Page 124 of Something Like Winter
“Ah, the honeymoon phase! But there’s no excuse for you not to pop
in, not when you live so close.”
“It sounds cool,” Ryan said.
Tim glanced over at him. He appeared genuinely interested. Was he
getting bored of his dream life already? “All right,” Tim said. “You
heard the little lady. We’ll be there.”
The party took place the following evening. Ryan suggested they buy
fresh outfits to wear, which Tim agreed to. Ryan ended up with five new
outfits, but Tim had no one to blame but himself. When those sky blue
eyes were turned on him, his willpower simply vanished. And he had to
admit that Ryan looked good wearing a form-fitting dress shirt and ultratight jeans. Tim kept sneaking peeks at him on the drive to Marcello’s,
planning to make it an early evening so he still had plenty of energy in
bed.
The party was in full swing when they arrived. Marcello’s palatial
home had its own ballroom, which is where the festivities were centered,
but guests were free to roam all but a series of rooms that Marcello
referred to as his inner sanctum. As soon as the birthday boy spotted
them, he disengaged himself from a conversation to join them. Marcello always made time for Tim, as if he were an important old
friend. In a way, they had transferred the love they felt for Eric to each
other, even though they were both poor replacements.
“Happy fiftieth, old man,” Tim said, giving him a hug. “This year I
actually got you a present.”
“Oh, thank you!” Marcello accepted the small package before
turning to Ryan. “And I owe you a debt of gratitude for dragging Tim
here. You know, sometimes I think he’s older than I am.”
“Keep celebrating your fiftieth every year and I will be,” Tim
retorted.
“Pay him no mind,” Marcello said.
But Ryan wasn’t paying attention to either of them. Instead he was
looking across the room to a group of younger guys, most of them nearly
