Page 9 of Cross the Line

As much as Alec wants Theo to see how much he’s changed and grown, the smartest thing to do right now is play it safe. In Theo’s eyes, Alec has always just been Jason’s carefree little brother who could pull a smile from Theo with a sick ball trick on the field or a ridiculous joke.

The most heartbreaking part of the distance Theo put between them after Alec’s failed confession wasn’t even Alec’s broken heart; it was feeling like he’d let Theo down. Theo didn’t have a lot of people in his life and the number of people he trusted was even less. Knowing that Alec was the sole cause of the distance Theo put between them burned more than anything, and for years, there was nothing he could do to fix it.

Maybe now is his chance. Alec can be that someone for Theo again. He can make sure not to let his too-big feelings show or his tendency to spiral when he has to be still. He can be the fun, breezy guy Theo used to know without letting his traitorous heart get in the way.

“I think you’re full of bullshit.”

“I swear to fucking god it’s true.” Alec grins, his stomach muscles sore from laughing. He recounted the entire story to Theo twice now and it’s no less funny the second time, nor less incredulous. “Riley swears it’s an honorary frat brother tradition, but I’m still not sure why he did it naked.”

For some reason Theo’s smile fades with his last sentence, but when he catches Alec staring, he plasters it on bigger than ever. “I’m glad I wasn’t in a frat.”

“I don’t think I’m the frat type, either,” Alec agrees.

“Really?” Theo appears genuinely surprised. “That seems right up your alley.”

“The sense of community and service?”

“I was gonna say attention-seeking behavior and parties, but that, too. Though to be fair, I don’t know the first thing about what frat life is actually like outside of movies, so it’s probably not all doing stupid stuff. I’m sure you’d have fun, though.”

“You know I love to have fun.” Alec laughs, Theo’s words strangely cutting. He can’t blame Theo for assuming that’s all there is to him. How would he know any different? It’s all most people think about Alec.

“Gotta enjoy your youth while you have it,” Theo says, gripping the steering wheel with his left hand so he can reach over and ruffle Alec’s curls. His fingers are there and gone before Alec can appreciate them, the small bit of contact an unexpected punch to Alec’s heart.

There’d been a time when Theo used to touch him—a clap on the shoulder, a congratulatory hug or ruffle of hair. Back before Alec ruined everything with his confession. This is the first time Theo’s touched him like that in six years and Alec’s painfully embarrassed at how much he likes it.

Theo pulls into the driveway, shutting the engine off and turning to grace Alec with one of his rare smiles. “Welcome home, kiddo.”

Just like that his heart crashes and burns. Kiddo.

“I’m twenty-one, thank you very much,” Alec retorts, proud of himself for keeping any petulance out of his tone.

“Sorry, my mistake. Happy birthday, big boy.”

“Shut up,” Alec huffs, torn between arousal and amusement. Desperate to get out of the car and away from the risk of being touched and making another life-altering mistake, he reaches for the door handle. “Race you to the door.”

“Not everything is a race.”

“That’s what slow people say.” Alec bolts from the car and takes the stairs two at a time. He pauses halfway up when he doesn’t hear Theo following, realizing he’s gone and gotten Alec’s luggage from the trunk. He waits until Theo’s locked his car and can see Alec before turning around to take the stairs backwards. “I’m still beating you.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah.”

The suitcase clunks on the edge of each of the stone steps as Theo drags it up, his eyes never leaving Alec’s. It’s far more eye contact than he’s used to from Theo and it makes Alec itch to go for a run or kick something really hard, anything to get rid of the rush of adrenaline coursing through him. He taps his fingers on his thigh and breathes in deeply, trying not to look as out of control as he feels.

“Jason said your parents put the spare key in the planter,” Theo says when he’s reached the landing at the top of the steps.

“I moved that months ago. Mom and Dad are nuts if they think keeping a key outside is okay. I have seen way too many true crime documentaries to allow that.”

“Since when do you watch true crime?”

“There’s a whole world of things you don’t know about me, Theodore.”

“No one calls me Theodore.”

“And yet I just did.” Alec winks before squatting down, digging his spare set of house keys out of his suitcase.

“How did you know you’d need a house key if your parents’ trip this weekend was last minute?” Theo asks.

“I’m obviously the full package.” He bats his long eyelashes at Theo, grinning. “I’m sexy and smart and some other things that are not fit to say in front of polite company.”

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