“Cool. Lead the way, Mr. Walsh.”
Corbin winked, and I rolled my eyes. We turned and started walking to the lounge. Principal Lopez repeated to the students to go to the cafeteria, and grumbling followed his demand.
“You know you’re gonna have to visit with them some after lunch,” I said as we walked down the hall. “Otherwise there’s going to be some depressed kids. It’s not every day their idol shows up at school.”
“Yeah, I planned on it,” he replied with a kind smile. “It’s still weird to be looked up to like that. Like I’m some kind of hero.”
He looked too handsome: that movie star smile and chiseled face. But it was more the softness in his gray eyes that warmed me from the inside out.
“To a lot of them, that’s exactly what you are,” I said, opening the door to the teacher’s lounge.
The lounge wasn’t that big, but there were a few small tables, a coffee maker, and a copying machine. There was no one else in there, and I was thankful that we’d have privacy. We sat at the table near the window and unpacked the food. He placed a white takeout container in front of me before taking out his.
“It’s been awhile since I’ve had Thai,” I said before opening the lid. The smell of the chicken fried rice made my stomach growl. “Thank you.”
“No problem.” He took a bite of his chicken lo mein and stared out the window as he chewed. “Lunch isn’t the only reason I wanted to see you.”
“Oh?” A weird feeling settled in my gut.
His gray eyes moved to mine. “I need to know what you want, Hunter. Last night was amazing and was the happiest I’ve been in a long time. But if you don’t want this…if you don’t want me…please tell me. Because I can’t just do the casual thing with you. I love you too goddamn much for that.”
Suddenly, I wasn’t that hungry anymore.
“Do we have to figure it all out right now?” I asked, knowing it wasn’t what he wanted to hear, but it was all I could give him. “I know I said this morning that we needed to talk, but I’ve been doing some thinking of my own. You’re the one who said not to think too much about the future and to just live in the moment. Can’t we just see where it goes?”
Seconds passed—maybe minutes—before he nodded.
“Okay,” he said. “You’re right.”
We ate in silence, and he seemed sadder than he’d been earlier. I couldn’t blame him for wanting answers—I wanted them as well. I just didn’t want to jeopardize what little time we had together by arguing.
“Cor?” I asked, and he looked up at me. “I love you too by the way. I’m not sure what the future holds for us, but what I do know is that I want you. That’s all that matters to me right now.”
Corbin smiled and reached across the table, placing his hand on mine. When someone opened the door, he jerked away, though. It was a reminder that he still wasn’t out, and even though I shouldn’t have been, I was a little hurt by it.
Christina, the math teacher, looked at us with wide eyes before smiling and saying hi. I returned her smile, hoping I didn’t seem rude by not chatting with her. We were great friends and normally sat together at lunch. She heated up a bowl of soup before leaving the lounge. Once she was gone, Corbin and I made small talk as we finished eating.
I told him about my parents and how they wanted him to come into the diner again sometime. They’d said he’d come in there several times after Bill’s funeral to see them, but it’d been a while since he had.
He told me about a football buddy of his who’d just proposed to his girlfriend. I’d read about Austin before and I’d seen a lot of pictures of them together online. They also playfully bantered back and forth on social media.
It was nice to talk and get to know him better; learning about his life and hearing stories of things he’d experienced while traveling. But it started becoming uncomfortable as I realized how inadequate I was. He’d met people and seen places I’d only ever dreamed of, and yeah, I’d be lying if I said there wasn’t a slight envy about it all. He’d traveled the world, hung out with supermodels and celebrities, and already experienced so much in his life.
Whereas I’d just been frozen since the day he’d left, not really moving forward in my own life.
Corbin had been right all those years before in saying he’d go on to make something of himself, while I stayed in that town, never going anywhere or doing anything extraordinary with my life. I had made something of myself, though. Being a teacher was amazing. But it was nothing compared to him.
The more he talked, the more my chest ached.
What could I possibly give to him that he didn’t already have?
***
February arrived with a bang; that bang being a massive snowstorm. Corbin had invited me to stay over the night before, and when we woke up the next morning—still naked and tangled together—the light coming in through the window was white instead of the usual golden stream from the sun.
After I got out of bed, taking the sheet with me, I looked outside and watched in wonder as the snow covered every inch of the grass. It was still coming down hard too.
Corbin stirred on the bed, and I turned to see him on his side, staring at me with heavy lidded eyes.
“What are you looking at?” he asked with his voice heavy from sleep.
“Take a look for yourself,” I said, motioning to the window.
Accepting my challenge, he got up and walked over to me. His dick was at half-mast, and even though he’d fucked me all night, I already wanted more.
“Damn,” he said once seeing the snow. “The weather guys actually got it right this time. Good thing I got some groceries yesterday. Doesn’t look like we’ll be going anywhere anytime soon.”
I put my arms around him, wrapping the sheet around him too.
Our dicks touched as he leaned closer, and I softly whimpered against his mouth as he kissed me. Knowing there wouldn’t be any school for me that day, I moved him back toward the bed, sucking on his tongue like I wanted to do to his cock.
He growled deep in his throat before falling back on the mattress and taking me with him.
We spent another hour in bed, getting lost in the warmth of each other’s bodies. He fucked me hard and fast the first time, and then we lazily kissed afterward, giving ourselves time to recoup. Then, he made love to me, unhurried and passionate.
It showed both sides to Corbin so well—the wild side and then the softer, more romantic one.
I loved both of them equally.
I wanted to believe I could keep him; that we wouldn’t allow anything to tear us apart again, neither distance nor careers. But the clock was ticking. His being in Willow was only temporary.
I didn’t know how much longer he planned to stay. We hadn’t talked about the future since about a week and a half ago when he’d had lunch with me at school. It was the unspoken thing that drove a wedge between us in moments when I caught myself thinking about it. I suspected his mind was often in the same place as mine, though, by the way he’d hold onto me sometimes as if I was leaving.
Or he was.
“Can we just stay in this bed all day?” he asked in a husky tone, nuzzling his face into my neck before pressing a kiss there.
“That sounds great to me,” I answered, turning my face into his hair and smelling his comforting scent. It was a mix of his cologne and something that was uniquely him.
“Good,” he said before tugging me closer.
He sucked at the bottom of my throat, and I wrapped my arms around his neck, tilting my head back. My breaths quickened as his hand smoothed up and down my chest. He tweaked my nipples as he continued nipping at my throat, and I moaned.
He didn’t try for more than that, though. Instead, he placed one last kiss to my neck and one on my lips before laying his head on my chest and closing his eyes.
Corbin was so cuddly after sex, and an ache hit my heart as I held onto him, wondering how long I’d get to keep him this time before he left again.<
br />
When we finally got out of bed around noon, we showered—which led to another round of sex because we decided to do so together—and then went into the kitchen to make something to eat. I was starving and my stomach roared its discontent as I opened the refrigerator and looked inside.
“How about eggs, bacon, and toast?” I asked, thankful he’d gone to the store the day before.
One look outside the window above the sink told me there was no way we could go anywhere—well, unless we hiked through the snow. Which could be fun. We’d done it a few times when we were kids. We’d had awesome snowball fights too.
Corbin came up behind me and slipped his arms around my waist, kissing my nape. I melted against him, tilting my head back and resting it on the side of his.
“If you don’t stop, we’ll starve,” I pointed out as I felt his dick poke my ass. “Now shoo.”
“You did not just tell me to fucking shoo,” he said with a scoff.
For emphasis, I grabbed the spatula from the stove and flipped around to face him. I gently tapped it against my open palm, arching a brow at him.
He put his hands up. “Fine. I’ll shoo. Like a damn dog.”
“Good, boy,” I said, suppressing a laugh upon seeing the incredulous stare he gave me for that remark.
It didn’t take long to make breakfast, and once I was finished, we sat down at the table near the patio doors and ate. We watched the snow continue to fall and talked about old times—not the parts of the past that would stir up drama again, but the parts that made us laugh so hard I nearly choked on a piece of bacon.
“Remember his face?” Corbin asked through his laughs before he scrunched his face up and mimicked old man Burton, “You damn kids better get off my lawn or I’m gonna call the law!”
I laughed and wiped the tears from the corners of my eyes before busting out into another fit of giggles.
I’d forgotten how easy it was to be with Corbin, but he was reminding me more and more each day. He’d only been back in Willow for about a month, but I already forgot what life was like before then. As if I’d been merely existing and not actually living. My life was simple. Predictable and lacking all spontaneity. And I’d been okay with that.
Until I remembered what it was like to be with Corbin.
Suddenly, I felt like my old self again, as if Corbin’s presence gave me back a piece of my soul. My missing piece. That piece had been torn from me when he’d left seven years ago, and it’d taken every ounce of strength to carry on without him.
“I don’t want this day to end,” Corbin said after we’d eaten and crawled back into bed. He pulled me into his arms.
I couldn’t fight my thoughts anymore.
“What happens when you leave?” I asked, forcing back the wave of sorrow weaving through my chest. “Our lives are too different, Cor. I want to have this—you here with me—forever, but that can’t happen, can it?”
Corbin looked at me for a minute before sitting back and getting off the bed.
I instantly missed his weight on me. It was as if the blanket had been yanked off me, and I was left there missing its warmth. He walked toward the door, and I watched the grooves in his naked back move as he did. The two dips in his lower back sat right above the sexiest ass I’d ever seen.
“Corbin?”
In the doorway, he turned, and his face had dramatically changed from the vulnerable expression to one of frustration.
“Why do you have to be like this, Hunter?” He shook his head and looked down at the hardwood floor. “Why do you always have to bring up such fucking depressing things when all I wanna do is enjoy being with you? The last time I tried to talk about the future, you shut me down. And now you wanna talk about it again? Make up your fucking mind because I’m losing mine trying to keep up with you.”
I got off the bed and neared him before grabbing his hand. I half-expected him to yank away from me, but then I reminded myself that was a move I’d make; not him.
“You don’t want to be with me, do you?” he asked, lifting his gaze and focusing on me. His usually blue-gray eyes appeared darker.
“That’s not true,” I said, stepping closer. “But it’d be stupid not to at least consider where this is going. I mean think about it, Cor. I have a life here just like you have one there.”
“You know that’s a bullshit excuse,” he snapped, letting go of my hand. “Guys on my team have girlfriends. Fuck, several of them even have kids. They all make it work. Yeah, my summer is a full schedule of training and workouts, but that doesn’t mean I wouldn’t make time to see you.”
I pictured the kind of life he talked about. It wasn’t totally impossible. Difficult, yes, but not undoable. However, I still didn’t see it working out long term.
He’d still live in Kansas City, and I’ve live there in Willow. All of that traveling back and forth to see each other would get tiring: physically but mostly emotionally. Because there’d be too many goodbyes and not enough time between them to ease the heartache.
“Okay. Then maybe we should just take this one step at a time,” I suggested, grabbing his hand again. “See where life takes us. I won’t mention it again.”
Corbin raised our joined hands and kissed my knuckle. “Have faith in me, Hunter. Relationships aren’t easy. They take effort, and yeah, sometimes they’re fucking hard. But we have to try. Don’t give up on me. I don’t want to lose you again.”
“I don’t want to lose you either,” I whispered, too emotional to talk any louder. My chest fluttered and my bottom lip trembled uncontrollably.
One thing I knew for sure?
Losing him again would shatter me completely.
Chapter 16
Corbin
“Some advice is don’t neglect your studies,” I said to the group of football guys hovered around our table at lunch. “Most guys think that athletics is all that comes into play, but they want leaders in the pros, both in the classroom and on the field. If your grades aren’t there, they doubt your determination.”
“Well, shit,” Joel said, crinkling his brow. “I’m fucked then. And not in the fun way.”
“Hey. Language,” Hunter chastised him.
“Yeah, watch your profanity,” Daniel said, shoulder bumping his best friend.
For the past two weeks, I’d started having lunch with Hunter almost daily at the high school, and within that time, I’d talked more to his students. A lot of them were still star struck, but for the most part, once they’d hung out with me a bit and saw I was just a regular guy, they’d begun to relax more and not look at me like I was God or something.
The girls still looked at me like that, which admittedly, weirded me out a little. But I was somewhat used to fan girls. I didn’t get as much attention as a rock star or movie stars, but since I’d done the Under Armour photoshoot, I’d definitely been thrown more into the spotlight.
Other than my career in football, the modeling had sparked most of my fame and put me in the public eye, causing me to appear in magazines and on billboards. I’d never get used to girls approaching me with posters of me in just my underwear wanting my autograph.
Signing footballs was one thing. Signing pictures of me all sexed-up and with my junk almost falling out was another.
“Are you really dating Veronica Cortez?” another kid asked whose name I think was Seth. “She’s so freaking hot.”
Hunter averted his gaze at the question, and heaviness settled in my gut.
I’d told him Veronica was just a friend and that she and I’d never had sex, but his insecurity made him still have suspicions I was lying. It hurt that he didn’t fully trust me, and I knew when the time came for me to leave, it’d cause another fight. Because he didn’t trust me enough to do the long distance thing.
“We’re friends,” I answered, wanting to finally put the rumors to rest. “But we’re not together.”
“You must get a lot of hot chicks all the time,” another guy said as if it was something to be admir
ed. For teenaged boys it was, I supposed. “And just go through them all, a different one every night. Dude, I wanna be just like you someday.”
I looked at Hunter, who was paying extra attention to his salad and avoiding eye contact with me. If the roles were reversed, I’d probably be a little upset too, hearing about all the people he’d been with.
“Some guys do that,” I said, regarding the group of boys. “Fame comes with all kinds of temptations. But I’m actually seeing someone right now, and not to throw away my cool card, but they’re the only one I want. So as awesome as it is to get lucky, a real relationship is even better.”
Hunter looked at me then, and the awed expression in his brown eyes nearly made me forget where we were and kiss him.
“That’s so romantic,” Tara, one of the cheerleaders, said, resting her chin on her hand and staring at me with big, dreamy eyes. “She’s a lucky girl.”
Just like that, the sadness flashed again on Hunter’s face. One day I’d find the courage to publicly come out, and when that day arrived, I’d kiss him in front of the whole world if it made him happy.
When lunch was over, I walked with Hunter back to his classroom. Kids high-fived and knuckle-bumped me as we went down the hall.
“Just like when we were in high school,” Hunter commented with an amused shake of his head. “No matter what, you’ll always be one of the cool kids.”
“I can’t help it that I’m so lovable,” I said, winking.
Entering his classroom, I saw there weren’t any students in there yet, so I sat on the edge of his desk.
“They’re going to miss you when you leave, you know,” Hunter said before grabbing a marker and writing that day’s assignment on the board. After capping the marker, he placed it back on the tray and faced me. “So will I.”
Despondency crept up my spine.
The topic of me leaving had been the one thing we’d avoided.
For weeks, we’d just lived in our own little reality, not worrying about the following day and just living in the moment. He’d helped me go through Grandpa Bill’s things, and instead of hiring someone else to come in and fix the parts of the house that needed it, I’d been gradually working on it to give myself something to do during the day when I wasn’t at school with him.
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