Page 124 of Common Goal

“Having fun?” Eric asked.

“So much fun.” Kyle turned to face him. “Where were you?”

“Talking to some of the guys. You know.”

“Miss them already?”

Eric scrunched his nose. “Almost.”

“You want to dance to Pitbull?”

“No.”

Kyle kissed him. The music changed to a slow song, and Eric said, “I could maybe handle this one.”

They held hands as they walked together onto the dance floor. The song was a wedding staple—Elvis Presley’s “Can’t Help Falling in Love”—but wrapped in the arms of the man he loved, Kyle felt like the first time he had ever heard it.

He brushed his lips against Eric’s ear and murmured, “Do you remember when this song came out?”

Eric snorted. “Fuck you.”

Kyle laughed against Eric’s neck. He’d made a lot of jokes about Eric’s age when they’d been in Greece, exploring ancient temples.

“Hey,” Eric whispered. “Maria is dancing with Matti.”

Kyle whipped his head around in a completely nonsubtle way. He quickly spotted Matti, since he was the tallest one in the room, and sure enough, Maria had her arms stretched all the way out to circle his neck. They were gazing at each other and smiling, and Kylereallyhoped tonight would be the night they hooked up because it had become increasingly clear that Matti was into her.

“Look at how hard he’s crushing on her,” Kyle said, grinning.

“He’d be a fool not to make his move tonight.”

“Well, some people just need a little time, y’know?”

“Not everyone is as sexually confident as I am,” Eric agreed.

The road to becoming a real couple had been a strange one for Eric and Kyle, but Kyle couldn’t be happier with where it had led them. He loved that they were building a business together at the same time as they were deepening their relationship. Everything in Kyle’s life was so perfect right now that he was worried about the other shoe dropping.

But there was no reason to think about that now. Not while he was dancing with his wonderful boyfriend in a room full of their friends.

“I love you,” he said. They said it to each other all the time, but it hadn’t gotten old yet.

Eric kissed him, pausing their rotations on the dance floor. Kyle melted into it, lightheaded despite only having drunk one glass of wine.

“I love you too,” Eric said when they finally broke the kiss. And then he yawned.

“Past your bedtime?” Kyle teased.

“Ihavebeen looking forward to being in a bed with you for a few hours now.” Eric’s eyes sparkled with mischief.

“God, I’ve created a monster.”

“Yourmonster,” Eric growled. Then he nipped Kyle’s earlobe.

The song ended, and Eric squeezed Kyle tight against him. “I’m so glad you’re in my life. I’m sorry it wasn’t sooner.”

Kyle placed a hand on Eric’s cheek and gazed at the man who had finally been worthy of his heart. “You saved your best years for me, gorgeous.”