Disclaimer I Like Boys

Chapter Four

Riley brought a fistful of the buttery-popcorn-and-malt-balls combo to his mouth. The salt sang in perfect harmony with the melted chocolate. And the crunch. Got to have the crunch. The kind where each chew drowns out the dialogue from the movie. In this case, Pretty Woman. He scooched deeper into the seat, enjoying the squeak of the springs beneath him. When he found out his favorite theater was having a Julia Roberts marathon, he dropped everything and settled in for the day. After what happened with Easton in the garden shed, of all places, during a party no less, Riley felt the need to disappear for a while.

Easton had left him aching as soon as he confessed only being attracted to him. What was he supposed to do with that information? His brain just couldn’t process. He never denied that Easton knew how to arouse him. That wasn’t the problem. That was never their problem. He was an attractive guy. Clearly they had some sort of s****l chemistry. All he had to do was get a whiff of Easton’s bath soap and the front of his pants tightened. But chemistry wasn’t enough risking years of friendship for. He would rather have Easton as a friend forever than jumping into the relationship boat and have it sink. Because having no Easton at all was the worst. So why couldn’t he get it into his thick head that there would be nothing more between them besides friendship? Yet the thought of Easton dating someone else…he shook his head. No. Totally not going there.

He kicked the empty seat in front of him. As far as he knew he was the only one in the theater, so he could do whatever the hell he wanted. If that meant eating away his feelings then screw the weight gain. He stuck his hand inside the bucket and bought another fistful to his lips as he mouthed the lines Julia Roberts’ character Vivian spoke to Edward, Richard Gere’s character. He hadn’t been born yet when the movie had come out. It was only because his mother had an unhealthy fixation on Richard Gere that he discovered this movie. Almost immediately something drew him to this story of a hooker with a heart of gold swept up into a whirlwind romance by a handsome businessman. He sighed. No matter how many times he’d seen it, the movie never failed to make his heart flutter.

Like the scene where Edward picked Vivian up at the lounge of the hotel and he didn’t even recognize her until she turned around. Classic ugly duckling turned swan moment. It reminded him so much of when Carter first saw Didi after Riley helped make her over for the garden party. He knew in that instant his cousin was a goner. The same thing happened with Edward. The look on his face showed everyone watching there would be no other woman in his life but Vivian. Riley sighed again. That was the magic of Pretty Woman. It made him believe in true love and happily ever afters.

He was so caught up in the movie he didn’t notice the chair beside him creaked until someone was already sitting down. He began to protest between bites of popcorn when the familiar scent of bath soap and chlorine reached him. Closing his eyes, he inhaled greedily and he hated himself for it. Why he thought there was anything sexy about the smell of chorine baffled him. But in the back of his mind he knew the truth, he would just deny it until it stopped being true.

Riley gave Easton a sidelong glance. His too tempting best friend reached into the bucket and brought popcorn and malt balls to his mouth without asking permission. He narrowed his gaze and grumbled, “How did you find me?”

Not taking his eyes off the screen, Easton shrugged—content to continue munching. From the slicked-back look of his hair, he’d just come from the pool. Riley swore he could hear the crunching from inside Easton’s mouth all the way from where he sat. Not that they were that far apart. Old theaters had seats crushed close together. It harkened back to the movie date days. The closer the couples sat beside each other the better. Only after he swallowed did he speak.

“You’re forgetting how much I know you,” Easton said. “I just had to check which theaters were having a marathon.”

Riley let out a humph. “So much for hiding.”

He reached into the bucket right at the same time Easton did. Their fingertips touched. He jerked back while Easton brought another fistful to his mouth. That one touch was enough to double the beats of his heart. All of a sudden the temperature rose. He had to resist the urge to fan his smoldering face.

“Stupid Easton,” he said under his breath.

“Hmm?” Easton turned his head toward him.

He stretched his legs out and sank as deep as he could go in his seat without actually falling off. “Nothing.”

Another shrug.

When he reached for the bucket again, Riley held it out of reach.

“Get your own comfort food!” he said a little too loudly. He sat up and looked around. Despite the darkness, the place still looked empty. Plus, no one shushed him.

Easton sucked his fingers one at a time, ridding them of the salt and chocolate surely stuck there from Riley’s special movie food. Transfixed by the sight, Riley imagined how those fingers tasted. It would be easy to reach out and bring Easton’s fingers to his mouth. They had the theater to themselves. No one would disturb them. His tongue flicked at the salt left over on his lower lip. The way Easton’s lips pursed when he brought a finger into his mouth all the way to the last knuckle made his throat tighten. The slick wet sound of pulling that finger out to end at a pop was so sexy it stirred a lust in Riley so molten he felt it gather in his belly. His mouth watered, forcing him to swallow. When Easton reached his middle finger Riley was positive he was doing it on purpose.

Remembering the individually packed wet naps he had in his pocket, he pulled one out and flung it at Easton. It smacked him on the cheek and actually stuck there for a second. Startled, Easton peeled the packet off and stared at it.

“Use that,” Riley said. “Licking your fingers clean is disgusting.”

The grin that stretched his lips prevented air from reaching Riley’s lungs. “From the looks of things, you seem to be enjoying it.”

Like a storm surge, blood rushed up to his face. He wouldn’t be surprised if his head exploded right then. Without warning, Easton grabbed his hand.

“What are you…” He lost complete train of through the second his index finger entered the heat of Easton’s mouth. He bit down on the side of his cheek to keep the moan in at the swirl of Easton’s tongue. He knew all too well just how talented that tongue was. Worst of all, at the back of his mind, he wondered how that tongue would feel against other parts of his body. He gasped at the too loud pop when Easton pulled his finger out.

“Mmm,” he hummed, licking his lips. “Riley. My favorite flavor.”

His cheeks burned like a furnace in winter when Easton moved on to his middle finger. He gave the digit extra special care, first flicking his tongue over the tip before taking the entire thing into his mouth. He moaned as if sampling the best food in the world. Riley’s attempts at tugging his hand away from that teasing mouth were futile. Gripping the arm rest with his other hand, he was glad the large bucket covered most of his lap. If the base of the thing wasn’t so wide, it would have tumbled to the floor ages ago. Even in the darkness he knew all Easton had to do was look down to see the evidence of what his mouth did. All the nerve endings in his body focused on that particular spot, firing all at once and sending sensation after wicked sensation everywhere else.

“Stop,” he said weakly. His breath hitched when Easton licked the entire length of the underside of his finger. The roughness of his tongue against his smooth skin shattered him. “Please, stop.”

“Why?” he asked against the center of Riley’s palm. The heat of his breath sent quivers all the way down his body.

“Because…” he tried, but he’d forgotten once again what he wanted to say when a gentle kiss was deposited over the pulse point at his wrist. Could Easton feel the hammering of his heart beneath those wicked lips?

Easton’s luscious kisses moved up along his arm with each word he spoke.

“If…”

Kiss.

“You…”

Kiss.

“Can…”

Kiss.

“Tell…”

Kiss.

“Me…”

Kiss.

“Why…”

He paused at the inside of Riley’s elbow and ran the tip of his tongue along the crease. Even when he bit down hard on his knuckle he couldn’t keep the whimper of pleasure from escaping.

“I’ll stop,” Easton finished, looking up at him. The brightness of the scene playing out in front of them illuminated the green in his eyes. Riley couldn’t look away, spellbound by the intensity there. Who knew what Easton would do if he was allowed to keep going?

In desperation, Riley forced himself to find the words. His mind was a mess, but if he didn’t put a stop to this he would surely regret it afterward. The thought of hurting Easton even more than he already had was what gave him the strength to speak.

“You’re my best friend,” he said, voice breathy. “It’s always been that way. If I allow us to cross the line into something more, there’s no going back. I’m not prepared to lose both a boyfriend and a best friend all at once if this doesn’t work out between us.”

“Who says it won’t work out?” Easton let go of him in favor of sitting up and crossing his arms.

“Who says it will?” Riley countered, finally getting some semblance of control back with the distance Easton put between them. Although, his fingers still tingled from being inside that sinful mouth. “East, there are no guarantees.”

“But I love you,” he insisted. “Isn’t that enough?”

“In a perfect world, maybe.” He pointed at the screen where Edward was climbing up the fire escape during his grand gesture moment to win Vivian’s heart. “But we don’t live in a perfect world. I am not Julia Roberts and you are not Richard Gere.”

“Fine. I’ll be Julia.”

“East, come on. This is not a love story with a happy ending. Believe me. I know from experience.”

“But it can be,” he said with such sincerity, Riley almost believed him. “Life is what we make of it. The other guys you’ve been with didn’t deserve you. Didn’t know how to treat you right. I can’t guarantee smooth sailing all the way. But I know as long as we’re together we can weather any storm. As long as you’re with me I know everything will be okay.”

It scared Riley how well Easton knew him. He’d said all the right things. Words he himself had thought of at one time or the other. Was he dating other guys to keep himself distracted from what was already in front of him? He knew in his heart of hearts that as long as Easton was with him his life would be alright, no matter what.

Unfortunately, it was that same sentiment that told him he’d been right the first time. He shook his head against Easton’s optimism. “That’s precisely why I can’t allow this. I read somewhere that love is the greatest gift you can receive, and I’m grateful that you love me. I love you too…”

“Just not in the way I love you,” Easton finished, his expression falling.

It broke Riley’s heart into a million pieces, but this had to be done. Easton needed to see why their friendship was more important than a relationship that had an expiration date. “I don’t know what I would do if I lost you as a friend, East. It scares me to even think about it.”

Quick as a snake bite, Easton took his hand again and pressed his palm against his chest. Beneath Riley’s hand he felt the powerful beats of his best friend’s heart. The look of determination Easton showed him almost stole his breath.

“One month,” he said.

“What?” The music of the end credits swelled, making Riley think he’d misheard him. “I don’t understand.”

“Give me a chance to prove you wrong for one month,” he clarified.

“Oh, East…I…”

“Give a relationship between you and me one month. You gave others longer. Why not give me this?” Easton squeezed his hand like a lifeline during a storm. “If after the month you’re still not convinced that this will work between us…” He paused, looking away for a second. Then he said, “I’ll stop.”

“Stop?” the word was barely audible against the ringing in his ears. Change their relationship status for a month? What was Easton thinking springing this on him all of a sudden? It was all too much to process.

He nodded. “If you’re still not convinced then I won’t bother you about my feelings anymore. I’ll settle for just being friends.”

Like Easton, Riley also knew his best friend well. Behind the determination was fear combined with hurt. He would never be satisfied with them just being friends after one month. At the same time, the possibility of falling in love with him scared Riley straight. The others he’d been with were for the sake of fun. He knew being with Easton would be different. No matter how tempting his offer may be, no matter how much they might enjoy a more intimate relationship, his better judgment prevailed.

Taking his hand back, he said, “No.”