“She's going to be fine,” Benji soothed, standing up to greet them. “I made sure she had the best care available. It's only for a day and a half. Besides,” he said, shooting Diego an entirely sappy look that Caleb never would have believed existed before now, “I can't marry the love of my life if all my boys aren't here.”
Felix could be hard to read sometimes, but Caleb saw how his smile went soft around the edges, like it meant something for him to be included, and not just as Max's boyfriend.
“Oh my god, you're becoming the cheesiest human alive,” Leo said, shaking his head, as he threw his arms around Benji. “I love it.”
Over the last two years, the awkwardness had faded between him and Benji, and Caleb was gratified that after Leo finally relinquished him, Benji didn't hesitate for a second when Caleb reached for him, just hugged him back. There'd been a time when he'd never ever have expected to win Benji's trust again. When it had seemed almost more impossible than earning Leo's.
But now, he and Benji were good. He and Diego had grown close again. He and Max were even better. It was just Felix who still eyed him sometimes like he didn't quite know what to expect. It hurt, but it wasn't much of a surprise. Caleb knew he still had work to do to earn Felix's trust.
“So, Vegas,” Leo said, settling into a seat opposite Benji and Diego. “That's a choice. What about Ana? Your parents? Benji’s family?”
“We’ll have a big party when we get back to LA, but we wanted to just do it, finally, and Vegas seemed like the perfect place to get married when we aren’t willing to waste another moment,” Diego said, his eyes shining with the same love and happiness emanating out of Benji. “Besides, we've both done the big wedding thing, and it didn't end up meaning much, in the end. We wanted something for us, just us, and then we thought, you guys should be there, too. We wouldn't be here without you.”
“I'm not sure that's entirely true,” Caleb said wryly. “We haven't always been so helpful. Though, if you're talking about at all, that makes sense.” He'd been the one to introduce Diego to the group, all those years ago. If he hadn't done that, Benji and Diego never would have met.
“Helpful enough,” Benji said firmly.
“Can't argue with that,” Max added. “We're just happy we can be here.”
Benji launched into a recital of the plan for the next forty-eight hours, ticking off items on his fingers. It might be an impromptu elopement, but it was obviously well planned and well thought out. No way an Elvis impersonator ends up anywhere close to their ceremony; Leo's totally going to end up doing the dishes for a month. He glanced over at Leo, who seemed torn between happiness for his best friends and a growing dismay as he realized that he'd made a terrible bet and that Caleb would one hundred percent collect on it.
The plane prepared to take off, the steward making his way around the various couples, distributing drinks. When he approached Leo and Caleb, he experienced the same brief momentary panic he always did when confronted with a waiter who was assuming he'd want a beer or a glass of wine or even a flute of champagne, like the ones that Benji, Diego, Max, and Felix were drinking. “Just a sparkling water and a slice of lime,” Caleb said, and Leo, who knew how he felt about ordering drinks, reached over and squeezed his knee. “I'll have the same,” he said. He didn't always do that, but then it always meant something when he did.
Six months after they'd gotten back together, they'd had their first—and really only—bad fight. Leo had staunchly refused to drink in front of him, ever, and Caleb had finally gotten tired of his eternal tiptoeing. “Do you think I'm going to relapse if I watch you take a drink?” he'd demanded. “Am I that fragile?”
Leo had admitted that while he didn't really believe that Caleb would, he'd worried all the same. He'd also claimed that he'd lost his taste for alcohol, and Caleb had wondered if he was just trying to spare his feelings, but Leo had finally admitted that watching Caleb struggle over the years had changed his own relationship with booze, and he couldn't enjoy it the same as he always had. Now, he did occasionally order a drink or have a beer in the evenings, but Caleb believed that was also his choice and that knowledge had brought him a surprising amount of peace.
The trip to Vegas was short, just over an hour, and when the plane landed on the ground, there was an extra-long limo on the tarmac, ready to take them to the hotel. “Which one are we going to?” Caleb wondered. He had mixed feelings on Vegas; as a city, it promoted the kind of excess he felt like he'd been battling forever, but it also had a vibrancy and an excitement that he enjoyed.
“The Wynn,” Benji said, giving him a look. “I told you that on the plane.”
He probably had, but Caleb had been too absorbed by the endlessly adorable expressions that kept crossing over Leo's face—as he'd realized that he was almost definitely going to lose the bet. “Uh,” Caleb stammered. Leo reached out and captured his hand, stroking his big palm with his two much smaller ones.
Benji shook his head. “And you say we're sappy. You guys invented sappy.”
“We did,” Leo said staunchly.
“I guess there's no trouble in paradise to worry about,” Max said under his breath as they climbed into the limo.
Leo shot a daggered look at his friend. “None,” he said with emphasis.
It didn't surprise Caleb that Leo hadn't told them they were taking space and working through some things. It was difficult enough with the way the five—now the six—of them gossiped. That probably also meant that when they got to the hotel, they would end up in one room, not two. At least for the weekend, they'd be sharing a bed again. Caleb felt his blood rise in anticipation—not even because he was incredibly horny after almost two weeks with no sex—but because he'd missed being pressed up next to Leo so much. Even when he was grumpy in the mornings. Especially when he was grumpy in the mornings, Caleb mentally corrected, already looking forward to it.
“Well, we're relieved to hear it,” Diego said, and looked like he wanted to say more, but Leo's expression must have convinced him he was taking his life into his own hands if he continued.
“Things couldn't be better,” Leo said. “Caleb's been working every day on his new album, and I think it's going to be great.”
“You're still not working on it with him?” Benji asked as the limo pulled up to the private VIP entrance of the Wynn tower. “I thought after he broke it off with Brad Maxwell, you'd be the first person he'd turn to.”
“I'm right here,” Caleb inserted. “And I can produce my own album.”
Five sets of eyes swung his direction, and although they all looked supportive, it was clear none of them thought that was true.
And it made sense, because Caleb didn't think it was a particularly good choice, he just hadn't figured out how to alter the status quo yet.
“You'll figure something out,” Benji said, patting him on the back as they climbed out of the limo. “You're a smart guy. You know what happened to me, when I had too much power over my solo stuff. Disaster.”