Page 59 of As the Years Pass

The controller falls out of my hands, and I whip my head in his direction. “What?”

He takes the opportunity to absolutely destroy me—and kill me.

Adam turns to me with a smug grin, reaching for his beer to take a victory sip. “I want you to come with me.”

“Why?”

He shrugs, taking another sip. “Why not? You’ve been working hard at the bar. Take a vacation.”

“A vacation back home?”

“This is your home now, Emmet. So, it’ll be like a vacation. We’ll have to stay in a hotel.”

I narrow my eyes. “What kind of hotel?”

“A fancy one with a hot tub in the rooms, a pool, and room service.”

Damn, that sounds nice. I could use a break from all this. There is a lot of work to do, but I’m getting a little burnt out.

“I’ll have to check a few things. I’m not sure—”

“I’ll pay for your room,” he coaxes.

“No, that’s crazy.”

“It’s fine, Emmet, really. I’m selling my house. I have the money. And it’s just a few days in California.” He bumps me with his shoulder. “Come on. It’ll be fun.”

We start a new match, and I consider it.

What could be the harm?

Everything at the bar can wait. Pete has handled that bar himself for years, so me leaving for a few days won’t be an issue. There’s no one here waiting for me. A vacation isn’t a terrible idea, even if it is kind of a generic one. Despite how much of a vacation it is, it’s still time away from the bar and the headache the financial stuff is giving me.

“Okay.”

“Okay?” Adam asks, forgetting the game and turning to face me.

I should end him right now, but that’s not fair. So I stop fighting and look at him.

“Yeah, I’ll go.”

“Hell yeah,” he says with a grin. “It’ll be great.”

We finish the match then order pizza and have a few more beers. He kicks my ass in football, which is a surprise since he always sucked at it. For a little while, we go old school and take turns playing Crash Bandicoot. It’s harder than we remember and we both suck at it. He goes home at a reasonable time, and I shower before going to bed.

We’ve talked every day and have seen each other just about every day, making our encounters even more natural. When he leaves, though, I miss him more than I did the last time, and that’s a problem. Outside of when alcohol was involved, Adam hasn’t shown any sign of being into me likethat.

We’re going to get a few days in California together. Just us.

Just us.

This could go really well or really bad. Maybe both.

It’s best I don’t think about it too much, or I’ll drive myself insane. I just have to wait and see how everything plays out.

The week goes by faster than I could have imagined, and before I know it, it’s time to leave for the airport, but I’m stalling.

Is this such a good idea?