Page 87 of Bridget & Gabe Are Not Okay

When they reached the relative quiet of the spiral staircase, Gabriel said, “Arthur…” and Arthur turned around and kissed him, pressing him to the stone wall, smiling into his mouth.

Gabriel broke away to say, “We’re in a stairwell,” and Arthur laughed, took him by the hand again and practically bounded up the stairs with Gabriel in tow. They were waylaid again next to a tapestry, and a third time in the hallway directly outside Arthur’s room, and by the time they’d made it past the door, Arthur was kissing him with both hands cradling hisjaw, pushing him gently backward into the room, seemingly unwilling to break contact at all.

When the backs of Gabriel’s knees hit the foot of Arthur’s bed, he fell onto it, and Arthur fell with him, the two of them briefly separated by the momentum.

“Is this… a yes?” Gabriel said, winded, and Arthur laughed again.

“What if it were the world’s most confusing no?”

“Don’t joke,” Gabriel pleaded, moving away just a fraction when Arthur went to kiss him again. “I need to know for certain.”

Arthur was on his side, the dark waves of his hair swept over onto one shoulder, his gaze so intent that Gabriel wanted to look away. He didn’t.

“You love me?” Arthur asked quietly, reaching out to touch the buttons of Gabriel’s jacket.

“I love you,” Gabriel said. “I— I’m going to do it better, this time.”

“Then it’s a yes,” said Arthur. “I always liked this jacket.”

Gabriel laughed, weak with relief. “I know.”

“Are you telling me you woreclothesas part of your plan to woo me?” Arthur said, smacking his hand flat over the button he’d just been admiring. “You tried to entrap me withfashion? Who even told you what a jacket is?”

“I know what a jacket is,” Gabriel mumbled, and Arthur raised his eyebrows.

“Could have fooled me,” he said. “Can I take it off?”

“My jacket?”

“Mmm.”

Gabriel nodded, so Arthur hauled himself a little more upright, leaned over him, and started to undo the buttons. Gabriel’s heart was suddenly pounding stupidly in his mouth.

When he reached the top and the last button slipped free,Arthur kissed him so gently, and Gabriel felt movement and realized Arthur was unbuttoning his own jacket too. Then they were just in their shirts and breeches, the fine linens brushing together making a sound like the sea against the shore.

“Can I tell you something?” Arthur said, his fingers tangled in the hair at the nape of Gabriel’s neck.

“Yes,” Gabriel said. “Please.”

“I know you watched me out of your window like a creep, when I was on my daily walks.”

Gabriel knew he’d gone bright red. “Um. No I didn’t. I just happened to be… looking out of the window.”

“Every day, at the same time. The time I take my walk. I can add two and two together, Gabriel. I’d never do it willingly, but I could, if pressed.”

Gabriel relented. It didn’t seem right to start things again with a lie, even if it was a small one. “How did you even know that?”

“Because I always looked up, to check that you were there.”

“What?” Gabriel was genuinely flabbergasted. “No you didn’t. I would have noticed.”

“I did it just as I turned the corner, before you’d seen me. I had a system. The system worked.” He winced. “Well, it worked in that it was a small, daily torture. Wondering why you were bothering, when you were barely speaking to me.”

“I wish I’d seen you looking. I… hoped you would.”

“And then what?”

“And then…” Gabriel sighed. “And then I would have been mortified, stopped watching for you. Or found a different window.”