Page 51 of Wear It Like a Crown

“You call him Princeling and little prince,” Nate said, matter-of-fact and thoroughly unperturbed by the warning Leo had tucked into his tone. “And maybe you meant to mock him at first, but now, you just sound fond. You know, I think Joshua would go for you.”

Leo inhaled slowly, carefully. “So this is what we’ve come to now? A pair of gossiping teenagers chatting about boys we like?” Much more quietly, he added, “But really, it’s not an option.”

“Because of your past.” It wasn’t a question. Leo answered anyway.

“I couldn’t—yeah. I could never be there with him, you know? Not really. He wants something steady, like a real boyfriend. I can’t be that.” The space behind his lids was of a deep, velvety black, and he let it soothe his thoughts, felt them slow down to a crawl.I couldn’t be what he wants, needs. What he deserves.

“Leo—” Nate began, and Leo interrupted before this could deviate into a conversation he wasn’t ready for, not yet. Maybe not for a long time.

“Let’s just sleep,” he said.

Three seconds trickled past, then Nate exhaled around a yawn. “Sleep,” he agreed.

In an unspoken show of gratitude, Leo gave Nate’s shoulder a quick squeeze before he turned to face away, tucking the pillow under his shoulder. He fell asleep to the rhythm of Nate’s deep, even breaths, to distant images of empty sidewalks and headlights streaking past, of tangling his hands in dark hair and squeezing his eyes shut, head tipped back for a kiss that never came.

* * *

Joshua’s nose tickled. There was, like, hair? In his mouth? And God, what, it couldn’t be later than seven, but they’d forgotten to close the curtains last night, so it was too bright, and it was too warm, and also,also, there washairin hismouth. Sharp, spicy cologne. Mo.

Joshua shuffled back only to bump into Tristan, who made a disgruntled noise and flapped his arm without waking. Astonishingly, he managed to hit Joshua square in the jaw. Cheers.

Rubbing at the spot, Joshua slid out of bed and stood at the foot for a few seconds, trying to blink the haze from his brain. A glass of milk, yeah. Then maybe catch another couple of hours of sleep because it was—ugh, really? Just past six? Too early, yeah.

It promised to be a warm morning. He didn’t bother putting on a T-shirt when he left his bedroom, taking care to be quiet so he wouldn’t wake Leo and Nate. Remembering why they’d stayed the night prompted the thought that Joshua would have to go through another round of interview preparations today. He’d sucked yesterday; there was no way around it. If he didn’t gain a sudden burst of inspiration…

God, how was he supposed to pull this off? Could he?

He found the kitchen empty and poured himself a glass of milk before he stepped out onto the terrace—and spotted Leo perched on the sofa bed, sipping from a cup of tea as he stared at the large treeshading the house. He jolted at Joshua’s approach, then stilled, his slow gaze dragging down Joshua’s body and back up. Was he—he was checking Joshua out. Wasn’t he?

Lashes, Joshua thought, a little nonsensically.Lashes, cheekbones, blue blue eyes. Fuck, Leo was gorgeous, all sharp angles and soft curves, a synthesis of contradictions. Did that even make sense? Joshua didn’t know. There were a lot of things he didn’t know, and as if to illustrate, Leo snatched his attention away and pressed his lips together. Irritation was written into the stiff set of his shoulders, and Joshua couldn’t tell who was the target—Joshua, Leo himself, Monday mornings, or the world in general?

Leo’s voice was quiet and airy, blending in with the serenity of the early hour, with a city only just beginning to wake. “Morning. I didn’t think anyone else would be awake for at least another couple of hours.”

“Me neither.” Joshua approached carefully and settled on the very edge of the mattress. “Sorry if I startled you.”

“You didn’t. Also,” Leo snorted, “it’s your bloody flat, mate. Hope it’s okay I helped myself to some tea.”

“You know it is.” Sliding fully onto the sofa bed, Joshua took a sip of milk and glanced at Leo’s profile, its precise cut, the way his unstyled hair swooped down over his ear, a little tangled from sleep. He was bundled up in Joshua’s T-shirt, its hem falling well below the waistband of Leo’s boxer shorts. The way he was sitting, reclined against the wall of the building with his knees pulled up to his chest, drew attention to the thick muscles in his thighs. Joshua wanted to smooth the palm of his hand down Leo’s spine as he drew him into a kiss, Leo falling into it without hesitation.

He might.

Joshua wrestled his gaze away. He was sharply aware that he was wearing only a clinging pair of boxer briefs, and while he wasn’t shy about his body, he was growing chilly with the breeze that stirred the leaves of the tree. Grabbing a crumpled afghan off the floor, he wrapped it around his chest, leaving only his shoulders bare.

“Couldn’t sleep?” he asked, softly so as not to disturb the tranquillity that surrounded them.

“Not particularly used to sharing my sleeping space. Got some things on my mind as well.”

“Anything in particular?” Joshua strove to make it sound unobtrusive, an invitation rather than a request.

Over the rim of the cup, Leo gave him a long look. His lashes trembled when he took a sip, throat moving as he swallowed. When he spoke, his words were as translucent as the steam rising from the tea. “Family things, mainly. I had a look at your books—was a little amused by picturing your mum reading youRonia, the Robber’s Daughteras a bedtime story.”

“Hey, Ronia’s the daughter of the chief, so technically, it’s about a ruler’s child. I consider it perfectly appropriate.” Grinning, Joshua tugged the slipping afghan back up. “And my mum and Emmy took turns, actually. At least for the easier books, the ones Emma could already read.”

Again, Leo was silent for a moment. His smile was soft around the edges, distinctly wistful. “That’s a nice thought, you know?”

This was the point when Joshua had come to expect that Leo would close off. Right now, with the day still hazy and gentle around them, Joshua wondered whether just this once, it would be different. He kept his tone light. “Did you not get bedtime stories as a kid?”

Leo’s sharp look conveyed that he was perfectly aware of what Joshua was doing. Joshua countered it with an innocent smile, hoping it would be rendered even more harmless by how he probably sported a milk moustache. His efforts earned him a snort from Leo.