Once George returned to work, he felt like he was floating on air. Sure, it'd still likely take a few months before the money was put into his account, but the ball was rolling. As tormenting as the next few months were going to be, the wait would be worth it.

When he arrived, the store was busier than he'd expected, but that was just what he needed to keep himself busy. There was no time to think about the money, or that collision with the customer that seemed to rub Nick wrong. They definitely needed to talk about that.

Once he had a free minute, he made his way back to Davin. “Wow, people are in the mood to read today, huh?”

“That's more money in our pockets,” Davin laughed as George took his turn behind the counter. While Davin typically liked to deal with people less, they still switched it up so that he could stretch his legs.

As George slipped behind the counter, Davin pulled out his phone. A frown settled on Davin's lips, which made George curious and concerned. “Hey, is something up?” he asked.

“Ah... Just another installment is due for the student loans... I feel like I never really get ahead, you know?” Davin chuckled mirthlessly. “I'm still doing the editing for books on the side, too, but I feel like I'm still only just breaking even...”

Living paycheck to paycheck was so real. George had been on that treadmill, too, although it'd all be different soon. It really made him suddenly realize how fortunate he was.

George's heart went out to his friend. That's when a thought hit him. “I want to give you some money,” he stated.

Davin's head snapped up. “What?”

“Well, I just basically won the lottery... I want to give you a little something to help out. I mean, I don't have the money right now because of legalities, but when I do have it...”

“Dude, you don't have to do that,” Davin said as he shook his head.

“I know I don't have to, but I want to,” George stressed. “You're my friend and I want to help.” He grabbed paper and a pen off the counter before him, then wrote $10,000 on it. He didn't know exactly how much money Davin was in debt for, but he knew that many students had tens of thousands. He handed the paper to Davin.

“George, this is too much to accept,” Davin said as he stared at the paper.

“It's really not. You're not hurting me for accepting it,” George countered. Honestly, he knew Davin would've been doing the same if the roles were reversed. “I want you to start living a little, too, without worrying so much.”

There was a long moment of silence as Davin looked back down at the paper. Finally, he looked back up and walked around the counter to grab George into a bear hug. “Thanks, man. This will help out big time.”

George hugged his friend back, aware of the waver in Davin’s voice, like Davin was fighting back tears. He didn’t acknowledge it. He knew Davin would want to keep his pride. “It's no problem. I'll send you the money whenever I get it, I promise.”

“That's just...” Davin still seemed at a loss for words. George just smiled gently, and watched as a customer came over to them for help, Davin walking away in a daze to point out the cozy mystery section.

It really did make George warm and fuzzy to know that he could help Davin. In general, George tried to donate to various people and charities on a regular basis. Most of the time, it wasn’t any more than $20, but he hoped it helped. He always felt bad that there were always more causes than dollars in his bank account...

“Ohh, no, you can't go giving it away to everyone,” George muttered under his breath, his cheeks warm. If he kept that up, all of the money would be gone in no time, leaving him where he started.

He was still on a bit of a high from his good deed, though, and texted Nick:

I think I'm in trouble.

He chuckled to himself and shook his head, only realizing after he sent it that it sounded much more serious than he intended. He started to type a follow-up message, but before he could finish he was called away to help with a new shipment of books. By the time he was done with that and checked his phone again, it was dead.

Ah, well. It was one less distraction.

At six, his shift was over and he walked outside. He hadn't taken his car that morning since Nick had offered to drop him off because of the meeting at lunch. Now he was waiting to be picked up.

He perked up when he spotted Nick's car. He trotted to the passenger's side and climbed in, but immediately caught the worried expression on Nick's face. “What's wrong?”

“I should be asking you that,” Nick insisted. “I got a text about you being in trouble and responded, then got nothing back.”

George laughed richly, although he stopped with a sheepish smile at how hard he was being stared at by Nick. “I'm sorry. I wasn't in real trouble. I promise I was following up, but then work stuff happened and the phone died.”

“What was it about, then?” Nick questioned, his cheeks red with embarrassment. Knowing that he'd been worried was so sweet.

“I made a pre-authorized donation of sorts to Davin and then realized that I might end up tossing all my money at charities in general,” George explained. “Hey, if you thought I was really in trouble, why didn't you call work?”

“I guess a part of me knew it wasn't too serious... I think the 'I think' clued me in,” Nick grunted as he pulled out of the parking lot.

“But you were still worried enough to fret all afternoon? I'm sorry,” George said, although he couldn't stop smiling. Had that been the only thing Nick fretted about, though?

“Don't worry about it,” Nick said. “So, I'm taking us out for dinner.”

“Oh?” George mused, his chest fluttering.

“To celebrate and also to make up for earlier.”

George chuckled lightly. “You were a bit rough pulling me to my feet.” Honestly, it had been both startling and kind of arousing.

“Sometimes I don't know my own strength,” Nick admitted.

George didn't want to get into a more serious conversation right this moment with the offer of dinner on the table. It'd be better to have a proper discussion once their bellies were full and they were safely at home, anyway.

“Where are you taking us?” George asked as he settled against his seat.

“Indian.”

“Ooh. I haven't had that in awhile,” George reflected. He did have a weakness for butter chicken. “Yeah, that sounds good to me. I should probably go home and freshen up first, though?”

“If you feel you need it. I think you look handsome as you are.”

George's whole body warmed from his head to his toes as he adjusted his glasses nervously. “Y-You think so?”

“Yeah, of course,” Nick said with a light smile.

George was beside himself with pleasure at the compliment. “Thank you. I think you look handsome as you are, too.” Even as he said it, he was embarrassed about how simple the response was. It was absolutely true, though. Nick was a gorgeous man, especially when he smiled. Those eyes of his always ensnared George as well.

And when Nick was naked...

He tried to stay focused, suddenly aware of the heat creeping below the belt.

George decided to skip freshening up since his stomach was already growling. It wasn't long before Nick pulled onto the curb in front of an Indian restaurant. The place was small, and was longer than it was wide, but the atmosphere was quiet and intimate.

This wasn't just a dinner, but a date.

A date with his husband.

George brought his fingers down to his ring and idly rotated it, still getting used to the feeling. Each time he glanced down and caught a glimpse of the plain, but beautiful, silver ring, his heart did all kinds of funny things.

A waiter escorted them to a table in the corner and lit the candle in the center as they sat down.

“I've never been here before,” George said as he picked up his menu, although he already knew the gist of what he wanted.

Now that they were actually out together, George barely knew what to say, although this was a good chance for them to bond. “Oh, my god. This kind of feels like a first date,” he laughed nervously. “I don't even know what to say or do.”

“I was thinking the same thing,” Nick laughed in kind. “I was never really good at dating.”

“Me neither. Then again, I've never really dated much.”

“You haven't? Why not?”

“Oh, come on. Not to be hard on myself, but I'm not exactly turning heads everywhere I go,” George snorted as he glanced down to the menu now and again.

“Are you kidding me? You're fuckin' gorgeous,” Nick stated, his eyes sharp.

George's eyes widened and darted around the restaurant before he laughed. “Keep it down,” he lightly scolded, although there was no stopping the furious blush.

“What, you really are,” Nick said, although did lower his voice. He also leaned forward across the table some, catching George's eyes. “I have no doubt you're just not looking when people turn their heads.”

George made a little face. To be fair, he did spend a lot of his time daydreaming when he was out in the world. Overall, he wasn't a very sexual person, so it was likely he missed cues from people who were interested in him.

“I mean, like I said, even in high school I had a crush on you, and you were scrawny as hell back then,” Nick added with a teasing grin.

“Ugh, I was gangly in high school,” George groaned, although he couldn't keep the smile off his face. “You really did like me back then?” He was still trying to wrap his head around that.

“I did, yeah.”

“If I had just acted on it...” George sighed, the conversation stopping briefly as the waiter returned to take their orders.

After the waiter left, Nick turned his attention back to George and raised a brow. “You kind of did act on it...”

“What do you mean?” George asked, wracking his brain. Were there times that he acted as something more than just friends? Did he sit too close in school? Act too eager to hang out? George was mortified at the possibility.

Nick had just been taking a sip from his glass of water when he started coughing, alarming George. He sat up straight and stared across the table, an incredulous—perhaps even indignant—look on his face. “Do you seriously not remember what happened at the high school graduation afterparty?”

George grew more alarmed with each passing moment. “I remember going to the party... Having a lot of beer... and... not much else. Oh, god, did I do something?” He didn't remember a whole lot of that night but certainly remembered how miserable he was the next day. The whole underage drinking thing didn't sit well with his parents either, which only made everything even worse.

Nick's eyes sparkled in such a devilish way now, which made George all the more nervous about what he was about to hear. “We hung out most of the night. You got more clingy with each beer you downed. I started to get really worried about you, but you were having the time of your life. You were the most relaxed and outgoing then than I'd ever seen you.”

This was shaping up to go horribly wrong.

“You were really getting everyone's attention by dancing like a flamingo on rollerblades—even when no music was playing.”

“Oh, god,” George groaned.

“You were pretty wasted, so I offered to walk you home. I had a few drinks, too, but definitely held my alcohol better, hah. So, I wrapped my arm around you to support you and led you out of the house. I don't know if you thought maybe we were already at your place, or something, but as soon as we stepped outside, you stopped.”

George was leaning forward now, hanging onto Nick's every word. With how wide that grin was getting with each sentence, it was easy to see Nick was having a grand time relaying the story. “And?”

“I couldn't get you to budge. You were very rooted to the spot, just staring off. Then, you suddenly snapped to and grabbed me. You pulled me close, said goodnight, then kissed me, square on the mouth.”

George wanted to die right then and there. “I did? Seriously?!”

“Seriously. I think you must've been thinking of dates and that that was a goodnight kiss, or something,” Nick laughed.

“I honestly don't remember it,” George moaned. “T-Then what happened?”

“You promptly passed out in my arms,” Nick chuckled. “You can imagine how startled I was, but I just carried you home. Your parents weren't pleased when I showed up with a passed-out you.”

“That's so embarrassing,” George laughed as he touched his own hair. “I'm sorry.”

“Eh, it wasn't a bad kiss,” Nick said with a grin and a wink. The fact that Nick could joke about it was nice. George was well aware that Nick had been in the closet at the time because of what his Great Uncle Jasper did. Kissing him probably didn't help with the hormones and stress...

“Thanks for watching out for me, though,” George said, gratitude flooding through him.

“You would've done the same for me. Except for the carrying part,” Nick joked.

“Hah! Yeah, I would've just dragged your drunk butt home,” George giggled.

It didn’t take long for the food to be delivered, and their conversation temporarily halted as they dug in. George tucked into his butter chicken dish with rice and veggies while he stole glances of Nick. He was tingling all over with pleasure and adoration for Nick.

Could this truly be love?

The dinner itself was eaten pretty fast, although the conversation still flowed easily afterward. In this moment, George really felt the connection tenfold and he wanted nothing more than to relish it for all that it was worth.

After their dishes were empty, Nick called for their bill. Once he had it in hand, they rose together and moved to the counter to pay for the meal. As they crowded together while Nick paid, George tingled all over. Their sides and elbows brushed against each other, making George crave more contact. He itched to reach out and take Nick's hand. He wanted to feel his warmth and just be close to someone.

Once they were outside, George decided to go for it. He reached for Nick's hand and was surprised when his fingers brushed across Nick's outstretched palm. Their eyes met and Nick clasped his strong hand around George's. His spirit soared since he hadn't expected Nick to make the first move.

“What? I saw you looking, so I thought I'd beat you to the punch,” Nick said with a little laugh.

“I don't mind at all!” George insisted, squeezing Nick's hand. That simple touch made George happier than he ever thought possible. Although the walk to the car was only a short one, he relished every second. They didn't let go of each other's hand until the last possible moment.

Once they were in the car, it was time to head home. All George could hope was that the conversations they needed to have there would not extinguish their newfound spark.