“Pretty well. We’ve all talked at length about our histories, including the bad stuff. And he’s the healthiest eater I’ve ever met in my life.”
“Don’t tell me you’re going to turn vegan or something,” Dad said. “You know you can’t go a single visit without my famous grilled pork chops.”
Benji laughed and released his hard grip on Joshua. “I love meat too much, but I could be persuaded to eat more green vegetables.”
“I refuse to cook kale under this roof.” The humor in his eyes belied the gruff comment, and in that moment, Benji knew his parents were okay. Maybe not totally on board with the idea, but they’d sit with it and come to terms with it. They wanted him to be happy, and he was.
So goddamn happy he wanted to cry.
Instead, he kissed Joshua, and then followed his family into the dining room for a few rounds of Scrabble. Benji had a score to settle with his mom from last time.
NINETEEN
On Thursday night,Van timed his dinner break with a pre-scheduled call to Benji and Joshua, stupidly desperate to speak to them again even though it had only been twelve hours since he’d last seen them. The attachment was going to kill him once Benji was on the road, but he didn’t want to think about that yet.
He settled in at the break room table with his phone and dialed in. Two beautiful, smiling faces filled the screen. He raised the speaker volume so he could hear them clearly over the dull thump of bass through the walls.
“Hey, you two,” he said.
“Hi!” Benji was practically vibrating. “My parents didn’t freak out when I told them about you. About us.”
Van blinked hard. He hadn’t expected Benji to tell his parents right away. “That’s good. Right?”
“Very good. I mean, they were a little concerned and asked questions, but they saw how happy we are. You’ll charm the pants off them, I know it.”
“I’d rather charm the pants off you.”
Joshua snickered. “Not tonight. Not with his parents on the other side of the wall.”
“That sucks.”
“Or doesn’t suck,” Benji said with a wiggle of eyebrows.
Van growled softly. “You two are trouble.” And a hundred and fifty miles away in another state. With another entire state between them. “But I’m happy that your parents are accepting. It’s important.”
Benji leaned in, his expression deadly serious. “Even if they hadn’t accepted it, we wouldn’t have dumped you. You aren’t getting out of this relationship that easily, mister.”
“I don’t want out.”
“Good. So tell us about your day, dear.”
Van belly-laughed over the very Fifties-housewife way Benji said that. “Nothing special. Woke up with two amazing guys in my bed, then spent the afternoon missing them. Went to work. Still there. How about you?”
“Long drive, but we had a great late lunch.”
Benji and Joshua took turns tag-teaming the trip, food, and battling it out over Scrabble after they had “the conversation.” He loved the way they sometimes finished each other’s sentences, but it also made him sad. Left out. He didn’t have that, but he was also a new feature in their lives. Twin-speak took time to develop.
Patience, you idiot. Nothing like that happens overnight.
“So what are your plans for tomorrow?” Van asked.
“We’ll probably all take the train into the city and hang out,” Benji said. “Do stupid touristy things, eat cheesesteaks, all that.”
Van couldn’t stop a pang of wistfulness; he’d never been to Philadelphia or had a real Philly cheesesteak. Maybe one day.
They chatted a bit longer about mundane things before signing off. Van returned to the bar, his thoughts muddled. He was grateful Benji’s parents hadn’t hit the roof, but he couldn’t shake the sense that he was still the odd man out. They were in Philadelphia. They were spending the day with Benji’s folks. Van, meanwhile, was tending bar and stuck at home. Apart.
Imagine how Benji will feel when he leaves, and it’s you and Joshua alone together all the time.
