Page 3 of Mutual Desire (The Awakening #1)

The Twist

Damien stared at his phone, the screen glowing with missed calls and texts from Craig. He hadn’t checked it all day while helping Nick with his project. They’d been so absorbed in coding that the hours slipped away unnoticed. And now it was past one in the morning—hours later than Damien had planned to leave. He was lost in a world of algorithms, barely stopping for food or water as they slogged through the antivirus software.

The project had proven more challenging than Damien anticipated, especially since it hinged on finding the right patent to protect its functionality from potential copycats.

After hours of grinding, Damien and Nick finally found the patent and had fixed the bug. It was worth the effort, but Damien’s body ached with exhaustion. Stretching his sore limbs, he felt more than ready to collapse in bed. Nick had done most of the heavy lifting, but Damien’s contributions had been crucial. As grateful as Nick was, the endless “thank you” grated on Damien’s nerves.

At the door, Nick walked Damien out, his constant gratitude practically spilling over.“Thanks again, D. I couldn’t have done it without you,” Nick said, flashing a grateful smile as he reached for the doorknob.

Damien yawned, barely stifling it. “Yeah, yeah. You owe me one. Or ten.”

But just as Damien was about to step outside, Nick dropped the bombshell.

“So... I’m presenting everything tomorrow at three,” Nick said casually, as though it wasn’t a grenade tossed into Damien’s night.

Damien paused mid-step, narrowing his eyes. “You’ll be fine. You still have time to sleep and prep,” he replied, oblivious to where this was heading.

“Yeah, but… what about you?”

Damien turned slowly, raising an eyebrow. “What do you mean, me ?”

“The presentation we’re doing. You know, tomorrow… well, technically today now.”

It took Damien a moment to process the horror of Nick’s words. When the realization hit, he felt his stomach drop. He was seconds away from strangling his best friend. Blinking in disbelief at his would-be victim, Damien struggled to process the sheer audacity. If Nick thought for one second that he could drag him into presenting this whole mess of an antivirus project, he clearly didn’t know Damien well enough. Damien had already spent more than ten hours straight helping him. He’d given Nick a hand, and now Nick was trying to take his goddam entire arm and drag him into the spotlight too.

“You’re joking,” Damien said flatly, already knowing Nick was anything but.

Nick grinned sheepishly, the kind of smile that always got him out of trouble.

“You’re out of your mind, Nicolas, if you think I’m going to present this with you,” Damien shot back, glaring at Nick like the man had suggested they go skydiving without parachutes. “It’s your software, not mine.”

“But you helped!” Nick argued, a whine creeping into his voice. “You know the software better than I do.”

Damien let out a groan, leaning his head against the doorframe. “I swear to God, Nick. I walked you through the code; that doesn’t make me your co-presenter.”

Nick folded his arms, leaning against the door with an exaggerated sigh. “D, you’re the brains here. If anyone should be up there, it’s you. You know they’ll eat this up if it comes from you.”

Damien’s eyes narrowed. “Flattery won’t work this time, Nicolas.”

Nick’s grin faltered for half a second before he pivoted to Plan B: weaponizing guilt. “Come on, D. It’s not like I’m asking you to do this alone. I just... I need your backup, okay? I’ll handle most of it; you’ll just be there to answer questions.”

Damien opened his mouth to protest, but Nick cut him off.

“Please, D. Just this once. I’m begging you.”

And there it was—Nick’s puppy-dog eyes, the ultimate weapon. Damien groaned inwardly. This was why people shouldn’t keep best friends for over a decade; they learned all your weaknesses.“At what time again?” Damien asked with a resigned sigh.

Nick’s face lit up like a Christmas tree. “Three o’clock, babe. I love you. You know that, right?”

“Yeah, yeah,” Damien muttered, shaking his head. “You better be buying me dinner after this.”

“Done. Steakhouse, five Michelin star courses, whatever you want,” Nick promised, opening the door wider. “Oh, and don’t forget to wear a suit. You’ve got that whole sexy-professor vibe—guaranteed to have them eating out of your hand.”

Damien shot him a deadpan look. “Nick, I’m already plotting your murder, and comments like that aren’t helping.”

Nick grinned, unbothered. “And don’t worry, I’ve already got the PowerPoint covered,” Nick added, as if that was supposed to make everything better. “ We're just waiting on a video I had someone put together. Should have it by eight in the morning.”

Damien froze mid-step, his head snapping toward Nick. “Wait. Did you say PowerPoint?”

“Yeah! How else would you properly present a project, D?” Nick replied innocently, though the teasing glint in his eyes gave him away.

Damien clenched his fists. Murder was beginning to feel like a viable option.“You could use your damn mouth, Einstein,” Damien snapped. Then, realizing how that sounded, he quickly added, “I mean, to talk. God, shut up.”

Nick burst out laughing, nearly doubling over in the doorway. “Oh, man. You make this too easy.”

Damien flipped him off, already regretting agreeing to this madness. “I’m leaving before I strangle you. And Nick, this is the last time.”

“Sure, sure,” Nick said, still grinning like a Cheshire cat. “See you tomorrow, D. Don’t forget the suit!”

As Damien walked away, Nick’s laughter trailed after him, and despite himself, Damien couldn’t help but crack a small smile. Nick was infuriating, but damn if he didn’t know how to make life interesting.

As he headed home and the weight of exhaustion pressed down on him, all Damien could think about was his bed. When he walked into hisapartment, he noticed Craig sitting in the living room, watching TV. Craig’s blue eyes were cold, his expression distant and his face tensed. Damien didn’t need to ask why—he already knew. The missed calls, the unread texts—it all pointed to one thing. He knew rest would have to wait.

“Where were you all day?” Craig’s voice was calm, but the clipped tone hinted at his simmering frustration.

Damien sighed, dragging a hand through his hair. Not tonight, please . He was in no mood for this conversation. He could barely keep his eyes open.“I texted you earlier this morning. I was helping Nick with something.”

Craig’s jaw tightened at the mention of Nick’s name, his blue eyes sharpening. For reasons Damien couldn’t fully grasp, Craig had always bristled at the mere mention of Nick. Whether it was jealousy or something deeper, Craig made it painfully clear how much he disliked Damien’s best friend.

“You spend the whole day with him now?” Craig said, his voice dripping with sarcasm. “And ignoring my calls while you’re at it. If you’re trying to avoid me, just say it.”

Damien stifled a groan. “I wasn’t avoiding you, Craig. I told you—I was helping Nick fix a bug in his software. It took longer than expected.”

Craig’s expression darkened, the tension radiating off him. “It was my day off, Damien. We could’ve spent it together. But I guess Nick’s thing was more important.”

Damien frowned, trying to recall Craig mentioning his day off, but nothing came to mind. “I didn’t know it was your day off.”

“Exactly,” Craig shot back. “You didn’t ask because you didn’t care.”

Damien rubbed his eyes, exhaustion seeping into every word. He exhaled sharply. “Craig, that’s not fair,” Damien said, his voice tinged with frustration. “You’re always working crazy shifts. How was I supposed to know? And this isn’t about not caring. I was helping a friend. It’s not like I was out fucking around.”

Damien sighed again, fatigue pulling at every muscle in his body. He didn’t have the energy for a fight tonight. He closed his eyes briefly, trying to hold back his frustration. He hadn’t even realized it was Craig’s day off. His schedule was always all over the place. But even if he had known, he would’ve still spent the day helping Nick. His best friend had needed him.

“We’ll talk about it tomorrow, Craig. I’m exhausted,” Damien said, not giving his boyfriend a chance to reply and further drag out their fight.

Craig wasn’t letting it go, though. He stood, his frustration bubbling over. “You’re always the first to complain that we don’t spend enough time together, but the minute Nick calls, you drop everything.”

Damien’s exhaustion turned into irritation. “Because you’re married to your job, Craig! You pick up every shift they throw at you. Don’t act like I’m the only one at fault here.”

Craig’s eyes flashed with disbelief. “You’re blaming me for helping people? For saving lives?”

Damien shook his head. “That’s not what I’m saying.”

“It sure sounds like it.” Craig’s voice was low and dangerous.

Damien dragged a hand down his face , struggling to keep calm. “I just wanted to come home and not fight. Can we do this tomorrow?”

Craig’s shoulders sagged slightly, the tension between them palpable. “I waited for you all day, Damien. Do you know how that feels?”

Damien’s heart ached. He stepped closer, cupping Craig’s face gently.

“I’m sorry,” Damien whispered. “I didn’t mean to forget. I should’ve asked. I wanted to spend the day with you so badly today, you have no idea.”

Craig looked at him, the hardness in his expression softening for a moment. Their lips met in a tender kiss, but when Craig’s hands slid to Damien’s waistband, Damien gently pulled away.

“Not tonight, babe,” Damien murmured against his lips.

Craig’s eyes darkened with frustration, his mouth finding Damien’s neck. “When was the last time I touched you?” His voice was raw, almost vulnerable.

Damien sighed, his exhaustion palpable. “I know, honey, I know. But I’m wiped. Please, just... not tonight.”

Damien moaned as Craig’s hands unbuttoned his pants and started loosening his fly, his lips still grazing his neck . As much as Damien loved being kissed there , he was too drained tonight to let his horniness win over the exhaustion pulling him down.

“Craig…” Damien whispered breathlessly as Craig’s lips brushed his neck.

Craig moved his mouth back to Damien’s, kissing him with an intense hunger.

“Honey, not tonight,” Damien whispered between kisses, his lips lingering against Craig’s.

Craig put a sudden stop to the kiss, his eyes narrowing as he scrutinized Damien in awkward silence. He stared at him, almost as if searching Damien’s face for a hidden reason behind his reluctance.

“What’s wrong?” Craig finally asked. “You don’t want me anymore?”

The question hit Damien like a slap. His brow furrowed in confusion. Where the hell was this coming from ?

He couldn’t understand why Craig would think even for a second that he didn’t want him. It was the first time Craig had ever said anything like that. Sex had always been amazing between them. Why couldn’t Craig see how utterly exhausted he was and connect the dots? He was a medical doctor—surely, he knew that libido took a nosedive when someone was this burned out. Damien couldn’t deal with this right now. And to think he had thought tomorrow would be the worst part of his week with that dreadful presentation looming. Now he wasn’t so sure.

“What?” Damien’s voice rose slightly, the frustration creeping in. “No! Of course, I want you, babe. How could you even think that?”

Craig’s lips pressed into a thin line, his silence cutting deeper than words.

“I spent the whole day working on Nick’s software. It completely drained me,” Damien explained, his voice almost pleading. “That’s all this is.”

Craig’s expression remained suspicious, his eyes searching Damien’s face as if still unconvinced.

“Babe, listen—”

Craig looked away, his expression unreadable. “I’m going home,” Craig interrupted, his voice cold and sharp.

Damien blinked, stunned by the abruptness of Craig’s reaction. It felt like a punch to the gut.“Are you... are you serious?” Damien asked, barely able to process it.

“I think we both need to cool off a little. Let’s call it a night,” Craig said icily.

Damien felt like the floor had been pulled out from under him. What the actual fuck ?

“No. What I need is a hot bath and a massage from my man. That’s the only thing I need tonight, Craig,” Damien replied, his voice low, the sharp edge of anger finally breaking through his exhaustion.

Craig’s voice dropped, quiet but firm. “Damien, the same way I’m respecting your decision tonight, respect mine for wanting to take some time away from… us.”

A bitter laugh slipped from Damien’s lips. “Oh, I get it. So, this is payback for not wanting to fuck? Is that it?”

Craig’s eyes darkened, his jaw tightening. “That’s not what this is about.”

“Then what is it about, Craig?” Damien demanded. “Because I’m exhausted, and instead of understanding that, you’re making this about you.”

Craig shook his head, looking weary. “No. You were right. We should’ve never started this conversation.”

“Craig—”

“Go to bed, Damien. Get some rest.”

Before Damien could protest, Craig leaned in and kissed him on the forehead. Then, he quickly grabbed his car keys from the table and walked out of the living room. A few seconds later, Damien heard the door slam shut, confirming that Craig was gone, leaving him standing in the middle of his apartment, anger and hurt twisting in his chest.

What the hell had just happened? He couldn’t wrap his head around Craig’s reaction. Since when had being tired become a crime? Damien replayed the argument in his mind, trying to pinpoint where things had gone wrong. Sure, he had forgotten it was Craig’s day off, and he’d apologized for that. But the fight wasn’t really about that. Craig leaving the way he did shocked Damien—he’d never just walked away from an argument before.

But Damien reassured himself. He would patch things up with Craig, no matter what. In their three years together, Craig had always treated him with love and respect, and Damien wasn’t about to let one argument change that. He knew how rare a man like Craig was, and he wasn’t going to be careless with their relationship.

The exhaustion weighed heavier now, dragging him down like a stone. He made his way to the bathroom, stripping off his clothes. He desperately needed a shower, something to wash away the stress of the day. The cold water from the shower offered a brief reprieve, but the ache in his chest lingered. He stayed in the bath for what felt like forever, letting the cold water cool his aching muscles. He nearly fell asleep in the tub.

Finally, clean and relaxed, he sprawled out naked and drained on the bed. He knew tomorrow wouldn’t be any easier. A presentation he didn’t want, a relationship on shaky ground—everything felt like too much.

He sighed, pulling the blanket over him. Sleep came slowly, dragging him into its depths. And in the quiet darkness, Damien knew the hardest part was still to come.