The food may be finer dining, but the vibe is all comfort and family. In fact, that's the crux of Ryan's menu: upscale comfort food. Meatloaf on a trendy downtown restaurant's menu? Wrap individual servings in candied bacon, add a raspberry balsamic reduction and a sweet potato haystack, and suddenly it's transformed into an experience.
When he was writing the menu, he told me he wanted the food to represent us. My dapper style melded with his warm-and-fuzzy personality. His description, not mine. I'm pretty sure he was just trying to get laid that night. Still, he nailed it.
OnlyPans took off like wildfire and Ryan used the platform as a test kitchen for his menu. It also generated huge buzz around the restaurant. Sports Illustrated interviewed him on his coming out mishap and the restaurant. They even put him on the cover wearing only an apron and a chef’s hat, shot from the side, with the curve of his naked ass on display. The headline?FOOD PORN.I may have bought a few dozen copies.
“Perfect?”
Ryan's voice beside me snaps me out of my musings. “Yeah. Hi. What do you need?”
He laughs warmly and says, “Nothing. Where did you go there?”
I turn to face him—and fucking hell—my dick will never not twitch when I see him in that chef coat and hat. “Nowhere. Just thinking,” I tell him.
“Yeah? About?”
I motion toward the dining room. “About how over the past six months all those people have become family for me and Tyler.”
Ryan runs a knuckle down my tie and hums softly. “Hm. I think that’s your fault for making people fall in love with you, Counselor. You’re culpable.”
“Ooh. Did you learn a new word?”
“Ooh. Insulting the jock’s intelligence. How original,” he fires back and there’s no stopping the smile that takes over my face.
Ryan leans down and presses a long kiss to my lips. Not heated, but not chaste either.
“Get a room!” Tyler shouts from the back of the kitchen.
We laugh against each other's mouths and when we break, Tyler is barreling past us with a tray held up high on his way out to drop salads.
“He gets it from you,” Ryan teases.
Just for that, I slide my hand under his waist apron and slide my hand over his cock. His eyes flare and he says, “Don't start something you can't finish, Perfect. I will take you into the wine cellar and have my way with you.”
I shrug, lean in and lower my voice, “Maybe you should keep your naughty bartender after hours.”
Ryan bites his lip and says, “Promise?”
“I promise, baby.” Then I give him one more kiss, turn him around, spank his glorious ass, and push him back to his kitchen crew.
After dinner, Ryan personally delivers the dessert to each table. I help him with the trays, and we stop at the table with The Bettys first. Ryan grabs two plates and sets one of front of Betti and another in front of Bette. When they realize what it is, they both look at him with wet eyes and my heart squeezes.
Ryan hands them the official dessert menu for Butter. At the top, enclosed in a spotlight box:BETTY’S FAMOUS POLISH COFFEE CAKE. I will not soon forget the look on their faces.
When all the guests have a slice of cake in front of them, Ryan pulls an empty chair out from one of the tables. I watchhim hop up on it. Then Cricket hands him a glass of champagne. Meanwhile, Tyler and Parker are dropping glasses of bubbly at every table. I forgot he mentioned wanting to do a toast.
Tyler hands me a glass just as Ryan clears his throat and gently taps a spoon against his glass to get everyone’s attention. “Friends and family,” he begins. “I want to thank you all for being here tonight to celebrate this special occasion. It’s been quite the journey to get to this point. We owe a lot of people in the room for helping us along the way. From gentle nudges to outright shoves… your love, support, and influence have been monumental to this story.”
Ryan’s face splits into one of the many smiles I love on him. “Now, you may think this restaurant and the cuisine you dined on tonight are the story I’m referring to. They are not.”
He turns and looks directly at me.
A lump forms in my throat.
“No. This is a love story. A story about two paths that crossed many years ago for a fleeting moment. Two paths that crashed back into each other a decade later… like it was meant to be.” He waggles his brows and everyone chuckles.
I roll my eyes, but the smile on my face betrays their meaning.
“You all thought you were here to celebrate the opening of Butter. I regret to inform you… you’ve been duped,” he says.
