Page 58 of Twink Heart

Two Months Later

“You know, seeing you this happy is sort of unnerving,” Adam said as he sat back in the patio chair, a margarita balanced in his left hand. “This boy must be good for you.”

?“It’s amazing how far being a decent person goes these days,” I chimed in, smiling as always.

?“Better you than me, honey,” Adam grinned. “I do my best not to be nice to anyone.”

?“You’re nice to me,” Rowan added.

?“Yeah, but being mean to you is the equivalent of kicking a shelter dog and I just can’t bring myself to do that.”

?“You’re right,” I nodded. “Big dog energy with this one.”

?“Absolutely.”

?Rowan seemed confused. “You guys think I’m like a dog?”

?“In the best ways, Booboo,” Adam said. “You’re food motivated, you like to cuddle, and you’re pretty happy with just keeping things simple. It’s like a himbo but with more tail wagging.”

?“I don’t have a tail…”

?“But he does wag,” I said, glancing over at Adam. “When he wants something or he gets excited, he does this little butt wiggle and it’s so cute.”

?“Oh my god! I’ve seen him do that now that you mention it!”

Both of us were laughing, mostly at his expense. But it was all in good fun. Rowan on the other hand looked like he was regretting ever letting Adam meet me. The two of us got along a lot better than I expected. I knew that best friends could be a little protective sometimes and I wouldn’t have blamed Adam for that. But the moment he stepped foot inside the cabin and made some sassy remark, I countered him almost immediately. He gave me a good once over, nodded in respect, and we’d been basically best friends ever since.

?And then we proceeded to pick on Rowan for the rest of the night. It was good fun and I could tell Rowan secretly enjoyed it. Seeing the two important people in his life getting along was worth the small amount of harassment.

?The past two months had nearly flown by. One night I was standing on top of a dune telling him I loved him and then it was suddenly two months later. But we were still so disgustingly in love that every day felt like another day in paradise. Rowan really was my everything and I wouldn’t have it any other way. I’d never met someone so perfect before.

?Sure, we had our moments where we had to slow down and explain something to one another. But nearly all of it was because I was his first boyfriend. There were questions that came up that he had no context for and I was more than happy to talk him through it.

?However, we never fought, we never raised our voices, and there was such a level of care and respect between us that I was nearly bowled over by it on a daily basis. It made me realize that all the men I’d dated before Rowan were absolute dogs. But in the bad way. They were like junkyard dogs trained to fight and dominate anything they came across. But Rowan was like a Labrador that was just happy to be included.

?When I first met him, he’d been in a constant state of depression and moodiness. But over the past couple of months he’d been getting a little bit happier with every passing day. The grumpiness wore off and soon I found him smiling for no reason at all. Sometimes I liked to pretend it was all my doing, that I was the one that brought him out of the storm he’d been weathering. But I had to give a lot more credit to him.

?Rowan had found his calling. And pretty quickly too. When he first quit his job, he started going on a lot of hikes around the area. Well, on a whim, he began taking pictures and recording small snippets along the way because he was so enthusiastic about how beautiful the dunes and the beaches were. Well, after getting a little attention online, he started making videos with more purpose. Thanks to his marketing background and some targeted ads, his following had quickly expanded. Already he was getting offers to sponsor products in his videos and he had a blog that was making money. A blog. I thought those had been dead for years, but Rowan made it work somehow. The man was quickly becoming a hiking influencer, which was a crazy thing to ever say out loud, and we traveled every weekend up and down the shoreline looking for places to make his next video. I even got to be in a couple of them.

?So now, on top of being successful in the most unexpected way ever, Rowan was only getting more buff with the constant exercise. He was fit to begin with, but he was quickly approaching model status and that was equally wonderful and terrifying. Sometimes I felt like I had to beat off both men and women with a stick while we were out hiking. But he never gave them the time of day. He had eyes only for me and that was such an incredible feeling.

?“Well,” Adam said at last, slapping his knees in that Midwestern way that let me know he was ready to go home. “I’ve got a bit of a drive back so I should probably get going.”

?“You’re more than welcome to stay if you want,” Rowan offered.

?“And sleep where?”

?“You could sleep in the sex swing,” I offered.

?Adam glanced at me, a mischievous look in his eye. “Oh, I have a feeling that’s going to be busy tonight. So I think I’ll just head home.”

?I gave him a wink. “That’s my plan.”

?“Oh my god…” Rowan sighed, shaking his head.

?“Don’t act so embarrassed. Now you’ve got two gay guys in your life. We’re gonna talk.”

?“He’s right,” I nodded. “Nothing is a secret now.”

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