Oliver's Online (11 page)
When Lane came out, Oliver noted that his shirt was in no better condition. He cringed as a warm heat came over his face. Why didn’t they ever show this part of the scenario in those porno flicks?
“What are we going to do about our shirts?” Oliver asked as he buried his face in his hands.
“I always keep an extra dress shirt for me here,” Lane replied.
“Well, that helps you, but what about me?”
Lane went to a closet and rustled through some boxes, before pulling out a t-shirt and tossing it to Oliver. “Here, you can wear this. I got them for promotional events.”
Oliver unrolled the shirt, which read
I’m a Horney Boy!
“Gee, thanks.”
Lane cocked a brow. “Well, you are.”
“Yeah, but now the whole world is going to know it.”
“Like they don’t already with the way you were screaming earlier,” Lane teased.
Oliver tried hard to think of a witty comeback to that one but came up short. “Okay, you have a point there.”
He took off his soiled shirt and put on the fresh one, while Lane got changed as well. Then it was time to go out and face the people in the outer office. Oliver had to give them credit, none of them acted like they had heard a peep when he knew they had to have overheard at least a little bit of his and Lane’s encounter.
“They’re being awful polite,” Oliver whispered.
“No, they just want to keep their jobs,” Lane replied.
They went out to Lane’s car and drove back to Oliver’s apartment. The driveway was full, showing that everybody was home. Even Vance’s car was there. Which really wasn’t surprising since it was Friday, and Vance and Becca usually came over to hang out on weekends.
Oliver had almost forgotten the t-shirt he had on until they walked inside. Every gaze honed in on him, there was a long pause, and then they all broke out into laughter. Oliver could feel himself blushing from head to toe.
“It’s not that funny,” he said.
“Oh, but it is,” Becca replied as she wiped away tears from her eyes.
“What happened to your other shirt?” Patrick asked.
When Oliver ducked his head and didn’t say anything, the laughter just grew louder.
“I spilled something on it, okay,” he said.
“And what was that?” Becca inquired.
“It wasn’t something sticky, was it?” Vance added.
“You guys all suck,” Oliver said.
Patrick came up and gave him a hug. “You know we only tease you because we love you.”
“Yeah, I would hate to see how you treated somebody you didn’t like,” Oliver said as he gave Patrick a playful tap on the shoulder.
“So, what are we doing tonight? Other than torturing poor Oliver,” Lane asked as he grabbed Oliver and pulled him to his chest.
“I don’t know yet, but we have to see what’s up with Ronnie and his cousin,” Patrick said.
“Where are they?” Oliver looked around the small apartment, but didn’t see any sign of them.
“They’ve been in Ronnie’s room for the past two hours,” Patrick informed them with a grim frown. “You should have seen how shaken up the poor kid was when he got here. His parents really worked a number on him.”
“
Kid?
How old is he?” Oliver asked.
“Twenty. He just seems younger because he’s so beaten down emotionally right now. You’ll understand what I mean when you see him. I feel so bad for him.” Patrick shook his head.
“I just wanted to wrap him up in a great big hug,” Becca said, her bottom lip trembling. “He looks like he’s afraid of his own shadow.”
“Then it seems like Ronnie did the right thing by bringing him here,” Vance said. “If anybody can bring him out of his shell, it’s you guys.”
“I hope you’re right. He just seems so broken,” Patrick said.
Vance pulled Patrick into his arms and kissed him. “I’m positive of it. You’re good with people, baby. I know you can help him. I have faith in you.”
Oliver snuggled deeper into Lane’s embrace, happy to be part of a couple for once instead of being on the outside looking in. Better yet, it was with somebody that he really loved. Who could ask for more?
The door to Ronnie’s room opened and Ronnie came out. With him was a thin…well, kid, that had raven hair that hung in his face, almost hiding the most beautiful set of blue eyes that Oliver had ever seen. His skin was pale and his bottom lip was raw, as if he had been biting it too much. He wore a pair of older jeans that had holes in the knees and a worn, faded t-shirt.
“Hey everybody, this is my cousin Niles,” Ronnie said.
They all made their introductions and when it came time for Oliver, he said, “Hi, my name is Oliver and this is my boyfriend, Lane.”
The words rolled so easily off of Oliver’s tongue. It made him realize that it was true; Lane was his and he didn’t have to feel guilty about it. His time to move on had come. Life was good and Oliver couldn’t be happier. He could almost feel Dave smiling down on him and telling him it was about damn time.
About the Authors
Stephani Hecht is a happily married mother of two. Born and raised in Michigan, she loves all things about the state, from the frigid winters to the Detroit Red Wings hockey team. Go Wings! You can usually find her snuggled up to her laptop, creating her next book.
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Amber is a happily married mother of two boys. She lives in Seattle, Washington where she dreamily sits looking out the window while she claims to be working on her latest book.
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or check out her latest releases at http://amberkell.com
