Labels.
Dylan was right. They didn’t need labels. Or a title. He wanted to grow old with Dylan by his side, and saying “I do” in front of a judge wouldn’t make Alec any more committed than he already was. Neither would Dylan defining himself as gay. Or bisexual. Or any other variant Dylan refused to choose. And if Dylan spent the rest of his life with Alec, all the while refusing to be called a “partner” or a “significant other,” well, Alec would consider himself the luckiest guy on the planet.
When he stripped everything unnecessary away, all that remained was how he felt about Dylan. He was the other half of their matched set, the vital part Alec had sensed he was missing all along.
“Does Dylan love you?” she asked.
Alec’s heart twisted painfully. “I think so, yes.”
“Then what’s the problem?”
“I’m saying, I’m hoping he’ll take me back so I can spend the rest of my life with a man who’ll never agree to marriage, Mom.”
His mother’s tone sounded doubtful. “And you could be happy with that, Alec?”
Every cell in his body screamed yes, forcing Alec to clutch his phone harder just to keep from losing his grip. He’d take a lifetime of uncertainty with Dylan over a sure-thing marriage to someone else. Christ, at this point, Alec couldn’t even count on seeing Dylan again, much less fixing the problems between them.
His mother went on. “You’d be okay, ten years from now, with me still introducing him as your boyfriend?”
A small smile edged up his lips. “He might not even let you do that.”
~~~***~~~
With Tyler’s words in mind, Alec set about to do as suggested: achieve happiness. All in all, a fairly lofty goal for an unremarkable Wednesday evening.
Of course, the only way to truly achieve said condition was to win Dylan back.
With a knot of nerves in his stomach, Alec made his way up the street on his Harley. The knot grew tighter when he rounded the corner and spied the large red sign Adams’ Classic Motors.
Conventional wisdom probably stated that, since Dylan was the one who’d left, he should be the one to come to Alec. Then again, Tyler had probably thought the same thing about Memphis. And that hadn’t done Tyler any good.
So, screw conventional wisdom. Nothing about his and Dylan’s relationship had been conventional. Why start now?
Alec rumbled up the driveway, parked the motorcycle, and stepped into the dim light of the garage. Despite the gaping garage door, the building was stuffy, the air humid. A hard rock song echoed in the space, but not so loud as to be obnoxious.
When Alec caught sight of Dylan squatting next to a decrepit motorcycle, inhaling and exhaling became a bit of a chore.
Sweat clung to Dylan’s neck and dotted his T-shirt as he gripped a wrench, straining to loosen the bolt on the front tire. “Shit,” Dylan muttered.
Alec’s heart stalled in his chest, and he froze, convinced Dylan had seen him arrive.
Clearly oblivious, Dylan let out another string of curses as he leaned his weight down on the wrench. Given the amount of rust on the bike, Dylan’s goal seemed hopeless.
Alec came to a stop a few feet from the motorcycle, waiting for Dylan to sense his presence. But, with his eyes tightly closed, his face scrunched in concentration, Dylan didn’t notice. Instead, Dylan’s biceps continued to bulge as he fought the bolt.
“She looks like a fickle one,” Alec said.
The tool slipped from Dylan’s hand and landed with a clang, skittering across the concrete. From his squatting position, Dylan met Alec’s gaze, eyes wary as his hand rested on the motorcycle’s exhaust pipe. Alec couldn’t tell if the man was glad to see him, mad at the interruption, or just annoyed with the uncooperative bike in general.
“Yep,” Dylan said, his voice careful. “She’s trying my patience for sure.”
“That’s a Honda CB350.” Alec knew he sounded as nervous as he felt. “One of the bestselling motorcycles worldwide in its time.”
Dylan hiked a brow. “You got the full Wiki on every bike out there?”
Alec enjoyed the teasing a lot more when delivered with a smile. Right now he’d be happy with an easing of the tension around Dylan’s eyes.
“No. Just thought about buying one during my research phase.” Pausing, Alec decided to get down to business. “I spoke with my mother this morning.”
Dylan blinked and then retrieved the wrench, starting in on the tire again.
Alec pushed on, hoping Dylan’s attitude would improve with time. “I told her the truth. About Tyler. About you and me. About everything.”
“That’s great.”
Not quite the reaction Alec had been hoping for. A little more enthusiasm would have been preferable.
Dylan reached for the toolbox lying just to his left, exchanging one wrench for another. “At least you don’t have to keep pretending anymore.”
Alec forced himself to at least look relaxed, leaning a hip against the Harley and crossing his arms. “Unfortunately, I have a new problem.”