CHAPTER ONE

Seb

"Broken up with and thrown out of my own home. Happy fucking birthday to me," Seb grumbled as he downed a shot of vodka and then slammed the glass on the table.

He'd lost track of how much he'd had to drink, other than knowing it was probably too much. The crowded bar was starting to spin around him, and his words had sounded slurred, even to his own inebriated ears.

"It's Craig's loss," Matt said, sitting down beside him.

Seb blinked at his friend and then rubbed his eyes.

"You called me," Matt informed him.

"I did?"

"And me," Connor said, taking the seat on the other side of Seb.

Seb stared from one to the other, over and over, until he felt dizzy and sick. "Huh."

Maybe he was imagining them. He leaned toward Matt and pinched his arm. His friend felt real.

"Ow!" Matt complained.

Seb was obviously drunker than he'd thought, but it made sense that he'd called them; both of them. He'd known Matt and Connor for years. They always had his back.

"Thanks guys," he gushed. "I can always count on you. I've been dumped."

"We know," Matt said with an exasperated sigh. He showed Seb his phone screen and the dozens of text messages that had summoned him here. "What happened?"

Seb shrugged and reached for another shot glass. They were all empty. "Let me get another drink first." He tried to stand, but Matt put a restraining hand on his shoulder and held him down.

"I'm pretty sure you've had enough to drink."

"Why don't I go get us all a jug of water?" Connor asked.

"Water?" Seb exclaimed. "What good's water going to be? I'm trying to drown my sorrows here."

Connor raised his eyebrows. "I'm pretty sure your sorrows are well and truly drowned. I'll go get some water."

"I don't want water. I want…" Seb waved at the shot glasses. "Whatever they were."

"You must enjoy having killer hangovers," Matt said.

Seb gasped indignantly. "No."

"Water it is," Connor said.

They waited the few minutes it took Connor to get to the bar, wait his turn, and return with a jug of tap water and three glasses.

"Don't you two want to drink?" Seb asked as Connor thrust a full glass of water into his hand.

"I've already had a few drinks with workmates," Matt said.

"And someone has to drive both your sorry asses home," Connor added, though he winced apologetically when Seb's face crumpled as he sucked in a shuddering sob.

"What happened?" Matt asked, repeating his earlier question. "I thought you and Craig were solid?"

Seb pulled in a shuddering breath. "Me too. But apparently, I was wrong. Apparently, I don't fulfil him anymore." He sagged down in his chair and huffed out petulantly. "What the fuck does that even mean? That I'm crap in bed? That he's bored of my company?" He swigged the water before staring glumly into the glass. "Five years down the crap hole. I thought he was the one, you know? I thought I'd found the guy I was going to spend the rest of my life with. How fucking wrong could I have been?"

Matt pretended to stand. "Wait here while I go fetch you some crackers."

"Huh?" Seb stared at him stupidly.

Laughing, Matt relaxed into his chair. "To go with all that cheese you just spewed out of your mouth."

Seb glared at him. "Hah, fucking hah. You're hilarious, you know that?"

Matt rubbed his fingers over his white shirt, which was slightly crumpled after a day's worth of wear. "One of us has to be."

"You're meant to be giving me a shoulder to cry on," Seb objected. "Not taking the piss out of me."

Matt clapped him on the back. "You want a shoulder? You've got it. You know that. I was just trying to make you laugh."

Seb smiled despite himself. The happy gesture lasted for a fraction of a second before his lips downturned. "I just… I really thought I had everything, you know? And now I have nothing. No boyfriend and nowhere to live."

"He threw you out?" Connor asked sharply.

Seb nodded miserably. "And my name wasn't even on the lease, so I haven’t got a leg to stand on. Craig wants me out, so I have to go."

"He's not even giving you time to find somewhere else?"

"I've got until Sunday night."

"Arsehole."

"You've still got us," Matt said, nudging Seb.

"I know," Seb sobbed. "You guys are great."

"Brilliant friends are hard to find," Matt agreed, grinning.

"My sofa's yours if you want it," Connor said.

"Thanks," Seb breathed. Trust Connor to want to take care of him in his hour of need. "Your place is kind of small though." He slapped his hand against his forehead a little too hard. "That made me sound like an ungrateful jerk. I'm sorry, Connor. Your sofa would be great until I can find somewhere permanent."

"You can have my spare room for a bit," Matt offered.

Seb looked between them again, too overwhelmed for a few seconds to choke any words out. He put his water down, clasped both their hands, and squeezed them. "I love you guys," he breathed.

Matt worked his hand free and messed up Seb's mess of thick, dark curls. "Yeah, we love you too. But enough of the soppy crap. Craig is a total shit to do this to you on your birthday. Hell, he’s a bastard to do it to you at all, much less without any warning. But trust me, if that's how he's going to treat you, you're better off without him." He glanced at Connor, who nodded firmly in agreement. "Between me and Con, you've got a place to stay for as long as it takes you to get back on your feet. We've got your back, Seb."

Seb sniffled. "Thanks." He really didn't know what he'd do without them.

Of the two of them, Matt was the most likely to know what he was going through. A six-foot-tall teddy bear of a man, Matt seemed to fall hard and fast for every woman he met—most often through internet dating sites—only to get relegated to the friendship zone after a few weeks of them seeing each other. Connor, on the other hand, had had a spattering of one-night stands and had shown zero interest in wanting anything more. He seemed happy that way, although that hadn't stopped both Seb and Matt from trying to set their friend up a few times in the past.

"Drink up," Connor said, handing Seb the glass of water again. "Or you're going to have one hell of a hangover in the morning."

Seb did as he was told. He could tell he was starting to sober up because his heartache was increasing again. He really hadn't seen the end of his relationship coming. He kept thinking back over the last few days and weeks. Hell, even that morning he'd kissed Craig goodbye and squeezed his arse before they'd both set off to work. Then he'd got home, and everything had changed. His world had been turned upside down, and he had no clue why.

"What did I do wrong?" he asked.

"Stop right there," Matt told him. "Don't think like that. Craig is the one in the wrong here, not you. If he felt things weren't going great between the two of you, he should have talked to you. He should have tried to work things out."

Seb sighed heavily. He heard Matt's words, but they didn't sink in. He kept turning things over in his mind, trying to work out what mistakes he'd made. Had he been too clingy? Was it because he'd started talking about getting married one day? He shook his head and looked longingly at the empty shot glasses. He wanted to drink himself into oblivion to ease the pain he was feeling, but he knew neither Matt nor Connor would let him. Maybe that was why he'd called them. Subconsciously, he'd wanted to be saved from himself.

He flopped to the side and leaned his head on Connor's shoulder. "What am I going to do?"

"Sober up and get some sleep. Then you can figure things out when your head's less messed up."

It was good advice, and Seb found himself nodding.

"Drink another pint of water, and then I'll take you back to Matt's place. I'm betting you'd prefer a bed to my sofa."

Seb shifted his head so he was peering up at Connor's dark, soulful eyes. "Thanks," he whispered.

The universe might have dealt him a cruel hand in terms of his boyfriend, but it had done him a solid by bringing Connor and Matt into his life when they'd been kids.

"Anytime," Connor said back, equally softly, before pushing Seb upright.

Matt handed Seb a topped-up glass of water. "Drink," he urged. "Con will kill you if you throw up in his car."

Connor nodded. "Damn right."

Seb wrinkled his nose and then gulped his drink. He didn't need a valeting bill on top of having to find somewhere new to live.

"Are you feeling any better?" Connor asked when Seb put the empty glass down on the table.

"It depends on what you mean by better. I'm feeling more sober."

"Good."

Seb placed his hand over his heart. "But the pain I'm feeling here can't be washed away by a couple of pints of water."

Matt rolled his eyes. "Christ, don't tell me heartache is going to turn you into a dodgy poet?"

Seb bobbed his head from side to side. "You think I could write a song?"

"No!" Matt and Connor said simultaneously.

"And for God's sake don't start singing," Connor begged. "You're tone deaf."

"It's true," Matt agreed.

Seb glowered at them both. "Yeah, because you're both Olly Murs."

Connor laughed. "I never said I could sing, just that you couldn't," he added with a wink. "Come on, let's get you to a bed so you can sleep off the rest of the alcohol."

"We should go somewhere," Seb said as Connor and Matt helped him to stand. He looped his arms over their shoulders, and together, they wove their way towards the exit. "Get away for a few days. You've still got that fucking massive tent, right, Matt?"

"Uh… yeah. I've never used it though."

Seb hugged Matt closer. "Well, you should. We should." He pulled Connor closer next. "What do you say?"

"Sure," Connor said, though he sounded half-hearted at best.

"Matt's got the tent. You've got the car, and I'll…" Seb pursed his lips. "I'll bring the beer."

"Oh, great," Matt said. "You want to go to the middle of nowhere, where there won't be a proper toilet, and get pissed?"

"In November," Connor added.

"At least we'll have a beer shield to keep us warm!" Matt joked.

"Sounds awesome, right?" Seb asked.

Matt shook his head, but he laughed all the same. "Yeah, actually, it does."