by Aidan Wayne
“I am so fucking proud of you. God, Sam. So proud. You have no idea.”
Sam smiled hesitantly. “I think I might have some idea of how proud.”
“I dunno. Multiply that idea by about a billion and maybe you’ll be getting close.” Sam had to laugh a little at that, feeling lighter. “So okay, um, do you have plans today then? Besides the drinks thing later?”
“No. I wanted to call you, of course. And after we’re done I figured I’d record my Wednesday Patreon video. Read. Maybe go for a walk. It’s a lovely day.”
“Just look both ways before you cross the street,” Dovid said affectionately.
* * *
“—Taiwan, USA, New Jersey, Canada, Canada, Boston, Hertfordshire, man, we’re pretty global today.”
Dovid grinned. Global included Ireland. Sam got to catch a lot more livestreams now that he wasn’t employed at a nine to five. He’d already texted Dovid to say he was watching this one, which was great considering the topic of the day. “Perfect.” Dovid waved at his livestream viewers. “Hey, guys! This is Don’t Look Now with Dovid and Rachel. I’m Dovid, Rachel’s behind the camera, and today you’re in for a treat, since I’m starting the stream by opening a care package from the love of my life.” He heard Rachel snort, plenty audible for all the viewers too. “Rachel doesn’t have a romantic bone in her body—”
“Probably because you commandeered them all yourself.”
“—so she’s going to give me a hard time throughout this entire opening, but watch me utterly not care, because I am ridiculously excited. Sam’s been dropping hints for weeks about the contents of this box. I have absolutely no idea what’s in it, so I’m going to be as surprised as you are no matter what it is. Reactions one hundred percent genuine here.” He breathed out. “Okay. Gonna open it.”
He turned a little to the side, to the giant cardboard box sitting next to him on the couch. Rachel had already cut open the tape as was their usual routine, so there was nothing stopping him from pulling back the cardboard flaps and reaching inside for the first item. It was on the heavier side for a package, so he was really curious as to what was going to be in it.
The first thing he pulled out was soft cloth, long sleeves, and a neck hole. “Oh awesome! Another shirt. Thanks, Sam.” Dovid laughed. “You’re not going to have any left, with how you send me yours all the time. Can’t say I mind though. Rachel? What color is it?”
“Green,” she said, sounding as though she was grinning.
“Cool. I’ve been told that green goes with my lack of eyes.” He set the shirt down and reached in again.
“Okay, uh, heavy, first off, but bulky too.” The slick, quilted plastic-y sound of water resistant fabric. “And...this has sleeves, and a hood? A furry hood. Is this a jacket?” He lifted it up. “Oof, more like a winter coat. Um. Okay. It’s a little heavy for June weather, but sure, I’ll take it. Thank you!”
The next item was another long-sleeved shirt, then a couple bulky sweaters, what felt like a scarf, a pair of heavy gloves, a hat, and then, most baffling, a pair of winter boots that would most definitely not fit his feet, wrapped in a plastic bag. Each time Dovid asked Rachel for a color description, or clarification of what he pulled out, her voice got more and more amused.
“Okay,” Dovid said, after it was all spread out and the box was empty. “That was...not exactly what I expected. Still fun though! Although, Sam, I’m going to be calling you like right after this for an explanation, because I know for a fact you didn’t include a letter with—”
Music blared out, cutting Dovid off. A sound he recognized immediately, because it was Rachel’s cell phone ringtone. “Rachel,” he said, mortified, “How the fu—the hell did you forget to turn off your phone?” The only reply he got was a faint beep sound.
“You’re not actually answering it?” he said, aghast.
“Hey there,” Sam’s voice sounded out, on speakerphone.
Dovid’s mouth dropped open, but he recovered quickly. “Hi! I, uh, I guess you’ve been watching the stream, huh?”
“Oh yes,” Sam said, voice colored with laughter. “It was a treat to watch you open the package, really it was.”
“Hey, it was fun to get it. Though I’ve gotta say I’m definitely confused. Are you going to explain things to me?” Dovid made a face. “Especially since, whatever this is, Rachel’s clearly in on it.”
“Oh, you know,” Sam said lightly. “Thought I’d get a head start on packing and moving my things.”
Dovid registered the words and his heart legitimately skipped a beat. “Really?” he breathed. “You—you mean it? You decided that you—you mean it?”
“Yes,” Sam said simply. “Dovid, really, it wasn’t even much of a choice in the end. I can work anywhere now, as long as I have my gaming and recording setup. And, well, we can always fly in together to visit. I do, after all, want you to meet Charlie and Anna in person as opposed to video chat, but there’s...there’s a lot more for me in Seattle than there currently is in Ireland.”
“Right,” Rachel said, while Dovid struggled to speak against the rush of emotion. “For instance, I’m here.”
Sam chuckled. “Yes, exactly. I’m looking forward to gaming with you in person, in the same time zone.”
“Yeah, me too!”
“And Dovid?”
Dovid licked his lips. “Yeah?” he managed.
“I love you.” Said so easily. To Dovid, but also to Rachel, and to all the viewers currently watching, because they were live. Sam had specifically planned this out so that Dovid could share this moment with the world. “And I can’t wait to hold you again.”
“Same here,” Dovid said hoarsely.
He couldn’t wait to hold Sam again, but he’d be able to soon.
Every single night.
* * *
To find out about other books by Aidan Wayne
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Also available from Aidan Wayne:
His Two Leading Men
On the surface, he’s living the New York Dream—acclaimed by critics for his stunning debut, playing to packed audiences every night.
They don’t know the truth.
Battling crippling anxiety, every show is a struggle for Skye. Only one thing gives him the courage to step into the spotlight every performance—the steady, calming support of costumer Russell. But Skye can’t burden Russell with all his demons...
When wealthy patron Brent takes an interest in Skye, everything the actor knows is turned upside down. Charismatic and confident, Brent is everything Skye isn’t...and just what he needs. But how can he choose between gentle Russell and magnetic Brent? Russell means so much to him, but the chemistry between Skye and Brent is undeniable.
Or does he have to choose at all...?
Copyright © 2018 by Aidan Wayne
To purchase and read this and other books
by Aidan Wayne, please visit Aidan’s website at
aidanwayne.com/wp/index.php/adult.
Acknowledgments
Thank you to Morgan, for being my beta reader and putting up with me during the research and writing process, and to my editor Kate Marope, for both giving my story a chance and helping me work to make it better.
Also available from Aidan Wayne
Showers, Flowers, and Fangs
His Two Leading Men
Grounded
Counterbalance
Loud and Clear
About the Author
Aidan Wayne lives with altogether too many houseplants on the seventh floor of an apartment building, and though the building has an elevator, Aidan refuses to acknowledge its existence. They’ve been in constant motion since before they were born (pity Aidan’s mom)—and being born didn’t change anything. When not m
oving, Aidan is usually writing, so things tend to balance out. They usually stick with contemporary romance (both adult and YA), but some soft sci-fi/fantasy has been known to sneak in as well, and they primarily write character-driven stories with happy endings. Because, dammit, queer people deserve happy endings too.
Website: Aidanwayne.com
Twitter: Twitter.com/aidanwayne
Facebook: Facebook.com/AidanWayneWrites
Mailing list: Eepurl.com/cPDI4X
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ISBN-13: 9781488053771
Play It Again
Copyright © 2019 by Aidan Wayne
All rights reserved. By payment of the required fees, you have been granted the nonexclusive, nontransferable right to access and read the text of this ebook on-screen. No part of this text may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereafter invented, without the express written permission of publisher, Harlequin Enterprises Limited, 22 Adelaide St. West, 40th Floor, Toronto, Ontario M5H 4E3, Canada.
All characters in this book have no existence outside the imagination of the author and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names. They are not even distantly inspired by any individual known or unknown to the author, and all incidents are pure invention.
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