Chapter 20

“I meant at work, honey.” Luca leaned in and kissed Gus’s stubbly cheek, letting his lips linger, reveling in the contact. “I’ve never doubted even for a second that you love me,” he mumbled against Gus’s skin.

“Oh.” Gus deflated and laid his head back on Luca’s shoulder. “Yes, it’s been…stressful.”

That admission from Gus probably meant it had been hell at the hospital, worse than Luca had imagined. Gus never complained and always tried to be positive, so this acknowledgment was alarming

“Tell me what you want to do,” Luca urged.

“I don’t know.”

Luca knew his husband well enough to tell when he was being evasive. “The truth, Gustav.”

Gus was quiet for a long time. Luca reached for the wine, gave a glass to his husband, and took a sip of his own while waiting for Gus to talk.

“You know the clinic down in The Projects?”

“Yes?”

“They’ve gotten a grant and plan on expanding. They’re going to offer health care to the homeless…”