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Rune rubs both hands down his face with a groan. “I almost never do. I think your bed is dangerous.” He goes quiet, then says, “I think you’re dangerous.”
My stomach goes hot, and it spreads to my face. I turn away quickly to grab mugs from the cabinet. I’m feeling things. A lot of things. And I’m terrified of scaring him off.
“So, I didn’t know what Elio wanted for breakfast, and I didn’t trust him to tell me what he should eat.”
“Wise,” Rune says, reaching past me for a mug. He pours himself coffee and takes a long sip of the piping hot, black, bitter liquid like it’s ambrosia of the gods. “I keep it to proteins and shit. He can’t do gluten, and he needs a lot of fiber.”
“So probably no pancake frittata,” I say.
Rune shrugs. “Maybe later. For me.”
“Anything for you,” I murmur.
His own cheeks go pink, and he quickly gulps down more coffee while I get a bunch of shit from the fridge to make a scramble. He watches me for a beat, then walks over and drags a hand up my spine. “Thank you, Easton.”
I bow my head. “I really like how you say my name.”
“Good. I plan to say it a lot once I figure out how to get Elio to school. If you’re going to be around.”
“If I wasn’t off today,” I tell him, “I would absolutely call in sick.”
SIXTEEN
RUNE
I didn’t quite think about the logistics of Elio and school when I refused to take my SUV to Easton’s house, but I’m too afraid to go back to my parents’. I haven’t even called them to let them know the place caught fucking fire, so in the end, we call North, and he drives over in his truck so we can stick Elio’s chair in the back and strap him into the seat with me beside him to keep him from falling over.
He thinks it’s a fucking blast.
I’m trying not to have a panic attack in spite of North going ten under the speed limit.
“Are you sure you’re up for school today?” I ask Elio as we pull into the drop-off line.
He shrugs. “I’d rather do that than watch you and Easton pretend like you don’t want to make out all over the house.”
North goes into a coughing fit. “Uh, bud. You’re super cool, and while I’d love that, you know that Easton doesn’t really date guys, right? Your dad and him are just friends.”
Elio bursts into laughter, but the sound fades when he realizes North is serious. He leans forward. “It’s so cute that you think that.”
The shock I feel is weird and profound because while I know Easton’s been keeping us a secret from pretty much everyone, I assumed he’d told his best friend. He tells North the shape and size of his shits, so…
North clears his throat, then turns to look at me for a long beat. Then he looks at Elio. “I see.”
“You’re not, like, homophobic, right?”
“I’m engaged to a man,” North says flatly.
Elio gives me a look that says, Is this guy fucking serious?
I nod. “You met him. Leo.”
Elio brightens. “Oh, I love Leo. He’s nice. He likes ducks.”
“So do I,” North says a little sourly. “Anyway, uh…” He doesn’t finish his sentence. Nancy’s at the truck, looking confused, so North hops out to get the chair down while I carefully unstrap Elio and lift him into my arms.
He slings his own around my neck. “Did I break your friend?”
“No. But I am going to have a very awkward ride home, so thanks for that.”
