Page 80 of Rookie Moves

Her lips twitch in a tiny smile before her expression turns serious again.

“Secondly… Be gentle with him,” she says barely above a whisper. “I don’t know everything, but I do know that you two have something special going on. I saw it the night of the party and in the way you looked at him. I get the vibe you’re a good guy, but that also means you have the ability to hurt him, and I don’t want that to happen. Because if it does, I will have to find you, Tyler Beckmann, and I will chop off your toes and make them into a necklace, and I’ll use beads of your least favorite color to decorate it.”

My eyes widen. Laughter bubbles in my throat, but I force it down. She narrows her eyes as the corners of my lips twitch, a smile threatening to appear.

“Uhh…” I stammer and run a hand through my hair. “I can assure you I don’t want to hurt him.”

“Good. I’m glad we’ve cleared that one up,” she states with a clap of her hands, then reaches around me to knock on Colby’s door. “I’m leaving now, boo, and you’ve got a visitor!”

She picks up her backpack from the floor and steps around me as Colby opens his door. His eyes light up the second he sees me.

“I was starting to think you got lost,” he says to me with a light chuckle, then looks at Stassie. “See you in the morning, Stas.”

She says her goodbye and gives me one final stern look before heading down the stairs. I step into his room, closing the door behind me, and let out a nervous laugh. “I didn’t get lost, but I did just have my toes threatened by your buddy.”

Colby tips his head back and laughs. “Oh, yeah, she has some wild ideas when it comes to threats. She’s harmless though.”

I glance over my shoulder to the closed door, then return my attention to him. “I don’t know, she sounded pretty serious. And something about beads? I don’t think I have a least favorite color.”

His laughter hits me in the chest, warm and comforting.

Kicking off my shoes, I let out a low whistle at how tidy his room is. There’s no clothes spilling from his closet or textbooks thrown over the floor. Have we traded places?

“Damn, were you hijacked by aliens or something?”

Smiling, he rolls his eyes and grabs two bottles of water from his mini fridge. He puts them down on his bedside table and flops onto the bed.

“No, jackass, I did it ’cause you were coming over.”

“You tidied up so I wouldn’t trip over your boxer briefs on my way to take a leak in the middle of the night?” I tease, placing a hand over my heart. “Wow, I’m honored.”

“Dick,” he laughs, throwing a pillow and hitting me on the side of the head.

I laugh too, all my tension from earlier disappearing completely. I place my guitar down, resting it against his desk, then join him on the bed. He opens his arms, and I fall into him, nuzzling my face into his neck. His hands smooth over the expanse of my back, and then he tangles the fingers of one hand into my hair.

The smell of him, his warmth, how good he feels against me, all of it centers me, like nothing else matters except for this.

“I think Liam’s clocking on to us,” I murmur against his skin.

Colby tenses beneath me, and I run my hand up his side to his neck, cradling his jaw in my palm.

“He doesn’t know anything, but he thinks I have a crush on you and it’s one-sided, so he thinks you’re going to end up hurting me.”

I hear him swallow thickly. His words come out like they’re being dragged over broken glass.

“You didn’t…” He trails off.

“Tell him? Of course not.” I lift my head to look down at him. “When I said I’d take your secret to the grave, I meant it. No matter what happens between us, Colbs, I will never break your trust.”

He sighs, long and heavy. “I will come out one day, just… not yet. I don’t want to end up suffocating under the pressure. I know I won’t be able to breathe without someone clawing for an insight into my personal life until I break.”

“I get it. You don’t have to explain yourself to me.”

“I want to.” Those hazel eyes flick up to mine, and my heart lurches at the apprehension shining in them. “I don’t want to hide all the time, but I’m scared, Tyler. I’m so fucking afraid of letting people see me.”

My heart fractures in my chest. It pains me to know he’s scared because it goes beyond people finding out about his sexuality. He’s been scared since the spotlight was shone on him at such a young age and altered his life.

Knowing there are no words I can say that will make things better, I lean down and press my mouth to his. The kiss is slow and tender. He wraps his arms around me, fingers threading into my hair. It’s getting longer now, something I’m sure my dad is going to hate the moment he sees me, but knowing Colby loves it so much has me wanting to keep it.