Page 129 of Catch Me
Roman:Our history makes things kind of weird, but I always enjoyed hanging out with you. It wasn’t just the physical stuff, so yeah. I want to stay friends if you do. See you when break is over, Ezra
As I crawled back into bed, my brain wouldn’t let go of my dad’s words. I suddenly understood what Sen had said about his parents, the way he struggled with the idea of being a failure in their eyes.
I wasn’t ready for that—not in the slightest.
Travis’ arm came around me from behind and made my breath stutter.
Fuck, I was losing it. My head was full of worst-case scenarios, all converging into one giant train wreck.
So many things could go wrong. So many things. So many fucking things.
I was supposed to talk to Travis if I freaked out. Waking him up to tell him that my dad was disappointed in me was stupid. If I could rein in my emotions enough to fall asleep, I’d bring it up tomorrow.
Maybe he’d go back to his decision in the woods and walk away because he didn’t know what to do with me. When it actually got hard, would we figure out how to navigate whatever was thrown at us or would one of us drown?
Hell, maybe we’d both drown. I’d drag him down with me. He’d clawed his way out of his own hell and built something for himself. He was comfortable and happy. All I was doing was making him risk all of that. For what? A guy who’d been an asshole to him a bunch of times, made him feel wrong for being gay, and was more trouble than I was worth?
No. We could figure it out. I just had to calm down so that I could think clearly. The issue with my dad could wait, and if Travis could be patient with me...
My phone was still in my hand, so when it vibrated, I turned on the screen to look at the message. More than one.
Oh, God.
This was when I needed to wake him up.
Chapter 39
Travis
I never needed an alarm because Tessa was religious about waking me up by six in the morning. She was capable of holding her bladder, but once her energy was replenished, she wanted to start her day. I’d gotten used to it, and as long as I had a pot of coffee, I survived.
When my eyes opened, it seemed too light in the room. Since it was winter, the sun shouldn’t have been this high.
I grabbed my phone from the nightstand, then sat up. It wasn’t late, but she should have woken me by now. When I looked beside me, I realized that Roman wasn’t in the bed. Most likely, he hadn’t slept well and went into the kitchen or outside. She loved him, so she’d follow. It was nice to sleep an extra couple of hours, but I would’ve rather been up with him, especially since he was leaving today.
After pulling on a pair of sweats, I yawned and headed for the door. Quickly, I peeked into his room and found it empty. He must’ve already put his things in the car.
I found Tessa in front of the fireplace with her head on her paws. She wagged her tail when she saw me, then leapt to her feet.
“Hey, monster. Today, of all days, you didn’t wake me up.”
She whined and sat down, offering me her paw. I took it and kissed the top of it before I went into the kitchen. There was no coffee made, so I started a pot, then scanned the space with my eyes.
Roman’s tablet had been on the island last night. Unsurprisingly, it was gone. If he was up and didn’t have any other responsibilities for the day, he’d be drawing. It was endearing, and there had been a few times that I’d watched him out on the deck when he didn’t know I was there.
I poured myself a cup and blew on it as I walked toward the back door. My brow furrowed when I didn’t find him outside. I looked at the coffee pot again. The times when he woke up before me, there was always coffee made.
“Do you know where Roman is?” I asked Tessa.
She whined again. The coffee felt acidic in my stomach, and I had to set it down. When I opened the front door, I told myself that he’d be on the patio, sitting on the stairs while he drew. I rushed down the steps and stopped in the grass as I stared at the driveway. My hands went to the top of my head and my eyes closed.
He wouldn’t.
I pulled out my phone and double-checked that he hadn’t texted me, but the only thing there was our last conversation.
Our last conversation. Those three words weren’t fathomable right now.
Trav:Hey
