Page 25 of Hooked On Him

“Thanks.” He smiles softly. “Gabe isn’t bad. He just has his moments.”

Yeah, and those moments seem to be more and more frequent these days.

“You know, you deserve the same, too. You don’t need to work yourself into an early grave before you're even twenty-five. You only have one life to live, Levi. Enjoy it. Live it. Be happy. Have fun.”

I nod my head, not sure what to say.

“I’m gonna head to bed. You good out here?”

“Go. I’m fine. The sleepy tea is starting to do its thing.”

“Night.”

“Night.”

I head to my room with Snicklefritz hot on my heels.

Stripping out of my suit, I toss it on the chair in the corner to deal with tomorrow and head right to the bed, my body sore and tired.

I’m face down in the pillow, almost asleep, when a pinging sound goes off.

Fuck. My phone. I need to plug that in or I’ll be fucked without it tomorrow.

Groaning, I roll off the bed and pad over to my dress pants. Snatching my phone, I bring it to my bedside table and plug it in. The lock screen lights up, and I pause when I see the name on my screen.

Austin. He texted me.

I didn’t know I even had his number. I thought he would have changed it after all these years.

But why would he, I mean, I’ve had same number since high school.

Excitement bubbles up inside me, and I know I’m fucked if I’m feeling this way just because he sent me a text.

Swiping the lock screen open, I click on his name.

Austin: Hope you made it home safe. Please text me that you did.

Butterflies wreak havoc in my stomach. He cares about my safety.

Smiling like a damn fool, I read the text over and over again when I get another one.

Austin: I see that you read my text. Are you ghosting me? And so soon. Ouch, baby, that hurts.

Rolling my lips together, I smile. There he goes again, calling me baby. Why does he do that, and why do I love it so much?

Me: No one is ghosting you lol. No need to be so dramatic.

Austin: He’s alive!

That gets a snort of laughter out of me.

Me: Yes, I’m alive. For now. Gonna be dead to the world here soon. Got a shift at the vet clinic in the morning.

Austin: Boo. I’ll let you get some sleep then. But remember, if you need me for anything, I’m here, okay? I’ve missed you, Levi. And I’m glad this is another reason to bring us closer. Even if we’re “fake” boyfriends. It’s nice to have you back in my life.

My damn heart clenches, these ooey gooey feelings hitting me in the chest. I’m going to screw myself over soon if I start letting them get to me.

Fake boyfriend or not. Hooking up, or not. The fact is, Austin was a big part of my life for a long time. Not having him in it for years sucked.