When Axl sees his old college crush at a holiday party, he is surprised to find out the guy not only remembers his name, he remembers hanging out with Axl years ago.
Spending time with Kevin is a dream come true and he makes peace with the idea that it might just be for the weekend. But his heart has other ideas and he’s falling too hard, too fast, and has no idea what Kevin is feeling. Is this just a weekend fling or something more?
Of all the Christmas parties in all the cities in all the states ... at least, that’s how he thought the saying went. Was Kevin Gardner really standing in front of him? Axl blinked rapidly, wondering if he was hallucinating. What had Amanda put in that punch, anyway?
But no, Kevin didn’t evaporate into thin air. He was most decidedly real and watching Axl with a bemused expression on his face. Axl pulled himself together and pasted on a smile, even as his anxiety ratcheted up. Nothing to worry about. Just the man of his dreams standing across from him. Piece of cake. Keep calm.
Over the years, he’d often wondered about Kevin. Fleeting moments out of nowhere. What had he been doing? Where had he moved? Had Kevin ever figured out Axl’s hopeless crush on him? Did he even remember Axl?
He took a shaky breath and stuck out his hand, hoping to appear composed, but knowing he failed. “Hi, Kevin. Been a long time.” Inwardly, Axl cringed at the quiver in his voice.
A grin spread across Kevin’s devastatingly handsome face and instead of taking Axl’s hand, he hauled Axl off his feet and into a big bear hug. Axl’s breath whooshed out of him as his feet dangled helplessly. Axl’s head spun as an unexpected thrill ricocheted through him, bouncing down his spine and pinging across every cell in his body. Without a thought to where they were, Axl giddily wrapped his arms around Kevin’s neck and held on tightly. He breathed in Kevin, the scent of eucalyptus filling his senses, intoxicating him. Time stopped for Axl as he held on, pressing his body against Kevin’s.
Kevin finally set Axl back on his feet. Unfortunately, Axl’s brain chose that instant to malfunction and he forgot to let go of Kevin’s neck. Kevin’s eyes fairly danced with amusement as he reached back to unclasp Axl’s hands. Instead of letting go though, Kevin brought around their joined hands and pressed Axl’s palms to his chest, placing his own hands on top of Axl’s, all the while still watching him.
Which was fine, since Axl couldn’t tear his eyes away from Kevin. God, he was even more beautiful than he was six years ago. And much stronger. Axl may not have been the largest man in the room, but he was 5’9” and Kevin had picked him up like he was nothing.
Amanda’s gaze volleyed from man to man, her brow furrowed. “You guys already know each other?”
“You bet,” Kevin said with a smile, still holding Axl’s hands against his chest. “We went to college together. Hung out all the time.”
Well, that was a bit of an exaggeration.
“That’s so crazy!”
“Yeah. We haven’t seen each other in years.”
“Then I guess you two want to catch up, right?”
Amanda’s eyes widened as Axl turned to her and shook his head.
“We sure do! Come on, Axl, there’s room on the sofa.”
It was usually Axl surprising people: talking, pacing, unable to slow himself down. Overwhelming his friends. For once, he had no words. Why was Kevin acting like they were long-lost best friends -- or more? Touching him. Hugging him. Eager to catch up. What was happening?
Kevin let Axl’s hands drop from his chest and held out his arm, gesturing for Axl to walk ahead of him. When Axl didn’t move, Kevin grabbed his wrist and led him along.
Axl looked back over his shoulder at Amanda and mouthed the word help, but she had the audacity to laugh and wiggled her fingers at him. He glared at her and turned back around, bumping into Kevin, who had stopped in front of the sofa. Kevin turned to him, the corner of his lips curving up, clearly amused.
Crap. Axl was in a daze and needed to snap out of it. Kevin plopped down at the end of the blue velvet sofa -- the one Axl had just helped Amanda pick out -- and patted the seat next to him. Axl’s gaze traveled to his friends Mark and Sam, sitting at the other end, leaning into each other and talking in whispers.
“Hey,” they both said with a nod and a glance at Kevin before returning to their conversation.
Axl wondered what had them so wrapped up. They were both usually much more friendly. He sighed. He had his own problems to deal with. Like remembering how to form actual words.
He sat and scooted back, wedging himself between Sam and Kevin on the small sofa. Kevin’s thigh pressed against his and heat like molten lava seared through him. Damn. How could he still react like this after six years?
Kevin stretched out his arm along the back of the couch, making a little more room for Axl, then used his other hand to grab a plastic cup from the end table.
“A toast,” he began and Axl let out a chuckle when Amanda appeared in front of him with his cup. Of course, his friend was there to ensure her set-up ran smoothly. He took it and she slipped away as if she’d never been there. Kevin lifted his cup and Axl joined him. “To the cutest guy at our college.”
Axl’s jaw dropped as they touched the rims of their cups together.
