For so long, Chris had wanted to tell Matt what he contributed. Not to brag, but to…hell, he didn’t know. Maybe to validate his worth. Never before had it mattered enough for him to care what anyone thought.
But with Matt, he cared. A lot. Even though he’d fought it, from the very beginning Matt had been different. He glanced back again, and now the women stood with the men, leaning on them, held close.
And damn it, he could almost feel their collective affection.
“This is ridiculous,” he grumbled as he mimicked Dare’s stance, fists on his hips, feet braced apart.
“They value you and love you.” Matt drew in a deep breath, looked at Chris’s mouth, then back to his eyes. “Not as much as I do, but—”
Taking that like a sucker punch, Chris pulled back. “What?”
They stood at a similar height, eye to eye, and Matt moved closer still. He obviously didn’t care that everyone watched.
Hell, he still looked happy.
“I have something for you.” Matt reached into his pocket and pulled out…dog tags. “They’re personalized.”
Cautiously, Chris accepted the chain from Matt. Running his thumb over each tag, he read the inscribed names: Chris on one, Matt on the other.
“They’re perfect for you, right? I’d thought about getting them before, but I wasn’t sure…”
“Yes,” Chris agreed, admiring the satin stainless steel, the engravings. “They’re perfect.”
“I picked them up on my way over.” Taking the chain from him, again smiling, Matt hung it around Chris’s neck. “I love you.”
Chris eyed him, but something tight unfurled inside him, relaxing, going easy and warm. “Since when?”
“Since…always.”
He had to point out the obvious. “You thought I was an errand boy.”
“And I loved you even then.” Before Chris could reply, Matt added, “But…it didn’t make sense to me. I knew you were more important than that. Smarter than that, more capable. I knew you could do or be anything you wanted.”
Heat crawled up Chris’s neck. What the hell? He hadn’t blushed since he was in middle school. “You’re so full of it,” he blustered, but he liked hearing it all the same.
Matt beamed at him. “Your friends have accepted me.”
“Why wouldn’t they?” Chris rubbed the back of his neck, glanced back again, and this time he saw everyone with sappy smiles on their mugs. He had to laugh. “Stop staring already! I feel like a spectacle.”
Arizona swaggered forward. “Are we keeping him, Chris? ’Cause I really want to keep him.”
Matt laughed, too, but there was uncertainty in the way he said, “See? They want me.”
Chris looked at his small house, a house he loved, a place that truly felt like home…and yet sometimes felt incomplete. He looked back at Matt, and yeah, he knew what was missing in his life, had known for a while. “I want you, too.”
Matt’s eyes flared. “I knew it.”
Laughing again, Chris peeled off his shirt. “You did, huh?”
“Yes, because I know you. I sensed that I wasn’t in this alone.”
“You aren’t.” After dropping his shirt, Chris lifted one foot to remove a sneaker, then the other. “You’ll live here with me?”
Matt inhaled so sharply he damn near choked himself. Looking up at the others, he nodded fast and held up two thumbs. Chris took in their reactions with a shake of his head.
Molly went teary-eyed. Dare, Spencer and Trace grinned. Arizona and Priss whooped.
They were so nuts. And special.
They were family.
Grabbing Matt by the front of his waistband, Chris stuck a hand in his pocket and, laughing at the scandalized way Matt swatted at him, pulled out his wallet and cell phone. He dropped them down with his shoes.
Next, he pulled Matt’s shirt off over his head.
“Chris!” Matt looked around as if he thought Chris planned to strip him right there on the dock, with an enthusiastic and pleased audience watching. “What are you doing?”
“This.” Chris took his shoulders, kissed him hard and deep—and at the same time propelled them both off the end of the dock.
The shock of the cold water didn’t bother Chris, but Matt emerged sputtering and cursing.
Determined, feeling a little of that delirium himself, Chris pulled Matt under the dock. “Just so you know.”
Swiping lake water from his face, Matt glowered. “Yes?”
“Love you, too.” It felt good to say it. Better than good. He shook his head again. “I can’t believe they told you everything.”
“I’m glad they did, but none of that really matters. All that matters is that we love each other, and that we can really be together.”
“Definitely together.” Chris kissed him again, but with everyone close by, he wasn’t about to get carried away. “You know too much now, so I can never let you leave.”
Accepting it as a joke, Matt smiled.
Dare called down to them, saying, “Dinner’s ready.” Seconds later, the dogs ran over the dock and jumped in. And of course they found Chris and Matt under the dock. Together with the dogs, they left the water.
They had a lot of details to work out, but Chris wasn’t worried. Sorting out the details was part of his job.
And as anyone could attest, he was damn good—at just about everything.