The first thing Adrian Hayes said after waking up was, "Who authorized these curtains?"

The second was, "Why does my head feel like somebody parked a truck on it?"

The third nearly sent his best friend through the hospital window.

"I'm married? To a MAN? Are you insane? I'm straight!"

Noah Bennett stood beside the bed with a paper cup of coffee and the expression of a man receiving a gift he had waited four years to unwrap.

"That's exactly what you said before you spent a year begging him to marry you."

Adrian stared. The heart monitor offered an unhelpful beep.

"That's not funny."

"It's a little funny."

"Noah."

"All right. It's extremely funny."

Adrian reached for the water on his bedside table. His hand trembled enough to make him stop. The movement brought back the flash of headlights, the scrape of tires, and nothing afterward.

Noah's smile faded. "Easy. The doctor said you might feel dizzy."

"The doctor also said I'm missing four years."

"Parts of four years," Noah corrected. "You remember your childhood, college, your company. You don't remember meeting Elliot."

"Who the hell is Elliot?"

Noah opened his mouth, then closed it.

Outside the room, Elliot Parker stood holding a blue lunch bag with both hands. He had made chicken soup before sunrise because Adrian always complained hospital food tasted like damp cardboard.

He had rehearsed a dozen ways to say hello to a husband who might not recognize him.

None included overhearing that husband reject their marriage at full volume.

"A man," Adrian repeated inside. "You expect me to believe I married a man?"

"A very patient one," Noah said.

Elliot closed his eyes. Three years of marriage. One year of courtship before that. Hundreds of mornings, arguments over laundry, shared birthdays, late-night apologies.

Apparently all of it could disappear between one intersection and the next.

He wanted to cry. Instead, he remembered Adrian arriving at their first date with roses and an umbrella that immediately broke in the rain.

He had looked ridiculous then, too.

Elliot took a breath and pushed the door open.

"I brought lunch," he said.

Adrian turned.

For one suspended second, his face went perfectly blank.

Then his eyes widened. His posture straightened despite the hospital pillows, and an unmistakably foolish smile spread across his face.

Elliot knew that smile. He had seen it four years ago in a bookstore when Adrian knocked over an entire display trying to introduce himself.

"Hey, gorgeous," Adrian said. "What's your name? And… do you believe in love at first sight?"

Noah covered his face. "Oh, for God's sake. Not again."

Elliot almost dropped the lunch bag.

The same man who had announced he could never marry another man was now looking at him as though the hospital had arranged a private miracle.

"You should be resting," Elliot managed.

"I can rest later. Did you come to see me?"

"Yes."

"Excellent. Then this is already the best day of my life."

"You were hit by a car," Noah reminded him.

"And yet I'm optimistic."

Elliot put the lunch bag down, giving himself a moment to study Adrian. There was a small bandage near his temple and bruising along his jaw. His wedding ring still shone on his left hand.

Elliot had spent the previous night afraid that he might lose him forever. Now Adrian was flirting as if they had met at a party.

"How are you feeling?" Elliot asked.

"Better since you walked in."

"He means medically," Noah said.

"I know what he means."

Adrian attempted to smooth his hair, encountered the bandage, and winced. Elliot instinctively stepped forward.

"Don't touch that."

Adrian froze at the gentle command. Something in his expression softened, like a dog recognizing a familiar voice without knowing why.

"You sound like you know me," he said.

Elliot glanced at Noah. His friend raised his eyebrows in a silent question. Elliot knew the truth had to be explained, but the doctor had asked them not to overwhelm Adrian while he was still being assessed.

And Elliot needed one small moment to hear Adrian choose him without being told to.

"We've met," Elliot said.

"How well?"

"Pretty well."

"Have I ever taken you to dinner?"

"Many times."

"Was I charming?"

"Debatable."

"I'll improve."

Noah made a strangled noise into his coffee.

Elliot unzipped the bag. "I made soup. You're supposed to eat something before your next medication."

Adrian watched him unpack a thermos and two carefully wrapped sandwiches.

"You cooked for me?"

"You hate hospital food."

"How did you know that?"

"Lucky guess."

Adrian accepted the spoon. He tasted the soup, paused, then took another mouthful.

"This is incredible."

"You say that every time," Elliot murmured.

"Then I have excellent taste. In food, too."

Elliot laughed despite himself. The sound seemed to surprise Adrian more than anything else that morning.

"There," Adrian said softly. "That's the one."

"The one what?"

"Your smile. I want to see it again."

Elliot looked down at the sandwiches before Adrian could see his eyes shine.

Before the nurse arrived, Noah noticed the untouched sandwich beside Adrian's soup.

"Eat," Noah ordered.

"I'm trying to impress someone. Chewing is unattractive."

"You were literally married yesterday."

"You keep saying that like it's supposed to help."

Elliot laughed into his sleeve. Adrian's gaze followed the sound with such open admiration that Noah suddenly looked away.

For all the jokes, his friend was frightened. Adrian had been unconscious in the emergency department, and Elliot had sat beside him through the night without once complaining.

Noah remembered Elliot holding Adrian's hand and whispering, "You promised we'd grow old and unbearable together. Don't leave me with the unbearable part."

Now Adrian was making ridiculous comments about another man's marriage, and Elliot was laughing for the first time since the accident.

Noah decided he could tolerate a few more minutes of absurdity.

Adrian took another bite of soup and looked at Elliot. "Did you learn to cook professionally?"

"No. I learned because somebody I know forgets to eat."

"He sounds difficult."

"He is."

"And handsome?"

Elliot lifted his eyes. "Occasionally."

Adrian grinned. "Then there's hope for me."

A nurse entered to check Adrian's blood pressure. She asked about dizziness, headaches, and his memory. Adrian answered politely until she asked whether he recognized his spouse.

"Apparently I have one," he said. "I'm still waiting for evidence."

The nurse looked toward Elliot, but he gave a tiny shake of his head. She returned to her notes, explaining that the physician would discuss the memory assessment with all of them later.

Once she left, Adrian leaned toward Elliot conspiratorially.

"Can I ask something personal?"

"You've already asked me whether I believe in love at first sight."

"That was a philosophical question. This one's practical."

"Go ahead."

"Are you seeing anyone?"

Noah set down his coffee so hard it splashed.

Elliot looked at the ring on Adrian's hand. Then at his own matching band.

He could end this now. He should, probably. Instead, a mischievous impulse rose through the exhaustion and fear.

Perhaps it was unfair to Adrian. Perhaps tomorrow they would laugh about it. For one heartbeat, Elliot wanted to remember what it felt like to be pursued rather than worried over.

He lifted his left hand.

"I'm Elliot. But sorry, I'm already married."

Adrian's hopeful expression collapsed.

"Married?"

"Three years."

"Three whole years?"

"That's generally how time works."

Adrian fell back against his pillow with the wounded dignity of a tragic opera hero.

"Of course. Of course the first beautiful person I meet is unavailable."

"You met your nurse first," Noah said.

"Noah, please respect my grief."

Elliot pressed his lips together. Adrian studied the ceiling for several seconds, apparently contemplating the cruelty of fate.

Then he sat up. A new light appeared in his eyes.

"So… when are you getting divorced?"

Noah nearly fell out of his chair.

Elliot stared, astonished by the speed with which his husband had moved from heartbreak to strategic planning.

"Why?" Elliot asked, unable to resist. "Are you planning to steal me from my husband?"

Adrian looked straight at him, utterly sincere.

"Absolutely."