close second of my favorite book of yours, though. I’m not much of a romance guy, but hell, I was rooting for Thomas and Alex, and I bawled like a baby when Thomas was set free and moved on to the afterlife.”
I laughed at the stunned expression on my best friend’s face. Poor Ben. No matter how many times he’d met a diehard reader, he still looked like a deer caught in headlights for a moment.
“Thank you for all of your support,” Ben said, as a warm smile crossed his face. “You couldn’t have met me at a better time. I needed to hear that.”
“Not suffering from Imposter’s Syndrome again, are you?” I asked, frowning.
Ben went through phases where he thought he was a shit writer and that he’d never finish another book.
“Always,” Ben answered. “Theo told me—” He snapped his mouth shut as his eyes widened a fraction, and he cleared his throat. “What are you guys up to this evening?”
“We were thinking about going to Redwood Manor,” Taylor answered, still with an excited fanboy smile on his lips. He nudged me. “But I think Carter here is a little scared, so we might do something else.”
Ben narrowed his eyes at me. Yeah, he knew I wasn’t scared. I had blabbed to him about Z a million times over the past week.
“What about you?” I asked.
“I finished writing for the day and thought I’d treat myself.” He motioned to the pastries. If I knew Ben, there was at least one blueberry flavored pastry inside that bag.
“Can I ask what you’re working on right now?” Taylor said in a rush. “Is it a continual of Ellwood? Will Alex ever see Thomas again?”
“I have no plans at the moment to continue their story,” Ben answered. “Though, it’d be nice for them to meet again someday. What I’m working on currently is… a secret.” He stepped aside as a couple approached the door to the coffeehouse.
“I’m sure it’s awesome, whatever it is,” Taylor said. “I don’t wanna take up any more of your time. Thanks for talking to me. I still can’t believe you’re right here in front of me.”
“I’m just a regular guy, I promise.” Ben glanced between the two of us before adding, “You two should come over for drinks sometime. It’d give me an excuse to clean the house and look somewhat presentable.”
“You look fine to me,” Taylor said, before gently biting his bottom lip. He then looked shock, as if he hadn’t intended to say that out loud.
I gaped at him.
In the two months since Taylor’s party, we’d hung out several times, and not once had I seen him flirt with a girl. He hadn’t talked about any that he was seeing either. Maybe it didn’t mean anything… or maybe it did. It was hard to deny that he’d totally just given Ben the up-down, though.
Ben, on the other hand, was oblivious. He looked down at his clothes and shrugged. “Well, if you boys will excuse me, I need to get home. Try not to get into too much trouble tonight.” He spoke directly to me on that last part.
“Like I’d ever do that,” I said in mock innocence. “I’m an angel.”
“Sure,” Ben said, his laugh deep and pleasing to the ears. “An angel with snake-eye contacts and a knack for sneaking around places he shouldn’t be.”
I grinned as he turned and walked toward the parking lot.
Taylor puffed out a breath and scratched the back of his head. “Man, I’m freaking the hell out. Talking to him was one of the best experiences of my life.”
I snorted. “You must not know what great sex is, then, if that made your top best moments.”
“Eh, sex gets old after a while,” he said, before opening the door to the coffeehouse and going inside. I followed behind him. “I mean, when I was in high school, I did most of my thinking with my dick. Being popular helped get me laid whenever I wanted. But as I’ve grown up a little, I’ve realized there’s more to life than that. I prefer deeper relationships and try not to waste time with the shallow ones.”
My respect for him had just soared even higher. No wonder I liked hanging around him.
“I know what you mean,” I said, as we stood in line to order. “I used to be the same way with sex.”
“And now?”
“I want something more meaningful,” I responded. I felt like I’d found it too—even if Z still tried to make me