Which was true. As much as I wanted to beg him to accept my offer so I could start taking care of him for real, I had sternly told myself not to. This needed to be his decision, made of his own free will, not because I’d worn him down with my arguments or sheer badgering.
Forest cocked his head, a smile playing on his lips. “There’s that sweetness again.”
I was really starting to detest that word. “But if you’re offering that information willingly, I’m not gonna say no.”
Forest played with his napkin. “Hmm, maybe I will…”
Giorgio came back with our drinks, interrupting our discussion. “Are you ready to order?” he asked after opening the bottle of sparkling water and pouring us some, serving Forest first.
“I’ll try the seafood linguine,” Forest said, nudging his head at me. “He said it was amazing.”
“It is. Excellent choice. And for you, sir?”
I couldn’t help but notice he called me sir but hadn’t done the same to Forest. “I’ll try the spaghetti bolognese tonight. Haven’t had it before.”
“It’s my grandmother’s recipe,” Giorgio said as he quickly jotted something down. “I’d eat it every day if I could.”
After he’d left again, a silence followed. Surely the moment had now passed to bring up the topic of attraction and types again. Giorgio had had the worst timing. If he’d shown up even a minute later, I would’ve had my answer.
“I like men,” Forest said then, and I blinked. Surely he didn’t expect that part to be news to me. “And I don’t mean that I’m gay, which I am, for the record, but I’m talking about the difference between men and boys. Boys are great for a hookup or a good time, but for something serious, I need a man.”
Oh, interesting. “What’s the difference, you think? What separates the men from the boys, so to speak?”
He mulled it over, sipping from his water. His hand trembled a little, and I looked away, not wanting to embarrass him. “It’s the difference between Tom Holland and Chris Hemsworth on one hand and Robert Downey Jr. and Paul Rudd on the other.” At my confused face, he smiled. “There’s this video where all theMarvel actors are getting out of an elevator, and Tom Holland gets out first, even before Zendaya. But the other three guys insist Scarlett Johansson walks out before them. To me, that’s a little thing, but it speaks volumes. Tom is incredibly cute and attractive, but to me, he’s still a boy. The other three are men.”
Hmm, I saw what he meant. But that begged the question of who I resembled more, Tom or the others? I wanted to say the others, but damn, comparing myself to Thor, Ant-Man, and Iron Man? Talk about setting the bar high.
Forest leaned in, then patted my hand. “You would’ve let me go first. You’re way too much of a gentleman not to.”
He thought I was a gentleman? That was a first. I’d certainly never been called that before. “Thank you.”
Another pat and those green eyes focused on me. “What’s your type?”
You.
The word was right there on the tip of my tongue, but I held it back. Now was not the time. In fact, it would be the absolute worst timing in the world because if he realized how attracted I was to him, he might interpret my proposal as some nefarious scheme to get into his pants, which was about as far from the truth as possible.
Yes, I did want to get into his pants, no doubt about it. But not at the cost of losing his friendship. His respect. And definitely not at the cost of being able to protect Forest and take care of him. That mattered more than anything else.
I cleared my throat when I realized I’d been silent for too long. “Erm, same. Men, I mean. And not…boys. I don’t like ’em too young. Makes me feel like their dad.”
His eyes twinkled. “I bet there’s plenty of boys who wouldn’t mind having you as their sugar Daddy…”
A sharp intake of breath, and I wanted to die when I saw Giorgio standing behind me, ready to serve me my plate. HadForest seen him head over and deliberately said those words? Considering the laughter in his eyes, it wouldn’t surprise me.
Under other circumstances, I might’ve been a tad pissed off about him embarrassing me, but not today. Not when that smile lit up his entire face and made him forget about his own troubles for a while. That was worth all the embarrassment in the world.
Didn’t mean I couldn’t tease him right back. “Mmm, that so? You applying for the job?”
Giorgio almost dropped the plate when he put it down in front of me, and his face turned a lovely shade of red. “P-pardon my interruption,” he stammered.
“No worries,” I said lightly. “We have no secrets, do we, sweetheart?”
Forest pressed his lips together in what seemed like a desperate attempt not to burst out in laughter.
I waited until Giorgio was done and had wished us a pleasant dinner, then asked, “Please know that I’m not in any way pressuring you, but can I ask if you’ve thought about the proposal?”
“You mean since this morning, when you asked me if you should apologize for it?”
