Page 73 of The Waiting Game

Felix shrugged. “I mean … I think there’s a little wiggle room somewhere in there.”

“Uhh. Who?”

“What do you mean, who?”

“Who have you … uh, who’s the guy?”

“Who’s what guy?” Felix looked confused.

“If there’s some wiggle room, there must be someone, right?” Jonah asked. “Some guy who, uhm, caught your eye, or whatever.”

“Kind of. I mean, I haven’t done anything. But you know, I’ve had the stray thought, I guess.”

“I think that’s normal,” Jonah said. “I mean, it doesn’t make you not-straight if you look at a guy and go ‘oh, he’s good-looking.’”

“No, I know,” Felix said. “But um, maybe more than that. Like … you know, some curiosity, maybe.”

He still wasn’t answering who.

He was clearly determined to drive Jonah completely insane. Jonah was just going to have to tuck that one away to deal with another day.

“Right, so, you’re saying we’re gonna pretend to be engaged and when they ask how this happened, you’ll say what?”

“Just that you’ve always been here for me. That you’ve been my rock through this whole thing and that we’ve been close since we were kids and that I couldn’t have gotten through this without you.”

“That’s uh, very touching,” Jonah said. “But uhm, isn’t it kinda … not really saying much?”

“What do you want me to say?” Felix looked amused.

“Um, I don’t know,” Jonah admitted. “But I feel like people are going to wonder when the switch flipped. They kept asking Hartinger and Murphy that, anyway.”

“People are fucking nosy gossips.”

“Not denying that but that’s sort of the world we live in. We’re going to get questions like that. And Jesus, not just from the media but from everyone. Management. Kate.”

They both shuddered at the thought of dealing with the team’s vice president of communications and public relations. She was scary.

“But more than that,” Jonah continued. “Our teammates. Our friends. You’ll be under even more scrutiny than I will!”

“I know. But I’ve thought about that. I can handle it.”

“You’re fine with answering intrusive questions about your attraction to men?” Jonah asked doubtfully.

“I’d rather have people questioning that than overanalyzing every single bit of liquid I put in my body, waiting for me to slip up,” Felix snapped.

“And that’s another thing!” Jonah pointed out. “What about Ismael? You need your sponsor and clearly, he’s going to be uh, concerned about the idea of us getting together.”

“I’ll tell him the truth,” Felix said. “That we’ve been close our whole lives. That I love you. That my life isn’t the same without you. And that you and Grandma Ji-min are the only steady, loving things in my life and that being with you could only help my sobriety.”

Oh, Jesus. Jonah closed his eyes. When Felix put it like that …

“I need this,” Felix continued and Jonah opened his eyes to look at him, concerned by the raw note in his voice. “I … the other night when we were on the road, I downloaded a hookup app.”

Jonah lifted an eyebrow in question. “Oh?”

“I … was really struggling. I was lonely. I started chatting with this woman and she invited me to meet up with her.”

“Okay …”

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