Freedom (The F-Word #5) - E. Davies Page 0,66

them, and the crystal-clear orbs of his eyes. All he wanted now was to embrace that color and let it light up his world.

To slip out of his own world and into Henry’s—forever.

“Oh, wow,” Henry said, a grin stretching across his face. “Where did that come from? The road trip was that great, huh?”

Jaden laughed sheepishly. “I—oh, God. My mouth did a thing without permission,” Jaden mumbled, covering his face with one hand while gripping Cece’s leash with the other. “I didn’t mean to lead with that. But I’m serious about you. And I want to show you that I’m serious. And I have to move out soon, and I… oh my God, why can’t I put these words together?”

“Phew,” Henry breathed out. “Breathe, Jaden. You’re pushing yourself a lot right now. Let’s just walk for a minute, huh? Tell me any time you want to stop.”

So Jaden took his time, slowly walking with Henry, staring down at the trail. Maybe that was the key: keep watching his own feet, or Cece, or Henry. Nothing else.

His head still spun and his words still didn’t want to come out right, but putting one foot in front of the other helped. Vaguely aware they were walking up a gradual hill, he switched off everything else and just… existed.

“Okay,” Jaden finally murmured when they reached the top. He drew to a halt, letting go of Henry’s hand so he could rub his palms dry on his shorts. A quick glance back at the parking lot showed they’d only covered a couple hundred feet.

Damn it. It had felt like a mile.

Yet it felt like Jaden’s brain had unclenched, his chest a little less tight.

“Okay?” Henry echoed, stopping in front of him and stepping close. “There’s a bench right here. Let’s sit.”

“Oh, good.” Jaden’s laugh of relief was shakier than he’d meant it to be. “Perfect. Sit, Cece. Lie down. Wait.”

Henry sat on the bench and drew Jaden down next to him. He took both his hands, squeezing lightly. “Okay. You’re doing amazing. I didn’t expect you to do this today, so soon after the trip. Are you okay?”

Jaden slid close, until he was pressed against Henry’s side with Henry’s arm around his shoulder. “Not sure what okay is anymore,” he murmured.

What the hell had he been thinking? They could have met for a drive or anything—literally anything else. But no, Jaden had gotten cocky. Wanted to prove himself, all over again.

One of these days, Henry would get sick and tired of it.

But he didn’t. Instead, Henry just opened his arm in an invitation to slide even closer. “Come here,” he murmured. “Nobody else is around. I’ll keep an eye out.”

Jaden let out a sigh of relief and turned his head to rest his forehead on Henry’s shoulder. With Henry shielding him from view of the parking lot, his arm sheltering him from the whole damn world out there, he could focus.

“So, um. Moving in.” Jaden licked his lips. “Basically, my landlord found out about Cece, and they don’t care about the law, they’re treating her like a pet. I don’t want to fight them over it.”

Henry hissed quietly, his grip on Jaden tightening. “Fuckers,” he muttered darkly. “Why didn’t you tell me? Your text just sounded like you wanted to hang out! I don’t want you to feel like you can’t come to me.”

“I…” Jaden trailed off, his mouth going dry. “I didn’t want you to think I was just using you because I’m too weak to deal with my own life decisions.”

Henry stared at him. “What? Babe, no. I… I think you’re one of the strongest people I know. You’ve worked so fucking hard on yourself these last few years, before I even met you.”

Jaden groaned. “But I was still… so afraid. So when you texted back, I didn’t want to push it. I even thought maybe you were just trying to pull back from me.”

“Never.” Henry’s voice was strong and decisive. “I never would, Jaden. You have to trust me on that. When I’m wrapped up in my own head, it’s not your fault.”

Jaden let out a deep breath and rested his forehead on Henry’s shoulder. “So, I was going to ask you for help finding a new place and moving in, and then I just…”

No, don’t tell him. Not yet. It’s too soon, isn’t it? Jaden thought, but there was no stopping the truth.

“I love being around you. I’m tired of being lonely and… alone. When you’re around, it’s like everything