Page 96 of Trade Deadline

His cheeks flush as he heads toward me. I spread my legs where I’m sitting on the stool, and he steps into them, pressing a gentle kiss against my lips. It takes him a few moments to notice Zach, and the second he does, his face turns a deeper shade of pink.

Zach chuckles. “Hey, man.”

“Hey, Zach. Sorry, I didn’t know you were there.” Alex waves shyly.

My best friend simply shakes his head, a soft yet sad smile on his face. “Don’t sweat it. Would you like a coffee?”

“Yes, please.”

Zach turns around to empty the jar of coffee pods onto the counter again.

“How did you sleep?” I press a soft kiss to the underside of Alex's jaw.

“Amazingly, your bed’s like a cloud.”

I laugh, nodding. “It is.”

“Plus, having you next to me is nice.” He wraps his arms around my neck. His eyes are still small and tired. “I only woke up because I rolled over to cuddle you and you were gone.”

“I had an alarm that I had forgotten about.” And just as my twinny senses tingle, Elliot bursts through the door like he’s being chased by a pack of rabid dogs.

“Holy shit, you’re never gonna guess what I just saw.” Elliot's eyes go wide with glee. “A man walking a rabbit on a leash. It had a fucking harness on like a dog, and it was just hopping down the street like—” He starts hopping through the kitchen, still holding the white bag that contains Alex’s bagel.

We all burst into laughter at his ridiculous re-enactment.

“Hey, sleepy head! I got you a breakfast sandwich!” Elliot hands over the paper bag. “It’s a toasted sesame seed bagel with sausage, bacon, egg, and cream cheese.” He counts the ingredients on his fingers. “It’s cheesy good.”

Alex's eyes widen slightly in surprise as he takes the bag from my brother. He looks down at it for a moment before looking back up at Elliot, his eyes filled with gratitude. “Thank you; that’s really kind of you.”

Elliot shrugs, completely unaware of how much his thoughtfulness means to my man.

My man?

I shake my head, at war with myself at how natural it feels while part of my subconscious screams that it’s too soon. But then, seeing the wonderment on his face at what would usually be deemed a small gesture?

It makes me so happy to see Alex getting along so well with those important in my life and I know that this will mean a lot to him because it does to me.

Zach makes everyone a cup of coffee, and we sit at the breakfast bar to dig into our bagels. He tells me how Carter is feeling ahead of his game tonight, which we will be watching over at Ethan's apartment for boys’ night, while Elliot discusses what snacks he’s hoping people will bring.

“Would you like to come tonight?” I turn to Alex.

He looks up to face me, surprised. “Really?”

I nod.

“I… I’d like that, thank you.”

I can’t help but smile. That bubbling sensation in my chest heightens, making me feel like I’m walking on the fucking moon, and I completely let go of the timing issue.

It’s not too soon at all.

* * *

“What the fuck are these?”Elliot shrieks from the kitchen.

I glance over my shoulder to see him holding up a bag of chips between his thumb and forefinger like it’s a dirty jockstrap, his nose scrunched up in disgust. “Oyster mushroom chips? Who the heck bought oyster mushroom chips? Why would you even have mushrooms as chips?”

“Hey, don’t knock ‘em ‘til you’ve tried them. Maria got them for me; they’re like super food in the shape of potato chips.” Kendrick gets up from the couch and walks toward the kitchen where Elliot’s still standing with the bag in his hand as if it’s some kind of deadly fungus.

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