Pretenders (Firsts and Forever 3)

“You’ll still be friends though, even if you stop being roommates,” River pointed out.

“I know. Wes and I have actually been looking online at houses for sale, now that he’s decided to put down roots here in San Francisco. I told Jasper we wanted to find a place with an apartment for him, but he told me to go live my life, and not to worry about him. It’s hard, though. He’s like a brother to me.”

“House hunting together is a pretty serious step,” River said. “Not to, like, be a downer, but are you sure you guys aren’t rushing things?”

“I’m sure. It’s just so right with Wes. I don’t know another way to describe it. He’s just my person, and I’m his.” I stretched up on my toes and scanned the crowd, and then I smiled when I spotted my boyfriend. He was sitting near the fire pit, listening patiently to a little old lady who was going on and on about something, probably her feet.

River turned his gaze to his husband and leaned into Cole as he murmured, “Yeah. I get that.”

“Okay,” Cole said, as he slipped his hand into River’s. “I’m officially not worried about you anymore, Ash. I thought maybe things were happening too fast, but there’s no such thing when you truly love someone.”

Just then, Wes turned his head and searched the crowd. When we made eye contact, his face lit in a gorgeous smile, and I murmured, “Exactly.”

Sometime later, after Wes freed himself from the bunion conversation and I introduced him to a lot more people, I took his hand and told him, “I want to show you something.”

Then I led him away from the crowd. The yard was huge by San Francisco standards, since Nana’s house sat on a double lot. At the far end of it, in the branches of a tree that was probably older than the neighborhood, was a beautiful little treehouse.

We climbed up the ladder, and then I closed the hatch door behind us and asked, “What do you think?”

“This is fantastic.”

The interior was heaped with jewel-toned pillows atop padded cushions. At some point in its long history, it had evolved into a den for grownups, rather than a playhouse for kids. Wes and I settled in and wrapped our arms around each other as I said, “Nana and her parties can be a lot, so I thought my introverted boyfriend could use a little downtime.”

He smiled at me. “You’re right. She’s fantastic though, and so are the rest of your friends.”

“So, you approve of your new family?”

“Yes, I do. I’d always dreamed of a family like this.”

“Ninety percent gay?”

He chuckled at that. “No. Well, yes. But what I meant is that everyone is so open and welcoming. With my family, I’m always walking on eggshells. Here I can just…be.”

I brushed his dark hair back from the frame of his glasses. “You haven’t said much about your mother’s call earlier today.”

“I guess I’m still processing it, but she and I have reached a truce of sorts. We’ll never be close. I know that. But we can be cordial.” He thought about it for a few moments, then said, “I think I’ve finally accepted the fact that this is just who she is, and nothing I say or do will ever get through to her. A lot of peace came with that realization. I used to try so hard to get her to understand me, or to see things from my perspective, and it was exhausting. But I’m done with that now.”

“That sounds like progress.”

“It is,” he said. “Thanks for helping me get there.”

“Me? I didn’t do anything.”

“Yes, you did. You helped by showing me what unconditional love feels like, and by letting me know I’ll always have someone in my corner.”

I nodded. “Yup. Always.”

“Plus, it’s easier to let go of the past when there’s a bright future to look forward to.”

“Aw. That’s actually amazing.”

“I think so, too.”

I leaned in and kissed him, reveling in the sweetness of his mouth, the feeling of his hands on my body as he pulled me closer, and the sigh of contentment that slipped from him, which made me smile against his lips.

The sounds of music and laughter and distant conversation fell away first. Then the rest of the world went with it, until there was just Wes and me and that magical little tree house. I tugged at his pink polo shirt because I needed to feel his skin, and he stripped it off, then did the same with my white tank top.

So much of my life had been spent searching. I hadn’t even been aware of it until I found Wes. He was the answer to a question unasked, but always pushing at the back of my mind—where will I end up, and where do I belong?