“Shut up, you.” Sid whacked the back of Mackey’s head like he was a naughty teenager, but gently, making them all crack up.
“Lord have mercy, y’all.” It blew his mind, having this here and now.
“This is good, you guys. Mackey and I are excited to have two of our favorite people living next door.” Sid looked at Hudson. “We’ve been trying to get Jack to buy that property for ages. We couldn’t figure out what he was waiting for.”
Hudson leaned over and kissed Jack’s shoulder. “Sometimes, you have to wait for all your stars to align before you make big decisions.”
Maybe that was it. Maybe it was just the right time, the right man, the right thing. He wasn’t sure.
“You and I can take the ATVs out while our men play cowboy. It’ll be great.”
Hudson grinned and leaned over the table. “I don’t think they’re playing.”
“Well, Mackey might be playing…” Jack had to tease. Had to.
“Fuck off, asshole.” Mackey’s laugh filled the room.
“Pass the meatballs.” Hudson held his hand out.
The plates went around again, everyone eating like they were starving, and Jack had to admit, Sid had rocked this.
“You guys want to play some cards?” Mackey asked, as they all got up to clear plates.
Hudson looked at Jack, then back at Mackey and shook his head no. “Thanks, but I’m beat. Buying a house is exhausting.”
“Tomorrow, huh? We’ll make hotdogs outside.” Jack stood to help clean up. Between the four of them, it would go fast.
“Even I can grill a hotdog.” Hudson had one eye on him while they washed the dishes and put the leftovers away.
“We’ll figure it out tomorrow, huh? No stress.” Mackey winked at him. “We’ll finish up and see y’all in the morning. Maybe I’ll make biscuits.”
“I feel spoiled.” Hudson gave Sid a quick hug. “Thanks for dinner. It was amazing.”
“There aren’t any leftovers. That’s the best compliment. Sleep well, you guys.”
“You too, y’all.” Jack took Hudson’s hand. “Night.” Then they headed toward the bedroom that was his.
Hudson sighed as he closed the door behind them. “Whoo. What a day, huh? Hope you don’t mind skipping out on cards.”
“No. No, that’s fine.” He wanted to…
Did he want to talk?
Maybe he just wanted to be together. Listen.
“I just wanted to be with you.” Hudson started to undress, leaving his clothes in a little pile. “Sid had all these questions.”
“Yeah? Mackey too.” And he hoped Hudson hadn’t changed his mind. “Buyer’s remorse?”
“No.” Hudson answered so quickly he couldn’t doubt the answer. “No. Not at all. We’re going to love that place. It’s the other stuff.”
“Okay. What’s up?” He wanted to know, because if this was going to be bad, he needed to know.
Hudson shrugged, wandering over to him in PJ bottoms. “I don’t know. They just… have their shit together. It’s kind of intimidating, don’t you think? It made me feel like we have a ton to work out. Or maybe we don’t, and we’re good just winging it like we have so far, you know?”
“Ah.” He nodded. He got that, fuck yeah he did. Mackey and Sid were like old married assholes. “I hear you, man. Mackey and Sid are like… but that’s them. You and me, we’ve known each other for years, right? We just have done things our own way.”
Hudson’s arms circled around his waist. “And that’s cool with you, right?”