Hot Cappuccino Boy - BxB (COMPLETE)

Chapter 30

Discovering Aden looking at Ben and I this way, I feel a brief but intense flutter of panic.

What do I do now??

Caught between my kind-of-ex and my...

Boyfriend.

That's when calm settles over me, followed by genuine determination.

I don't want to feel myself trapped between both worlds – on the one hand, Ethan the flatmate with his problems of not knowing when to set up limits with people – and look what it got me – and on the other hand, Ethan the boyfriend of sexy, rich Aden Thomas.

No – If I'm serious about our relationship, as I'm resolved to be, there's only one way to act right now.

I release one hand of Ben, reach out to Aden, smiling up at him.

"There you are! Come on, sit down with us!"

Aden blinks at me once, twice before letting himself be led in the nearest seat next to me.

Heart pounding, I try to temper the irrational worry that what I'm planning to achieve right now will turn into a disaster. Now is not the time for dithering and hesitating. I've made my choice when I said "yes" to Aden's question earlier.

So, I turn to Ben, who hasn't said anything when watching me holding Aden's hand, inviting him in our little space but whose deep amber eyes contain endless questions, and declare:

"Well, not the best time to do so, but since we're all here, I might as well do the honours... Ben, this is Aden Thomas, my boyfriend."

I say it without pausing, without stumbling over the last word.

I'm not brave enough to look into Ben's eyes and gauge his reaction, though. I quickly turn to Aden:

"This is Ben, my flatmate and friend."

I'm rewarded with a flash of his smile, before he holds out his hand.

"Nice to meet you."

"The same..." Ben replies, shaking his hand.

He glances at me, a smirk curling up the corner of his mouth.

"I must say, mate, you've got the worst timing in the world."

"Hey! Not my fault Sam decided to play the drama queens tonight..."

I hear Ben's hitch in his breath and for an instant, I wonder if I've gone too far. Relief courses over me as I watch him smile and shake his head.

"True. Therefore, I vote for Sam to be in charge of supervising the dishwasher for the rest of the year!"

"Seconded!"

"Do I get a vote in this?" Aden asks, an amused glint in his gaze.

"Sure, mate," Ben replies. "Any support in getting Sam piled up with new responsibilities in the flat is always welcome."

He grins, relief written all over his face.

"It's always the people who aren't there that get the chores!"

After a while, Aden proposes himself as our purveyor of good coffee and not the piss-poor stuff available at the hospital's vending machines. I follow him a little bit in the corridor, under the transparent pretext of stretching my legs – I've got a feeling we're going to be here for a while. At this hour of the night, the corridor is quieter, only a few nurses chatting to each other or taking care of a patient present. I take Aden's hand in a reflex which is already getting familiar, attracting his attention.

"You're sure you want to stay? We don't know how long it's going to take..."

He raises an eyebrow before looking at me earnestly.

"I'm going to stay as long as you want me by your side, Ethan."

I feel a very dopey smile creasing my lips in answer, but I can't resist the temptation of teasing him:

"What happens to 'love'? Already fed up with the pet name?"

"I thought you didn't want any?"

I shuffle a little closer to him, forgetting everything which is not him at the moment. Peering in his deep blue eyes before letting my gaze drop to his mouth.

"I might change my mind about it... but only if you keep up using it. You know, putting an effort in convin...mmmm."

The rest gets stuck in my throat as he suddenly leans in, presses his mouth on mine in a close-lipped but passionate kiss. I feel my knees buckle under the emotional onrush.

"How about this effort, hum?" he whispers, smirking at my dazzled gaze.

"A very worthy one!" a voice suddenly breaks our bubble, followed by a light, barely repressed gale of laughter. The bravest nurse among those who were obviously watching us peeks at us out of the office door and gives us a wink before disappearing again in the office.

Aden lets out an amused huff.

"Okay, I'm off. Wish me luck!"

"Take care!"

I watch him go with what I'm sure is a very gooey expression on my features.

☕️☕️☕️

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