Page 46 of Totally Geeked

“But now you are?”

“Yeah. I think I am. Her name’s Niki, and she’s, well…she’s amazing.”

His eyes light up in a way I haven’t seen in years.

“Nice, good on you,” I say, and he folds his arms across his chest and leans on his car.

“And how about you? How’s the no-app thing working out?”

I’m unable to stop the smile that spreads across my face.

“What’s that look for? Have you met someone the old-fashioned way?” My cheeks immediately warm, and he opens his mouth in shock.

“You have, haven’t you? Oh wow, okay, who is he? When do we get to meet him? Oooh, Arlo is going to be crushed,” he says, glancing back to the shop. “I’m sorry but you know how I warned you that Arlo gets himself all attached to people. Well, I think my little brother has developed a small crush on you.”

I force a smile that hopefully doesn't give away anything. As much as I’m pretty fucking sure I am completely in love with his little brother, I don’t think the parking lot trying to hide from view is the right place to tell him. Besides, I haven’t said the L word to Arlo yet and if anyone should be hearing it first, it’s him.

“I’ll introduce you soon,” I say, instead.

“Wow, serious enough to bring them around us goofballs. I thought this was a phase you were going through, but the last few weeks you’ve really…”

“What?”

“I hate to say it but, grown up.”

I laugh and punch his arm.

“Dickhead, I’m older than you, remember.”

“Yeah, but you always acted like you were stuck in college, drinking, dating, flirting with everything with a dick.”

I can’t exactly argue with that. But I wanted more, and I forced myself to believe I deserved more, and then the universe brought me Arlo, and now I can’t ever picture my life without him in it. I can never go back to the guy I was before.

“Okay, how about the afterparty tonight?” he asks, and people start to come out of the reading and walk toward their cars. We can’t stay here, not if we don't want to be spotted.

“What about tonight?”

“I’ve got DJ Doublemix lined up to work. We can do a double intro?”

“You want me to introduce my boyfriend to you tonight?”

“Wow, you used the B word, must really be serious. And yeah, at my place. If it is this serious, it would also be good for Arlo to see you with someone. It might help him get over thiscrushof his.”

Every time he says Arlo has a crush on me, my whole body wants to grab Gordon and shake him, but I won’t because I need him to approve of this, of Arlo and me, because I can’t lose my best friend, but I know I can’t lose Arlo either.

“Okay, I'll see if he’s free,” I say, and then I walk away before I agree to do anything else.

Chapter eighteen

Arlo

HARRISON: I might havesort of agreed to introduce my boyfriend to Gordon at the afterparty tonight.

He has to be joking, I think as I reread the message. No way would he agree to tell Gordon about us in front of a room full of his friends and teammates. Would he?

ARLO: I’m not sure if you are being serious or not. Didn’t we agree to wait until my dinner, when I get my cast off? When it is just us?

HARRISON: It wasn’t on purpose. Gordon said he wanted to do a double intro, his girlfriend and my boyfriend.

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