Page 45 of Flake It Til You Make It

“No,” Taylor agreed. There was a part of him that wanted to say he’d never get used to his mom being gone, but then he didn’t need to say that for Rocco to understand it.

Rocco’s smile softened. “Thank you for telling me. I know you don’t like to talk about it. You didn’t need to say it, for me to understand that.”

“You should know why we’re doing this whole thing,”Taylor said.

“I knew before but yeah, I understand it a little better now. And after being part of the festival, that’s helped some too.”

“I was thinking, tonight, that we don’t want such different things,” Taylor said.

“Yeah?” Rocco’s dark eyes widened and he swayed closer, and for a second, Taylor was confused and also completely utterly thrilled. Rocco was going to kiss him. He wasn’t sure why, but he couldn’t be mad about it, even though it was probably the last thing they should be doing.

This thing between them was already complicated enough without adding kissing to the equation.

But Rocco must have seen the confusion on his face, because he pulled back. “You didn’t mean romantically, did you,” he stated, rather than asked. The openness on his face shuttered.

“Uh, no. Um. Professionally. We both want Christmas Falls to be the most welcoming, the warmest, the uh . . .best version of itself. You with your coffee shop. Me with the town as a whole.”

“Oh.” Rocco laughed, a little bitterly, and scrubbed a hand over his face. “I feel kind of stupid now. Yes, of course we do. That makes sense.”

“Sorry,” Taylor said. Meaning it.

“No, no,” Rocco insisted, brushing his apology away with a quick hand movement. “It was . . .it would be foolish. Complicated.”

“If it makes you feel better, I wasn’t about togoat cheeseout of it, even if I probably should have.” Taylorshouldn’t have said it, probably, because even though they’d admitted to a mutual attraction, this was him saying he wouldn’t stop Rocco if hedidattempt to alter this fake relationship to make it a little more real.

Rocco winced. “I . . .I shouldn’t have, regardless. We talked about it. We’re on the same page.”

“Rocco,” Taylor said, hating that he felt guilty, that he feltbad.That was the very last thing he wanted. He reached out and took Rocco’s hand and squeezed it. “I consider you a friend. I wouldn’t have told you about my mom if I didn’t. We have that, and it’s not nothing.”

“No, it’s not,” Rocco agreed. But there was still a melancholy tinge to his eyes before he pushed it away and it disappeared before Taylor could ask about it. “I’m glad we’re friends.”

Taylor finished his cider and set the empty mug down on the counter. “I should get going.”

“When are we meeting up next?” Rocco wondered casually.

Yeah,I want to see you again, too. Goat cheese be damned.

“Tomorrow night? There’s a pretty cool ice carving demonstration. And then we could take a lap or two around the rink? I don’t think you’ve been down there yet.”

Rocco shook his head. “We could do that,” he said.

“Alright, I’ll meet you at the carving demonstration?”

“Yeah, that works for me,” Rocco said.

But Taylor still hesitated, even though he knew he should go. Definitely before he changed his mind—changed his wholefreaking paradigm—and told Rocco he’d changed his mind. That he wanted him, even if it was a bad idea, even if it was complicated.

“I . . .”

Rocco raised an eyebrow. Taylor was mostly getting used to the visual impact of him, but every once in a while it hit him viscerally just how handsome he was. How he’d have seen him walking down the street and done a double take. How he’d walked into Jolly Java to meet him for the first time and felt his tongue grow thick and uncooperative at the sight of him.

Kind of like now, actually.

“We’re okay, right?” Taylor finally said.

Rocco nodded. “Of course. We’re friends. That makes sense.”

But as Taylor agreed, giving Rocco one last—very quick—hug on his way out of Jolly Java, he thought that maybe friends did make sense. The most sense.

---