Life in Fusion (14 page)

almost normal—which let’s face it, was at times a very good

thing. The worst thing however, was they were almost always a

horrible influence—like having two precious looking little devils

whispering the same naughty things in either ear. The three of us

didn’t have standing invitations to come back to the Gay Rodeo

Circuit for nothing.

I poured margs for everyone else and passed one to Gabe

96 Ethan Day

and Tommy. The twins hopped down the steps into the den and

immediately began to argue over the remote.

“Play nice children.”

They each laughed, innocently blinking and waiting till I

turned around before continuing to argue, though they at least

had the decency to do it in hushed whispers.

“So,” Gabe asked, looking at me with his big brown puppy

dog eyes. “You been okay?”

I wanted to slap him, since he’d been intentionally avoiding

me the past few weeks. I’d never gone this much time without

seeing him before. The last time I’d called him, mentioning that

fact, he’d snapped at me, saying I better get used to it since I was

running off and leaving him behind. I could tell he was feeling

bad about that, and I wanted to make him suffer. But when he

stared up at me all sweet and sorry-eyed, I caved every time.

“I’ve missed you.” I said, though I scowled at him to let him

know I didn’t appreciate it.

Tommy sort of politely stepped away, obviously figuring

things were about to get all mushy or tense, neither of which

Tommy cared for.

“Yeah.” Gabe glanced down at the floor. “Sorry I’ve been

kind of a jerk butt.”

“Kind of?” I asked.

He glanced back up at me, working his
I’m sorry
mojo. “Gonna

forgive me?”

“Forgiven!” I yelled, laughing as I threw my arms around his

neck, causing the twins to berate me for sloshing some of my

margarita onto the floor.

“Stupid wasteful bitches, acting like the world is their oyster,”

Lonny scolded.

Gabe really squeezed me hard, letting me know he still felt

bad.

“Yeah,” Donny added, “like frozen margaritas just grow on

Life in fusion
97

trees.”

We both started laughing at them.

“They don’t know what it’s like, growing up, never knowing

where your next cocktail might come from,” Lonny said, causing

Gabe and I to stand up straight.

“You’re father’s a surgeon and you grew up in a freakin’

fifteen thousand square foot mansion,” Gabe said. “My entire

house could fit in your parents’ dining room.”

“Unbelievable.” I shook my head and snatched some paper

towels off the dispenser before bending over to wipe up my spill.

“You two are so rude.”

“What?” Donny asked, like he couldn’t for the life of him

figure out why we were offended.

“And the last issue you two
struggled
with was Edward vs.

Jacob,” I said.

“Oh great.” Tommy groaned, slurping down the rest of his

cocktail. “Now you’ve done it.”

“No I didn’t? Wait…what?” I asked, already lost.

“Fucking fang whore!” Lonny pointed at Donny. “Jacob

could totally kick Edward’s ass!”

“More like take Edward’s cock up his ass,” Donny snapped

back. “God damn flea baggin’, fur fucker!”

Gabe shook his head at them. “They argued non-stop about

this the whole ride over here.”

I wasn’t all that up on the whole
Twilight
saga, but I had to

admit, Donny’s version sounded better than Lonny’s. What can I

say? I’m a lover not a fighter.

“Hello? Boone?” Wade called out, from the front door.

“Anybody home?”

Everyone froze, and the room got quiet, like teens that’d been

busted having a party after their parents came home early.

“Major manly voice,” Lonny whispered with a wink, like he

was telling me job well done.

98 Ethan Day

I jumped slightly when the door slammed shut and started to

smile listening to Wade curse under his breath. He kept forgetting

he needed to hang onto the door when closing it, rather than

pushing it shut.

“Stay here,” I warned, giving the twins my evil eye.

I did my best to ignore the fact that the smile on Gabe’s face

had evaporated the instant Wade called out my name. I was too

excited to see Wade to let that irritation get to me.

We’d both been tested for HIV along with the whole other

gamut of STDs, and had each gotten our results back since the

last I’d seen him. Despite the initial worry that crept into the

back of my mind from getting tested, I knew, somewhere deep

down, that the results would be no different this time. Funny that

no matter how careful I was, that fear still managed to creep in,

getting under my skin each time.

Of course, even though we’d promised to wait for one

another and read them together, I’d already cheated by steaming

mine open, then re-gluing it.

Don
’
t judge
—
the devil made me do it!

I set down my glass on the kitchen counter and rounded the

corner as Wade let out a grunt, dropping the bag off his shoulder

and onto the floor. A smile spread over his handsome, chiseled

face, creating those dimples that still made me feel all goofy

inside.

He reached out for me, but I dodged his hands, dancing

around him in circles like I was two and my daddy had just come

home from a business trip.

“Did ya bring it, did ya bring it?”

Wade laughed at me, shaking his head and trying to act all

innocent. “To what are you referring, sir?”

I dodged his hand again, twirling just out of his reach as

I hopped around the back of him once more. “Please tell me

you have it. I’m dying to see it…mine’s waiting for you on your

pillow.”

Life in fusion
99

“I do have it,” Wade finally said, putting me out of my misery.

“I can’t believe you’re this excited about it though.”

“Me either?” I said, stopping long enough for him to grab

hold of me. “But I’ve hardly been able to think of anything else

all day. I mean,” I dropped my voice to a whisper, “I’ve never

done it without, you know.”

Wade kissed me and I immediately opened my mouth for his

tongue, my hands sliding up over his wide shoulders before I

wrapped them around his neck. I started to laugh, hearing the

whispers coming from behind me as my friends were arguing

on the other side of the wall about who was going to peek first.

“Does he have what?” Gabe called out.

I ripped my mouth away from Wade’s and yelled back at them,

“None of your business—away with you!”

Wade pushed me away, licking his lips as if he was savoring

the taste of me, which was turning me on. So much so that I was

considering telling all my friends to fuck off as I kicked them out

one by one.
I’m moving away anyway, so screw ‘em!

“Plenty of time for that later,” Wade said with a low huskiness

that told me he knew what I’d been thinking.

“Bitch, can we come out yet?” one of the twins whined, the

suspense obviously killing them.

I was surprised those two had waited that long. I’d prepared

them, by telling them all who Wade was—Olympic golden boy

and all. I knew they were secretly hoping Wade had turned into a

dog over the years, as opposed to the manly hunk of beefcake I

now stood face to face with.

Before I had the chance to tell them it was okay to come

out, I heard gasping—in stereo. I turned to see the twins both

staring wide-eyed, mouths hanging open. Gabe and Tommy were

standing behind them, one with a friendly smile, the other not so

much. I held my tongue since we’d just made up and I didn’t want

to piss Gabe off, afraid he’d disappear again for another two or

three weeks. I told myself they just needed to get to know one

another and everything would be fine.

100 Ethan Day

“Holy Mammy Yokum’s Yokumberry tonic,” Donny finally

said.

Wade laughed, seeming to get the musical theater reference

to
Li’l Abner
.

I introduced everyone and before I could usher them all

toward the back of the house, the twins had shoved me aside,

each taking one of Wade’s arms and gleefully leading him toward

the den. I followed as Tommy and Gabe fell in line. They sat

Wade in the center of the loveseat, taking the places on either

side of him. Wade didn’t exactly hate the attention, though he

did wink at me, letting me know I had nothing to worry about.

I hadn’t been worried, though perhaps I should have been

since they were each cooing and preening over him. I thought it

was cute that he felt the need to put my mind at ease, though. I

shook my head as I went into the kitchen to get Wade a drink and

retrieve my own.

“Could you two be any more trashy?” Gabe asked.

“Christ, please don’t answer that,” Tommy said. He smacked

Gabe in the arm. “You know better than to ask them shit like

that.”

“So, Wade,” Gabe asked, taking a seat and leaning back into

his chair, “Met Boone’s parents yet?”

“No, not yet.” Wade looked my way as I came down the two

steps. “That’s tomorrow night, right?”

“Yes sir,” I swallowed, making a loud gulping noise, like he

was gonna be in trouble when that happened.

Wade shot me a dirty look for taunting him since I knew he

was majorly nervous.

“Boone’s parents are the greatest,” Donny said, running a

finger over Wade’s bicep.

“Paws off the merchandise, Donny.”

Donny ripped his hand away. “My bad, sweetie. It’s just so

huge…it called to me.”

Life in fusion
101

“They dressed extra slutty for you,” I said, passing Wade a

margarita. “I’ll just go sit over here.”

Wade thanked me as I gave the twins a dirty look, since neither

one of them took my hint and offered to move.

“Well, we’re both very happy for Boone,” Donny started.

“Naturally,” Lonny added. “But it never hurts to be

prepared—”

Donny interrupted. “Just in case Wade has second thoughts

about monogamy—”

“—and wanted a last minute three-way with The New

Mexican Wonder Twins.” Lonny finished.

Wade’s eyes widened slightly. He looked a little more nervous

and took a sip from his glass.

I watched Gabe sort of offer a pathetic half-smile, either

liking the fact that Wade was now squirming or that he too found

the three-way comment a bit much. His smile faded and I turned

to see Wade watching me. His desire to be near me was written

all over his face.

Every now and then, as if I’d forgotten, I was reminded how

into me he really was with a stare like that. It always managed to

steal my breath away.

I turned, feeling Gabe’s gaze on me, and I winked at him. The

corners of his lips curled up slightly in a half hearted attempt.

That hurt worse than anything, that he couldn’t be happy for

me. And it screwed with my head, wondering if he could sense

something I wasn’t able to see.

“So how did you two meet, Wade?” Lonny asked.

“I already told you.” I said, becoming irritated.

“We want more than ‘we met in a bar.’” Donny snatched his

margarita glass up off the coffee table.

“I picked his very intoxicated ass up at a bar.” Wade grinned

as if he loved that fact more than anything else. “That much is

true.”

102 Ethan Day

Lonny gasped. “Slut!”

Hi pot…meet kettle.

“You know you shouldn’t drink without one of us around,”

Gabe scolded, while obviously wondering if this entire mess,

meaning mine and Wade’s relationship, could have somehow

been avoided had he been there to keep me in check.

“Yes dad.” I reached over with my foot and shoved his knee.

“Though I’m beginning to think all you assholes ever did was

cock-block me. Look what I fell into all on my lonesome.”

Wade laughed and for an instant, the twins appeared slightly

guilty, as if I’d stumbled onto some long hidden truth. I decided

to let it go for the sake of harmony. Well that, and I didn’t think

Wade wanted to listen to our greatest-slutty-hits—or maybe I

didn’t want him to.

“Then I innocently, all in good fun mind you, teased him

about his lovemaking skills while under the influence.”

“Translation…called me a lousy lay!” I accused.

Everyone laughed, even Gabe. Wade winked, very cheeky,

and a low rumbly laugh rolled up out of his chest.

“Then I molested him and he was helpless to resist me.” I

nodded, as if I were the big stud. “Like putty in my hands.”

“More like confused me with that mile a minute mouth,”

Wade said as our gazes locked. “You hooked me, but good.”

And there went my heart, traveling straight down the express

elevator to,
Fuck me, I’m yours!
“You’re not what I’d go around

referring to as a slacker in that department, either.”