Page 8 of The Grumpy Vet
Before we wrapped up for the day, we got changed out of our work gear. Linus replaced his long-sleeve khaki shirt with a black tank top. The only reason I stopped myself from shamelessly checking out his massively wide shoulders and arms thick with muscle is out of loyalty to Ryde. But man, if it weren't for that, I'd be ogling away to my horny little heart's content. The man isjacked. Hasn't used his gym in a while, my ass.
"You're welcome to come over and use it whenever you like."
"Oh." I'm caught off guard. Ryde's never even been to Linus's place. I know this for a fact because he's complained about it multiple times. That tells me Linus's offer is out of character, but I don't analyse that. Instead, I see this for the opening that it is.
Another one of my brilliant plans starts to take shape in my head. "Sure. That'd be great. Do you mind if Ryde comes along as well? He is my personal trainer, after all."
And the award for world's best wingman goes to…
"Uh, sure." Linus rubs the back of his neck. "Of course. That's no problem." His words don't match the slight strain coming through in his voice.
"Great. Do you want me to call ahead or anything? Let you know when we're coming."
"Nah, don't worry about it. I have two carports on my property. The gym setup is at the end of the second driveaway. It's so far from the house I won't even know you're there."
"Okay. And how do we get in?"
"Mate, this is Scuttlebutt. No one locks their place up. Just make sure you shut the roller door properly when you leave. Don't want any snakes or creepy crawlies getting in there."
"Consider it done. Thanks, Linus. This is really kind of you. I appreciate it."
He clears his throat. "Don't mention it."
And with that, I turn around and walk back to Ryde's. I cannot wait to see his face when I tell him about this.
"Oh my fucking god." Ryde releases a high-pitched shriek as he launches into me, and I'm pretty sure one of my eardrums just burst.
I hug him back and try to remain upright at the same time. "It's no big deal, buddy."
He grabs my shoulders and pulls back, blinking rapidly, his whole face lit up with excitement. "Are you kidding me? Youmanaged to do in one day what I haven't been able to intwo years. You're… You're… You're a Linus whisperer."
I chuckle but don't move back, enjoying the physical proximity. "You make it sound like I've found the cure for ice cream brain freezes."
"This is waaay better. You've scored an invite to Linus's,andyou've found a way for me to tag along." He hugs me again. "Thank you, thank you, thank you."
I close my eyes and try to focus on how great it is that I've made Ryde so happy and not on how much it sucks having a body I know I can never have pressed against mine. I'm not even mad at Ryde about it because he doesn't know how I feel since I've never told him. He's a walking temptation, and it sucks because I know that no matter what happens with him and Linus, nothing will ever happen between him and me.
"When should we go over?" he asks, his deep-blue eyes darting from left to right, like he's mentally trying to recall our work schedules to find the first available opening.
"I'm not sure. I'd need to look at my roster," I say, and he draws back, looking at me expectantly. "Oh. You want me to do it right this very second?"
He nods hard. "Yeah, yeah, yeah."
I grin as I pull my phone out of my pocket. "Okay, let's see. Looks like we're both free in the afternoon the day after tomorrow?"
"Great. We'll go then and—" He catches himself mid-sentence, a look of realization flashing across his face. "Shit, sorry. I'm getting ahead of myself. Assuming that's okay with you?"
My grin grows into a smile. Even if it was the last thing on earth I wanted to do, I'd do it just to keep this happy look on his face. "Of course it is. Let's do it."
With another joyful squeal, he wraps his arms around me and hugs me with all his might. "You're the best, Dario. I love you."
I squeeze my eyes shut as his familiar scent washes over me, his body heat seeping through the layers of fabric between us and warming me up in a way I really wish it didn't. Talk about right words, wrong context. But if friendship love is all that's on offer, then I'll take it.
I swallow around the lump forming in my throat and run my hand through the back of his hair. "Yeah. I love you, too, buddy."
3
Ryde
