Page 35 of Hello Goodbye Amore

Would it be okay if I came over later?He checked the clock.

Of course, Chase answered, and Antonello felt like maybe the quicksand under his feet had finally solidified.

Chapter 15

CHASE SEThis phone aside, wondering what the hell was going on. He had been so sure that Antonello’s mother had seen how much Ricky looked like her own son. But when Antonello messaged, it seemed that he had come out to his parents, so maybe that hadn’t been it at all. This entire situation was becoming more confusing and unsettling by the day, and it was all his fault. He had decided early on to keep Ricky and Antonello apart and that his stay in Florence was supposed to be business and nothing more. Hell, the idea was that he’d stay angry with Antonello for what he’d done to Elaine, but that hadn’t happened. None of the things he had told himself in the beginning had come to fruition. God, everything was a mess, and his life would be so much easier if he had just done what he’d said he was going to do in the fucking first place.

At least Ricky wasn’t awake to see him pacing while he had his mini breakdown.

A knock on the door pulled him out of his thoughts. His heart raced a little faster as he went down and let him inside. “I didn’t want to sit in my rooms alone.”

Chase was shocked. “What? You told your parents that you were gay, and they just left you? They didn’t stay to talk or to make sure that you were all right?” He snapped his jaw closed.

“My mother simply left the room, but my father and I talked.” Antonello stood still, wringing his hands. “I have no idea what the real fallout is going to be. My father seemedto understand, which I have to say you were right about. My mother…. I have no idea. All she said was that me being gay explained a lot but changed nothing, and then she left the room.” He looked pale, and Chase took his hand and led him to the sofa. Once he sat, Chase got him some water and settled next to him.

“Your mother already knew on some level, whether she wanted to admit it or not, and I’m willing to bet that she will come around.” He wanted that for Antonello. Chase could only imagine how difficult it would be when a parent refused to accept their child for who they were.

“Probably. But I’m afraid that once she does, she will try to fix me up with men that she feels are the right kind of people. I don’t know.” He drank some of the water. “That’s the thing. I have no idea what my mother is thinking or how she’ll truly react. It’s like she’s a time bomb out there just waiting to go off.”

“Hey,” Chase said softly. “Your dad understood, and that’s saying something. You came out and told your family who you are. Opening yourself up to anyone is hard. And you did it.” He couldn’t help smiling a little. Chase knew how hard and how difficult something like that could be.

“I hope everything is going to be all right,” Antonello said.

Chase shifted on the sofa. “Okay. Let’s look at this straight on. What is the worst that could happen? Your mother decides that she isn’t going to talk to you? That she’ll keep trying to fix you up with women? Because that isn’t going to get her anywhere. Word gets around, and that will dry up fast. Your dad accepted you, so he isn’t going to turn his back….”

“Yeah. But you don’t know my mother.”

Chase snickered. “I got a pretty good picture of her today, but you’re right, I don’t know her. She is your mother, though.” It was all he had. He really did think that in the end everything would be okay between Antonello and his parents. There mightbe some drama, but eventually things would work out. At least he hoped so, for Antonello’s sake.

“Like I said, my mother can be the most difficult person to figure out.” He drank some more water before setting the glass on a coaster on the side table. “Maybe I should just go home and see what’s going on. Maybe my mother will decide to let me in on what she’s thinking.”

Chase lightly touched Antonello’s chin. “You don’t have to go anywhere.”

Antonello nodded and drew him into a kiss that quickly grew ravenous as Antonello pressed Chase back against the cushions of the small sofa, kissing the breath out of Chase. Antonello seemed to need him badly, and Chase was more than willing to give whatever Antonello seemed so desperate to find.

“Come with me,” Chase whispered, and once they got up, he turned out the lights, led Antonello to his bedroom, and closed the door behind them. “Now it’s just us. The rest of the world is outside that door, and it can stay there.” At least for now. They would need to face whatever was coming, but Chase was determined to be there for Antonello. Coming out was hard enough, but doing it like this with a parent who seemed cut off from their child was extra hard.

He drew Antonello into a kiss, wrapping him in his arms as passion built between them. Antonello was a bundle of energy, practically shaking in his arms as Chase undressed them both. He wasn’t sure what Antonello wanted or if sex was a good idea at a time like this, but Antonello pressed him back on the bed, and heat built between them. “Tell me what you want. What’s going on?” he breathed, before Antonello kissed away any remaining words.

With each passing second, Antonello became more desperate, his energy level almost frantic. Chase held him, letting him use up the adrenaline that had to be coursingthrough him. He knew that Antonello needed a release, some way to let go of the hurt and worry that had gripped him for so long. Chase knew what he had to be feeling and wanted to see him through it.

“I don’t know what’s going on,” Antonello whispered.

“It’s freedom,” Chase told him. “It’s letting go of the worry and fear and being yourself.” He cupped Antonello’s stubbled cheeks. “Just let it go and revel in it.” He kissed him and tugged Antonello down, wrapping his legs around Antonello’s waist. It was just the two of them, which was perfect.

Antonello’s breathing filled the room. This was incredible, and the two of them reveled in a shared sense of joy. Chase was so happy and proud of Antonello for taking this step, it was almost like he had come out all over again. It was a sense of peace, and the joy almost demanded to be shouted from the rooftops. That, combined with the sheer ecstasy, sent Chase sailing. No one made him feel the way Antonello did. No matter their past, it was now, this moment, that mattered. The rest was memories of the past or dreams of what was to come, but holding Antonello, listening to his breathing, feeling the pulse on his neck, the scent of him as transportive as a field of roses—those were now, and sensations he wished to add to memory.

“Is this what you want?” Antonello whispered as he ran his fingers down Chase’s thighs and over the curve of his ass.

“Yes,” Chase whispered. “There are supplies in the bedside table.” He waited as Antonello got him ready before leaning over him, his eyes shining as their bodies joined. Chase gasped and his eyes crossed at the intense burn and stretch, and then he moaned as he held on to Antonello, feeling their hearts beat as one.

“Am I hurting you?” Antonello asked softly. Chase shook his head, unable to speak, but he hoped his eyes showed everything.They seemed to as Tio moved slowly, deliberately, joining them in a cadence of passion that built with each passing second.

“More. I’m not made of glass,” Chase whispered into the humid air of his closed room.

“That I know. You’re strong and smart, and I love watching you.” He held Chase’s gaze. “Your eyes shine with excitement, and I could bask in their reflected light for the rest of my life.”

Chase stopped moving as he took in what Antonello said. Then he let the words wash over and past him. Things said in the heat of passion were often exaggerated, and Chase decided to take the words as a kindness rather than with a deeper meaning he was sure Tio didn’t intend, no matter how wonderful they were to hear. Instead of dwelling on the words, he kissed him, sending them both into a deep well of desire that Chase hoped neither of them were able to climb out of for a very long time.

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