us apart, and then Gordon is there, his face red, eyes wide, his bottle of beer on the hardwood floor in pieces between us.

“What the hell are you doing?” he yells, and I hold my hands up in front of me.

“It isn’t what you think.”

“How could you? You have a boyfriend, and you knew Arlo had a crush on you. Why would you do this? He’s my brother. How could you take advantage of him like this? I thought you were my best friend.”

Arlo reaches for his brother. “Gordon, please,” Arlo begs, but he shrugs him away.

“I am your best friend, Gordon. Just let us explain.”

“There’s nothing to explain, I know what I just saw. You haven’t changed at all, Harry. You’re the same player you’ve always been. I just can’t believe you would go after my brother.”

“He didn’t go after me, I went after him,” Arlo tries to say, but Gordon shakes his head.

“Don’t even try to defend what he’s doing. He knew you had a crush on him. He’s got a fucking boyfriend, Arlo. Did he tell you that?”

But Gordon doesn’t let him reply. He’s drunk, angry, and starting to sway a little.

“You’ve got five seconds to get the fuck out of my house, Harry! Five… four…”

Gordon’s face is dark red now, and he’s stomping forward with each number he screams, so I do the only thing I can do, I leave.

“It’s okay, Arlo. We’ll talk later,” I call from the hall.

“Like hell you will. You stay the fuck away from my brother,” Gordon screams after me, and as I walk down the stairs, more than a few eyes are on me. Duckie meets me by the main door.

“Sorry,” he says, a hand on my shoulder. “I didn’t see him leave the party. He was talking to the DJ, and then he was just gone.”

“He’ll cool down and let us explain tomorrow. He’s just had a few and isn’t thinking straight,” I say, and Duckie smiles and nods.

“I hope so.”

“Me, too.”

I get home and immediately text Arlo.

HARRISON: Hey, it wasn’t how we wanted to tell him, but at least he knows now. We can explain the truth tomorrow when he’s calmed down and totally sober. Xoxo

ARLO: He shut down the party, everyone is clearing out. I’ve never seen him like that. It was scary. I hate that you had to go. I wanted to come with you, but I thought that would have just made things worse. I’m going to try to talk to him when everyone leaves. He has to know that I am the guy you are seeing. I’m your boyfriend. He shouldn”t go all night thinking you’re a cheater. It isn’t right.

I love how he’s thinking of me right now. Gordon and I have had clashes in the past. What best friends haven”t. But talking to him when he’s like this isn’t likely going to go down well.

HARRISON: I’m okay. If you want to wait until morning, I can come over and we can explain it all calmly together.

ARLO: No. We did nothing wrong. We are grown men, and we can date whoever we want. I want to do this tonight. I have to.

HARRISON: I”ll be up late if you need to talk after, or if I need to come get you, or whatever. I’ll be here.

ARLO: ***heart emoji*** I got this.