Joel’s heart pinged. “No. I— I shouldn’t be here when Rory wakes up. If he says something at school…”
“Right.” Ollie’s arms slid from around Joel’s neck to hug himself instead. He gave a quick smile, so different from his earlier warmth that Joel felt it like a slap. “You want to take your car?” Ollie asked as he headed out of the bathroom. “It’ll be cold as—”
Joel snagged his arm, stopping him. “Do you want me to stay?”
“Well. Yes, of course, but—” He sagged, his expression losing its chilly edge. “I don’t like secrecy, I told you that. But I get it, okay? And anyway, you’re right. I don’t want to confuse Rory, especially if… Well, we don’t know where this is going, do we?”
“No.”
Only maybe he did. Maybe the powerful feelings Ollie stirred up in him could only lead in one direction. For Joel, at any rate. But who knew how Ollie might feel in the long run? In the end, he might decide he’d rather be with someone else, and if that happened, Joel didn’t need the whole town knowing he hadn’t been enough for Ollie.
Just like he hadn’t been enough for Helen.