He nodded. “The one and only. It’s great to meet you.”
“You too,” I gestured behind him. “This was a great pick. I’ve never been.”
“Thanks. It’s Leo’s favorite. Let’s head in, we have a table inside.”
His words made me pause for a moment, but I followed him in.
The host straightened when he saw Jasper. “Hello, Mr. Keaton,” he said. “Your table is ready if you’ll follow me.”
Keaton?Did he use a fake name on his profile? I tried to shake the thought as we walked through the restaurant. I was sure he had his reasons. Wanting privacy on a dating app wasn’t that unusual. The restaurant was a mix of light wood furniture and white-topped tables. The entire bar was underlit in gold, bathing the space in a warm light. It was a comfortable atmosphere, and I could tell why it was his favorite.
As we approached the table, I stopped dead in my tracks. Sitting at the there was the man with longer black hairandthe gruff-looking man with the beard. I was stunned. I thought I’d just deluded myself into believing it was three of them, but here they all were.
“Are you okay?” Jasper asked me.
“T-there’s three of you,” I managed.
They looked between each other, confused. “I wasn’t expecting there to be three of you.” I clarified. I didn’t mean to be so blunt about it, but I was shocked.
Their eyes widened. “I’m sorry,” Jasper said. “We never meant to deceive you. We didn’t really know how the app worked, and we assumed you knew there was more than one of us.”
I looked between them. If I was honest, this was the outcome I’d secretly hoped for. “It’s fine," I said finally.
“Are you sure?” the bearded man asked. “We don’t want to make you uncomfortable."
I shook my head. “I’ve been talking to you all, right?” I asked as they collectively nodded. “I’ve enjoyed that and wanted to get to know the people I talked to.”
Jasper smiled. “We want to get to know you too.” He pulled out my chair, and I sat down.
“I guess we should do introductions, then,” the man with black hair said, putting out his hand. “I’m Leo.”
I took it, noticing how soft his hands were. “And I’m Hawthorne,” the man with the beard said, also taking my hand. His were rougher but warm.
“It’s nice to finally meet you. All of you,” I said with a laugh. I opened the menu to take a look. “Is there anything you recommend?”
When I looked up, all three had their eyes glued to me, and I felt myself flush under their attention.
Leo seemed to blink himself out of something before answering. “I love the tandoori chicken, but their rogan josh is also amazing.”
“I personally like the biryani,” Jasper chimed in. “And this one normally eats half of it.” He gestured to Leo.
He laughed. “It’s just so good.”
That made me laugh. I looked to Hawthorne, who was looking at the others with admiration in his eyes. “What about you, Hawthorne?” I asked.
His eyes cut to me. Something about him was intense, but it didn’t make me uneasy. “I order something different every time,” he said. “I think this time, I’ll have the samosas. I haven’t had them before.”
“Those all sound so good,” I commented. “It’ll be impossible to pick.”
“Why don’t you pick something, and we can all share so you can try everything?”
“Oh, I don’t want to be difficult.”
“Don’t worry,” Jasper cut in. “This way, we can all have a bit of everything.”
I smiled. “Then I guess I’ll get the chicken tikka masala.” The waiter came soon after to take our orders, and Leo added an aloo tiki appetizer and a lot of naan bread.
“I will never understand how you fit all that food in that small body,” Jasper said to Leo adoration lining his tone.
