Authors: Shae Connor
“Yes?” Riley’s voice came through the speaker much more clearly than Evan expected, no hint of static. But then, the residents of this building could afford the best of everything.
“Hi, Riley, it’s Evan.” The static missing in the speaker came through in his own voice. He cleared his throat. “Sorry to show up unexpectedly like this, but I was headed to brunch at Piedmont Diner with friends. I thought you might like to join us?”
The pause went on so long Evan wondered if Riley had just walked away, but finally he responded.
“All right. What time?”
Evan grinned. “I’m going over now. I can wait for you, or you can join us whenever?”
A soft laugh came through the speaker. “Oh, I’m a mess right now, honey. I’m barely out of bed. Let me get myself together and I’ll meet you.”
The thought of Riley in “a mess”—bed-warm, hair tousled, eyes heavy with sleep, like the day he’d woken Evan up with a blowjob—had Evan’s body sitting up and taking notice. “Okay,” he croaked out, staring at the speaker as if Riley would materialize from it.
“See you in a few!”
Riley’s lilting voice settled over Evan like a blanket, warming him from within. He turned and headed off to meet Cory and Jimmy, but his mind stayed on Riley.
C
ORY
MET
Evan at the door to Piedmont Diner, all smiles and hugs, like the big teddy bear he was. “C’mon, Jimmy’s already got our favorite table.” Cory headed across the room to a booth next to a window that overlooked the corner outside. The location gave a panoramic view of the people passing by, most of them young, hot gay men. Cory sighed as he slid into the booth next to Jimmy and leaned over to watch a particularly nice specimen in short-shorts walk by. “Oh, to be twenty-two and single again.”
Evan laughed as he took his seat. “Like that’s ever stopped you.”
Cory’s eyes gleamed. “Jimmy wants me to bring someone out to visit next weekend. Seen any new twinks lately?”
“Not any that I’d be willing to share.” Evan envied Cory and Jimmy’s relationship. They’d fallen head over heels for each other but never gotten over their shared penchant for cute young things, so every so often one of them would pick out a guy for them to enjoy. Part of Evan wondered what would happen if one of them, or one of their visitors, got too attached, but he figured they’d cross that chasm only when they had to.
As much as he loved the guys, though, no way was he letting these two get hold of Riley. He smiled at Jimmy, who had his head down over a cup of coffee. Unlike his boyfriend, Jimmy took a good dose of caffeine to wake up in the morning. “Hey, Jimmy.”
Jimmy gave him a small smile, eyes half-lidded from lack of sleep. “Hey, honey.”
Cory grinned at the server who walked up to their table. “Hey, mister.” Evan recognized that as Cory’s favorite term for someone he recognized but whose name he couldn’t remember. “Could you start us off with a pitcher of mimosas?”
“No problem.” The young man had tousled, wavy black hair, hipster glasses with thick black frames, and a professionally friendly smile. “Anything else?”
“We’ll have another joining us,” Evan said, noticing the surprise on Cory’s face. “But he doesn’t drink, so can you bring a glass of plain OJ?”
“Got it. I’ll get those drinks and be back for your order.” The server turned and walked away, and Cory gave Evan a mock glare.
“You didn’t tell me you invited a date.”
Evan shook his head. “Not a date, exactly.” He pinned Cory with a look. “But don’t go getting any ideas when you meet him, either.”
“Mmm-hmm.” Cory raised an eyebrow. “Who’s this, then?”
Evan shrugged. “That guy I told you about last night. The one I hooked up with last weekend.”
Jimmy perked up a little at that. “And you’re asking him to brunch? Sounds like more than just a hookup to me.”
Evan blew out a breath. “I don’t know, okay? He’s totally not my usual type. More your type. But I keep thinking about him. I can’t explain it.”
“Mmm-hmmm.” Cory leaned back and crossed his arms over his chest. “You, my boy, are smitten.”
Evan barked out a laugh. “Smitten? Really?”
“Yep. You’re in deep smit.” He grinned widely. “And if you wanna keep seeing this guy, I suggest you think about getting your smit together.”
Evan’s groan in response was cut off by their server delivering their pitcher, along with three empty champagne flutes and a fourth one already filled with juice. “This is the plain OJ,” the server said, setting the glass in front of the empty space next to Evan. “Do you want to order now or wait for your friend to arrive?”
“I’m starving,” Cory said. “And I already know what I want. Eggs Benedict with a big bowl of grits. And Jimmy’ll have a short stack of pancakes with a side of sausage links.”
“And more coffee,” Jimmy piped up, tilting his nearly empty mug.
“And more coffee for Mr. Personality over here,” Cory agreed. He gave Evan a look. “Ev?”
“You’re the only person in the world who calls me that.” Evan had eaten here enough that he didn’t need the menu either. “I’ll have the eggs Benedict too, but with home fries instead of grits.”
“Heathen.” Cory reached for the pitcher as their server headed off to put in their orders. “You know grits are as much a Southern brunch tradition as the mimosas.”
Evan accepted his filled glass. “I like grits fine,” he pointed out. “You’ve seen me eat them plenty of times. I just wanted the home fries today.”
He sipped his mimosa and looked toward the door just as Riley walked in. Much like Jimmy, he still looked only half awake, but he’d tamed his curls and wore snug shorts and a T-shirt that showed off his small, lithe body to perfection. Evan knew good and well that if he’d walked by the window, Cory and Jimmy both would’ve been ogling for all they were worth, and Evan wouldn’t have blamed them one bit.
Riley glanced around, and Evan set down his glass and waved to get his attention. Riley saw him and half smiled as he headed in their direction. Evan didn’t look at Cory, but he could see in his periphery that Cory’s eyes were alight with interest.
“I told you,” Evan growled under his breath. “Off. Fucking. Limits.”
“Doesn’t mean I can’t admire,” Cory shot back. He smiled his best smile as Riley reached the table. “Hello there,” he cooed. “Evan was just telling us he’d invited a friend to join us.”
Riley faltered as he stopped. “I’m not party crashing, am I?”
“Oh no!” Cory reached out a hand to touch Riley’s arm. “You are absolutely welcome! Any friend of Evan’s is a friend of ours. Please, sit.” He waved toward the empty space next to Evan, and Evan gave Riley a smile too. Riley slid in slowly and sat a little stiffly.
“Riley,” Evan said, “meet two of my closest friends, Cory and Jimmy. Cory’s the loudmouth.” He laughed softly. “Well, normally Jimmy’s a pretty big loudmouth too, but not until he’s got more caffeine in.”
“Gee, thanks.” Jimmy shot Evan a mock glare and then grinned at Riley. “How’d you end up meeting this reprobate anyway?”
Evan lifted an eyebrow and his mimosa glass. “He fell right into my arms.”
Riley’s cheeks pinked. “It’s true,” he admitted. “Tripped and landed right in his lap.”
Cory crowed out a laugh. “Oh my God, that is
fabulous
! Did he catch you like the heroic stud he is?”
Evan could see Riley relaxing by inches. No one could resist Cory when he turned on the charm. “He did. Kept me from sliding right onto the floor. I bought him a drink to say thanks.”
“Awwwww,” Jimmy piped up. “Sounds like the setup for a Hollywood blockbuster.”
“Evan can be Ryan Gosling,” Cory chimed in, “and you can be Jennifer Lawrence!”
“We’ll call it ‘
Meet Cute: A Millennial Romance
.’” Jimmy spread out his hands as if writing the title on the air. Then he collapsed into a giggle fit.
“Drink your juice, Shelby.” Evan made a hurry-up gesture with one hand at the waiter as he approached with a coffeepot in hand. “You’ve got too much blood in your caffeine stream.”
Cory grabbed Jimmy’s coffee mug and shoved it toward the edge of the table. “Fill ’er up, mister!” He grinned at the waiter, who refilled the mug and smiled at Riley.
“What can I get for you, handsome?” he asked.
Riley returned the smile. “Do you still have the spinach and mushroom crepes?”
“We sure do! They are super yummy.”
This guy’s perkier than a coffeemaker
, Evan thought, but he refrained from commenting while Riley confirmed his order and Mr. Perky assured them their food would be out soon. Evan drained his glass and reached for the pitcher. Riley eyed him and then nodded toward his glass.
“Is this a mimosa too?”
“Oh, no, honey,” Cory cut in, lips quirking. “Your friend over there made sure they brought you some plain OJ.”
Riley gave Evan a speculative look as he picked up the glass. “Thank you,” he said.
“You’re welcome.” For some reason, Evan couldn’t bring himself to laugh it off. Instead, he held his glass out, and Riley brought his forward to clink them together.
“To friends,” Riley said.
“Hear, hear!” Cory held out his glass, and Jimmy lifted his coffee mug, and the simple toast became a flurry of movement and laughter. By the time everything was sorted out, Cory was refilling his glass, Riley was close to needing a refill of his own, and everyone was relaxed and smiling. Evan swore he could see Jimmy bloom like a flower as his caffeine levels reached the full mark.
“So, Riley,” Cory said. “When you aren’t falling into a man’s outstretched arms, what do you do?”
Riley smiled, and Evan recognized it for the façade it was. “I’m in design,” Riley said. “Nothing major, mostly interior work for friends and some referrals.” He laughed, a practiced sound. “Mostly I live off my trust fund.” Before Cory could react to that, Riley leaned forward. “What about you?”
“Advertising,” Cory said. “I have a small boutique agency with a short client list. Jimmy over here”—he nudged Jimmy with an elbow—“is a massage therapist and has a private resort out in the sticks.”
“You love my stick,” Jimmy told Cory before grinning at Riley. “He’s right, though. Oasis is in the middle of the fuckin’ boonies. But I love it, and so does this one.” He nodded toward Cory. “When he drags himself away from the bright lights of the big city.”
“It is pretty gorgeous out there,” Evan agreed. “Lots of trees and green. Quiet. It makes a nice getaway.”
Perky McWaiter arrived just then, carrying a tray laden with plates, and a food runner appeared behind him with a smaller tray and a tray rack. In short order, they had the food distributed, an order for more orange juice for Riley had been taken, and they were off again. Jimmy reached for the syrup, Cory the salt and pepper, and Evan and
Riley picked up their forks and dug in at the same moment. They looked at each other and smiled a private smile around their mouthfuls of deliciousness.
“Mmmmmm.” Jimmy’s orgasmic moan drew Evan’s attention away from Riley. “Oh my God. I wanna marry the chef. Can I marry the chef?” He batted his eyelashes at Cory, who just shook his head.
“Not this month, babe. You’ve got too many guests lined up.” He turned pensive. “Even though June
is
traditional for weddings.”
Evan glanced at Riley to see his reaction to their silliness, but he just smiled, shook his head, and carried on eating. Evan followed suit. Best not to encourage them.
“Oh! I haven’t told you!” Evan looked back up at Cory’s exclamation. “I got my first headlining gig!”
It took Evan a moment to connect the dots from that to Cory’s drag queen persona. “You did? Congratulations, man!”
“Next Saturday at Bernhardt’s.” He grinned and cut his eyes back and forth between Evan and Riley. “You can come, right? Both of you?”
Riley looked surprised at that, but Evan just nodded. “I’ll be in town.” He turned his head toward Riley. “Don’t feel obligated, of course, but I know Cory would like having a few familiar faces in the crowd. If you’re free, that is.”
Riley gave Cory a smile. “I think I can make it. I haven’t been to a show in a while. Is it the Stilettos?”
Jimmy groaned and laid his head on the table. “Oh, please don’t get him started.”
Cory ignored him. “Yes. One of my oldest friends used to be a member—he tore up his ankle playing racquetball and can’t handle heels anymore—and even with his help, it took me for-freakin’-
ever
to come up with the right persona. Those ladies are fierce! But I’ve done a half-dozen shows with them, and last week the director told me I could have a shot at the closing spot.” He bounced in his seat, rocking his hips from side to side. “Oh, I cannot wait. It’s going to be a
ma
zing!”
“Yes, please go.” Jimmy’s tone was serious. “I wanted to be there, but the group we have coming in this week is a major deal, and there’s just no way I can get away.” He leaned his head on Cory’s shoulder. “You know I’m sorry, babe.”
Cory lowered his head to rest atop Jimmy’s and reached across with one hand to pat his cheek. “I know, love. It’s okay. I’m confident it won’t be my only chance in the spotlight.”
Evan’s chest twisted at the loving display the two of them made. It had been years since… no. He’d never had a relationship like that. He’d loved Lucas, but they hadn’t had the chance to grow into the kind of committed couple that Cory and Jimmy were.
They hadn’t had a chance at all.
The rich, savory bite of eggs and hollandaise sauce in Evan’s mouth turned to soggy cardboard, and he forced himself to finish chewing and swallow. He laid his fork and knife on the table and downed the remains of his mimosa, wishing it were something stronger than alcohol. But that thought just reminded him of Lex, and he wouldn’t go there.
Now, drowning his sorrows in sex, on the other hand….
He pasted a smile on his face, under the “fake it ’til you make it” principle, and turned to Riley. “Are you busy later?”