The guest bedroom at Cam’s place had a perfectly comfortable bed, but what made it perfect was that it already smelled like Kevin after a week of him staying in it.

Jasmine was settled downstairs for the night, more than happy with the nest of blankets Noah had made for her and the treats he’d snuck her. After the barbecue, which had stretched on for a good couple hours, they’d finally drifted apart—the brothers and plus-ones to their own houses, Ryan and Floyd back to their own places.

And now, at last, Matty was more or less alone with Kevin. He’d expected the moment to be a lot steamier than it was, but despite how on-edge he was, it just felt kinda weird to mess around in their friends’ room.

And now that Kevin was gonna be moving in with him at the beginning of next month, they were about to have a whole lot of time around each other.

So, instead, Matty held up the cover for Kevin to crawl under, then snaked an arm around his shoulder to pull him in nice and close.

Kevin fit perfectly against him, that hard little body nestling against his side. Kevin’s hand rested on his stomach, his other arm curled awkwardly under his head.

They laughed as they found different positions to shift into, slowly finding one that was comfortable for them both and wouldn’t break their necks by morning.

“It’s… really nice to be out here,” Matty admitted quietly. Everyone had been so damn welcoming, even though he’d hardly known the brothers except for Cam.

And Kevin looked so happy and comfortable around them, just as Matty felt around his own buddies. Hopefully vice versa now, too, as they grew acquainted with each others’ friends.

“Man, it’s killing me not just… crawling all over you right now,” Kevin murmured, his voice husky as he rubbed Matty’s arm, but it wasn’t necessarily a come-on.

Matty teased back, “We’ve got a week out here, bro.” A whole glorious week to themselves, out in almost the middle of nowhere, with a bunch of friends. “Accidents will happen.”

“I hope they do,” Kevin snickered, settling his head against Matty’s shoulder. His breathing was already even and deep. “I was almost desperate enough to ask for Skype sex, you know.”

Matty laughed deeply. “I’m pretty sure we’ll get the chance to get good at that.”

Kevin hummed, the vibration traveling through Matty’s shoulder and chest. “About that… you were cool with that, earlier? Just figuring this shit out later? I mean, that’s what boyfriends do.”

“Mmhmm,” Matty nodded slightly, stroking Kevin’s hair for a second. As he fidgeted with it, he gazed into those baby blue eyes that were so earnestly searching his own. “September’s gonna get rough, but we’ll plan carefully is all.”

Kevin nodded, too. “And living together will make it a lot easier.”

That made Matty glow all over again. “I’m glad that didn’t freak you out. I just got excited.”

“Me, too,” Kevin admitted. “Hans is a real dick.”

“He is.” Matty scowled, pressing his lips into Kevin’s hair. “As for moving in. I… I don’t know if it’s too early…”

“We’ve known each other a while now,” Kevin laughed under his breath, but he was shifting to look expectantly at him.

That meant he knew what was coming.

“I love you,” Matty murmured. “It sounds stupid, but I can’t explain it. It just… happened.”

“Nah, man. It’s not at all,” Kevin told him with a quick shake of his head, propping himself up on his elbow. “That’s what people always say happens. You just know. And I’ve known for a while that I love you, too. So, I might be stupid, too,” he laughed breathily.

“So,” Matty echoed, his smile growing. “Cool. We’ll both be stupid together, then.” He tilted his head back and Kevin took the invitation, leaning down for a long, slow kiss before they settled down together again.

They had so much to talk about that Matty felt like he could chat for hours, but he was already getting so sleepy. Just having Kevin here, nestled into his arm, was enough to wash away all traces of his stresses over the last couple weeks.

As his eyelids grew heavy, Kevin went quiet, too. The last thing Matty remembered thinking before sleep made him smile faintly.

We’re the slowest-moving fastest-moving couple I know.

They were a couple now. Somehow, where he’d least expected it, Matty had just stumbled into the arms of this man. No matter how long it had taken them to figure it out, he was lucky beyond belief.

Hockey had brought them together, but it wasn’t everything… it was just the beginning of their big, exciting lives together.