“I know,” he replies. “You left the door open and everything.”
Laughter shakes my body as I hug him tighter. “It seemed like a good place to start.”
TWENTY-ONE
______
NED
Logan is laughing so hard he can barely finish the story he’s telling—at my expense. “He said the same thing to every teacher all through senior year.I don’t need algebra to be a rock star, Mr Pembrooke. I only need to know how to count to eight.”
With a scoffing sound, I point the tip of my steak knife in his direction. “Hey, I don’t need algebra to be a bartender, either. So, I still don’t regret not studying for that exam.” Toni cracks up beside me. “But I didn’t say the same thing toeveryteacher,” I assure him. “I nailed Ms Scanlon’s poetry class so hard she cried when I graduated.”
Across the table from me, Logan’s boyfriend, Patrick, chokes on a bite of chicken. Coughing loudly into his napkin, he shakes his head at me. “How do you manage to make getting an A in English sound dirty?”
Toni snorts behind the rim of his cocktail glass. “Ned can make anything sound dirty, when properly motivated.”
Grinning, I lean over to drop a quick kiss on his neck before stealing an asparagus spear from his plate.
This is the first chance I’ve had to catch up with Logan since the day I visited his office—and found Toni instead. Maybe I should buy Logan another bottle of scotch, to thank him for having a burger craving that day.
Toni had been so excited when I’d arrived at his place earlier in the week, babbling about how Logan suggested the four of us get together for dinner. It turns out Patrick is a bigger Fifth Circle fan than I realised, and he was keen to meet me. Toni’s eyes glowed as he talked about going on our first really, real double date, and I knew I needed to make it happen as soon as possible.
“How did you two first meet?” I ask, gesturing to Logan and Toni. I know they began working together not long after they met, but everything before then is still a mystery.
Toni holds up a finger, rushing to chew and swallow a bite of his meal so he can answer first. “We met the night I helped Logan and Patrick find their way to each other’s lips,” he announces with a flashy grin.
Patrick’s ears turn pink at the tips, and he runs a hand over his face. “We would have managed to find our way there eventually.”
“Nope. It was all me,” Toni insists, gesturing to the two men. “Apparently, I’m capable of enabling other people’s love and happiness without even trying.”
I give him a quizzical look. “Maybe, but you’re not making a lick of sense.”
“Okay,” he says, rubbing his hands together, “so Patrick lost some bet to Logan.”
“It was a game of pool,” Patrick clarifies. “I’m pretty sure Logan cheated.”
Logan scoffs. “I’m pretty sure you lost on purpose, so you’d have an excuse to get your hands on me.”
“Because Patrick lost,” Toni continues, ignoring them both, “he had to kiss a boy.” Toni lifts a hand beside his mouth, implying he’s about to reveal a big secret. “Because he was so straight, you know, and because these two have the sense of humour of prepubescent teens.”
The flush on Patrick’s ears spreads to his cheeks. Logan laughs, running a hand over his lover’s shoulder.
Toni leans forwards on the table, apparently enjoying Patrick’s discomfort. “Somehow I got chosen as the ‘kissee’ in this arrangement.” He flicks air quotes around the title.
“That was me,” Logan says, with a quick chin lift. “I chose you.”
Toni pulls a face at his friend. “Why?”
“Look at you. You’re adorableness incarnate.”
With an exaggerated grimace, Toni drops back in his seat. “Ugh. Do you have to use theaword?”
Taking his hand in mine, I nod enthusiastically. “Adorable is always a good thing. Trust me.”
He relaxes into a grin and, damn it, I want to lick his dimples all over again. The man is too tempting by half. “You agreed to let him kiss you?” I ask, trying to get back on topic.
“Not quite,” Toni admits. “I made him buy me aGrasshopperfirst.”
