Page 11

OLLIE

Ollie’s last client of the day rescheduled. A slight disappointment, but she’d still be coming in that week, so no biggie. After cleaning his station and checking no one else needed a hand, he said goodbye to his coworkers and headed home.

It had been almost a week since the art show. He hadn’t heard from Dante and had to admit he’d hoped they’d have caught up by now.

Not that he’d initiated anything.

As friends, there was no rule about texting too soon, but it wasn’t good to come off too eager. Ollie let his life go on as normal. Meeting Dante didn’t change anything. He was still the same person and wasn’t rearranging everything for a new friend.

Harper wasn’t at the apartment when Ollie got home. Which…damn.

Ollie opened the windows as far as they would go—not more than a few inches—to try and get some air into the place, and plopped on the couch.

He pulled out his phone .

Should he redownload that hookup app? He’d kill to feel someone’s hands on him and get off with another person.

No. He scrolled to his social media apps and opened one instead.

Ollie had a bit of a problem. He wanted Dante’s hands on him. Dante’s body against his as they came, all sweaty and out of breath, and every time Ollie let himself imagine it, his chest ached, butterflies twisting him up inside.

Dante had taken over Ollie’s thoughts, and they were hardly even friends. It was the biggest red flag and exactly why it was the right decision not to get involved. Ollie could see himself disappearing into that man’s life, and like hell was that ever happening.

But fuck, Ollie liked Dante’s hot-sweet combo like nothing else. Even if he hadn’t been so over hookups, he wouldn’t have bothered with anyone else right now.

Ugh .

He scrolled, smiling at a cute cat meme, and sent it to Dex. Really, he should be showering and figuring out what he had in the fridge for dinner.

Dex sent back a video of a cat intimidating a giant dog, and Ollie chuckled.

His phone buzzed and a text notification flashed at the top of his screen. Ollie clicked it automatically, sitting up straighter. It was from Dante.

Dante:

Hey. Want to help me pick a game to play tonight?

It was exactly what a friend would say. Straight to the gaming chat. No fluffing around. Good.

Ollie:

Sure. What are you into?

Dante:

World’s End is my favorite. But I always play that.

Ollie:

That game is so fun! I play a dragon shifter. Humanity doesn’t stand a chance. *devil emoji*

Dante:

You play the invading side?

Ollie:

It’s the only side. Don’t tell me you play a human.

Dante:

I’m a fire mage.

Ollie:

Mages switch sides all the time. I bet you totally side with the invaders.

Dante:

I’m a lone wolf. I haven’t picked a side.

That was a tricky way to play the game. You usually needed an alliance to get anywhere.

Ollie:

Really? You don’t have a band you run with?

Dante:

No, but it might be fun for our characters to meet.

Ollie smiled, his insides churning as if Dante had suggested something far more illicit.

Ollie:

We’re definitely meeting up. I’m recruiting you to my cause.

Dante:

We’ll see about that.

Ollie:

But you said you wanted to play something different tonight?

The three dots appeared, telling Ollie that Dante was typing, only for them to disappear and reappear. Ollie waited, grinning until the message came through.

Dante:

Yeah, maybe there’s something else we can play together?

If you’re free. Sorry, I didn’t ask if you were busy.

Ollie bit his lip, trying to temper his smile.

Ollie:

I’m not busy. I got off work early. How about Spacewalk?

It was another popular online game that boiled down to warring between space stations as aliens took over.

Dante:

Let’s do it. I haven’t played that one in ages.

Ollie got up and turned on his PlayStation. He grabbed his headset and controller, then detoured to the kitchen for chips and a soda.

He settled on the couch, stomach flipping. It was weird as fuck that he had butterflies over this. He wasn’t even meeting Dante in real life. But the happy fluttering inside him hadn’t stopped since Dante’s first message.

These really weren’t friend feelings, but whatever. Ollie’s emotions didn’t rule him.

Logging in, Ollie created a new mission and invited Dante to join. It’d be better for them to play against the game rather than join a bigger group in one of the battles. That way, Ollie could talk to Dante without anyone else around.

He texted Dante the details and checked his weapons.

“Hello?” Dante’s tentative voice called through Ollie’s headphones.

“Hey, Dante. Welcome to my raid.”

Dante chuckled. “Glad to be here to assist. I’ll follow your lead.”

Having Dante’s voice in his head did nothing to quell the fluttering plaguing Ollie’s insides. “You ready?”

“Let’s kill some aliens.”

Their first raid ended in a bloody mess, but once they got the hang of it, they started making progress. The game was cool but not Ollie’s favorite. At least not until he played with Dante’s commentary in his ear.

“What in damnation is that thing?” Dante made a disgusted sound. “A spider with an elephant trunk? I’m going to have nightmares.”

He sounded delightfully offended by everything that happened. But Ollie’s favorite Dante comment had to be: “That radioactive blob looks like a dick. It even has balls. Tell me I’m not hallucinating.”

Ollie had died laughing. Dante hadn’t been hallucinating.

He gasped literally any time something jumped out. Could he be more adorable? Ollie’s stomach hurt. Dante wasn’t afraid to have fun, and Ollie loved it. They played round after round .

“The dick is back,” Dante warned. “Oh shit, it jizzed on me.”

Failed Mission flashed across the screen.

“Did you get dicked to death?” Ollie asked between snorts of laughter.

“Its cum was toxic. I can’t believe that happened. We can’t tell Ash about this. He already thinks gaming is silly. I’ll never hear the end of it.”

“Your secret is safe with me,” Ollie assured him. “Ready for another?”

“I could do this all night.”

So could Ollie. He hadn’t smiled this much in years.

The next night, Ollie and Dante played World’s End .

“Holy shit, your character is powerful,” Ollie said as Dante appeared at his portal, fire dancing at his character’s fingertips.

“I play a lot,” Dante admitted, almost sheepishly.

“I think I’ll follow your lead on this one.” Ollie shifted his character into dragon form. “Are you willing to make a temporary alliance if you’re in charge?”

Dante accepted the offer on-screen. “Yes, but we’ll be a team. I don’t think I’d make a good leader. I’m not after power. That’s partly why I stay away from both sides. I don’t need to worry about others’ rankings, and it’s not like I’m going to trust anyone.”

Something oddly serious in the way Dante spoke made Ollie wonder if he was half talking about something else, but what could he possibly be referring to? It wasn’t like real life was about alliances and betrayals in a battle for dominance on Earth.

Reality wasn’t that epic .

“Are you saying I need to watch my back around you?” Ollie asked.

“What?” Dante sounded adorably shocked. “No, I didn’t mean I wouldn’t trust you. I was talking about everyone else.”

“So it’s us against the word?”

“Yes,” Dante replied, voice whisper-soft.

Ollie swore he felt Dante’s breath on his neck, sending chills down his spine as heat unfurled deep inside him. Fuuuck .

Ollie readjusted his headphones. “Perfect. Let’s find a quest.”

Dante kicked ass at this game. He had these cool fire spells Ollie had never seen anyone cast before. At one point, he even conjured a fire demon.

“This game is way more fun with you,” Ollie said as he and Dante killed an ice monster Ollie wouldn’t have stood a chance against by himself.

“I agree. I like having you in my head.”

Something pinched in Ollie’s chest. “My commentary is that good, huh?”

“The best,” Dante said, seemingly without sarcasm.

Ollie had been joking. He wasn’t that entertaining. “I love how different you are playing this game than Spacewalk . I was dying of laughter last night.”

“I don’t know how to play that one without laughing,” Dante admitted. “The story’s not that deep, and there’s not as much of a sense of duty in Spacewalk . Not like World’s End . But that’s why Spacewalk is good. Sometimes you want to switch off and shoot alien dicks.”

“Words to live by.”

Dante snorted.

Harper appeared in Ollie’s peripheral vision like a phantom, and Ollie jumped, letting out an involuntary squeak.

“What was that?” Dante asked .

“Harper startled me. I didn’t hear him come in with my headphones on. What time is it?” Ollie flipped his phone over. “Wow, I had no idea it was this late.”

“Do you need to go?”

Ollie didn’t let the disappointment in Dante’s tone change his mind. “Yeah. I’m supposed to cook tonight.”

“I should probably eat too. Catch you later?”

“For sure.” Ollie exited the game, finding Harper watching him with an intrigued little smile. “Want to play while I cook?”

“No.” Harper shook his head vehemently, eyeing the controller like it might bite him.

Ollie took pity on him. “You don’t have to try this game.”

“True. Maybe I should practice racing before Sunday.” Harper took the controller from Ollie, still weary. “You don’t need help cooking?”

“Na. Sorry I didn’t get anything going earlier.” It was already eight o’clock, and now that Ollie wasn’t distracted, he realized how hungry he was.

“Don’t worry about it.” Harper paused. “You having fun gaming with Dante?”

“Yeah.” Ollie’s cheeks heated. He hurried off the couch so Harper wouldn’t notice. “He’s more of a gamer than I’d have guessed.”

“It surprised me too. I never thought Ash or the other…of his friends would be into games.”

Ollie’s brow crinkled at Harper’s odd phrasing. “I mean, nerds can be ripped too.”

Harper choked on a laugh. “True.”