Page 8 of Hooked On Him

Something tells me there’s no way I’m going to forget this night, even if I wanted to.

What the hell did I just get myself into? And how bad am I going to regret this tomorrow?

Chapter 3

Levi

This isn’t going to end well, not at all. Why did I agree to this? What have I gotten myself into?

Austin holds out his hand, that smile that warms me from the inside out, curving on his lips. “Shall we go inside with the rest of the guests, boyfriend?” he teases, and god, if it doesn’t make him more sexy. If that’s even possible.

I stare at his hand, my heart pounding in my chest.What should I do?

“Relax, Levi.” Austin’s deep husky chuckle makes my cock twitch. “It’s not going to bite you.”

“I know,” I grumble, slipping my hand into his. He locks his fingers with mine, and I hate how good he fits against me.

“Ready?” Austin looks down at me and I try not to get lost in his blue eyes.

“No.”

“It’s not going to be that bad, I promise.” He nudges me with his arm.

“Fine.” I blow out a breath, trying to prepare myself for my family’s reaction. “Let’s get this done and over with.”

“Gee, thanks.” Austin huffs out a laugh. “Way to make a guy feel wanted.”

“Shit. Sorry.” His eyes lock on where I bite my lower lip. “I’m just nervous.”

“We don’t have to do this if you don’t want to,” Austin offers, starting to pull his hand out of mine.

For some reason, that makes me panic even more than facing my family, and my grip on his hand tightens. “No. No. It’s okay.”

“You sure?” He gives my hand a reassuring squeeze.

“Yeah.” I lick my lips, looking through the open door to the people already at their assigned seats.

Before I can chicken out, I tug him forward and into the main hall. My mom, who has taken it upon herself to make sure every guest is seated in their assigned seat, looks over to see who’s just entered the room.

Her face lights up when she sees me. “Levi, honey, go sit down.” Then her eyes flick over to Austin next to me. “Austin, sweetheart. We’re so glad you could make it.”

“Wouldn’t miss it, Mrs. Darwood. Megan is like a sister to me.”

Mom’s face softens. “And you're like a son to us.” She reaches up to give Austin an affectionate pat on the cheek.

I watch as Austin's face lights up and I remember the biggest reason why Austin spent so much time at our house growing up.

Austin comes from a very strict but well-off family. He was judged for almost everything he did. It never seemed to be enough to please his dad. As an only child, Austin was expected to be exactly what his parents wanted him to be, and when he wasn’t, they reminded him daily that he was a failure. He never wanted to go home, often sleeping over at our house.

Sometimes he would stay for weeks at a time.

Mom never minded, always welcoming Austin with open arms and at some point, it was like he was just one of us kids, a part of the family.

That was hard for me. Not because I didn’t like Austin, or didn’t want him around. It was because my feelings for him were anything but brotherly.

I knew I was gay from a young age. Back in middle school, when all the boys would crush on the girls, I cared more about spending time with my guy friends.

The first time I knew I preferred guys in more than just a friendly way was when I was fourteen.