Page 101 of The Aster Valley Collection, Vol. 2

DALLAS

I was trying to be patient when all I really wanted to do was dive in headfirst to a full-blown relationship with BJ Tilstead.

He was funny and fun, fascinating and kind. But he was also painfully insecure about the two of us. He’d made several comments over the past couple of days that implied he didn’t understand why someone “like me” would be interested in someone “like him.”

It hurt my heart to hear him talk like that because it hadn’t taken long for me to discover how amazing he was. It also made me wonder if he was having second thoughts about moving his whole life to Aster Valley for a guy he barely knew.

The second full day of his recovery was the day he needed to move his stuff out of the rental house he’d shared with Rocco. By then, he was able to walk by himself with the help of the brace on his knee, so we loaded up in the truck and drove over to the rental to grab his things and clean up.

When we returned to my place, I forced him onto the sofa with Cosi while I put his stuff away in my room. Once we’d kissed and made out that first time, he’d slept with me, and we’d both admitted to loving spending full nights in each other’s arms.

I hadn’t dated anyone seriously in a long time, and I’d certainly never been able to sleep with them in my very own house.

Until moving to Aster Valley, I’d had roommates and very little privacy.

Now with BJ considering becoming both my roommate and my boyfriend, it was beginning to feel more like a true home.

I could see us here together. BJ had already agreed to let me deliver him to the mid-mountain restaurant tomorrow during my work shift so he could meet up with Mikey and Tiller again.

I wanted him to see what a great community Aster Valley was so he could picture a future here with me the way I was already beginning to picture it myself.

When I got back to the living room from putting his stuff away, I noticed he’d fallen asleep with his arms around my dog again, and the sight made my chest squeeze.

BJ had already found his place in Aster Valley, and it was right here with me and Cosi.

I just needed to be patient until he could see that for himself.

I snuck a picture of the two of them and texted my mom.

I think I met the man I’m going to marry.

My heart thundered even though I hadn’t even said the words out loud.

Mom

OMG look at them! TELL ME EVERYTHING.

I grinned at the screen before glancing back up at the two of them. How had I stumbled into this? I’d been so lonely here before BJ arrived. Even though I knew I’d meet people and get to know them over time, I’d only been here two months.

Now instead of worrying about my future, I was so incredibly excited.

I typed out another text to my mom. I’d already told her about meeting him and offering to take care of him.

He teaches Kundalini yoga.

Mom

NOMG. Shut up.

And he’s bubbly and kind. It makes me happy just to be in the same room with him.

We texted back and forth about BJ for a while until he woke up.

“Why do you have a goofy smile on your face?” he asked, shifting over to see me better. Cosi let out a long exhale of annoyance but stayed asleep.

“I was telling my mom about you.”

BJ’s eyes widened. “Seriously?”

“Yeah. I hope that’s okay. I was telling her about your yoga classes and about the mentorship program you do for teen content creators on the SocialAdrenaline platform.”

He stretched and sat up, rubbing the heel of his palm over one eye.

“Yeah. It’s a great program. That was actually how Rocco and I first met in the forum.

He was looking for a mentor for two kids in Chicago who wanted to create yoga content.

It was really cool, actually. These girls turned Broadway musical scores into yoga routines. ”

As he continued to tell me about their project, he woke up and became his usual, animated self, flinging his hands around as he described some of the numbers and talking faster when he got to the most interesting details.

I moved over to the sofa to sit closer to him. Being in his sphere was both energizing and calming. I could see why his online classes had so many followers.

BJ paused for breath before surprising me. “No one’s ever told their mom about me before.”

“That can’t be true,” I told him. “Maybe they just didn’t tell you about it.”

He shook his head. “I’ve always wanted a boyfriend, a real relationship, but I’m not what guys seem to want long-term. I’m the guy they fuck, Dallas, not the guy they keep.”

I could see the fear of rejection in his eyes, and it killed me.

I knew it was way too soon to make promises about forever, but I also knew instinctively that the connection between us was real and had been since the first moment I’d set eyes on him.

It was the same feeling I’d gotten the first time I’d gone skiing as a little kid.

The same feeling I’d gotten the first time I’d done yoga.

This was meant for me. It was mine .

And if BJ and I didn’t work out, I sure as heck didn’t want it to happen because I’d been trying to hold back and be reasonable.

I reached out to clasp BJ’s jaw, and whatever he saw on my face made his pulse race and his Adam’s apple bob beneath my fingers.

“I’m keeping you,” I told him firmly. “I don’t want to scare you off, and I don’t want you to feel pressured, but… I think you’re the guy I’ve been looking for since… forever. It’s real for me. And I want a shot to convince you that I can be that guy for you, too.”

I pulled out my phone and showed him the text I’d sent my mom.

BJ’s eyes shone with happy tears, and his face widened in an adorable grin. “Yeah?”

I leaned over and pressed a soft kiss to his lips. “Yeah,” I said before kissing him again, more thoroughly. We kissed for a long time before it turned hot enough for us to scramble for each other’s cocks and stroke each other off in a dirty handie exchange on the sofa.

Cosi was not amused.

The next day I got BJ settled in the mid-mountain restaurant before starting my shift on the slopes. I’d left him talking to Tiller about the possibility of offering sunrise yoga classes on the mountain, and when I came back inside for my lunch break, BJ was busily typing in his laptop.

My heart jumped at the sight of him. “Hey,” I said, leaning over to kiss him. “I can’t tell you how incredible it is to see you here during my break.”

He shot a beaming smile up at me. “This place is amazing. I’m so full of ideas, and I’ve met so many people. Tiller introduced me to a woman named Nan, who teaches water aerobics at the gym in town. She gave me the name of the woman who hires fitness teachers.”

I slid into the booth across from him. “I thought you wanted to do your SocialAdrenaline classes full-time?”

He nodded. “I do, but this would be a great way to get to know people in town. And if they like my classes, they might go find me on SocialAdrenaline, too.”

After placing our order for lunch, we talked through more of his morning.

I gradually realized there’d been a shift in his language from if to when .

He talked about how he’d organize his schedule when he moved to Aster Valley and whether or not he would need to change his health insurance coverage when he moved from Wyoming to Colorado.

I bit my tongue to keep from pointing out the change and asking him what he meant by it. Did he mean he was moving here, or did it mean he was moving here to be with me ?

We had a great time at lunch, talking and flirting as usual. Two of my coworkers came up to say hello, and my friend Robin asked where BJ was visiting from. BJ reached across the table for my hand. His was clammy and trembling a little.

He swallowed. “Actually, I’m going to be moving here to Aster Valley. With Dallas. Probably sometime soon.”

His eyes flicked to me as if worried I’d distance myself from claiming him publicly. Instead, I pulled his hand up to my lips and pressed a kiss to it, just like I had that first night he’d stayed with me. “And thank god for that. I can’t freaking wait. Can’t happen soon enough.”

Robin smiled and happily invited BJ to join us the next time we went to trivia night. By the time we were left alone, it was almost time for my break to be over.

“You want to take the truck home, or are you happy to stay?” I asked, standing up. “I can probably catch a ride back with one of these guys.”

“Happy to stay,” he said, but he had an odd tone in his voice. I moved closer and squatted down so I could meet his eyes. I caressed his cheek with my thumb.

“Hey, what’s up?”

“This is too good to be true,” he whispered. BJ looked so vulnerable, I’d do anything to reassure him.

“What part?”

“All of it. This town. The people. The opportunity to run my own business.” His chin looked a little wobbly. “You. You most of all.”

“I feel the same way,” I admitted. “But I don’t want to miss out on whatever time I have with you by worrying it’s going to end any minute. Make sense?”

BJ nodded and gave me a sheepish smile. “You make it sound so easy.”

“No. I know it’s not. But I want it so badly, and you do, too.”

“Yeah. I really do.”

I nudged him over in the booth and slid in next to him so we could face each other properly.

Then I took his hands in mine and held them to my chest. “I am working for the next five days, and then I have three days off. By then, your knee should be much better. I think we should drive my truck up to Jackson, pack up your stuff, and bring it back here. What do you say?”

He bit his bottom lip indecisively, maybe worrying that we were moving too fast. “What would we do with Cosi? Take her with us?”

I shook my head. “No, Louisa at the Barking Lot will look after her. She’s Cosi’s biggest fan.”

“I’d have to contact my landlord.” He tunneled a hand through his hair. “And I’d need to get a PO box here before we go so I can have my mail forwarded. I’m not sure?—”

“Breathe, baby. There’s plenty of time for everything. As soon as we get home tonight, we can make a to-do list and go through it point by point, okay?”

BJ froze, his eyes locked on mine. “A list.”

“Uh… yeah?” I shrugged, a little embarrassed. “Why? Is that weird? I make myself a to-do list almost every day. You know, to remind myself to call my mom, and practice my yoga, and buy ski wax, and take deep breaths, and get dog food, and— Are you okay? Why are you looking at me like that?”

BJ shook his head and pressed his lips together tightly. He seemed to be fighting laughter, but his eyes were shining with a softer emotion, and I could read my future there, clear as day.

“ Ski wax?” he managed to choke out. “Dear god. Ski wax!”

“Well, yeah. You put it on the bottom of your— mmmph !”

I broke off as BJ wrapped his arms around my neck and yanked me down into a kiss that was hot and sweet and utterly perfect.

“I guess, uh…” I licked my lips, chasing the taste of him. “I guess you really like lists, huh?”

“I love them,” he said fervently. “ Love them. Lists change lives.”

“Uh. Okay.” I frowned. “I feel like there’s a story there.”

“Oh, there is. It’s a great one. You’re gonna laugh. You might cry. But there’s gonna be a very happy ending,” BJ promised. “And I’ll tell you all about it in five days, ’cause it’s gonna be a long-ass drive to Jackson to get my stuff.”

“Wait, you’re gonna do it?” I grinned, ecstatic that he was ready to take the leap. “This week? You sure?”

“ We’re gonna do it,” he confirmed, suddenly radiating confidence. “And Dallas… I am absolutely positive. Because some things are just meant to be.”