Ashby was definitely dying. It was a scientific fact.

He moaned and whimpered as the knock on the door roused him from his sleep. “Bugger off,” he wailed, stuffing his throbbing head underneath his pillow.

He felt a weight make the bed dip, then a finger poking at his ribs. “You appear to still be in bed,” Maeve commented.

Ashby grumbled and pulled his pillow down tighter over his head. “Go away,” he mumbled.

“But then who am I gonna gossip to?” Maeve asked, her voice a pesky singsong. The poking continued.

“I should have you fired,” Ashby threatened.

Maeve snorted. “I’ve been fired four times from this place. Come on, you’re killing me! You had a date with TJ Charles and now you have to tell!”

Coldness washed through Ashby. He risked peeking out from under the pillow. “It wasn’t a date,” he mumbled.

Because he had to keep telling himself that, apparently. Fucking hell. He’d been a bit of a mess by the time he and Trent had finished dinner. But he hadn’t been so trashed he didn’t remember inviting Trent into his room. Into his bed.

Urgh, even if it had been a joke, it was grossly inappropriate. He’d probably made Trent feel horribly uncomfortable. He wanted to go back to sleep and pretend the whole thing had never happened.

Except…they’d had a truly wonderful evening until that point, hadn’t they? He’d felt so at ease and relaxed. Trent had opened up a little from his usual gruff self and really made Ashby laugh. When Trent looked at him, he felt worthwhile.

He was so fucked.

The poking finger returned.

“Darnell from the bar seemed to think it was a date,” Maeve said. “Come on, Ashby. I can’t torment my own kids anymore. Entertain an old woman with some juicy details!”

Ashby removed the pillow and batted her lightly with it. She was wearing her uniform and was obviously here to clean. Or, at least, that was her excuse. Normally she didn’t come in until at least after midday.

“You’re not old,” he said.

A yawn took him by surprise as he rubbed his thumping forehead. Glancing at the clock, he realized it was already ten thirty and he should probably crawl out of bed soon if he wanted to catch the last few minutes of breakfast.

“Yes, I am,” Maeve said, tapping his arm and laughing. “I need amusement. So, if it wasn’t a date, what was it?” She nodded in an all-knowing manner. “That boy is quite a hunk if I recall.”

Ashby could feel himself blush. He tried to blow over it by sitting up in bed. Thank goodness he’d worn pajamas, or Maeve might have given herself a bit of an eyeful.

“He’s straight,” he said, trying not to sound defensive.

Maeve raised an eyebrow. “My daughter informs me that the majority of people are at least a little bit gay. I think that’s because she has a hopeless crush on her yoga instructor. But, really, in this day and age, more people are open to it than you think. Darnell told Kadie at the front desk who told Skye in the spa who told me that TJ Charles had his arm around you when you left.” She leaned back and kicked her feet like a small child as she looked around the room. “Did he come back with you?”

Ashby couldn’t stop the flush burning on his cheeks and he pulled awkwardly at the bedsheet. “Actually, I did tell him it was a shame I couldn’t invite him in.” He cringed. “I told him he was lovely.”

Maeve’s eyes went wide and she placed her feet back on the carpet. “And what did he say?”

Ashby shrugged. “Nothing. I came inside and closed the door. It all seemed quite funny last night.” He covered his face with his hands. “People aren’t going to be awful to him, are they?” he whispered. He felt like bile was crawling up his throat. “They won’t…think he’s gay or bi, not really? They know him.”

Slightly callused fingers gently pried his fingers from his face. “Hey?” Maeve said with concern. “No, nobody’s gonna be a jerk. And if they are, I’ll slap them silly. They know how it is. Why would you think they’d get crappy?”

Ashby shrugged. Because he lived in the real world? But he managed to give Maeve a small smile. It felt good to have her on his side, at least. “Well, I would hate for him to have any trouble when there was no reason,” he said. “We’re just friends.” Sadly, he thought to himself.

That was if Trent still wanted to be friends after Ashby’s inappropriate behavior. He felt even sicker at that idea. Ashby would hate to ruin their relationship in its early stages, even if they were only going to have this holiday to see each other.

The stupid thing was he hadn’t thought to get Trent’s phone number at any point. So, he couldn’t text to ask if he was feeling equally rough or if he wanted to meet Ashby on the slopes again or if he was going to totally avoid Ashby for the next three weeks. Ashby bit his tongue and blinked against the prickling at the back of his eyes.

Trent had saved Ashby from that toad Kiefer hitting on him. Then Ashby had repaid Trent by hitting on him just the same way. Fuck, he was a shitty person.

Maeve squeezed his thigh through the blankets and got to her feet. “Come on,” she said. “I’ll do next door first, give you time to get your wits together. Then you head to breakfast and I’ll fix your room.” She stood with her hands on her hips. “Stop moping. It’s no fun if you mope!” she cried, getting a tiny smile from Ashby. “Look. Did you have fun last night? Was he nice to you?”

Ashby nibbled on his lower lip. “Yes,” he admitted, somewhat reluctantly. “And, yes.”

“Then he’s not going be a bag of dicks to you now, is he?” she said, arching an eyebrow. “Especially if he’s anything like his dad. Trenton Sr. is a good man.” She sighed wistfully for a moment, just enough to make Ashby wonder what she meant. But then she snapped her attention back to Ashby. “So, make sure you look stunning, then when you bump into him today, he can see exactly what’s being offered if he’s feeling brave.”

Ashby rubbed his nose and gave her a small, bashful smile. “Okay,” he said.

She was definitely barking up the wrong tree. Trent would never be interested in Ashby sexually. Romantically. But it was nice of her to think he might.

Taking her advice to heart, he threw some clothes on to grab a bite of breakfast, then took himself off to the sauna outside. Twenty minutes sitting in some glorious steam would sort his hangover, he was sure. Then he could come back and get a bit glamorous in case he did bump into Trent somewhere.

It was another beautiful day in Wyoming. The sky was cobalt blue and the sun was shining, reflecting off the picture-perfect snow piled around the swimming pool and on the sauna’s roof. There was an indoor changing area with lockers and towels stacked up neatly. Ashby helped himself to one and wrapped it around his hips before walking through the door into the sauna room itself.

Except, there was already someone in there.

“Oh,” he said as horror consumed him. Stupidly, he waved at Trent, who was sitting in the hot, dark room, also with nothing but a towel wrapped around his waist. A short towel at that. “Um, hello.”

Ashby was suddenly aware of how slim and willowy he was. Trent was all muscle.

His pecs and abs were gorgeously defined with bumps in places Ashby wasn’t even aware there could be bumps. Diagonal rivets pointed like arrows to what lay beneath Trent’s towel, and tendrils of his damp hair clung to a neck that begged to be kissed. His skin was a light brown, whether by tan or heritage, Ashby wasn’t sure. He was too mesmerized by all the body art he could see in any case.

Trent had tribal designs in black ink and quotes in various languages and images of dolphins, dragons, skulls, butterflies and clocks. The one that caught Ashby’s eye the most was a single word over Trent’s heart: Bulletproof. He wondered what that was about.

For a split second, at least. Because then he remembered he was mortified and should probably run away very fast.

“Sorry,” he stammered. “I can leave you alone.”

“No, no,” said Trent, holding up his hands. He shifted like he was uncomfortable, but then he smiled. “It’s good to see you. How’s your head?”

Ashby wasn’t sure how to interpret the mixed signals. But he closed the door and sat down on the bench opposite Trent. He didn’t think he should get too close.

“Wonderful,” he said, answering Trent’s question. His smile was a little shaky, but it was the best he could muster when he was feeling unsure and nervous. Was Trent mad that Ashby had hit on him? Uncomfortable? “I love feeling like there’s a pneumatic drill inside my skull.”

Trent laughed and Ashby finally allowed himself to relax a fraction. “Tell me about it. We went a little nuts on the wine, huh?”

Ashby laughed. Maybe this was going to be okay. He made damn sure to keep his gaze focused on Trent’s face, not his chest, so he wouldn’t feel like he was being objectified again.

“I flirt with everyone, it’s kind of a defense mechanism,” Ashby confessed, swallowing around the lump in his throat. He did really like Trent and wanted things to be cool between them. “I know you don’t swing that way, so I’m very sorry if I put you in an awkward position.” Ashby took a deep breath. “I, um, know who you are. Out in the world. I don’t care about any of that,” he added quickly. “But I just want you to know that I wouldn’t take advantage of that or flirt just because, you know, you’re famous. I just think you are lovely, as a friend, and I got a little carried away.”

Again, Trent shifted, adjusting his towel, but he also smiled. “It was cute,” he said, meeting Ashby’s gaze. “Don’t sweat it.” He licked his lips and glanced around the room. “I was just heading out. Don’t wanna get too dehydrated. But you still wanna hit the slopes later? Try something a little higher?”

“Oh, y-yes, p-please,” Ashby spluttered. If Trent wanted to forget about the whole thing, that would be amazing. Ashby knew he would never be able to get him into bed, but he would love to be friends. In fact, the prospect of hanging out with a nice guy without the pressure of shagging was extremely appealing. “When do you want to meet?”

Trent’s smile became bigger. He stood up, keeping careful hold of his towel. “One?” he suggested. “By the base of the ski lift?”

Ashby nodded. “Fantastic,” he said. “See you there.”

He watched Trent go out the door, then took a long, deep breath of the hot, damp air. He could already feel his headache clearing. He was so glad things were okay between them still. Now he could look forward to snowboarding and a few more of those TJ Charles smiles.

He was still as on track for his man-free holiday as he was before.