of the corner of my eye as he fiddled with his drink, wondering how nosy was too nosy. Then I remembered I was in Coral Cove—nosy was a way of life. “How’d the date go?”
He gave me a look of slight surprise but answered gamely enough. “I’m sitting here with you. That should pretty much sum it up.”
“Yikes.”
“I’ll just say that life can seem pretty short when you’re listening to someone go on about life insurance.”
I chuckled. “I don’t know, I enjoy it when the Geico gecko does it. Maybe he just needs the accent to make it interesting.”
Cameron paused as if that was a real fucking suggestion and then he shook his head. “Well, anyway, Carter is a nice guy. Just… not the right guy for me.”
I checked my “nosy” meter once more and couldn’t get a reliable reading. “Forgive me, but you don’t seem all that torn up about it.”
He shrugged. “We never had any real chemistry.”
“Chemistry can be weird. Sometimes you can work side by side with someone for years and nothing, and then one day, bam, there it is.”
And just why the hell are you trying to convince him to keep seeing someone else? I was as flummoxed as my brain was with my words. I shouldn’t be trying to convince him to stay in the dating pool. I should be trying to convince him that there were piranhas in there. We may be done as a Sunday roast, but that didn’t mean I wanted to watch him date someone else.
“I guess.” He didn’t seem all that convinced. “I was looking for something a little more instantaneous. More passionate. I haven’t gotten any in the longest, so I don’t think that’s a big ask.”
I could tell the moment he realized who he was talking to. I watched in fascination as he turned an alarming shade of pink rather quickly. “Oh God,” he croaked, “I certainly didn’t mean to confess that to you.”
I laughed. “I’m kind of glad you did. I wouldn’t want to be the only one who isn’t getting any.”
“Well, if you’re interested, the rumor mill has all kinds of theories about who you should wind up with.” He shrugged. “I heard some things at the coffee shop.”
“Like what?”
“You sure you want to hear it all?”
I took a sip of my drink. “Hit me.”
“Well, Mabel thinks you’re such a good boy for coming home to take care of your father.”
“Wait, I just decided that I was going to stay. How did she—”
“Call it a hunch. She also thinks you’d be a perfect match for her daughter.”
“Is that so?”
“Yep. Gertie told her to hush, and that you’d be a better match for her daughter. But Gertie wasn’t sure if she wanted to set you two up, because you never can stay in one place for too long, and you’re not taking her daughter with you to Timbuktu.” His mouth lifted. “That’s when Anna informed them both that they needed to hush up because you were gay, and you didn’t want either of their daughters. At that bit of news, Mrs. Edith one table over got very interested.”
“And why’s that?”
“Apparently, her grandson is a chef and very, very gay.”
I laughed. “Oh, well, as long as he’s very, very gay.”
“Her words,” he said with a chuckle. “And according to her, Mr. Hotshot Chef could do worse than settling down with a nice kid like JJ.”
That made me laugh again. “Mr. Richards at the convenience store offered me a lollipop with my fill-up, you know.” I smiled fondly. It didn’t bother me, instead it was kind of sweet. “No matter how much I grow up, I’ll always be a kid to everyone in this town.”
He took a long pull on his drink. “Not everyone,” was all he finally said.
There was a wealth of meaning in those two words. And it let me know he wasn’t as unaffected by me as he let on. It was a heady feeling to know that no matter how much time had passed, no matter what the distance between us, that hadn’t changed. He still wanted me, and I damn sure wanted him.
As nice as Hud’s bar was, I was kind of done socializing and drinking if sex was on the table. I wanted to be someplace private, creating new dirty memories with what was, hands down, the best fuck I’d ever had. Cameron had a nice dick and knew how to use it. Tomorrow, I was being a good son and taking on