“It sounds like she thought this through pretty well,” Lennie offered.
“She definitely has,” Gray replied, “but there is always that possibility. Chase and I aren’t focusing on that part of it, because we have so much to do in order to be ready for our daughter’s arrival.”
“Do you need legal help to navigate through the adoption?” Bevan asked. “I had a law practice before I went into private investigating.”
“JJ is helping us,” Gray answered, surprising everyone.
We all knew that JJ was a lawyer who focused on equal rights for the LGBT community, but his primary goal had been lobbying for same sex marriages up until the recent historical ruling by the Supreme Court. I had once heard Chase mention that JJ also worked hard to make sure same sex couples weren’t getting the shaft when it came to adoptions and becoming foster parents. I think what surprised all of us the most was that Gray was willingly using JJ as his attorney. Gray had never forgotten the fact that JJ and Chase had been lovers before he met Chase.
“I can be helpful,” JJ said with a mock sneer and an eye roll. It was obvious that he was uncomfortable with everyone’s eyes on him.
“Of course you are, Pooky,” Miller said from beside him.
“Pooky?” JJ asked out loud, but we were all questioning it. JJ didn’t look like a guy who would use pet names with a lover. “You should know all about my helpfulness, Cupcake.” There was a bite of something more than sarcasm or teasing in JJ’s voice. There was a slight tension between JJ and Miller that I hadn’t noticed before, but JJ was MIA during the costume karaoke competition on Halloween so it had been awhile since I had seen Miller and JJ in the same room.
Miller sneered in JJ’s direction briefly before looking down at his plate. His face turned slightly pink under our attention. I didn’t know what the hell was going on between them or the reason for their sniping at one another, but I didn’t like it. I had hoped that they would end up together. They both declared themselves as confirmed bachelors, but I saw differently every time they were in the same room.
“Anyway, back to the baby,” Xavier said to get our attention back on something exciting. “What kind of legal process do you have to go through?”
“We have to go through the same classes and training that foster parents go through, because we’ll essentially be her foster parents until the official adoption takes place a few months later,” Chase answered.
“How long before Sofia’s baby cousin arrives?” Ellie asked as she rubbed her round belly.
“She’ll be here in about ten weeks,” Gray answered.
“Congratulations you guys,” Ben said. “We’re really happy for you.” He put his arm around Xavier and pulled him into his side.
“Chase and Gray, you’ll be amazing dads,” Ava said, tearfully.
“It’s why we easily picked you to be Jacob’s godparents,” Brandon added. “You guys were born to be dads. I can’t wait for our little ones to grow up together.”
“We’re going to be uncles to two lucky little girls,” I said, motioning back and forth between Xavier and myself. I included Ellie’s unborn daughter, Sofia, in the equation because, as far as I was concerned, Ellie was my older sister and I knew she felt the same familial connection as I did.
“Best damn uncles in the whole world,” he replied. “I’ll sing them lullabies and you can make organic baby food.”
“Deal.”
It was then that I realized that Gram hadn’t said much, which wasn’t typical. I looked over and she just sat there smiling contently. She caught my stare and gave me a wink. I saw the happy tears in her eyes and I realized how happy this moment was for her. She had raised Chase on her own from the time he was two years old. She’d been his biggest ally and cheerleader for all of his life so it had to be so exciting for her to see all of his dreams coming true.
Jack reached for my hand beneath the table and squeezed it. Jack and I hadn’t discussed marriage and kids; I somehow doubted the thought had even crossed his mind. We hadn’t been dating very long and he’d made a lot of drastic changes in a short period of time. I was thrilled to be cohabitating with him in his loft. My lease was up at the end of the year and after discussing it with Jack, I told my landlord that I would not be renewing the contract. It was a big move for both of us, but it felt natural. I was confident that everything else would fall into place when the time was right.
LIAM AND Itook the following Wednesday off to go Christmas tree shopping. I had never purchased a tree for my loft and Liam was horrified. I quickly learned that my guy was a Christmas fanatic. He had already warned me that there would be cookie baking and Christmas songs playing throughout the loft when we returned from Vermont. We would be leaving for our trip on Friday and not returning until Monday. Liam wanted the loft decorated for the holiday so that when we returned he could focus on the fun part, like shopping and baking.
He dragged me to three different home improvement stores looking for the perfect tree. He didn’t want a live tree, because he didn’t like the thought of a tree dying just for his pleasure. He wanted a very tall, very fat tree that yelled Christmas. Those were pretty much his exact words.
“This tree looks anorexic,” he said, hands on his hips and disgust dripping off of his tongue. He was clearly offended by the existence of that tree. He shook his head as we walked from tree to tree.Finally!As if the heavenly light was shining down upon the tree, there it stood in all its tall and fat tree glory. “Oh my god! This is the one! I love…,” his eyes locked on the price tag and his voice faded away.
“We’ll take this one,” I said to the overeager store employee who didn’t get too far away from Liam at any time while we looked at the trees. I had caught him eyeing my guy a few times and tried not to let it bother me. The guy was gorgeous and closer to Liam’s age, but Liam wasn’t in love with that guy. He was in love with me.
“Jack, no! That tree is too expensive. I don’t need anything that grand to celebrate our first Christmas together. It only matters that we’re together.” He immediately walked back to the first tree that offended him. “This tree is just fine,” he said, forcing a smile.
“We’re buying that tree.” I pointed back to the tree that practically gave Liam a hard-on. He shook his head, but I wasn’t going to be dissuaded. I saw the lustful look in his eyes – the one that was usually reserved for me – and I was going to buy that tree for our home. I started walking towards him and he backed up slightly. His eyes widened, but not in fear; he knew he had nothing to fear from me. “We’re going to decorate that tree when we get home, then we’re going to light a fire and spread a blanket on the floor, and then do you know what we’re going to do?”
“Tell campfire stories? Roast s’mores?” I loved his smart mouth and I couldn’t wait to watch it wrap around my dick.
“Not even close.” I pressed my body flush against his and placed my hands on his neck. I caressed his jawline with my thumbs and watched his Adam’s apple bob up and down as he worked to swallow. “I’m going to lay you down and…”
“You’re all set, sir.” Liam’s number one fan stood in the aisle with the tree box on a flat cart. His evil smile told me he knew just what he was interrupting. My return smile told him that while he was jacking off thinking about my Liam, I’d be buried deep inside him. I bit back the laugh bubbling inside me when the jerk’s smile slid off of his face.
