Page 20 of Twice Shy

“Maybe we just shouldn’t discuss it, huh?” Alyssa covered his hand with hers and squeezed. “Joel Morgan’s a nice guy, he doesn’t deserve to be the butt of anyone’s jokes—pun intended.”

Ollie laughed. “Right. Heisa nice guy.”

She studied him, a slight smile tugging her lips. He thought she might say more, but in the end she just squeezed his hand again before letting go, and Ollie gladly changed the subject by returning the clothes he’d borrowed for Rory. A moment later, Morgan and Sandra returned to the table—him carrying a tray with two bottles of wine and several glasses, Sandra holding two sodas. There was another shuffling around of seats in the booth—Ollie wondered why they didn’t just sit at a long table, so they wouldn’t need to keep performing this little dance—and, when he went to sit down again, he found that the only remaining free space was next to Morgan.

Hip-to-hip with him in the cramped booth, Ollie caught Alyssa’s eye across the table. She smiled and turned to Jackie. “Shall we get started?”

The meeting got underway—a breakdown of earnings from the car wash, points to take away from the event for next year, thankyous to be sent to Theo Wishart and Luca Moretti for the use of the hotel. And then on to planning for the next event: The Beach Fun Run.

Ollie was only half listening to most of it. He was far too aware of the way his leg was pressed against Morgan’s warm thigh and the way Morgan had folded his arms across his chest so as not to intrude into Ollie’s space. Was he uncomfortable? Was this the awkwardness of a hetero guy too aware of the gay man sitting next to him? Or did Morgan feel—as Ollie did—a zing of attraction communicated entirely on a physical level. As if their bodies, independent of their minds, were sending little electrical pings backward and forward.

Because Ollie couldfeel .him.

All the nerve endings on the righthand side of his body were reaching out toward Morgan, eager to make a connection. Surely Morgan could feel it too, thisawareness? It couldn’t just be Ollie.

He shifted a little, their hips sliding against each other, and felt Morgan tense. His folded arms tightened like he was tying himself into a knot. Ollie crossed his legs away from Morgan, attempting to put some space between them. Whatever opinion his body might have, his rational mind knew that crushing on teacher was a Bad Idea. Capital letters. He had to stop it. Now.

To that end, as soon as the meeting was over, he said a quick goodbye to the group and fled.

It didn’t help that he could feel Joel Morgan’s eyes on his back all the way to the door.

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