The Rose Boys 2

Chapter 1

Her wide, blue eyes crinkled at the edges as she smiled over at me. "Nick! How have you been? Darren and I have missed you terribly." 

"Hey there, Pretty Eyes." I grinned at her, as she wrapped her arms around my neck in a tight, friendly embrace.

She pulled away and gave me a quick look over, as a mother or sister might do. "You've lost weight," She murmured to herself mostly. "Are you eating properly now that you're living on your own?" 

I laughed, running a hand through her now short, brown hair. It fell just at her sharp jaw line. "You cut off your hair January, I like it." 

She smiled meekly and shrugged. I donated it, all I had to do was mail it to the charity and they use the hair to make wigs for people who are going through Cancer Therapy. Darren's parents supported me on my decision, considering how good it looks on their company." 

I laughed. "You still getting used to Mrs. Jonson accepting you into the Family?"

She brushed her new bangs out of her eyes, the red promise ring replaced with a very large, very shiny engagement ring. It almost hurt to look at. "Oh, Nick Monterro, I think we both know that I will never get used to her accepting me into the family. I've heard that I'm in The Will now." 

"Congratulations by the way on the engagement, how did that boring lug-nut propose to you anyway?" 

She laughed again, a pretty noise that filled the open studio apartment with it's walls of windows and views of oceans and blue skies. She took a seat on the boxy, white couch I'd purchased from Prague and grinned up at me. "Darren took me to Thailand, to the ruins of Ayuthaya, where we spent the day looking at the old temples and palaces. We picnicked near the site and as while we watched the sun go down, he pulled out the ring and asked me to marry him." 

"I'm actually surprised, I didn't think Darren had what it took to be romantic. Consider me wrong about everything I knew about the guy."

January crossed her bare legs and I tried not to think about how those white shorts rose well above the middle of her thigh when she sat down. I sat across from her, on the boxy love seat that matched the three seated couch that she rested on. "So, what about you?" She asked. "Is there anybody that you've been seeing?" 

I considered the question for a moment and shook my head. No, you're a hard girl to get over. I almost whispered. But I just shook my head. "Not anything that lasted more than an evening."

"You're such a pig." She chuckled, chucking a black and white striped cushion that was propped up on the couch beside her, in my direction. I ducked and it slid across the dark, wooden floors to the counters that separated the kitchen space with the living space. "I'm sure you'll find someone soon."

"How long are you guys staying? You guys have been travelling all over the place for the last four years. Can you believe we're all 22, when are you guys going to settle down?"

"We are settling down," Darren's voice chimed in. "This is our return from our four year vacation." The large guy walked and settled down beside January on the sofa. "What are you guys talking about?" 

January laughed. "Nick's one night stands and what we are up to." 

"Nick's one night stands better not relate to what we are up to." 

I shook my head, stupid grin on my face. "Oh come on Darren, you know how it is." 

He shook his head. "You look thinner." 

I stood from the couch, arms up in the air. "Is that all everyone can talk about? Jeez, you all sound like my Abuela." I walked over to the shiny, silver outfitted kitchen and opened up the large fridge. "I'm a man now," I said, shifting through the various things in the two-door. "And men don't need to hear about their weight while they're single."