Page 95 of Perfect Storm
“So um, I gotta ask,” Levi said, “I know you’re crazy about Dylan—”
“That’s nothing new,” Logan said.
“No, I know. Which is why I gotta ask. How did youknowyou wanted him to be more than just a hookup?”
Logan went deathly quiet. Unfairly, Levi thought. Logan had had his hookup phase, just the same as Levi had. He’d never made any secret about it and had never had any shame either. Sure, Levi’s had lasted a year or two longer, but they weren’tthatdifferent.
It wasn’t like Levi was allergic to relationships or emotionally stunted. He’d never just looked at someone and wanted andwanted and wanted. Wanted so much he didn’t think he’d ever find the bottom of it.
But he was beginning to think that was the situation with Aidan.
“Are you serious?” Logan asked. “Who is it?”
Levi rolled his eyes. “Yes, and why am I not surprised that’s your first question?”
“Well, bro, you haven’t been in Torontothatlong.”
Levi almost told him it had started before that. This summer, even.
Maybe it had started a long time before that.
It wasn’t like he’d never looked at Aidan and thought,holy fuck he’s hot. He’d just never believed he could do anything about it, not until Aidan had come out to him.
“No, but isn’t that what people say all the time?” Levi wondered. “Time doesn’t matter. Like when you know,you know.”
“If that was true, you wouldn’t be calling me up about it, asking how I was sure I had feelings for Dylan and didn’t just want to get into his pants.”
“I don’t want to be wrong.” Levi didn’t know if he wanted to be feeling this at all, if he was being honest. Aidan might never feel the same. After all, this whole thing had started because he’d told Levi he was in love with Morris Jeffries.
Aidan might still be in love with Morris Jeffries. He might be in love with Morris Jeffriesforever.
That did not bode well for Levi’s potential feelings.
“You’re not stupid,” Logan said, which was shockingly unhelpful.
“Duh,” Levi retorted.
“I’m just saying, the fact that you have to ask me how I knew I didn’t want to just hook up with Dylan? Well, that tells you something right there.”
Levi was afraid of this, which was why he hadn’t brought it up before now. Notonlywhy he’d been cautious about it, but no question it was a factor.
“And,” Logan added, his voice growing kinder, “you know what just wanting someone feels like. When you’ve nutted, you’re kinda done, you know? With Dylan, I never feel like I get enough. I want him around all the time. Just to talk. Or laugh. Or whatever.”
Yeah, Levi knew. Sure, they were living together, so they’d be together anyway, but Levi looked forward to pretty much every moment they hung out. Even if it was as stupid as sitting together on the plane back from California, with three-quarters of the team asleep in the cabin around them, as they watched their touchdown drive on Aidan’s tablet and broke down every single play they’d run and how they could run it better next time.
Normally, that would be work. An obligation that Levi did because he had to, not because he wanted to.
But he’d enjoyed every single moment of it, because it was Aidan he was doing it with. Aidan he could poke gentle fun at. Aidan he could make smile. Aidan he could knock his knee against and watch as his blue eyes grew just a little smoky with barely banked heat.
“You gonna tell me who it is?” Logan asked again.
Like hell he was. If he told Logan, there was no way Logan wouldn’t tell Landry—and that would be yanking open a whole can of worms.
Levi hesitated.
“I get it—it’s probably someone on the team,” Logan said.
“Yeah,” Levi said. He could admit that much. It would at least keep Logan off his back, because Logan would assume that they weren’t out publicly yet and that was why Levi was being close-lipped about their identity. That wasalsotrue. But that wasn’t really the reason Levi wasn’t saying.
