Page 11 of Twink Heart

?“I know I shouldn’t,” I started hesitantly. “But I want to ask…”

?Rowan shook his head. “I don’t want to talk about it.”

?“I figured from the way you said it.” I desperately searched for something else to say. “Uh… so what do you like to do for fun?”

?“I don’t really have time for fun.”

?“Are you always this grumpy?”

?The question seemed to catch him off guard. “I’m grumpy?”

?I raised an eyebrow, but stayed silent.

?He let out a long sigh. “I know. Sorry.”

?“It’s alright. I think it’s kind of cute.” I froze. “Uh… I mean. It’s… you know… manly or something.”

?I caught the faintest hint of a grin curling the edge of his lips and my heart swelled. Just that tiny movement made him so unbelievably attractive at that moment. I knew right then and there that I wanted to make him smile as much as possible.

“It doesn’t bother me when you say stuff like that you know,” he said. “My best friend is gay. I’m used to it.”

?“You have a gay best friend?”

?“Yeah. Have been since the end of college.”

?“And you said it’s his cabin you’re staying at? I wonder if I know him.”

?“He just inherited the place last year from his dead uncle. It’s right on Lake Michigan!”

?“Well that’s lucky!”

?“His uncle died, so maybe not that lucky…”

?“Hey,” I said, holding my hands up. “Silver lining, right?”

?He glared at me for a moment. “Are you always this chipper?”

?“What do you mean?” I asked, putting on my best vacant smile as I crossed my eyes. I saw that grin pull at his lips again and my heart soared. “I know. I’m a bit much sometimes.”

?“No,” Rowan replied. “It’s okay.”

?“Just okay?” I tried to act offended. “What a glowing review.”

?He looked me dead in the eye. “It’s kind of… cute.”

?My heart skipped so hard I thought it had stopped all together. If he kept going the way he was, this man was going to kill me.

Chapter Seven: Rowan

I thought the coffee date went well. Not that it was a date of course, but just a completely platonic meeting between two men who definitely weren’t interested in one another.

?Ahem.

?Anyway, the meeting went well. James and I parted with the beginning stages of friendship under our belts. I wouldn’t say we were best friends, but I couldn’t deny the fact that I wanted to hang out with him again, even if he was grossly positive all the time.

?I’d never met someone who could see a bright side to everything. The guy was impossible to bring down. It was kind of weird to be around, considering how completely fucking depressed I felt at the moment, but I figured it might be good for me. After all, I wasn’t going to get any positivity from myself, so getting it from someone else seemed like the next best option. Granted, it didn’t make me feel any better, but I couldn’t just wallow in self-pity all the time, right?

?Our coffee date had been three days ago and now that the weekend was coming on again, I was feeling the need to see him. I’d had a little more time to grapple with the feelings I was having and had yet to come to any conclusions other than the fact that there were definitely some sexual urges there.

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