His Secret

6. Matías

CHAPTER SIX

MATíAS

We end up with pizza from a late-night diner and Adrian chooses to watch some comedy movie I’ve never seen.

He starts off at my desk, while I eat on my bed, but once he’s done, he kicks off his shoes and makes himself comfortable next to me.

My full-sized bed is pushed against the wall, so he’s in the corner with a pillow behind his back while I’m on the other side.

What the hell is my life?

It’s almost one in the morning when my phone buzzes against the nightstand. It’s a text from Blake.

Hey. Just wanted to say thanks for giving me your number and ask if you’d be free tomorrow.

“Oh,” I say out loud, not meaning to .

“What’s wrong?”

“Nothing. It’s Blake. From the bar.”

“Blake from the bar,” he says, deadpan. “He wants to meet up?”

“Tomorrow.”

He nods, scratching at his chin, eyes focused on the TV. “Are you going to?”

“Maybe.”

“Is that your type?”

“Pretty much.”

“Hmm.”

“What? You don’t think he’s cute?”

“I don’t have to. If you do, that’s fine.”

“Well—”

“I guess I should go,” he says, scooting off the bed.

“What? Why?”

“You’re texting. I don’t know.”

He seems agitated now and I’m confused. “You don’t even have a car and you live half an hour away. More if you’re walking.”

“It’s fine.”

“Adrian.”

He turns to face me after he gets his shoes on. “What?”

“What’s going on?”

He shakes his head like he’s annoyed, huffing out a sigh. “Do you like me?”

“What? Of course I do.”

“Not like…” He pauses. “I mean, am I not being obvious enough?”

“Obvious?”

He blows out a breath. “Never mind. I’ll see you later.”

He’s out the door, leaving me on the bed in a sea of confusion. When it hits me, my eyes double in size and I leap out of the bed and rush to the door.

“Adrian!”

He’s down the hall, but spins around at the sound of his name. He looks frustrated but he stops moving and waits for me to get to him.

“Are you saying…”

His eyes dance over my face, landing on my lips for several seconds before staring deep into my eyes. “That I like you?” he finishes. “Yeah.”

“But…when?”

“Since the beginning.” He takes a breath and rubs the back of his neck. “I was already secretly crushing, but knew I’d never be able to tell you. When James let it slip that you’re gay, I was excited. I thought, well, maybe. Then I was confused at the party with you and Penelope. I thought I was giving you hints. I was touching you a lot. Taking you to my room, inviting you to stay, and then insisting you stay. Once I told you, I thought, well, if he doesn’t realize now…”

I shake my head. “No. There’s not one time I ever thought you’d be remotely interested.”

He sighs. “I guess I’m not good at this.”

“Maybe I’m not either.”

He laughs. “Well.”

“Let’s go back to my room.”

Once we’re inside, I face him. “Why didn’t you say anything when I was basically forcing you to meet guys tonight?”

“Well, I thought you definitely weren’t interested if you were doing that, so I just went with it.”

I pinch my lips together. “Damn. I’m sorry.”

He shrugs, putting his hands in his pockets. “I suppose it doesn’t matter if it’s only one-sided.” His eyes are on the floor, but I can see a hint of pink in his cheeks.

A laugh escapes me. “I guess I’ve done a good job keeping my feelings close to the vest then.”

Adrian looks up, eyes scanning my face. “So…”

“Let’s just say the crush is reciprocated.”

His face splits with a grin, eyes lighting up in relief. “So, I am your type.”

I smirk and roll my eyes. “And I guess I’m yours.”

He dips his chin, eyes laser-focused on me. The energy shifts around us. The tension is thick, and we’re both getting closer to each other.

“I want to kiss you.”

“Okay,” I say softly, both of us leaning in.

I tilt my head back so his lips can land on mine. It’s soft at first. A few pecks to get a feel for each other.

When his lips part, I slide my tongue between them, eliciting a groan from his throat.

My entire body melts on the inside.

Adrian grabs my hip with one hand and cradles my face with the other. Our tongues meet and dance, and our moans come together in harmony.

After several long seconds, we pull away, but keep our foreheads connected. Adrian releases a soft sigh that sounds like it’s full of relief, then his hand cups the back of my head and he presses his lips to mine in a firm kiss. And then another.

“God, you have no idea how long I’ve been wanting to do that,” he finally says, head still against mine.

“You’re telling me,” I say with a shy smile. “I may have fantasized about this a time or two.”

He smirks. “Good. Glad I wasn’t alone in fantasyland.”

Fidgeting with my fingers, I say, “What now?”

“Everything,” he replies with a wide smile. “I want to do everything with you.”

My stupid, naive heart soars. It skips a beat and makes me skip past asking any questions. Like, do you think you’re ever going to come out? Is this just for fun? Will I simply be your dirty little secret? Are you using me?

Instead of laying down rules to protect my pride and dignity, I fall into bed with him where we continue to makeout for the next hour. We don’t set boundaries. We don’t iron out details. We just pretend like we don’t have anything to worry about—and that’s problem number one.