Love is Always Write Anthology Volume 8

suspect, you have got to make the first move. Obviously, he's not going to. Now that his eyes have been opened about that whole situation with Mike, you have the perfect opportunity. The question is, are you brave enough to take it?"
    Brave? Yeah, that was one word for what he would have to be. Sam might even have to borrow a little of Dev's brash cockiness to steel himself for what promised to be a hell of a ride. He just hoped this ride was worth the rocky start.
    ****
    "You ready to talk about it yet?"
    "Nope." Devin looked down at his late breakfast. The cereal had gone soggy a while ago, but he couldn't bring himself to throw it away. He had to eat something or he'd be useless against the Shamrocks. The team needed him to be in top form, and he had to force himself to get it together. He'd spent the better part of the morning remembering the way Sam had looked at him over the chess board, and his own surprising reaction to the light flirtation. In the days since, he'd managed to avoid being alone with Sam for more than a couple of minutes, but Devin knew it would only be a matter of time before it would come up again. He just hadn't expected it to come up with Michael. And he still didn't know what he would do about it.
    Mike sat next to him at the island and pulled Devin's bowl of mushy cereal closer. Reaching for Dev's spoon, he took a bite. "You've been avoiding me for almost a week," he said around a mouthful of cereal. "I get it, if you're mad. I should've just talked to you instead of Sammy, but he's easy to talk to about this kind of stuff."
    "It's a part of his job." Dev frowned. He'd have to grab something else to eat.
    "Being a good listener is what makes him a great friend," Mike said. He stopped talking until Devin looked at him again. "I'm sorry about this whole thing. I didn't expect him to tell you what we'd talked about. I should've told you how I feel about it myself."
    "You have nothing to be sorry about. You didn't do anything wrong. I was crazy for expecting you to change one day. I know it doesn't happen like that, but I hoped."
    Michael lifted one shoulder in a shrug. "I guess I led you on without meaning to."
    "You didn't do anything," Dev said again. He smiled, but the action was forced. This was harder than he'd expected it to be. "Whatever fantasies I had about you were my own."
    "That kiss—"
    "That kiss happened right after I came out to you. We were so much alike back then, you probably wanted to know if our raging hormones were raging in the same direction." Devin reached across the table and covered Michael's hand with his. "I felt so close to you back then, it was like a light went on in my head when I thought of being with you that way. I knew I'd never look at girls the way all our other friends did, not if I compared what I thought of them to how I thought of you. Still do, sometimes."
    Mike nodded. "Still, I'm sorry if I took whatever closeness you felt and made you think I felt... more. I've always cared about you and I always will."
    "But you'll never fall in love with me."
    "No."
    "How about in bed?"
    Mike chuckled. "Nope."
    "The sofa's pretty comfortable."
    With Mike's full out laugh, the tightness around Devin's stomach eased. It would be all right. In spite of his stubborn refusal to acknowledge the truth all these years, he wasn't in danger of losing Mike's friendship— the one constant he'd had since surprising his family when he'd come out his junior year of high school. Throughout all the ensuing drama, Michael's support never wavered, not even when he'd had to put up with his mopey best friend living in his house after Dev's parents washed their hands of him. When a plane crash took Mike's parents five years later, Dev returned the support without hesitation. There was never a question of them being each other's chosen family, so much so that Michael's parents had willed their home to both boys. It was gratifying to know that, no matter how misguided his feelings, there was no chance Mike would ever throw him away. He'd said it before, when they were kids, but this moment cemented their connection in Devin's mind. He hoped he never had to question the strength of their bond again.
    "So, tell me. Are you avoiding Sammy for the same reason you were avoiding me?"
    "Wait, what?" Devin didn't know why he was surprised. Of course they were still talking about him. Devin blinked hard and then turned away from Mike. He opened a cabinet and searched for the meal