Page 3 of The Holiday Boyfriend

Perhaps that was why I enjoyed hanging out with Austin so much. With him, there were no expectations. Our hobbies didn't intersect, and sometimes there would only be silence between us, but still, being with him felt even more natural than if I was alone.

Austin had a calm energy surrounding him that was infectious. Plus, like I'd said, he was easy on the eyes, especially since it’s been a hot minute since I'd last seen him in person. We'd video call occasionally when on break from work, but other than those calls, we hadn't hung out much with his late hours and my early mornings.

“Hey, Austin,” I said as I walked closer to him.

My voice seemed to have shaken Austin out of whatever daze he was in, as he shook his head and dropped his hand from the door. The shock that had registered had transformed into a deep blue, but I couldn't help but think that the light in his eyes had dimmed a bit as well. It had to be the exhaustion of the week catching up to him, which made me worry even more about Alice's request. When he didn't respond, my worry increased.

“Austin?” I asked, placing a hand on his shoulder. He visibly jumped at my touch, which was a first. Physical touch wasn't exactly uncommon between us. We weren't touchy-touchy like many of the girlfriends I'd seen hanging together around town, but we'd shared countless hugs between us. That meant that something was definitely up with him.

“You okay?” I asked, and my worry must have shone through in my tone because the shock was back in Austin's eyes as he quickly tried to explain.

“Yeah, I'm fine. Sorry, been a long day, and I wasn't expecting you here,” he said but didn't look at me. He ducked under my arm that was blocking his way into the apartment and shuffled to the kitchen to grab the pitcher of water and poured himself a cup.

I followed behind him and watched him gulp down the cool drink. I couldn't help but notice the way his Adam's apple bobbled as he took large gulps and downed the entire glass.

A drop of water clung to the corner of his lip, attracting my eyes. I involuntarily licked my lips at the sight. Some strange heat built in the pit of my stomach that I tried my best to ignore.

There were times that I thought Austin carried some sort of sensuality that I couldn't explain. I wasn't attracted to dudes—at least I didn't think so—but something about the man in front of me caught my attention in ways that usually women only had. It wasn't an issue most of the time, but after not being around him for a while, it felt like I'd lost my immunity to his charms.

Austin swiped the back of his hand over his mouth, breaking me out of my dangerous thoughts, for which I was very much grateful for. He gently placed the cup in the sink, turned around, and paused when he saw me right behind him.

“But I live here?” I said with a nervous chuckle. He looked confused for a second, but I saw the moment when the words finally clicked. Austin laughed and swept a quick pat against my chest.

The awkward tension in the air immediately evaporated, and the strangeness that had surrounded Austin seemed to disappear as well.

“I meant I didn't expect to see you up. You're usually in bed by the time I get home,” Austin said casually as he took out a portioned meal and popped it in the microwave.

Sitting on one of our dining chairs with my legs straddling the back of the chair and my chin resting on my arms, I watched him move around our small kitchen. Our apartment wasn't huge, but it was homey and more than enough for the both of us.

“I waited up for you,” I said, and he gave me an eyebrow raise. I cleared my throat to dislodge the uneasiness that suddenly overwhelmed me. I hadn't meant anything strange by my words, so why did it sound like I was the stay-at-home husband who was eagerly waiting for their partner to return to them?

Austin broke my gaze when the microwave beeped. He grabbed the food and a fork from the drawer before joining me at the table. I flipped around in my seat and folded my arms on the table in front of me as I watched him.

He had his head tilted down as he dug into his noodles, clearly starving. His long, thick lashes cast shadows on his upper cheek, but it couldn't hide the dark circles that had taken residence on his face for the past week.

Worry about Alice's request stirred up again, and I debated about not asking him and going to the airport myself, but that wouldn't be right. It wasn't my call to make, especially when it was related to his livelihood.

“We have some guests arriving in about five hours and Alice wanted to see if you were up to getting them from the airport.”

Austin glanced up from his food, and I could see the contemplation in his eyes. The exhaustion was etched in his features, but he still wanted to accept the job. I knew this was going to happen.

Even when we were teens, Austin always had a strong sense of responsibility. I knew that he was unavailable to hang out during the first week of summer break because he was one of those kids who finished their summer homework before doing anything else. He was and always has been a hard worker.

The last thing I wanted was for him to feel obligated to take on this job when he didn't have the capacity to, so I tried to reassure him. “I already told Alice that you've had a busy week and that I can pick them up. You should—”

“I'll do it. It's good to have the extra business before tourism really picks up in the winter,” he said as he stabbed another forkful of noodles and pushed it into his mouth. His eyes squinted in pleasure as he savored what I knew was a delicious meal.

Austin usually took Mondays off, and he liked to use that day to meal prep for the week. While I'd insisted that he didn't need to prepare my portion, he still always made extra food. I tried to help him with the cooking, but honestly, my food was barely edible, so I tried to help by getting the groceries and doing dishes.

“Are you sure you'll be okay? You've been doing long hours all week. I'm worried about you,” I said. Austin paused from eating to look at me. His eyes softened at my words, but I could see the stubbornness in them.

“I'll be good as new after a quick nap,” he said as he waved a hand in the air like he was waving away my concerns. I furrowed my brows. His casual actions didn't relieve my worries.

Austin peeked up at my expression, then burst into laughter. He stretched over the small dining table, and his smooth thumb rubbed at the space between my eyebrows.

“You're gonna get wrinkles,” he teased, making me scrunch my nose in displeasure. I didn't need yet another thing that would make me look older.

I was told that men shouldn't worry about their appearance, but I had always been conscious of mine.

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