I Wished For You

  I Wished For You

  Colette Davison

  I Wished For You

  Copyright © 2019 Colette Davison

  ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

  Cover Design: Designs by Dana

  Edited by: Sarah Chorn

  Proofread by: Tanja Ongkiehong

  This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents either are the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or locales is entirely coincidental. The author holds exclusive rights to this work. Unauthorised duplication is prohibited.

  The images used in the cover design were licensed from DepositPhoto.

  Table of Contents

  CHAPTER ONE

  CHAPTER TWO

  CHAPTER THREE

  CHAPTER FOUR

  CHAPTER FIVE

  CHAPTER SIX

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  CHAPTER EIGHT

  CHAPTER NINE

  CHAPTER TEN

  CHAPTER ELEVEN

  CHAPTER TWELVE

  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  CHAPTER FIFTEEN

  CHAPTER SIXTEEN

  CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

  CHAPTER EIGHTEEN

  CHAPTER NINETEEN

  CHAPTER TWENTY

  CHAPTER TWENTY-ONE

  CHAPTER TWENTY-TWO

  CHAPTER TWENTY-THREE

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

  CHAPTER TWENTY-FIVE

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SIX

  CHAPTER TWENTY-SEVEN

  CHAPTER TWENTY-EIGHT

  CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE

  CHAPTER THIRTY

  CHAPTER THIRTY-ONE

  CHAPTER THIRTY-TWO

  CHAPTER THIRTY-THREE

  CHAPTER THIRTY-FOUR

  CHAPTER THIRTY-FIVE

  CHAPTER THIRTY-SIX

  CHAPTER THIRTY-SEVEN

  Books By Colette

  About Colette

  For my readers:

  Be true to your heart; always.

  CHAPTER ONE

  Seb

  "Broken up with and thrown out of my own home. Happy fucking birthday to me," Seb grumbled as he downed a shot of vodka and then slammed the glass on the table.

  He'd lost track of how much he'd had to drink, other than knowing it was probably too much. The crowded bar was starting to spin around him, and his words had sounded slurred, even to his own inebriated ears.

  "It's Craig's loss," Matt said, sitting down beside him.

  Seb blinked at his friend and then rubbed his eyes.

  "You called me," Matt informed him.

  "I did?"

  "And me," Connor said, taking the seat on the other side of Seb.

  Seb stared from one to the other, over and over, until he felt dizzy and sick. "Huh."

  Maybe he was imagining them. He leaned toward Matt and pinched his arm. His friend felt real.

  "Ow!" Matt complained.

  Seb was obviously drunker than he'd thought, but it made sense that he'd called them; both of them. He'd known Matt and Connor for years. They always had his back.

  "Thanks guys," he gushed. "I can always count on you. I've been dumped."

  "We know," Matt said with an exasperated sigh. He showed Seb his phone screen and the dozens of text messages that had summoned him here. "What happened?"

  Seb shrugged and reached for another shot glass. They were all empty. "Let me get another drink first." He tried to stand, but Matt put a restraining hand on his shoulder and held him down.

  "I'm pretty sure you've had enough to drink."

  "Why don't I go get us all a jug of water?" Connor asked.

  "Water?" Seb exclaimed. "What good's water going to be? I'm trying to drown my sorrows here."

  Connor raised his eyebrows. "I'm pretty sure your sorrows are well and truly drowned. I'll go get some water."

  "I don't want water. I want…" Seb waved at the shot glasses. "Whatever they were."

  "You must enjoy having killer hangovers," Matt said.

  Seb gasped indignantly. "No."

  "Water it is," Connor said.

  They waited the few minutes it took Connor to get to the bar, wait his turn, and return with a jug of tap water and three glasses.

  "Don't you two want to drink?" Seb asked as Connor thrust a full glass of water into his hand.

  "I've already had a few drinks with workmates," Matt said.

  "And someone has to drive both your sorry asses home," Connor added, though he winced apologetically when Seb's face crumpled as he sucked in a shuddering sob.

  "What happened?" Matt asked, repeating his earlier question. "I thought you and Craig were solid?"

  Seb pulled in a shuddering breath. "Me too. But apparently, I was wrong. Apparently, I don't fulfil him anymore." He sagged down in his chair and huffed out petulantly. "What the fuck does that even mean? That I'm crap in bed? That he's bored of my company?" He swigged the water before staring glumly into the glass. "Five years down the crap hole. I thought he was the one, you know? I thought I'd found the guy I was going to spend the rest of my life with. How fucking wrong could I have been?"

  Matt pretended to stand. "Wait here while I go fetch you some crackers."

  "Huh?" Seb stared at him stupidly.

  Laughing, Matt relaxed into his chair. "To go with all that cheese you just spewed out of your mouth."

  Seb glared at him. "Hah, fucking hah. You're hilarious, you know that?"

  Matt rubbed his fingers over his white shirt, which was slightly crumpled after a day's worth of wear. "One of us has to be."

  "You're meant to be giving me a shoulder to cry on," Seb objected. "Not taking the piss out of me."

  Matt clapped him on the back. "You want a shoulder? You've got it. You know that. I was just trying to make you laugh."

  Seb smiled despite himself. The happy gesture lasted for a fraction of a second before his lips downturned. "I just… I really thought I had everything, you know? And now I have nothing. No boyfriend and nowhere to live."

  "He threw you out?" Connor asked sharply.

  Seb nodded miserably. "And my name wasn't even on the lease, so I haven’t got a leg to stand on. Craig wants me out, so I have to go."

  "He's not even giving you time to find somewhere else?"

  "I've got until Sunday night."

  "Arsehole."

  "You've still got us," Matt said, nudging Seb.

  "I know," Seb sobbed. "You guys are great."

  "Brilliant friends are hard to find," Matt agreed, grinning.

  "My sofa's yours if you want it," Connor said.

  "Thanks," Seb breathed. Trust Connor to want to take care of him in his hour of need. "Your place is kind of small though." He slapped his hand against his forehead a little too hard. "That made me sound like an ungrateful jerk. I'm sorry, Connor. Your sofa would be great until I can find somewhere permanent."

  "You can have my spare room for a bit," Matt offered.

  Seb looked between them again, too overwhelmed for a few seconds to choke any words out. He put his water down, clasped both their hands, and squeezed them. "I love you guys," he breathed.

  Matt worked his hand free and messed up Seb's mess of thick, dark curls. "Yeah, we love you too. But enough of the soppy crap. Craig is a total shit to do this to you on your birthday. Hell, he’s a bastard to do it to you at all, much less without any warning. But trust me, if that's how he's going to treat you, you're better off without him." He glanced at Connor, who nodded firmly in agreement. "Between me and Con, you've got a place to stay for as long as it takes you to get back on your feet. We've got your back, Seb."

  Seb sniffled. "Thanks." He really didn't know what he'd do without them.

 
; Of the two of them, Matt was the most likely to know what he was going through. A six-foot-tall teddy bear of a man, Matt seemed to fall hard and fast for every woman he met—most often through internet dating sites—only to get relegated to the friendship zone after a few weeks of them seeing each other. Connor, on the other hand, had had a spattering of one-night stands and had shown zero interest in wanting anything more. He seemed happy that way, although that hadn't stopped both Seb and Matt from trying to set their friend up a few times in the past.

  "Drink up," Connor said, handing Seb the glass of water again. "Or you're going to have one hell of a hangover in the morning."

  Seb did as he was told. He could tell he was starting to sober up because his heartache was increasing again. He really hadn't seen the end of his relationship coming. He kept thinking back over the last few days and weeks. Hell, even that morning he'd kissed Craig goodbye and squeezed his arse before they'd both set off to work. Then he'd got home, and everything had changed. His world had been turned upside down, and he had no clue why.

  "What did I do wrong?" he asked.

  "Stop right there," Matt told him. "Don't think like that. Craig is the one in the wrong here, not you. If he felt things weren't going great between the two of you, he should have talked to you. He should have tried to work things out."

  Seb sighed heavily. He heard Matt's words, but they didn't sink in. He kept turning things over in his mind, trying to work out what mistakes he'd made. Had he been too clingy? Was it because he'd started talking about getting married one day? He shook his head and looked longingly at the empty shot glasses. He wanted to drink himself into oblivion to ease the pain he was feeling, but he knew neither Matt nor Connor would let him. Maybe that was why he'd called them. Subconsciously, he'd wanted to be saved from himself.

  He flopped to the side and leaned his head on Connor's shoulder. "What am I going to do?"

  "Sober up and get some sleep. Then you can figure things out when your head's less messed up."

  It was good advice, and Seb found himself nodding.

  "Drink another pint of water, and then I'll take you back to Matt's place. I'm betting you'd prefer a bed to my sofa."

  Seb shifted his head so he was peering up at Connor's dark, soulful eyes. "Thanks," he whispered.

  The universe might have dealt him a cruel hand in terms of his boyfriend, but it had done him a solid by bringing Connor and Matt into his life when they'd been kids.

  "Anytime," Connor said back, equally softly, before pushing Seb upright.

  Matt handed Seb a topped-up glass of water. "Drink," he urged. "Con will kill you if you throw up in his car."

  Connor nodded. "Damn right."

  Seb wrinkled his nose and then gulped his drink. He didn't need a valeting bill on top of having to find somewhere new to live.

  "Are you feeling any better?" Connor asked when Seb put the empty glass down on the table.

  "It depends on what you mean by better. I'm feeling more sober."

  "Good."

  Seb placed his hand over his heart. "But the pain I'm feeling here can't be washed away by a couple of pints of water."

  Matt rolled his eyes. "Christ, don't tell me heartache is going to turn you into a dodgy poet?"

  Seb bobbed his head from side to side. "You think I could write a song?"

  "No!" Matt and Connor said simultaneously.

  "And for God's sake don't start singing," Connor begged. "You're tone deaf."

  "It's true," Matt agreed.

  Seb glowered at them both. "Yeah, because you're both Olly Murs."

  Connor laughed. "I never said I could sing, just that you couldn't," he added with a wink. "Come on, let's get you to a bed so you can sleep off the rest of the alcohol."

  "We should go somewhere," Seb said as Connor and Matt helped him to stand. He looped his arms over their shoulders, and together, they wove their way towards the exit. "Get away for a few days. You've still got that fucking massive tent, right, Matt?"

  "Uh… yeah. I've never used it though."

  Seb hugged Matt closer. "Well, you should. We should." He pulled Connor closer next. "What do you say?"

  "Sure," Connor said, though he sounded half-hearted at best.

  "Matt's got the tent. You've got the car, and I'll…" Seb pursed his lips. "I'll bring the beer."

  "Oh, great," Matt said. "You want to go to the middle of nowhere, where there won't be a proper toilet, and get pissed?"

  "In November," Connor added.

  "At least we'll have a beer shield to keep us warm!" Matt joked.

  "Sounds awesome, right?" Seb asked.

  Matt shook his head, but he laughed all the same. "Yeah, actually, it does."

  CHAPTER TWO

  Matt

  Matt pulled Seb's shoes and socks off and then made sure his friend was lying on his side. Seb had been far drunker than he'd admitted, even after plenty of water, a ten-minute walk in the fresh air to get to Connor's car, and the drive back to Matt's. After covering Seb in a quilt, he crept out of the room. In all honesty, he could have stomped out whilst playing a trumpet, and his friend still wouldn't have woken up.

  "Is he okay?" Connor asked. He'd waited in the sitting room whilst Matt had put Seb to bed.

  "He will be, although I think he's going to have a huge hangover tomorrow despite your best efforts." He dropped down on the sofa beside Connor. "Do you think he was serious about camping?"

  Connor rested his head against the top of the sofa and then turned his face so he was staring at Matt. "Don't you have a ton of camping gear knocking around here somewhere?"

  Matt let out a deep belly laugh. "Yeah, which I've never used. You know this story, right?"

  "You wanted to impress outdoor-loving Lydia."

  "Yup. I'd bought the gear, booked the campsite…" Matt let out an exaggerated sigh.

  "And then she friend-zoned you."

  "It's the story of my fucking life," Matt moaned. "Every bloody time I think I've found the one, she turns around and tells me she just wants to be friends." He pushed aside his momentary self-pitying thoughts. Camping was not on his top list of things to do. Especially in November. "Who the fuck goes camping in November, anyway?"

  "I'm not so keen either, but I guess we'll find out if Seb was serious when he wakes up tomorrow."

  "Do you want to sleep on the sofa?" Matt asked hopefully.

  Connor raised his eyebrows. "You don't want to deal with a hungover Seb on your own."

  "Guilty as charged. I also figure he wouldn't want to go and pick up his stuff from his—" He stopped himself and took a breath. "From Craig's flat on his own."

  "No, that won't be fun." Connor’s cheek muscles flexed. "Count me in. But I'm going home to get some proper sleep. I'll meet you back here in the morning." He leaned forward onto his knees. "I can't believe Craig dumped Seb like that."

  Matt shook his head and clenched his fists. "I hope he's not there, or I might punch his lights out."

  "No you won't." Connor chuckled. "You wouldn't even squash a fly."

  "True." Matt unclenched his hands. "But it doesn't stop me from being pissed as hell at what Craig's done."

  "Of course not." Connor sighed. "I just don't get it. Seb's a great guy, and he and Craig seemed solid."

  Matt nodded in agreement. He'd been expecting a save-the-date card from the couple, not a breakup. "Maybe Craig was seeing someone else," he said eventually. That was the only way he could wrap his head around the situation.

  "You think?"

  Matt glanced sidelong at Connor. "You don't?"

  Connor shrugged. "I honestly have no idea. I wouldn't have thought Craig was the type, but I guess you never know."

  "Maybe he was jealous of us!"

  "Us?" Connor's eyebrows shot up, and his shoulders tensed.

  "Yeah… you know… bros before…" Matt shook his head. "Yeah, I can't think of a word that rhymes that describes Craig." He pursed his lips as another thought flitted through his mind.
He leaned forward, mirroring Connor's posture. "You don't think Seb was cheating, do you?"

  They glanced at one another, communication passing between them despite the silence.

  "Nah," they said in unison.

  "He'd have told us," Connor decided, pushing against his knees to flop back against the sofa cushions.

  "He wouldn't have been drowning his sorrows," Matt agreed.

  "And he wouldn't have needed to call us."

  "Yeah." Matt leaned back, too.

  He felt a twinge of guilt for even considering that Seb might have cheated on Craig. He knew Seb better than that. He'd been utterly besotted by Craig, and, as a result, he'd been blindsided. His life had been turned upside down on his birthday of all days.

  A face-splitting yawn broke free of him before he had the chance to smother it with his hands. "Shit, I'm sorry."

  "Don't be." Connor chuckled. "I'd better get going, anyway." He squeezed Matt's shoulder as he stood. "Seb will be okay. You know that, don't you?"

  "Of course he will. He’s got us to look after him, right?" Just like they'd looked after Connor, after his mum passed away when they were all teenagers, and they'd looked after Matt, when his dad had died a couple of years earlier. He grinned, to stop the moment from turning melancholy. "And by us I mean you."

  Connor gave him a lop-sided smile. "He's staying in your flat."

  "Like that'll stop you taking care of him." Matt splayed his fingers over his knees. "On the bright side, it'll be back to being the three of us against the world."

  Connor laughed softly. "That sounds great." He glanced towards the door. "I'd better go."

  "My sofa's got your name on it," Matt reminded him.

  "Nah, it's okay. Your sofa's not that comfy."

  After Connor had let himself out, Matt grabbed some water and headed to the bathroom to get ready for bed. On the way to his room, he stopped by the spare room to look in on Seb. His friend was still lying on his side, mouth open and snoring softly. Matt smiled. At least Seb wasn't drooling in his sleep.

  "You'll be okay," Matt said quietly. "Con and I will make sure of it."

  Seb grunted in his sleep and smacked his lips together a couple of times before his breathing deepened and he began to snore again. Matt smiled before leaving his friend.