Gage felt like he was in a daze as he drove back to his house from Newton’s apartment. The last few minutes had been a complete roller coaster of emotions, and Gage hadn’t really even started processing them.

But just like a roller coaster, those feelings had left him breathless and shaky.

Right up until the very last second, Gage would have said the night had been a complete success—far better than he could have ever imagined. It had actually been one of the best nights Gage could remember having in a long, long time.

The way Newton had gotten along with Calvin and Jack had been perfect, just like Gage had known it would be. It had especially been fun to watch the banter back and forth between Calvin and Gage. They seemed like they could be kindred spirits, even though they couldn’t possibly be more different on the outside.

Jack had even let loose and had only talked business a little, even though that had been the official reason to get everyone together in the first place.

It had been great.

Wonderful.

Exciting.

Until the moment when it suddenly wasn’t.

Gage parked his Jeep in the garage and slowly made his way inside the house. He still couldn’t quite figure out what had gone wrong.

Well, the kiss, obviously.

But why?

The way Newton had looked up at him, the way Newton had leaned in, the way he had definitely kissed Gage back made it even more of a mystery.

Gage was pretty sure Newton had even made the first move. Maybe the wine had affected him more than he had let on?

Maybe he’d had some kind of straight-guy-freak-out?

Maybe he just wasn’t that into Gage after all.

Gage sighed. It was too hot in his house. Or he was too worked up to cool off.

He fished his phone from his pocket and scrolled through to Newton’s number, his finger hovering above the call button.

Gage wanted to talk this over with him, but he hesitated.

Realistically, it had only been a few minutes—maybe fifteen—since he’d left Newton’s apartment.

He shoved a hand back through his short hair, exhaling loudly as he remembered how his stomach had turned upside down the moment Newton had bolted up the stairs. Was there something Gage could have—should have—done differently?

Even if it had meant not getting the chance to experience that kiss, Gage would have let it go without a second thought if he could have spared whatever feelings had caused that confused, scared, anguished look on Newton’s face when he pulled away.

Gage tossed his phone onto the couch before sinking down next to it.

Nope.

No matter how much he might want to talk things out tonight, he probably needed to give Newton a little more time than that.

Which was totally understandable, of course. It was just that kissing him had felt so good, so right, so perfect that Gage hadn’t wanted to stop. And when the kiss was over, all he wanted to do was kiss Newton again.

Even now, he could still taste the sweet hint of wine on his lips, could still remember exactly how it had felt to pull Newton close, the heat rolling off his body as he melted into Gage’s arms.

With a heavy sigh, he picked his phone up again, half hoping there would be a text from Newton.

There wasn’t, though.

Scrolling through his contacts, he stopped at Calvin’s number. Maybe he could at least call his friend to talk about what had happened.

But no.

That couldn’t happen, either. Even if Calvin had been free to talk—and judging by the fuck-me looks Calvin and Jack had been exchanging after dessert, he almost certainly wasn’t free at the moment—Gage still wouldn’t have known what to say.

Calvin was his best friend, but there was something inside Gage that always felt more than a little protective whenever the subject of Newton came up. If they were just Gage’s thoughts and feelings on the line, he wouldn’t have had any problem at all talking about them.

But it wasn’t just Gage this time. He needed to take Newton’s feelings into consideration, too. And it felt somehow wrong to talk about Newton’s feelings with anyone besides Newton himself.

All of that aside, Gage didn’t even know what Newton’s feelings were, so it would have been impossible to try and explain the situation to Calvin anyway.

Tossing the phone aside again, Gage leaned back against the couch cushion and closed his eyes. He should probably just go to bed and hope things felt better in the morning. Maybe then he’d at least have a little more clarity or a plan of action.

At the moment, he was just tired and confused, and that was never a good combination when it came to making decisions.

Not to mention the fact that every time he closed his eyes, all he could see was Newton. How was Gage supposed to think objectively when he couldn’t get the guy out of his head?

He didn’t have the answer. It was starting to feel like he didn’t have any answers.

Just endless rounds of questions.

Gage opened his eyes again and checked the time on his phone—but was definitely not double-checking for missed messages again.

Of course, there still weren’t any.

It was late, though. Gage needed to get some sleep somehow, even if that prospect seemed pretty damn unlikely.

Either way, it would be morning soon enough. Then, maybe—hopefully—things might make a little more sense.

They certainly couldn’t get more confusing.