Page 66 of Beautifully Complicated

“Damien didn’t say being secret boyfriends came with so many rules,” he mutters, and while I’m not sure I’m supposed to hear it, I do.

“Damien? What’s he telling you about secret boyfriends? And why?

Aiden has the decency to look slightly guilty as he confesses. “Bennet freaked out when I didn’t show up to a party on New Years, and in the process of defusing that situation it came out that you’re slightly more than just someone I work with. And Damien tried to be supportive about the whole thing by relating to me as a secret boyfriend, since that’s what he was before Bennet came out.”

Jesus that’s a lot to process. And it also explains so much.

“Okay, back up. Bennet was in the closet when he was dating Damien? And they equate our situation to theirs? Do I have that right?”

“Yes and no. Obviously our situation is different, but the secret part of it Damien identifies with since Bennet was pretending to be straight while sorting stuff out with Damien, and they only ever met in secret at Damien’s place.”

“Now I see how we got here. They made it work so you think we can too. But I assume they had rules like the ones I’m suggesting.”

He nods solemnly. “Outside the house they were just teammates. They didn’t have the communication restrictions though.”

“Well, I doubt either of them would’ve been kicked out of school if someone stumbled on their personal chats.”

Aiden gives me a begrudging look before mumbling, “Fair.”

“So, you agree to the rules?” I press.

“When do they take effect? Because I’m kind of dying here.” I follow his gaze to the obvious bulge in his pants and bite back a laugh.

Most of the time he’s so mature, but the times when he isn’t are just…refreshing.

“Immediately, Leanbh. They take effect immediately. But I have something that might help with that.” I reach for a pile of papers on my desk.

“Yeah, nothing kills a boner like paperwork.” He gives me a wry look.

“Not just any paperwork. Our business paperwork. I’ve been filling out as much as I can, but we can’t start a business without a name. What should we call it?”

The pouty face morphs into a broad grin. “You want me to help name the company?”

“I reserve the right to veto, but yeah. I think we should do this together.”

Aiden traps his lips between his teeth, to stop himself from kissing me I think, and says, “We should name it after your dad since he’s your inspiration.”

And here I thought I couldn’t love him any more.

“I love that idea, Leanbh. Truly. But I’m not sure Cormac is the way to go. Besides, if we’re going with inspiration, we should include yours.”

“Star Wars?” He snorts. “I’m not sure that’s the way to go either. What about our names? Or initials?”

“Boring.” I shake my head.

“Last names too? SinCal or CalSin don’t sound too bad.”

“CalSin Consulting?” I try it out. “Not bad, but it doesn’t say AI or prosthetics.”

“CalSin Biomechatronics Consulting. Or CBC?”

“It should CSBC if we abbreviate it, but yeah. I can see it.” A wistful smile tugs at the corner of my lip. “Sounds official.”

“Think it’ll make people take us seriously? Even after they find out about us?” Aiden doesn’t sound worried, just curious.

“I think the work we’re doing right now will go a long way toward making that happen. Regardless of how we met or when we bocame official, the advancements we’ve made this year have merit. And remember, no one needs to know about our personal relationship until well after we’re established.”

“I’m not sure I want to hide indefinitely though. I don’t need people thinking you’re on the market when you’re not.”

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