Page 5 of The Hookup (Firsts and Forever #13)

When he was done with the bathroom, I took a turn in the shower and got dressed in a clean T-shirt and shorts. I figured he’d be dressed and ready to leave when I returned to the bedroom, but I was pleasantly surprised to find him sitting on the neatly made bed in just his shirt and briefs.

He asked, “Do you want to hang out? If not, that’s fine. I can call a cab.”

“No, you should definitely stay. In fact, you should spend the night. It’s really late. In the morning, I can drive you wherever you want to go.”

He relaxed his posture and smiled. “Sounds good.”

“Would you like to go downstairs and have a drink?”

“Actually, I’d really like to cuddle, if that’s okay. Just for a minute or two...”

He seemed embarrassed to ask for that, but I murmured, “I’d love to,” and we both climbed under the covers.

Hal tucked his head under my chin, and as I held him, he whispered, “I’m sorry to be so needy.”

“You’re not. I wanted to do this, too.”

After a while, he admitted softly, “You’re the first person I’ve slept with in several months.

When I moved to San Francisco after finding out my boyfriend cheated on me, I had a bunch of one-night stands.

I think I wanted to prove to myself I was still desirable, and that even if he didn’t want me, other people did.

But those anonymous hookups started to get depressing, so instead, I withdrew.

That wasn’t great, either. I told myself I was going to do something about that this weekend, but it wasn’t looking very promising. Not until you came along.”

“You could have picked any man in that club. Why me?”

“There was something about you. I mean, you’re obviously gorgeous, and that was part of it. But you also seemed like a nice guy, someone who’d treat me right.”

Since he was being so open with me, I decided to do the same thing. “You’re the first person I’ve slept with since my relationship ended. It’s embarrassing to admit that, because I don’t want to seem pathetic.”

“I totally understand why you’d be hesitant to put yourself out there again, after something like that.”

“I’m glad you get it. Not everyone does, including my teammates.

They think I haven’t been having sex very often, which is why they played that joke on me with the blow-up doll.

If they knew how long it had actually been, they would have teased me mercilessly and probably staged some sort of intervention. ”

“Your secret’s safe with me.” A moment later, his stomach rumbled loudly, and he muttered, “Wow, that’s embarrassing.”

I sat up and exclaimed, “I’m a terrible host! I should have offered you something to eat.”

“It’s okay. You had no way of knowing I hadn’t eaten all day.”

“Oh man, you must be starving.” I found my phone and wallet in my jeans, and we sat side-by-side on the edge of the bed as I pulled up an online menu.

“Everything in the kitchen is probably pretty picked over, but there’s a twenty-four-hour pizza place nearby.

We ordered from there last night, and it was really good. ”

After we put together an order and I typed in my credit card information, Hal turned my wallet to face him. It was open to my license, and he read, “Ryder Stanley Woods.” He chuckled and told me, “That’s the worst driver’s license photo I’ve ever seen.”

“I know. I started to sneeze, and that was right when they took the picture. They wouldn’t redo it, either. I think they hold monthly contests to see who can take the worst photo. Whoever snapped my picture was definitely the grand prize winner.”

“A contest would explain a lot. My photo’s not flattering, either.”

“I don’t believe you. You’re way too attractive to take a bad photo.”

He retrieved his wallet, and then he straddled my lap as he handed me his driver’s license. I said, “See? You look perfectly cute in that photo.”

“No, I don’t. I look startled.”

“But cute. And wow, look at that name. Harold Ignacio Kenji Nakamura. There’s a lot going on there.”

“Right? My mom is from Colombia, and my dad is from Japan. They wanted both cultures represented, but they also wanted to give me an ‘American’ name, since I was born here. Obviously, they missed the mark slightly with Harold. Right country, wrong decade.”

“I like it. You’re like a one-man United Nations.” I returned his license to him, and as he put it away, I pointed out, “You still have an L.A. address.”

“Yeah. I really should have changed it by now, except that going to the DMV sucks.”

“Are you going to stay in San Francisco after you finish school?”

“Hopefully. My best friend and his family live there, which is why I moved up in the first place. There are more jobs in L.A. and New York, but I’d love to stay where I am, assuming I can find a job in my field.”

“I suppose fashion design is the type of job that really needs to happen in a big city.”

Hal nodded. “To be a commercial success, you need to be in the heart of it all. When buyers for major retailers are shopping for the upcoming season, they’re going to go someplace where they can see a lot of designers in a day, not just one or two.

About the only thing you can do if you live in a smaller city is to open your own boutique, and it’s tough to make a living that way. ”

We both stretched out on the bed, and he draped his arm over me as I asked, “What made you want to become a fashion designer?”

“I was in awe of the designers when I was a teenager and working a lot of runway shows. They were so cool, and confident, and totally in charge. I wanted to be like them. Later on, I fell in love with the creative part of it. When I can let my imagination run wild and make whatever I want, it’s incredibly fun. ”

He looked pained as he added, “Although, as my parents are always quick to remind me, I need to be practical. Chances are, I’ll get a job designing sportswear, or something along those lines.

I won’t be able to afford launching my own label, and no one’s going to pay me to come up with wild, avant-garde creations. ”

“Where do your parents live?”

“Osaka. They moved there from L.A. when I was twenty, because my dad’s cousin offered him a job in his company.”

“Did you think about going along?”

“I wanted to, but they told me to stay. They said it would be better for my modeling career.”

“Did you have any other family nearby?”

Hal shook his head. “My parents defied their families when they got married, and they moved cross-country to Los Angeles on their own. I never really got to know my relatives, because it was just the three of us when I was growing up.”

“What did their families object to?”

“My dad’s very traditional Japanese family didn’t know what to make of my mom, who’s strong-willed and outspoken.

Meanwhile, my mom’s parents tried to insist that she marry a Catholic.

Also, everyone told them it would never work, because they were too different.

But they weren’t going to let anyone stand in their way. ”

I said, “That’s very romantic.”

“It was probably stubbornness, more than anything else. They’ve had their ups and downs, and I suspect part of the reason they’ve stuck together throughout it all is because they’re still trying to prove their families wrong.”

My phone beeped, and I glanced at the screen and told him, “Our food is on the way. Do you want to eat in here, or move downstairs? The second option may mean hanging out with my friends, because most of them are probably back by now.”

“I’d like to eat in here, if that’s okay. I don’t want to share you if I don’t have to.”

Since it was too cold to eat outside, I moved a small table and a pair of chairs in from the balcony.

When I went downstairs to get our dinner, I could hear voices and laughter coming from the game room.

My teammates would have tried to insist that we join them, but I wanted as much one-on-one time with Hal as I could get, so I didn’t stop to say hello.

While I was gone, Hal had put on his cardigan over his shirt and briefs, but his legs were still bare. We both took a seat at the table, and after he helped me unpack the food and drinks, he said, “Your turn. You just heard all about my family, so now tell me about yours.”

“Well, I was born in Amarillo, which is up in the Texas Panhandle. My parents still live there, but I went to live with my grandparents when I was fourteen. Gran and Gramps were the best people you’d ever hope to meet.

They passed about four years ago, within two months of each other, and I miss them every day.

I’m convinced Gramps died of a broken heart, after losing his wife to cancer. ”

Hal paused with his plastic fork poised above his salad and murmured, “That’s so sad.”

“It was, but they had fifty-three wonderful years together.”

“Did your parents kick you out because you’re gay?”

“It was more than that. My parents were very controlling, especially my dad. He tried to map out my entire life for me. I was supposed to be a star athlete, get straight A’s, and go to his alma mater for a business degree.

After that, the expectation was that I’d marry a nice girl, crank out a few kids, and go to work for my father’s construction company.

What I wanted was totally irrelevant. I didn’t even bother coming out, because I knew it didn’t fit with his master plan. ”

I took a sip of soda before continuing, “I was really unhappy, but when I tried talking to them, my parents weren’t interested in what I had to say.

I guess that’s why I started acting out—cutting classes, drinking, smoking.

The last straw was when I took my dad’s beloved Cadillac on a joy ride and crashed it into a ditch.

The very next day, they packed me up and shipped me off to my grandparents’ ranch, probably because they thought I couldn’t find any trouble to get into in the middle of nowhere.

It was the best thing that could have happened to me. ”

Hal grinned. “I didn’t peg you as the teenage rebel type.”

“I was a rebel with a cause—to avoid being turned into a clone of my dad.”

“Were you able to come out to your grandparents?”

I nodded. “They accepted me for exactly who I was. That was when I learned there really is such a thing as unconditional love.”

“And you never went back to live with your parents?”

“No. They assumed I’d return after I got ‘straightened out,’ but my grandparents needed me. They were getting older and developing some health issues, so it was hard for them to maintain the ranch and take care of their animals. I took over most of that.”

Hal looked concerned. “That sounds like a lot of responsibility for a fourteen-year-old.”

“It was my choice, and I was happy to help.”

“How did you go to school?”

“There was a high school a few miles away. I rode the bus to get there, until I was old enough to drive. After graduation, I commuted to Austin to attend college for a couple of semesters, but I ended up dropping out. There was too much to do on the ranch.”

“Was it always a horse rescue?”

“No. Gramps had two aging horses that we took care of, but I was the one who started taking in horses that people considered too wild, too old, or that were just generally unwanted.”

I felt like I was talking about myself too much, but Hal seemed genuinely interested. “What do you do with the horses after you take them in?”

“With the older horses, I make them comfortable and let them live out their senior years happy and well cared for. I try to rehabilitate the others and find good homes for them.”

“That’s amazing. You’re amazing. I feel frivolous, compared to you.”

I shook my head. “Don’t say that. You’re an artist, with fashion as your medium. My Gran was an artist too, and I have so much respect for people who make beautiful things. We need more of that in the world.”

Hal murmured, “That’s got to be the most validating thing anyone’s ever said to me.”

After we ate and cleaned up, I shut off the lights and all but three of the battery-operated candles, and we climbed back into bed.

We ended up talking for hours, about anything and everything that came to mind. At one point, Hal studied me in the soft light, tracing my jaw with his fingertips as he murmured, “You’re so beautiful, Ryder.”

That made me grin. “I think that’s my line.”

“I mean it. You’re gorgeous. You’re also kind, and interesting, and a great listener. Whoever ends up with you is incredibly lucky.” I wasn’t the kind of person who needed a lot of compliments or reassurance, but it felt good to hear that.

Later on, as the sky outside the balcony doors began to lighten, Hal tucked his head under my chin and fell asleep in my arms. I was so glad we were going to get one more night together. But no matter how much time I had with him, I already knew it wouldn’t be enough.