Perfect Alignment (Thorne and Dash 3)

“You did not ruin tonight,” Marc said.

Riley sighed. “I know, but…”

“You left your phone, and Thorne acted like an asshole. That’s hardly the same.”

Riley’s phone rang, making him jump. “Oh God. It’s Thorne.”

All three men stared at the phone until it quit ringing.

“You should talk to him,” Marc said.

But Darius shook his head. “No, he should let him stew. Thorne deserves it.”

Marc looked pointedly at Darius.

“Thorne needs to learn to appreciate what he’s got.”

Marc nodded. “Okay, I can’t argue with that.”

A voice-mail alert sounded, drawing their attention back to the phone.

“Listen to it after we’re on our way,” Marc said. “We’ve still got to stop by my place so I can pack, and I want to get there before it gets much later.” He looked at Darius. “Why are you still working?”

“Work’s got to get done.”

“I thought you went looking for tricks on Friday nights.”

Darius shrugged. “Sometimes that gets old.”

“Really?” Marc asked.

“Yeah, so I go out on Saturday instead.”

Marc made a disgusted sound. Was he exasperated or hurt? Riley wasn’t sure.

“I can’t be too predictable.” Darius’s expression didn’t match the tone of his words. His face said he was longing for something he couldn’t find.

He wanted Marc, and if Riley had more energy, he would try to do something about it.

CHAPTER TWELVE

“So what are you going to do now?” Kathryn asked.

Thorne frowned. “Get drunk? Pass out?”

“Why don’t we get out of town?”

Thorne scoffed. “I don’t think this is the time for a vacation.”

“You’re not going to do anything but brood if you stay home.”

“Fuck, I told Riley to leave.” Why had he done that?

“Leave as in move out?”

Thorne winced. “I wasn’t specific.”

“Oh, Thorne.” Kathryn sounded so disappointed. “You could call and apologize.”

“He won’t talk to me.”

“He might need time to cool off, but an apology message would be there when he’s ready to listen.”

Thorne considered that. “I don’t know what to say.”

“Do you really think that boy cheated on you, that when you agreed to be exclusive he thought that didn’t include Marc?”

Thorne took a deep breath. “No.”

“Then fucking call him.”

Thorne tapped his phone to initiate the call. As he’d expected, Riley didn’t answer. He hadn’t even responded to texts that day; why would he talk to Thorne now? The voice-mail greeting played. When it finished, Thorne said, “I’m sorry. I love you. Call me when you’re ready.”

Kathryn hugged him. “That was perfect.”

“Really?”

“Yes. Now let’s see about getting out of here.”

Kathryn’s phone chimed. She glanced at the text and then slipped it back in her purse.

“Anything wrong?”

She shook her head. “No, just a friend.”

“Do you usually get texts this late?”

“Thorne, it’s only 9:30.”

“Really?” He glanced at the clock. “It feels like two a.m. at least.”

“You’ve been through a lot today.”

He could barely remember the flight home, but that had only been about six hours ago. “I need to get some things from my apartment if we’re going to the lake.”

“Okay, we’ll drive there after I pack.”

Thorne dropped his head into his hands and squeezed his eyes shut. How could he face Riley?

“He’s not there. He left with Marc.” Had she read his mind?

“How do you know?”

“That was Marc who texted me.”

“You could’ve told me that.”

“I didn’t want to get into it if I didn’t have to.”

“You called Marc earlier when you left the room, didn’t you?” Thorne asked.

“Yes, I needed to know they were okay.”

Thorne imagined them together and got angry all over again. “Oh, I’m sure they’re fine.”

“No, they’re not. Marc wants to pound you into the ground, and I’ve half a mind to let him. Riley is simply devastated.”

The anger vanished. Of course Riley had gone with Marc; Thorne had fucking told him to leave. He’d screwed up everything.

***

Thorne rode the elevator to his apartment for the second time that night. This time he was also in a hurry, but it was because he wanted to get in and out of there as quickly as possible. The thought of walking in and seeing the things Riley and Marc had probably left in the bedroom made him nauseous.

“Do you want me to help?” Kathryn asked.

“No!”

Kathryn took a step back.

“I’m sorry. I just need to do this alone. I probably should’ve had you wait in the lobby.”

“I’ll stay on the couch. It’s fine.”

Thorne rolled the suitcase he’d left in the entryway into the bedroom and tried to stay focused on what he needed. He couldn’t help noticing that the scarf Riley had been wrapping around Marc lay on the end of the bed. After tossing it onto the floor, he dumped out the contents of his suitcase. Then he shoved his shaving kit back in and added casual clothes and a few pairs of swim trunks.

What else did he need? Not much that he couldn’t just buy there. How long was he staying? A few nights? Forever? Fuck.

Maybe, if he ever forgave Thorne, Riley would come join him.