Page 77 of Tender
“But I don’t want to, you know, hear about it, okay? That’s just…it’s too much.”
“That’s fine. I don’t want to be friends,” Miles told her. “I’m not ready for that right now, and I’m not sure I ever will be. I can forgive you, but I can’t forget anything. I don’t really envision us having long chats.” Cosimo felt his heart jump again, this time with elation. He hadn’t heard Miles stick up for himself like that before.
Selene sighed loudly. “No. I get it.”
He wished there was more remorse in her voice, but the fact that she was taking any kind of accountability meant something. Hell, it meant everything. Maybe it was the money thing. Or losing out on the trips. Or maybe she was proving to herself that she could be a better person.
He didn’t really care what it was, only that it was happening.
“I’m going to block you after this call,” Miles said. “I have a lot going on, and I…I can’t do this again. But I’m glad we talked.”
“I am too. And I really am sorry. I’m not used to being sorry, and it really sucks.”
His lips twitched. “I hope you’re doing this for yourself and not just because Jake found out about me.”
Ah, there it was.
There was a long beat, then she said, “Can it be both?”
Miles glanced up at Cosimo again and smiled. “I think so. I found a reason to be stronger, and it wasn’t just for me.”
“Miles?”
“Yeah?”
“Are my dads there right now?”
He waited a beat, then said, “No,” and immediately slammed his laptop shut.
Cosimo burst into nervous laughter as he crossed the room and took Miles by the chin, kissing him hard and messy. When he pulled back, he tipped their heads together and breathed in the scent of him. He was fresh from a shower and had used Emmett’s soap.
“She was right, you know?”
Miles leaned back and frowned at Cosimo’s mouth. “She was right? About what?”
Cosimo took a deep breath, then said, “I won’t speak for Emmett. I won’t take away his moment of telling you himself, but for me…” He dropped to the side of the bed and moved his hands to wrap around the back of Miles’s neck. “I do love you.”
“Not more, right?” Miles said, his voice trembling a bit.
Cosimo chuckled without smiling. “No. Like you said, different. But a lot. More than I expected to so soon.”
Miles swallowed heavily, then whispered, “I get it. Because I feel it too.”
“Yeah?” Cosimo felt like he was teetering on the edge of a cliff, one foot hanging off, the other balanced on the edge, waiting for his grip to give out.
Nodding, Miles traced a touch around Cosimo’s lips. “I love you too.”
He surged in, pinned him to the bed, and kissed him a second time, drawing it out and out until Miles was hard and rocking against his thigh. He pulled back with a slight gasp, then said, “Can you come to bed right now? Emmett is waiting.”
Miles groaned. “I want to, but I actually do have one more call to make before I can.”
Emmett hummed, then gently nipped his jawline. “Then we’ll be waiting for you. I can keep him occupied until you’re done.”
“Good incentive,” Miles said with a laugh, then pulled back all the way to look up at Cosimo. “I really do love you. I’ve fallen in love with you. I hope…I hope you noticed.”
“I was a little afraid to assume,” Cosimo admitted, stroking his fingers over the back of Miles’s neck. “I didn’t want to be wrong.”
“You weren’t.”
