Jonah woke up thinking about Mitch, the same way he’d gone to bed thinking about him.

The same way he always seemed to be thinking about him lately.

Getting the chance to spend more time with Mitch over the past couple of days had been a blessing—it had felt like it was the way things were supposed to be.

But it had also made it really hard for Jonah to get excited about going back to New York, back to a job he should legitimately be looking forward to.

How was he supposed to think about that, though, when all he wanted lately was to be next to Mitch?

Jonah rolled out of bed and stifled a yawn as his feet hit the floor.

Even waking up in the bed alone was no good anymore after spending the night curled up in Mitch’s arms.

God. This was not what Jonah had in mind when he’d said they needed to set some boundaries.

Falling deeper in love was definitely not part of the plan.

But how could he not, when everything about Mitch was just… perfect?

Well, except for his dad.

Jonah made a face just thinking about him. That guy was about as far from perfect as a person could get. Still, he’d made Mitch, so… maybe there was some redeemable quality in there somewhere.

If so, he sure knew how to keep it hidden.

Oh, and then there was the fact that Mitch waited until now to walk back into Jonah’s life—now that everything else was going well and Jonah was finally starting to feel like he’d made something of himself on his own.

Yeah, that wasn’t very perfect, either.

It wasn’t like Jonah could actually blame either of those imperfections on Mitch, though—sort of ridiculous that even his imperfections were perfect.

Jonah checked the clock as he pulled on a t-shirt and some shorts. It was after ten, which meant Pop and Mitch had probably been awake for hours already.

He hoped they’d made some breakfast, but he’d be happy enough with a cup of coffee.

Jonah could tell as soon as he’d made it to the bottom of the stairs that there wouldn’t be any breakfast waiting in the kitchen. He would’ve smelled Pop’s signature eggs and bacon by now otherwise.

Which was fine. Jonah could make his own breakfast. Or lunch. Or whatever.

Coffee was still on the cards, and that was the most important meal of the day, anyway.

Jonah looked around, confused as he stood at the doorway to the kitchen. Pop was there reading the newspaper as if nothing was wrong, but… where was Mitch?

“Good morning,” Jonah said, moving to sit down at the table across from Pop. “I didn’t think I’d make it down here before Mitch…”

“Good morning.” Pop looked up over the top of his paper and smiled. “And you didn’t. Mitch had to go back to his house to meet with the plumber. He said he didn’t want to wake you.”

Jonah blinked. That wasn’t the answer he’d been expecting, and even though it was really no big deal—Mitch had to go back home sometime, of course—it still left Jonah feeling like he’d missed out.

Missed one more kiss, one more moment alone with Mitch, one more morning of waking up and seeing him there.

“Everything okay?” Pop asked, still holding Jonah’s gaze. “You look upset.”

“No.” Jonah shook his head. “I mean, yes… everything is okay. I’m not upset. Just… thinking.”

Pop raised a skeptical eyebrow but didn’t say anything, which was probably for the best, since Jonah wouldn’t have been able to keep the lie going for very long.

The more he thought about it, though, the more Jonah realized how upset he really was.

He’d come back to Hidden Creek with the sole intention of making sure Pop was okay, and Jonah honestly didn’t feel much better about how Pop was doing now than he had then—especially given the recent hospital visit.

And not only that, but being around Mitch again was starting to make Jonah question everything else in his life, everything that he’d thought was already figure out.

Now, the only thing Jonah knew for sure was that he wanted more time.

More time with Pop. More time with Mitch.

Just… more.

“What if I stayed a little longer, Pop?” Jonah asked, wincing at the surprised look Pop gave him. “I mean… just for a few more days. Maybe another week or two at the most. That’s not such a bad idea, is it?”

Pop set his newspaper aside and gave Jonah a hard look. “And what about your decorating show in New York? I thought your boss was already on pins and needles to have you back.” His look suddenly changed to concern. “Did something happen with that? Did it fall through?”

“No.” Jonah shook his head and sighed. “It’s still happening. And they’re still expecting me back in time to get everything ready, but…”

“But?”

Jonah could feel his shoulders slump as he opened his hands and shrugged. Why did everything have to be so complicated? Of course he had to go back for the expo. He’d barely even fooled himself for a few seconds about it, and he hadn’t fooled Pop at all.

“I need to make sure you’re okay, Pop,” Jonah said, finally. “And I need… I want a little more time with Mitch.”

Pop’s expression softened again and he gave Jonah a sympathetic smile. “I thought that might be the case. And I don’t blame you. Not one bit. The heart can’t help what it wants, Jonah. But you’re so close to everything you’ve been working your butt off for all these years. I’ll be fine and Mitch will still be here the next time you visit. You can’t just give everything else up because you’re feeling a little homesick. You understand that, right?”

Jonah nodded.

He understood it all too well.

“Yeah. You’re right, Pop.” He could feel the hot sting of tears welling up as he spoke, and he dashed at his cheeks as he stood up from the table. “Sorry, I just need… just need a second. I’ll be right back.”

He walked from the room before Pop could answer, before he could lose control over the emotions that were churning inside of him. But by the time Jonah made it to the stairs, the tears had started to fall so hard and fast that he could barely see to walk.

God, he really had to get it together.

He had a good life waiting for him back in New York. He would have Pop and Mitch waiting for him to visit again in Hidden Creek.

That should be more than enough to make most people happy. It should be enough for Jonah.

It wasn’t, though.

Now that he’d had a taste of what having it all felt like, he wasn’t sure he could go back to only being happy part of the time.

He didn’t want to go back to that.

But he also didn’t want to give up on everything he’d worked so hard to achieve in New York.

He didn’t want to give up on his dream.