Ody shoved him straight into the last stall. The door banged against the divider as they stumbled inside.
“What the hell are you doing?” Mano hissed, eyes wide.
Ody locked the door and turned back to face him. “I want us to go for a drive,” he said. “Just the two of us.”
“Ody, have you lost your mind? Our girlfriends are right outside.”
“I don’t care.” He stepped closer. “I just want to be alone with you.”
Mano just stared at him.
“Come on,” Ody said. “Don’t shut me down. We leave in two days.”
Silence stretched between them. They were standing too close, the tension between them turning the cramped stall unbearably small.
“Ody... no,” Mano said under his breath. “We can’t just leave like that.”
Ody reached up, brushing his fingers against Mano’s neck. “Just a little while,” he murmured. “You don’t want that?”
Mano swallowed. “I-I’m just... if something goes wrong and they figure it out…”
“Nothing will go wrong. Don’t you trust me?”
“If by some crazy chance we get caught—”
“We won’t.” Ody leaned closer. “Say yes. I can’t sit across from you all night and pretend I’m not dying to touch you.”
That did it. Mano blinked fast, his breath catching. Ody was too close. The scent of his cologne filled his lungs.
Fuck.
“If this goes sideways,” Mano muttered, “I’ll kill you, mikre.”
Ody’s grin spread instantly. “Nothing’s going sideways, big guy. Half an hour.”
For a moment neither of them moved. Then Ody reached up, cupped Mano’s face, and kissed him, just once. When he pulled back, their faces were still inches apart. Then he unlocked the stall door and stepped out.
He returned to the table and slid back into his seat. “Oh, nice. The appetizers are here,” he said casually, grabbing his fork.
Everyone was eating and chatting when Mano finally returned.
“Babe, try this. It’s amazing,” Ranya said, just as his eyes briefly met Ody’s across the table.
Conversation drifted to other topics as they waited for the main dishes. Ody checked the time on his phone, then flicked a quick glance toward Mano.
The signal.
Mano picked up his phone and opened his messages, pretending to read something. “Sorry, I need to make a quick call,” he said, pushing his chair back as he stood up. He looked calm, but inside he was a mess. His heart was pounding over what they were about to do.
Outside, he pretended to talk on the phone, pacing back and forth. What if someone saw them? What if something went wrong and they got caught lying?
By the time he walked back inside, his expression was tight with frustration.
“What happened?” Ody asked.
Everyone’s attention shifted to Mano.
“My brother’s got a problem and needs me to transfer him some money. I need to find an ATM.”
