Read Online Only You by Willa Okati - Free Book Online

me,” Robbie said, shaking his head with wry amusement. “He’s been trying to convince me I’d love it in this neck of the woods. And I did want to meet his friends before tonight.”
    “We’ve got steaks, bratwurst, chicken, all the good stuff,” Ivan said. He smacked his lips.
    Sounded…not half as appetizing as it should, actually. “Want me to bring the beer?”
    “Just bring yourself,” Robbie said. “But if beer decided to hitch a ride, we wouldn’t complain. Ivan’s taste in lager leaves a lot to be desired.”
    “God, doesn’t it?” Forget unappetizing. Nick’s stomach twisted discontentedly. Under normal circumstances, he’d snap up the offer in a heartbeat. Ivan could damned near work magic with a mesquite grill, and Barrett usually had the time of his life chopping, dicing and plating. Trouble was, normal circumstances had flown out of the window. He hesitated, and it showed. “It’s just…”
    Ivan secured his hold on Robbie and frowned. “You are coming, aren’t you?”
    “Maybe,” Nick hedged. “Barrett’s got some things going on. You know.”
    “Uh-huh,” Ivan said slowly, clearly not buying it, and starting to worry. “Is he okay?”
    “Who, Barrett? Fine. Good as ever. You know Barrett.”
    “Uh-huh.” Ivan’s frown deepened. “It’s starting to sound like ‘okay’ isn’t so much part of the picture.”
    “Or maybe they’d rather spend the weekend together,” Robbie put in. He brushed the back of his hand across Ivan’s chest, distracting him either deliberately or on purpose, but effectively. “From what you say, Abram usually has weekend plans anyway, and I can’t say I’d mind having a quiet night in with just you and me.”
    All it took was one touch from Robbie, and even Nick could see Ivan had eyes and ears for no one else. “I want you to be happy here,” he said, not so quietly Nick couldn’t hear, but with an intimacy that made Nick feel like a voyeur. “And I don’t want to be rude.”
    “Then don’t push him.” Robbie rested his palm over Ivan’s breastbone. He turned, glancing sideways at Nick. “No pressure. Take care of what you need to, and if there’s time left over, there’ll be steaks left over too. I think he bought enough for an entire football team.”
    “Economy,” Ivan protested. “It’s always cheaper to buy in bulk.”
    “Indulgence,” Robbie said. He took Ivan by the nape and pulled him in for a light but lingering kiss. “And I didn’t say I minded.”
    Ivan appeared to be slightly dazed when Robbie let go. He rounded his shoulders and offered Nick a sheepish grin. “Let us know what you decide, okay?”
    “Will do,” Nick said. “Go on. Enjoy the day together.”
    He watched the pair of them wander back to the truck, never without touching for long. A hand here, a nudge of shoulders there, a glance and a smile. They didn’t finish each other’s sentences, but it seemed as if they read one another’s minds and had a whole unspoken language of gestures and micro-expressions.
    They’d been made for one another, all right. Only whole now they were together. The Ivan he’d known before hadn’t been like that. He hadn’t seen it then. Now he did. And now that he had, he couldn’t imagine how empty Ivan’s life must have been with his soulmate in it.
    He’d managed. He’d gotten by. But it hadn’t really been life, had it? More like a pale imitation. Just surviving.
    It could be done. But maybe…it shouldn’t.
    Nick touched the back of his neck, where the soulmark now seemed raised to the touch. His heart sank through his shoes.
    It’s not going to work, is it? And the only one I’ve been fooling is myself.

Chapter Five
     
     
     
    Barrett should have cleared away the coffee detritus. Any other day, he would have. Today, he meant to, but as he started to push himself up off the couch, he bumped the tablet computer and nearly knocked it to the floor. When he caught it, the jostling woke it up from