Exclusive Excerpt from For What It’s Worth

by S.M. James

A Sal’s party never disappoints. All the lanterns hung over the lawns glow orange, and smoke fills the air from the bonfire. Reya is cooking some type of spiced vegetables, and Gena, along with her twin brother Kyle, are playing folk music on the steps of St. Albian’s.

I recognize nearly everyone here; most are vendors, and a fair few people come from the local colleges, some I used to go to school with and some I do now. The atmosphere isn’t quite as relaxed as it normally is—there’s too much talking and not enough dancing and laughter. I wish I could have shown Justin what it’s normally like.

I grab some kombucha, and Rory and Justin go for the un-spiked punch. No one here has ever carded us in the past, but again Rory makes the smart choice. I don’t know what his dad said to him, and I’m torn between being glad they had that conversation and wondering how much it upset Rory for him to be set on going to school tomorrow.

“I was thinking next week …” Justin says to Rory as I tune in to their conversation.

“For what?” I ask.

“We’re going to drive up to Princeton,” Rory says. “You coming?”

“Which days?”

“Wednesday and Thursday. They’ve got a tour on.”

Thursday … Thursday … I groan. “I can’t. I’m getting the info for my major assessment that day.”

Justin kicks at the ground. “Damn, well, that’s okay … maybe I could see if there’s another one?”

“No, you’re not here for that much longer. You should go.” I sigh. “You guys are allowed to go places without me.” It sucks to be missing something like this, though. Because I want to be there for him.

“We know that.” Rory rolls his eyes. “But two’s boring—three’s a party.”

I snort and shove him a bit.

“If it helps, I’ll bet their tour is shit compared to yours,” Justin says.

I start to laugh. “I was so damn nervous that day.”

“Me too.”

We share a quick look, and I wonder if he felt it, even back then. The draw I seem to have toward him has been there almost since we met. If I’d been able to get around what I saw between him and Rory, I probably would have paid attention to him from the start.

“Come on, let’s go talk to people.”

Rory and I stick to our word and make sure we don’t leave Justin alone all night. He’s still hard to read, but he’s not shaking or blushing and is actually making conversation with people, so I’d say we’re good.

It’s a pretty cold night, but my wool-lined denim jacket is enough. Rory’s wearing a hoodie under a vest, but poor Justin’s sweater doesn’t seem to be helping, and the later it gets, the more his teeth start to knock together as he talks.

“Cold?”

“J-just a li-ittle.”

“Want to go?”

“N-no.” He shakes his head for emphasis.

“Rory, we’re heading to the fire.”

He nods under his hood. “Okay, I’m going to grab a vegetable kebab. Either of you want one?”

“Yep.”

Justin nods shakily.

“Both of us, please,” I say in case Rory missed it.

Rory ducks away, and I lead Justin over to one of the closest bonfires. He’s pulled his hands up inside his sleeves and crossed his arms.

“You going okay?”

He steps closer to the wall of warmth radiating from the fire, and his shoulders seem to relax. “Yeah. Just not used to the cold. Even out on the farm, winter is barely cold enough for more than jeans and a jacket.” His chin is still trembling as I step closer.

“You know … I’m big and cuddly. You could snuggle up to me for warmth.”

Justin doesn’t look at me, but the orange glow from the fire lights up the way his lips curl into a smile. “Oh yeah?” His eyes flick my way really quickly. “Why don’t you make me?”

My cheeks hurt from the force of my smile, but I step closer, not wanting to treat him with kid gloves but not wanting to overwhelm him either. Hooking one finger through his belt loop, I tug him closer, then slowly slide my hand across his back until my arm is wrapped loosely around his shoulders. Justin huddles into my side, and the temperature must win out against his hesitation because he slides one hand under my jacket and links his arm around my waist.

“Even though you only want me for my body heat, this is nice.”

He shakes his head against my chest. “That’s not the only reason.”

“Hmm … tell me more.”

“No way. Rory already has a big head—I don’t need you developing one too.”

I run my nose through his hair and give his shoulder a light pinch. “Careful, that’s my boyfriend you’re talking about.”

His body shakes lightly with the laughter he’s always trying to suppress. My hands run from his shoulder down to his arm as I pull him a little tighter, and … I frown, giving his very defined bicep a squeeze. “What is this?”

Justin squirms in my hold, turning his face down as Rory joins us.

“That, Micah, is a sexy-as-fuck body that Justin hides away under those ugly oversized sweaters.”

“Oh my god,” he squeaks, and I don’t think I’ll ever get over how embarrassed he gets sometimes. Also, sexy-as-fuck body? What?

“How am I only hearing about this now?”

Rory hands over my kebab, and I grab the still warm stick left-handed, not willing to let Justin go yet. I squint at the chargrilled chunks of vegetables, identifying eggplant, tomato, and pumpkin.

“I mean,” Rory says, not quite meeting my eye. “I couldn’t exactly tell my new boyfriend all about the hot Aussie I’d made out with.”

“I’m glad you can now.” With both hands occupied, I lean forward and press a kiss to Rory’s forehead, wanting him to know it’s okay, it’s not weird. And okay, it’s kinda weird, but not awkward weird.

“Okay,” Justin sighs. “Now I’m getting a big head.”

About For What It’s Worth

Rory García is terrible at making choices.

Dating Micah has been the best decision Rory’s ever made. Micah calms his wild side by bringing Rory back down to earth. They’re perfect for each other.
But when Rory’s Australian crush randomly shows up to stay with him, Rory’s torn between the boyfriend he maybe loves, and the guy he thought he was over.

Micah Holtz is the most loyal boyfriend in history.

Since the day Micah first saw Rory, he fell hard. There’s never been a moment where Micah’s doubted his feelings and when they finally start to date, Micah plans to hold on with both hands.
But then Justin arrives from Australia and Micah finds his single-minded attention starting to slip…

Justin Anderson has a plan for everything.

Showing up on Rory’s doorstep is the most adventurous thing Justin’s ever done. He’s lowkey sick with nerves, but knowing Rory’s there makes it all worth it. Until he finds out Rory has a boyfriend. Which was never part of the plan.
Suddenly Justin’s back to his usual game of second guessing everything, including Rory’s flirting and Micah’s lingering looks.

When Micah’s childhood haunt is set to be torn down, the three of them join forces to try to save the historic building. But will the teamwork add cracks to an already unstable friendship, or bring them closer than they ever imagined?

Available at: Amazon

About S.M. James

S.M. James writes books for teens about squishy sweet characters.

While not writing, SM is a readaholic and Netflix addict who regularly lives on a sustainable diet of chocolate and coffee.

Unapologetically dishing out HEAs for LGBTQ characters.

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