Page 46 of Eternal Hoptimist

Ty shrugged shamelessly. “He had a shifty look about him.”

“How do you even remember that night? You drank so much,” I asked.

He pressed his fingertips against his chest as his face shifted into a pained expression. “You mean, how can I remember every detail of the night my best friends told me they wouldn’t turn me into a vampire even if they possessed the powers? Because they didn’t want to ‘suffer through eternity with me?’ That kind of betrayal cuts through booze. I marked it on my calendar.”

Dom narrowed his eyes. “You mean you have Halloween on your calendar?”

Ty grinned. “Exactly.”

I topped off my beer with the growler I’d brought home from work. We’d spent so many hours in this room together over the past two years—shooting the shit, strategizing, problem-solving, arguing. Dom’s house was where we’d made a home as we got our brewery and shared dream off the ground.

It was a normal Sunday evening of relaxing with the guys after our weekly meeting, except for the bittersweet reminder that it was Austin’s last night living with us. For all intents and purposes, it was the last time we would all live together unless we did some sort of elderly compound thing in a few decades. I wouldn’t put it past Ty to arrange that.

We’d gone from crowding around the dining table in Dom’s old house in Gresham while hatching our brewery plans to outfitting our perfect command center in Dom’s Victorian fixer-upper while getting it off the ground.

I was thrilled for Austin to move in with the love of his life. Caleb was it for Austin—they were perfect for each other. I was both thrilled for my best friend and envious to my core.

“Do you remember when our RA made it his mission to bust us our freshman year?” Austin’s lips twisted in a wry smile.

“That guy was such an ass,” I said.

“To be fair, we did sneak alcohol into our room,” Austin pointed out.

“Only after he’d banged on our door for the tenth time during one of our N64 tournaments to accuse us of doing something wrong. He issued a challenge for us to prove him right. We had no choice.” Dom flashed a mischievous grin.

“He was just being a dick after he dumped Ethan,” Ty said.

He wasn’t wrong. It was a miracle I’d met the three best friends I could ask for that year. My desperate need to put some distance between most of my family and me, Rosie suggesting Oregon, to be close to the coast, applying to the University of Oregon over Oregon State because ducks were better than beavers had been serendipitous. Yet another reason to do whatever I could to help Rosie since she’d changed my life for the better.

The guys kept swapping stories, and I soaked up every minute.

Caleb usually attended our hangouts after our Sunday team meetings, but I appreciated that he’d skipped this one so the OG crew could visit memory lane.

Austin would only be a few miles away. Dahlia Springs wasn’t Portland. The worst traffic was in the school zone on the street where the only elementary, middle, and high schools were. Realistically, I would still see him as often, given how frequently he’d slept at Caleb’s since they’d become official months ago.

The conversation shifted to logistics for moving Austin’s stuff out and helping move Caleb’s things to their bigger new apartment. Dom took charge as usual and hashed out a plan.

“How are you feeling about going back to Kansas? It’s been several years, hasn’t it?” Austin asked after we cracked a new growler once we nailed the moving logistics.

“Not since we opened the brewery. I don’t think I’ve been back since my grandma’s funeral.”

Ty crossed the room and squeezed my shoulder before snagging the growler. For someone so deeply afraid of real intimacy that it kept him bouncing from hookup to hookup, he cared for the people he chose to love. The definition of ride or die.

Even Dom. A human marshmallow held over a campfire by a fire-happy kid. Crusty on the outside with a gooey middle. I couldn’t count the times Dom stayed up late talking with me freshmen year when I’d agonized over whether moving to Oregon had been the right decision. I wouldn’t have stayed in Oregon if it wasn’t for Dom being the support I needed. Austin and Ty too. We understood each other on a level I’d not experienced with anyone before or since, until Parker, which terrified me.

“I’m glad it’ll be a quick trip. I’m looking forward to spending time with Rosie, but I’m nervous about the city council meeting.”

Admittedly, my nerves had dropped since Parker offered to join me. I smiled as I thought of how he’d surprised me in person last week with his offer. All confident in wanting to help but worried he’d overstepped by suggesting it without being asked.Adorable.

Bringing him back to Kansas with me was huge. I’d never brought a partner to Kansas. Hell, none of the guys had been there. Not that Parker was mypartner.Rein it in, Jackson.If only I’d met him before making my New Year’s resolution. At least I’d made it to February without dating or pursuing anyone.

When I told Rosie that the guy helping her from afar would travel back with me, she’d been thrilled and insisted we both stay with her. She’d brushed off my reminder of her one guest bed alongside ignoring my insistence he was only a friend.A friend who’s generously flying halfway across the country with me to help you save your house. But no, we’re not a couple, Rosie. Just because he treats me better than anyone I’ve dated means nothing.

“Are you going for moral support, or are you planning on speaking at the meeting?” Dom asked as he grabbed the bowl of chips, slouched in his chair, and settled the bowl on his chest.

I need to tell them before they find out another way.Like me posting to my Instagram story and forgetting to make sure Parker wasn’t in the shot or Nate swinging by the brewery and mentioning it. I couldn’t risk hurting the guys. They’d supported me through so much, and it was time to come clean. About Parker going to Kansas anyway—they didn’t need to know the rest.

I rolled my shoulders. “You know how Parker has been helping me with Rosie? He’s going with me to Kansas to attend the meeting and speak on Rosie’s behalf or ask questions of the developers. I don’t know. He has ideas on how he can help.”

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