Life in Fusion (15 page)

“Aww, it’s like an x-rated Disney film,” Lonny gushed.

Gabe blew out a puff of air as if disgusted. I told myself it

was Lonny’s comment that turned his stomach, and not me and

Wade.

“So when’s the wedding?” Donny asked, batting his eyes.

“And please tell me there are more up there just like you, Abner.”

“I call dibs!” Lonny screamed.

Life in fusion
103

“Sorry boys, but he’s a one of a kind,” I said as Wade put his

arms around the twins and leaned back into the loveseat.

I burst out laughing when they sighed simultaneously.

“I think it’s great,” Tommy finally said. “I’m really happy for

you both.”

Gabe laughed sarcastically. I closed my eyes, deciding to once

again let it go, even though it felt like a punch in the gut each time

he slighted me in some way.

Wade shot a sympathetic, hang-in-there buddy, look. “Well

you’re all invited up for the big welcome to Summit City party

the mayor and my mother’s best friends are throwing for Boone

in a few weeks.”

“That should be something to see.” I was completely freaked.

I reached over and put my hand on Gabe’s arm. “I can’t wait for

you to see the place. I think you’ll really like it there.”

Gabe shot up out of his seat and glanced from side to side

with panic in his eyes. He focused in on Tommy. “I think this

is nuts and you know it. And you two are seriously insane for

thinking this is going to work out.” Gabe turned to me and I

slowly stood. “You know you’re just going to break his heart or

he’s going to break yours! You barely know each other! This is

merely the latest in a long line of very pretty toys for you, Boone.

I honestly can’t believe you’d actually go through with this. It

would almost be laughable if it weren’t so damn sad.”

Wade started to get up, but Lonny, surprisingly strong for his

size, shoved him back down before rounding the coffee table.

I jumped, completely taken aback when Lonny slapped Gabe

across the face. I felt sick to my stomach and sad watching Gabe’s

eyes began to well up.

Lonny stood his ground as Gabe took a step forward. “You

should be ashamed of yourself.”

Donny had a hand over his mouth and Tommy looked like he

might vomit in his own lap. Lord only knew what all this drama

would do to his psyche. I turned away when Gabe tried to look

104 Ethan Day

my way. Wade appeared to be sad as well, likely for me, as I’d

spent so much time going on and on about what a great friend

Gabe was.

“I think you should leave,” Lonny added after Gabe lowered

his head. “And I promise you one thing, Gabriel De Luca.

Regardless of what happens between those two, you’ll regret this

moment for the rest of your life.”

Gabe spun around and stomped his way toward the front door.

He was trying to pull off angry, as if trying to stay committed

to his cause, but I could tell he was already beginning to buckle

under the weight of his guilt.

“Don’t even,” Lonny said to me when I opened my mouth to

call out to him. “You need to let that mess go and don’t you dare

try calling him until he’s at your door with an apology.” Lonny

turned to Wade. “For both of you.”

“I’ll go after him,” Tommy said to me.

I nodded a thank you and flopped back down into my seat,

sucking down some of my now mostly melted cocktail.

“Maybe I should try talking to him?” Wade suggested.

“No, Lonny’s right.” I said it, despite wanting to run to my

phone and call him. “We should let him go—for now.”

Wade nodded his agreement and the four of us all settled back

into our seats. To their credit, the twins kept the conversation

moving right along. But to be perfectly honest I was only half

listening at that point.

I eventually excused myself to pee once everyone decided it

was time to head out to the restaurant. I was standing at the

vanity and staring at my phone, which I’d snuck in with me as if

it were some sort of contraband. Rationally, I knew I should be

angry, but fear was the emotion plaguing me more than anything.

I wanted to call him and chew him out; at the same time I

feared Gabe held some mythical or magical weapon that could

shatter the whole illusion, if that was indeed what I was currently

suffering from, with regard to my relationship with Wade. I didn’t

Life in fusion
105

want things to end with Wade—it was nice and I liked it.

I snatched my phone up and started to punch in the numbers,

then paused.

I glanced up at Lonny through the reflection in the mirror.

“Don’t do it gurl,” he said with a wink. “You need to pretend

like that phone is your best friend’s husband’s dick—now drop

it.”

I started to smile, then laughed as he slipped in and shut the

door behind him.

“Do you…” I examined my face in the mirror.

“Think you’re making a mistake?” Lonny asked.

I nodded, avoiding his eyes, since I knew that regardless of

the words that came out of his mouth, they would be the one

thing that might reveal the real truth.

“Honestly sugar tits, would it really matter if you were?”

I cringed hating that expression. “Wouldn’t it?”

“Look here.” Lonny forced me to face him. “Would you give

up one minute of the time you’ve already had with him if you

found out it was a mistake?”

I knew instantly that I wouldn’t, and the thought I could lose

him sent a tiny shockwave of panic through my body. “No.”

“Then regardless of what happens, this could never be a

mistake could it?”

I cocked my head to side and shrugged. “I never thought of

it like that.”

“These lips are good for more than bj’s, bitch.”

I smiled at him, then leaned over and gave him a hug, nearly

squeezing the life out of him as I lifted him up off the ground.

I set him back down and released him once he’d begun gasping

for air.

“Jesus!” He was feeling himself up as if I’d cracked a rib.

“And if it makes any difference at all, I hope it does work out

106 Ethan Day

for you.”

“You do?”

“Of course.” Lonny shoved me out of the way and began

preening in front of the mirror. “If a tramp like you can land a

husband then there’s hope for me and Donny.”

I placed a hand on my stomach as if I might lose my lunch.

“Please don’t tell me you two plan on sharing a boyfriend?”

“Don’t be nasty,” Lonny said. “We only share conquests.”

“That is wrong on so many levels.”

“What is the big deal? We’re identical fucking twins,” Lonny

said, scowling at me. “It’s like watching yourself in a porno, only

in person…duh.”

I felt my face contorting as I tried to suss that one out. Lonny

threw open the bathroom door and disappeared down the hall,

leaving me to my queasiness.

I was the slightest bit tipsy now that we’d gotten home from

dinner and dancing. I needed a shower. Hell, we both did after

an hour or so of the bump and grind at the club, for which the

twins had been most grateful. Seeing Wade without a shirt nearly

sent Donny into a lusty-man-haze, standing in the middle of the

dance floor with his mouth hanging open. I was very aware of

all the men who’d been eyeing Wade all night long. But strangely

enough, I never caught his eye wandering, not even once. He was

either very adept with the stealth-leering, or he only had eyes for

me. The latter of the two sounded better to me, but not very

realistic, so I was leaning toward stealth over rapture.

But dancing with Wade had been fucking hot. I’d always been

more of loner on the dance floor, sometimes letting guys jump

in briefly, long enough to be flirty, but then moving away to be

on my own once again. But tonight had been different; erotic was

an understatement. It had been like extended foreplay or a really

long and torturous tease. My skin still tingled from having had his

hands on me for so long. He’d rubbed me silly. It was being man-

handled in the best possible sense. I couldn’t get enough. And I

was now hornier than I’d been since hitting puberty.

I’d had a good time, but Gabe and his stupid, whiney tantrum

had cast a bit of a cloud over the evening. I thought all my friends

understood that I was the only one allowed to have tantrums! I

felt a smile forming at my blatant selfishness. He had to get over

all this at some point, right? This couldn’t possibly be the end of

me and Gabe. I refused to believe it, that anything could drive a

wedge between the two of us—even one as large as Wade.

Wade came out the bathroom in nothing but his briefs. It was

an eye catching view, and he paused for a moment, examining

me. I was still sitting on the edge of the bed, completely dressed,

minus my shoes. I smiled up at him but he was frowning.

“I hate seeing you so upset, Boone. I know it probably doesn’t

108 Ethan Day

feel like it now, but give it time. Gabe will come round.”

I shut my eyes as he sauntered over to me. I was suddenly very

happy we hadn’t showered, as his man-stink was awakening other

parts of my person. I tried to control myself so I could come to

a conclusion as to whether or not I liked the fact he seemed able

to read me so well at times. I sighed when his hand cupped my

cheek, before his fingers slowly worked their way into my hair.

“Thank you for being so good about Gabe.” I opened my

eyes and stared up at him. “He’s behaving like a total shit. If I

were you, I’d be livid.”

“Luckily I’m not like you then.” Wade smiled, laughing when

I scowled at his backhanded compliment. He sat down on the

bed next to me and pulled me to him, planting a soft, warm kiss

on my lips. “I want you happy, and making Gabe miserable isn’t

ever going to accomplish that.”

“Well I’m sure as hell not giving you up just to satisfy his

selfish, inconsiderate, and completely distasteful behav—”

Wade silenced my rant with another kiss, this time opening my

mouth with his tongue, only stopping when he felt he’d calmed

me down. He then kissed the tip of my nose before moving on

to my forehead.

“You love him, Boone. And that means that despite the way

he’s treating me at the moment, I don’t want to do anything extra

to add to the problem. Underneath all his anger…there’s a really

great guy that I have no doubt I’d like to have as a friend some

day. And even if that never happens, I’d never want you to lose

what you have with him.”

I stared into his eyes in complete and total shock. “You’re a

prince. No, not far enough…a fucking saint, you’re…not real?”

I leaned back, really taking him in while trying to think back

over the past few weeks in order to pinpoint the precise moment

I’d had the stroke that had obviously sent me into the coma that

led to the dream world where I was clearly now residing. No man

was this perfect—could ever be
this
understanding.

“I must have had a stroke and this is all a hallucination.” I

Life in fusion
109

hopped down off the bed when Wade started laughing at me

again. “It’s the only logical explanation.”

Wade grabbed me by the arm and yanked me back toward

the bed, pulling me back up next to him. He kissed me a few

more times while whispering that he was real. “Remember how

annoying I am, always wanting things my way, plus I come with

an entire town full of insane busybodies, and four nephews who

call you my butt-boy?”

“Right,” I said, nodding, though I was still watching him

suspiciously.

Wade sighed and lay back onto the bed, pulling me down with

him. “I’ve never had a Gabe, you know. I always wanted a best

friend, but like a lot of things normal kids have, when you’re so

focused on one goal like I was with my skiing, the only people

who can really understand you are other athletes.”

“Why didn’t you make friends with any of them?” I asked,

feeling sad for him, unable to truly imagine what growing up

being Wade Walker must have been like.

“The only other athletes I saw on any regular basis were the

ones I was competing against.”

I scrunched up my face. “I suppose that isn’t prime breeding

ground for bonding.”

“And that’s probably somewhat of an excuse.” Wade grinned,

as if catching himself in a lie. “Maybe I had myself convinced

the only way to win was to cut out any and all emotions. There

were a few guys I was friendly with, but it’s not the same, really.”

“It would be hard to trust someone that wanted you to fail so

they could win, I can see that.”

“I did have my dad, for a long time. I suppose he was my best

friend.”

“And then you lost him.” I reached over and Wade took my

hand and smiled.

“You know, I wouldn’t change any of it. Even if I had the

power to go back in time and do things differently. What I gave