Christmas Delights 3 (39 page)

"Riley?" He blurted out, before his brain could
tell his mouth not to. "Riley Cooper?"

Riley visibly tensed. Stopping mid-stretch he turned his
attention to Daniel. His expression was guarded as he began to speak.
"Yeah, that's me. I thought the beard and scruffy hair would stop me being
spotted..." He stopped talking as his eyes met Daniel's, a tentative smile
forming on his lips. "Danny?"

Daniel didn't know what he'd expected. Had he thought Riley
wouldn't know who he was? He laughed at himself. He hadn't changed much in the
last seven years. Of course his best friend would recognize him. Ex-best
friend, he corrected. The kiss had seen to that. He didn't know what to say
next. He half wished he'd kept his mouth shut. It was going to be awkward.
They'd be forced to make small talk until one of them left. A panic rose, and a
knot formed in Daniel's stomach..

"Danny?" Riley questioned again.

"What?" Was the panic visible on his face?
"Sorry. Yeah. It's good to see you Riley." Daniel had thought about
this meeting many times over the years. He'd imagined different scenarios for
how it would play out if he ever met Riley again. In his head the meetings had
always been good. Daniel would be confident, he'd talk about how great his life
was. He would ask Riley how the acting was going without giving away how often
he watched his show and how much he knew about Riley's career. Sometimes they'd
kiss. Other times the fantasy would involve more than kissing. Occasionally
Daniel would rebuke Riley's advances. Flipping their dynamic, he'd be the one
to leave Riley behind.  Every time, Riley would realize what a mistake he'd
made letting Daniel go. Not once had their imaginary reconciliation included
Daniel silently wishing he could run for the door. Daniel's real life rarely
lived up to his fantasies, why would this be any different?

No. Daniel was a grown man. He'd moved on from the needy kid
he'd been back in school. He'd moved across the country, alone. He had a good
job, one where he was in charge of a whole team of reporters. He could get
through a conversation with someone who used to know him better than anyone
else in the world. He sat up straight, squaring his shoulders, and looked Riley
directly in his eyes.

"It's real good to see you. It's been too long."
Great, he was doing it. His heart was about to punch out of his chest, but he
was calmly talking to Riley. He forced a smile and crossed his fingers under
the table. If he was lucky Riley would believe the act.

"It has. Jeez, how long has it been? Six years? No
seven. Christ, you look good. Life must be treating you well." Riley was
either a great actor - which Daniel already knew he was - or he was happy to
see Daniel. Daniel choked down the voice telling him not to fall for Riley's
performance and chose instead to believe the warm smile was genuine.

They talked casually, catching up on each other's lives,
chatting about family and mutual friends. Neither had kept in contact with many
people from home, but they each had a couple of stories relayed from parents or
siblings about the people they used to know. Daniel told Riley the story of his
missed flight, and it turned out they were booked onto the same delayed flight
to Chicago. Daniel found that as the time they spent together grew, and the
beers flowed, his composed demeanor became less of an act. He began to feel
comfortable in Riley's presence; more comfortable than he'd felt with anyone in
a long time. The old chemistry between them was still there. Riley held eye
contact a fraction too long on occasion. Other times Daniel noticed Riley lick
his lips as his gaze dropped to Daniel's mouth. If this was a bar back home and
Daniel had only just met Riley he would be sure he was being flirted with. But
Riley didn't want Daniel like that. He had never wanted Daniel like that. Had
he? Daniel wasn't sure anymore.

When the announcement came over the PA system that due to
the late hour and the continued snow storm, all flights had been cancelled for
the night, Daniel was surprised to look at his watch and find it was nearly
midnight. He'd been with Riley for two hours.

"Damn it." Riley rubbed his hands over his face,
his beard rasping under his fingers. "Looks like we aren't getting home
for Christmas morning. This sucks. I've been dreaming of my mom's Santa and
Rudolph pancakes for months."

Daniel laughed at the memory of Mrs. Cooper's holiday
breakfasts. She had themes for all occasions. "Does she still do that? Oh,
your mom's pumpkin flavored Jack-O lantern pancakes were awesome."

"Sure does. She kinda stopped for a bit when me and
Amber left home. But once she got some grandkids to cater for they were back.
Still taste just as good. Damn shame I'm missing out tomorrow morning."

"Come on, let's head over to the desk, see when we can
expect a flight out of here. If there's one early tomorrow you might make it
back for those pancakes." Daniel stood, motioning to Riley to join him.

Riley shook his head as he rose slowly out of his seat.
"My nieces will be awake at the crack of dawn. Food'll be gone by seven.
Ah man, I'm gonna miss them seeing what Santa left too. That's the best part of
Christmas."

Daniel could picture Riley with his nieces. He'd just found
out they were five year old twins, Ava and Mia. Riley's face had lit up as he
talked about them. It was the most animated he'd been during their conversation
as he told stories of helping them put on dance shows for the family, teaching
them to swim last summer, and how he planned on building a tree fort with them
when they moved house in the spring. Riley was a natural with children. He'd
grown up near his cousins who were all younger than him, and had often
volunteered himself and Daniel for babysitting duties when they were teenagers.
Daniel was awkward around children, especially small children. He never knew
what to say to them and he felt ridiculous acting silly to make them laugh. At
least this year Harry was only tiny; Daniel wouldn't have to interact with him
further than a quick hold and the obligatory cooing about how adorable he
looked.

They picked up their belongings and made their way out into
the main terminal building. Riley was familiar with the airport so Daniel let
him lead the way. He felt Riley's hand on the small of his back gently guiding
him in the right direction. His skin tingled under the casual touch of Riley's
fingers. When they stopped by the airline information desks, Riley's hand
remained for a beat longer than necessary. Daniel wanted to back into the hand,
to push the contact further. Riley lowered his arm, his fingertips skimming the
material of Daniel's shirt. Daniel clenched his teeth to ward off the shiver
running up his spine.

A crowd had formed around the airline desks as everyone
talked over each other. Daniel struggled to listen to snippets of conversations
but nobody seemed to have any information of relevance. Daniel felt a tap on
his arm. He turned to face Riley, who gestured at Daniel to follow him away
from the commotion of people. Once they were in a quieter area, Riley took out
his cell. "I'm gonna call Kim, she'll be able to get us some answers
faster than we can get from over there."

"Kim?"

"She's an assistant on the show. Deals with all the
travel arrangements. She'll have a contact to get some answers from."

Daniel put his hand on Riley's arm. "Riley, it's late
and it's Christmas. You can't call your assistant now."

"Of course I can. That's her job." He continued to
scroll through his contacts.

"No. I don't care what her job is, we can deal with
this. Seriously, Riley." Daniel couldn't believe Riley was willing to
disturb this woman in the middle of the night for an issue they could easily
handle themselves.

Riley sighed and rubbed his eyes, then pinched the bridge of
his nose between his thumb and forefinger. "No, you're right. I didn't
think. Fuck, I'm too tired for this."

He looked tired. Daniel hadn't noticed in the bar, but now
under the bright lights Riley looked worn-out. His brown eyes were rimmed red.
Dark smudges below them accentuated how pale his face was underneath the beard.
He looked thinner than Daniel remembered from the last time he'd seen Riley on
TV. Daniel tried not to watch Riley's show, but often found himself drawn to
it. Sometimes watching it would make him ache to call Riley. The need to talk
to him pulled at Daniel's heart. It was ridiculous how much he still wanted
Riley after all these years. Weren't people supposed to get over teenage
crushes? That's what his mom had told him. That he'd be fine, he just needed to
go out and find his way in life. One day he'd meet someone he could be happy
with and he'd wonder how he confused teenage lust with love. So much for that
theory.

Daniel had the urge to pull Riley into a hug. He settled for
placing his hand on Riley's shoulder. He squeezed lightly and bent his head
down the inch or two needed to put their eyes level. "Come on. They've got
to give us some information soon. Then we can sort out what our options are."

The small smile Riley gave Daniel made it worth it to fight
through his own weariness and take charge.

They grabbed coffees to fend off the exhaustion and waited
with the other passengers for a staff member. The news when it came was that
flights were grounded and the weather conditions would be reviewed at midday.
Daniel called his mom; it was late but she hadn't gone to bed yet. He told her
that he'd call when he had a new flight. Riley called his sister with the same
news. Daniel overheard him demanding video footage of Ava and Mia opening
presents; if he couldn't be there he at least wanted to see the excitement.

Daniel wasn't thrilled with the prospect of sleeping on the
airport floor but looking around him they'd missed their chance of getting a
seat anywhere. "Riley, do you know what hotels there are around here? We
could try getting a couple of rooms somewhere. I'm sure a big star like
yourself is above sleeping on the floor, right?" He gestured to the people
settling down nearby. He immediately felt bad about that last dig. He had no
idea what Riley was like these days, other than the snippets of gossip he heard
around the office. And gossip wasn't the place to get an accurate
representation of a person.

"My apartment isn't far away and my truck'll be good
with a bit of snow." Riley's tone was nonchalant.

The words set Daniel's panic off again. The calm wall he'd
built up by concentrating on the situation rather than the company fell away.
"Your... your apartment. Okay. I can get a hotel though. There must be
one..."

Riley interrupted. "Danny, come on. It's like fifteen
minutes away and it won't cost you a cent. I've got a spare room and I'm pretty
sure the hotels will be booked up by now anyway."

Daniel couldn't think of an excuse quick enough, so he had
to agree. They'd been comfortable enough in the bar, sure he could cope for a
night in Riley's home. Alone. He couldn't help thinking back to the last time
they'd been alone together. The night he'd kissed Riley and their friendship
had crumbled around him. He felt sick.

The trip to Riley's place was uneventful. The snow was
coming down hard, but Riley drove like he was used to the conditions. They
didn't speak much, with Riley concentrating on the icy roads while Daniel
gnawed on the skin at the edge of his thumb nail. He silently prayed that he
wouldn't do anything to mess up the chance of rebuilding a relationship with
Riley. He knew it wouldn't be the romantic relationship he'd wanted for so
long. After years of bleak emptiness, just the thought of being able to talk to
Riley again on a regular basis brought him warmth. He could be happy with
friendship. He wouldn't mess this up.

"Home sweet home." Riley held the door open with
one arm, gesturing with the other for Daniel to go ahead.

Daniel looked around him; the apartment was minimal and felt
cold. The living room was white walled. Two huge prints of mountains and lakes
hung on one side of the room, a flat screen TV matching their size on the
opposite wall. The dark leather chairs looked uncomfortable and hard. It all
looked expensive, but bland and impersonal. It didn't match with the Riley that
Daniel had known. Something in his gut clenched with sadness.

His feelings must have shown on his face. Riley threw his
coat and scarf onto one of the chairs. He shrugged his shoulders as he turned
to follow Daniel's gaze. "It's not much but I'm only here when we do
location shoots. Majority of the time I'm at the studios in L.A. My place there
is more home. It's better than an airport floor with a bunch of strangers
though."

He had a point. Daniel pushed away the niggling worry. Who
was he to judge Riley's living space? "Yeah, sorry, I didn't mean to...
It's a nice place."

"It's okay. I know it looks like a hotel. I just never
get time to do anything with it. Anyway, you want a beer? Or just to
crash?"

The thought of a bed and sleep reminded Daniel how tired he
was. He tried to stifle a yawn but it came out anyway. He put a hand over his
mouth and shook his head.

"Guess that answers that then." Riley said, smiling.
He yawned himself then, a long loud groan of fatigue escaping with it.

They both laughed. Daniel said "Yeah, I think it's past
both our bedtimes. Even the caffeine fix has stopped working."

Riley showed Daniel to the spare bedroom. They lingered a
second too long in the open doorway. Daniel watched as Riley's gaze dropped to
his mouth before looking back up to his eyes. It would be so easy for Daniel to
lean in and kiss Riley. Caught up in the moment, he almost believed that was what
Riley wanted. Maybe it was. Daniel looked away, breaking the connection. No,
Daniel wouldn't be making any moves to kiss Riley. He couldn't fuck this up
again when he might be getting back a friend he'd missed for so long.