Page 12 of Riley

I laughed nervously. “I, uh... guess so?”

I passed the sign that readJasper Springs Estates,lit up by the small spotlights. In the darkness, it looked almost ominous.

I cruised down the road, looking for his address number, focusing on anything but him.

“There,” he pointed to a sleek, gray condominium. The spotlights in the yard cast shadows on it, illuminating it vividly.

The car rolled to a stop, and I turned it off, opening my door as Eric moved to open his.

When I came around to his side, he was just shutting the door. He fell back against the car for a moment, his gaze flashing up at me.

“What the fuck are you doing?” he asked, but his voice wasn’t angry. It was curious. He didn’t move. Instead, he just looked at me in question.

“Walking you to your door, obviously,” I said, shaking my head.

“You don’t have to do that,” Eric said, shifting his weight, holding his jacket in front of him like a barrier.

I leaned against the car, biting my lip as I looked back at him. There was something about him that called to my inner gentleman. His apprehension at my polite conversation, at my opening of the car door.

I wondered about the partners in his life who hadn’t shown him such etiquette.

That was another reason I despised trying to date in this day and age. Most men were the epitome ofI can do it myself.I’d been told as much before, which made me feel quite ancient, despite the fact I wasn’t even forty yet.

“I know, but…” I swallowed nervously as I offered him my arm. “Humor me?”

He looked at my arm like I’d grown three heads, and for a moment I didn’t think he’d take it. But when his hand grasped my arm, just the slightest, I couldn’t help but grin as I pulled him away from the car, slowly guiding us up his sidewalk, the air crisp against my skin.

It wasn’t a long walk by any means, and we were on his porch within seconds. Eric dropped his hand, sliding it into his pockets for his keys.

I stood politely, waiting to watch him enter the door before I bounded back to my car, but he stood there for a moment in silence before he spoke.

“When’s the last time you had fun, Riley?” he said, furrowing his eyebrows, forcing me to look at him in question.

“I beg your pardon?” I asked, confused by his question. It wasn’t what I had expected.

“And I don’t mean the kind of fun that ends with you home before midnight,” he said, clearing his throat. “I’m talking about real honest to God,fun.” His voice came out dark and inviting, sending a chill snaking down my spine.

I wondered momentarily if his definition of fun differed from mine, almost sure that it did.

I paused, considering his question. I’d gone on the trip to Brideshead recently, but it wasn’t what I’d call fun. I’d enjoyed myself, sure, as anyone in the beautiful expanse of nature with copious amounts of alcohol would. But I wasn’t into drinking like the rest of my party mates, nor was I into watching everyone drunkenly make out.

I thought about the trips I took with my TA and my students every year. Last year we’d gone to Italy, and while I most certainly enjoyed myself, it was still awkward, at times. Mostly because I was the only single adult gay man on vacay, and engaging in any sort of romantic liaisons—or one night stands—was out of the question. My focus was on keeping my kids safe.

And sharing a room with my bestie slash coworker while also responsible for one hundred teenagers in a foreign country is not something I would callfuneither. Not to mention, most of my free time during the year, and even in the summer, was devoted to volunteering for school events, programs, and curriculum.

I twisted my hands together, feeling the sweat overtake me. I wiped them on my pants, if only because the sudden heat as Eric stared at me was making me feel on display. I closed my eyes, and I sighed.

I could have told him anything, but instead I settled on the truth.

“It’s been a while, I guess,” I said.

Eric shifted.

“A while, huh?” he asked as he nodded at me, moving closer.

I looked down at the sliver of space between us. A part of me wanted to move closer, meet him halfway. To reach out and run my hands through his hair, and let myself have a little bit offun.

To tease, to touch.

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