Page 158 of Blue Gold

“I’m his boyfriend,” Daniel said back in French, before I could introduce him.

Not caring for Jacques’s reaction, I glanced back at Daniel, stunned that those words came out of his mouth so willingly.

“Are you sure about that?” I asked, worried he’d come to regret it later when he’d thought it through.

But instead of taking back his words, Daniel leaned down and kissed me, with Jacques standing right there.

It wasn’t a short kiss, but a deep one. Pushing his tongue past my lips, he drank my moans, slowly taking his time as he explored my mouth with his. My body heated up, and I groaned, eager for more when he pulled back.

“You’ll never be a secret again, Elliot,” he said, voice so soft I could have died. “I’m ashamed I made you feel like one to begin with.”

Quickly shaking my head, I placed my hands on his chest. “No, no, if it’s you, I don’t mind⁠—”

He cut me off with another kiss that felt like a breath of life.

Closing my eyes, I submitted to it, allowing him to control and lead it with his talented tongue.

“But I do,” he whispered the words over my lips. “And you should, too, Elliot.”

The tenderness with which he looked at me, along with his touch, filled my body with love, so much love I couldn’t believe it was true.

But it is.

This amazing man loved me, just as much as I loved him. And if crossing oceans to come and find me after I’d hurt him—hurt us—didn’t stop him, nothing else would.

There were so many more things I wanted to tell him, actions I wanted to apologize for, but currently, my head was too much of a mess, and I closed my eyes, trying to catch a small break.

“We should get you back home,” Daniel said, rubbing my arms to get me warmer.

I nodded, because despite the sudden boost in energy, I knew it was just the adrenaline running through my blood.

“What about the car?” I asked.

Looking over his shoulder, Daniel then glanced back at Jacques.

“I assume this moment is rather awkward for you, but perhaps you could help me so I can finish here faster?”

To Jacques’s credit, he agreed without asking any questions, quickly moving to assist Daniel with the flat tire while I waited in the car. And for the first time in a long while, I felt like things would be… good.

49

ELLIOT

“So this is where you grew up?” Daniel asked with a smile on his face as he looked around my tiny room. Compared to how he grew up, my house was embarrassingly small.

“Yes.” I waited until he got inside the room before closing the door behind us. Giving him space to look around, I stayed with my back pressed to the door, my eyes pinned on him.

“It’s lovely,” he said, turning to look at me. “Very you.”

My cheeks turned hotter, and I looked down at his suitcase. “I’ll take it⁠—”

“It’s okay.” He stopped me with a kiss on my cheek. “You can rest and tell me where to put it away.”

Flustered, I brushed the spot he kissed me. “Anywhere you want is fine… Not that there’s much space to begin with.”

He ended up leaving it by the closet before he took another look around. There was something extremely heartwarming about watching such a tall man inside a tiny room, even more so when it was him. And when he turned and caught me staring, I immediately looked away.

“You probably want to take a shower before dinner, right? I should get you some towels⁠—”