Page 112 of The New Guy
The walk home is short. I take the same path as with Gavin the first night we met, when I did everything wrong. I made so many mistakes with him, but by some miracle he likes me anyway.
As I mount the stairs, I picture him asleep in his bed, on the other side of the wall from mine. And I know I’m ready to knock that wall down. I have big things to say to him. Big, scary things.
So when I find his note on my door, I don’t even unlock my apartment. I stand in the hallway and phone him, even though it’s really late.
He declines the call, but I hear shuffling feet a moment later, and a bleary Gavin—clad only in boxers—unlocks the door.
“Hey,” I whisper.
He beckons me inside, so I quietly close the door behind myself and follow him into his bedroom. I close the door there, too, and kick off my shoes. Then I remove my tie and suit coat and drape them over his doorknob.
Gavin flops back into the bed. I remove my trousers and my dress shirt and drape them over his heater before climbing in there without an invitation.
I belong here with him. I know that now. I don’t remember the moment he went from being my obsession to becoming my dream. But here I am, wrapping my arms around his sleepy body, and resting my heart against his.
Gavin’s arms close around me. “I’m sorry about the loss. Jordyn cried. But you were awesome. I hope you’re proud.”
“I’m feeling a lot of gratitude,” I say, tugging him closer to me. He’s sleep-warmed and heavy. “And I came here to tell you that I made a decision.”
“You did?” His arm snakes sleepily around my waist.
“Yeah. When training camp starts again, I’m going to come out. No matter where I am with my contract.”
His head pops off my shoulder. “Really?”
“Really. I can’t put my life on hold forever. If Brooklyn doesn’t want me now, there’s nothing I can do to make them change their minds.”
“Whoa.” He’s awake now. “So how would that work?”
“I still have to go to L.A. for a month. But I’ll miss you like crazy. What would you say if I rented a nice beach house? You and Jordyn could come out to California for a week-long vacation.”
“Sounds fun,” he says. “If I can swing it.”
“It’s my idea. I’d be the one buying your tickets.”
“But…”
“No buts. I’m the guy who has to train across the country, right? That’s my problem to solve. And I want to solve it by bringing you guys out to see me. We can take Jordyn to Disneyland. I guess you could pay for that, if you’re so inclined.”
He thinks about it for a moment. “Wow. All right. But I don’t know if I’m giving in because you’re right, or because I want to stay in a California beach house with you.”
“Look,” I rub his back. “I have more money than time. If you don’t let me spend it on you sometimes, I’ll see less of you. And that will make me sad. It’s selfish, but I think I’m onto something here.”
“Okay,” he says wearily. “But then what?”
“I’ll be back to Brooklyn in late July. I’ll get myself into the right headspace to come out to my team. And then—with your permission—we’ll tell Henry about us, and you can discuss your job protocols with him. If you still think I’m worth complicating your life for.”
“Baby, I won’t be able to help myself.” He plants a kiss on my bare chest. “I want to be part of it. I want to watch what you can do next season. I want to watch you put down roots with that team, even if it means I can’t work there, too.”
“That would be unacceptable,” I say immediately. “Therehasto be a way for the team to get their heads around the idea of us.”
“Guess we’ll find out,” he says quietly. “We won’t know unless we try.”
“Think about it,” I beg. “I don’t want to bring this to Henry unless you’re really okay with it. If you want to take the chance.”
He kisses my chest slowly. Twice. “Fortune favors the bold. I don’t want to walk away from you. Not if you’re willing to take a big risk for me.”
“Allthe risks. I’m ready.” I slide a hand right onto his ass. “And guess what? As of tonight, we don’t have any more gametime conflicts for a while. So now we can do whatever we want, yeah?” I give his ass a slow, dirty squeeze.
