“You jump into things full speed ahead only to later realize it’s not what you want, and now you’re taking Nick along for the ride. Are you his first, too?”

Bryce couldn’t answer because the truth scared him. She couldn’t be right. That couldn’t be what he was doing. He would know something like that.

“That’s not how it is. It’s different with Nick.”

Mitch laughed humorlessly. “I love you, little brother, but wake up. It was different with Christi in the beginning, too. Working with Dad would make you happy. Then business school was different. After that it was bartending that you loved, or going into computers. They were all different. How the hell is this any different?”

“I never fucking said those things were different. I tried them, yes, but I never said they were it for me.” And he’d settled down now—both in his career and with Nick.

“Mitch, I’m not sure you’re being fair,” Abbey interrupted. “If I’m being honest, I’m not surprised by this in the least. I thought something was different the day Nick came over here.”

“Me, too,” Hope added. “And when Nick came to talk to us at dinner the other night, I could see it. Bryce obviously means a lot to him.”

Bryce appreciated Hope’s support, but that wasn’t his mother’s worry. She didn’t believe Nick didn’t care about Bryce. She thought Bryce would hurt Nick. That he’d jumped into this with his eyes closed and would soon realize it wasn’t what he wanted.

And he had jumped. Hell, he’d kissed Nick before knowing how Nick felt. He’d pushed the sex stuff, been the one to initiate everything. What if they were right?

“I love you, Bryce. I do. And I don’t have any issues with someone being gay. If you fall in love with Nick, that’s fine. I’ll support you and welcome him into the family, but I’d be lying if I didn’t admit that I’m worried. You don’t think about the consequences of your actions. You react. I have no doubt that you really feel like Nick is important to you. But I’m scared to death that he’ll get attached and we will, too, only for you to realize it’s not really what you want. That’s the reason I can’t support this.”

Bryce couldn’t move. Couldn’t speak. All he could do was close his eyes and hope like hell his mom wasn’t right. He would never forgive himself if he hurt Nick or his family.

CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

Nick struggled through his whole night at work. He couldn’t stop thinking about his conversation with Bryce, Bryce’s conversation with his father, Nick’s own conversation with his mother, and the fact that he hadn’t heard from Bryce since he said he had to go on a drive.

Logically, he knew Bryce had a lot on his mind. He was hoping the reason Bryce hadn’t called was that he didn’t want to discuss things while Nick was working, but that didn’t stop him from thinking the worst.

He would just go to Bryce’s house when he got home. That’s all there was to it. Regardless of what happened, Nick needed to know the truth. They could tackle whatever happened head on, or they’d walk away, but at least Nick wouldn’t be in the dark.

A few minutes later he pulled into his driveway. As his lights moved across the garage, he saw Bryce leaning against it. He looked up when Nick parked and their eyes met.

Bryce looked a mess. Nick had never seen him like that before, and just like that, he fucking knew things were about to change. That whatever this was between them could be ending before they even had the chance to really see what it was.

Maybe that was for the better. Though, the weight on his chest didn’t feel like it would be better, and Nick couldn’t make himself move. Not until Bryce nodded toward the house, as if to tell Nick to come here.

He went.

“Hey,” Nick shoved his hands into his pockets.

“Hey,” Bryce pushed a hand through his hair. Great. They were both doing nervous gestures. That didn’t bode well. “Why are you standing out here?” Nick almost reached for him, but didn’t. He couldn’t read Bryce right now and wasn’t sure it was the right thing to do. They were skating a thin line together. In the bedroom, everything was great. Friendship-wise, it was fantastic. It was everything else they still had to figure out.

Bryce shrugged. “I just got home and figured I’d wait for you.”

Fuck it. If it was the wrong thing to do, so be it. Nick stepped forward, right up against Bryce, in the darkness of his driveway. The moon was bright, giving him enough light to make out some of Bryce’s features—the stubble on his face, the curve of his jaw. The frown on his lips and confusion in his eyes. “This okay?” he asked as he leaned close, one of his legs between Bryce’s and the other on the outside. Their bodies touched. Nick cupped his face.