Page 28 of Part & Parcel

Nick snickered. “I wondered how long you’d go before you got curious.”

“You’re such a fucking nerd.”

Nick was still grinning when Kelly slid his hand into one of Nick’s back pockets, and they made their way to where he’d parked his truck.

Nick told him about that morning as they drove, how Ty had tried to convince him to go see the marathon. Nick had resisted, mainly because his knee had been killing him and the traffic and crowds were a nightmare.

They’d compromised by going out for brunch, then intended to head toward the marathon for nostalgia’s sake. They’d never made it there, though. Both Nick and Ty knew enough about a city under attack to know that if they couldn’t actively help, they should get the hell out, so they’d made their way back to theFiddler, fielding panicked calls from Zane, Hagan, two of Nick’s sisters, and finally Kelly.

Kelly kept apologizing for not calling sooner, and Nick kept telling him to stop. “I mean, hell, you just got a TV two years ago, I know you never watch the news.”

Kelly reached across the bench seat and took Nick’s hand, and he didn’t let it go. Nick studied his profile, and even after Kelly felt eyes on him and glanced sideways to catch him staring, he didn’t look away.

Kelly squeezed his hand. “What are you doing?”

“Leering.”

Kelly quirked an eyebrow and grinned lopsidedly. “You see something you like?”

“No,” Nick answered, exhaustion making his tone detached and almost clinical.

Kelly glanced at him again, eyebrows going higher, a smile still playing at his lips. “You see something you love?” he teased.

Nick found himself grinning, and they drove on in comfortable silence without him even needing to answer. He fought sleep the rest of the drive to the cabin, and was actually nodding off when they hit the long gravel drive.

“You been sleeping okay?” Kelly asked with a warm smile as he navigated the truck up the driveway.

Nick shifted until he was leaning against the door, watching Kelly. “Okay,” he murmured. “Ty bunked with me a few nights.”

Kelly snorted. “For him or for you?”

“Both. Seems neither of us do well alone.”

Kelly nodded. Nick and Ty had always done that, especially after traumatic periods like the one they’d barely lived through in Miami. They slept huddled together like puppies, often back to back, to stave off nightmares and help their minds heal faster. Kelly knew them both well enough that he didn’t even bat an eyelash at it.

How many people could Nick date who would just nod in understanding after learning he’d spent a few nights cuddling with his best friend? Not too damn many, that was for sure.

“I’m sorry about what I said on the phone,” Nick said. “I know you meant what you said; I shouldn’t have been pissy about it.”

“It’s okay,” Kelly broke in, his gentle smile never faltering. “I’m the one who said I was afraid we couldn’t survive without chaos, and . . . I’m making it a self-fulfilling prophecy right now. It’s a dick move, to put that on you, make you worry about all this trouble that keeps finding us, and then when we hit a calm in the storm I can’t even get my head out of my ass long enough to fucking tell you I love you. I deserved to be called on it.”

Nick shook his head, but Kelly was still smiling, and he didn’t give Nick a chance to argue. “I can say it when your life’s not in danger too,” he claimed, throwing Nick a wink. “I love you.”

“I’ve missed you,” Nick said.

Kelly didn’t take his eyes off the driveway, but the smile pulled at his lips. “We’ll fix that, too.”

A few hours later, they’d gotten Nick’s things up into the bedroom of Kelly’s cabin, eaten a light dinner, and headed up to the loft. Kelly was already in bed when Nick limped out of the bathroom, drying his hair with a towel and shivering in the cool breeze coming from the open balcony doors.

Kelly put his book away and slipped a pair of reading glasses off, folding them up and setting them on the book.

Nick paused, staring at the glasses in consternation.

“You okay?” Kelly asked, yanking Nick’s attention back to him.

“When’d you start wearing reading glasses?” Nick blurted.

Kelly glanced at the bedside table, a blush creeping up his cheeks. “I’ve had them for a while. Couple years.”

---