but witnessing this confirmation of his faith in them served to remind him how lucky he was.
A sideways glance at Ryan shocked him into stillness. Ryan wasn’t grinning or making stupid faces like he always did when he figured Mom wasn’t looking, or any of the usual shit he pulled. In fact, he was eyeing Robin with what looked like respect.
Respect? From Ryan?
It was official. The world had come to an end.
No one brought up the topic for the rest of the meal, and Robin’s cheeks lost their heat. He didn’t want to think about a future where his mom was forever trying to prove she was cool. What occupied his mind was the prospect of finding a boyfriend.
It wasn’t as if he hadn’t considered the idea a million times. The problem? Lake Placid, a village with about two-and-a-half thousand inhabitants, wasn’t teeming with gay guys, as far as Robin’s limited knowledge could ascertain. There’d been no one at high school that he could point to as definitely being gay or bi.
Maybe their camouflage was better than mine.
And that had been the real shocker of the day. Have I been that obvious? Did everyone know back in high school? Because that made the situation much worse. If they thought I was gay, and yet no one made a move on me? Well fuck.
Maybe Robin wasn’t as cute and adorable as he hoped he was.
Hey, at least my mom thinks I’m cute.
Yeah. That wasn’t helping.
Robin flopped onto his bed, feeling as stuffed as the turkey he’d eaten way too much of. Not that they’d gotten close to demolishing it. A lot of turkey loomed in his immediate future: turkey dinners, turkey sandwiches, turkey soup, turkey omelets, turkey pizza… Hell, one year, they were still eating his mom’s turkey soup a week before Christmas.
Oh God. Please don’t let her make that turkey sushi again.
This was his favorite time of year. The holidays loomed closer than ever, and Christmas Eve was within sight. That had always been Robin’s best day of the year. Christmas Day was usually an anticlimax, but the anticipation leading up to it? Watching the lights go up in the village, hearing Christmas songs everywhere, seeing everything covered in a blanket of snow…
Magical.
Of course, what would make it perfect this year would be if he had someone to kiss under the mistletoe. He could only imagine the look on his mom’s face if she peeked through the window when he was kissing a guy on the porch.
Well, Robin sure wasn’t gonna kiss him in the house.
A loud rap on his door made him jump. “Busy here, Ryan,” he called out. Not that he was remotely busy, but he’d had to suffer dinner with the guy. That right there practically qualified him for sainthood.
“Do that shit on your own time, man.” Ryan rolled out a dirty chuckle. He pushed the door open, barged into the room, headed straight for Robin’s bed, and dropped onto it like a stone.
Robin heaved a sigh. “Hey, Ryan, come on in and make yourself comfortable.”
Sarcasm was wasted on Ryan. “Thanks.”
He glared at Ryan’s sneakers. “Get them off my comforter. In fact, take ’em off. You know what Mom says about wearing them in the house.”
Ryan snickered as he toed off his sneakers. “Yeah, like any straight guy would complain about shoes on his bed. And you thought we’d be surprised by your announcement, Mr. Prissy?”
Robin narrowed his gaze. “Being neat is not a sign someone is gay, all right?” He grinned. “Unless you think Granddad is gay too?”
“Nah, he’s just old.” Ryan’s eyes gleamed. “So, you’re really gay?”
“Hell no. I figured I’d say it for the hell of it.” Robin rolled his eyes. “Duh.” Then he realized he’d missed an insult. “Hey! I am not prissy. I’m neat, is all.”
Ryan burst out laughing. “Yeah right.” When he stopped, he inclined his head toward the door. “They took it really well, huh? I mean, they didn’t seem shook at all.”
Robin smiled. “I knew they’d be cool with it.” Well, he’d hoped.
“Oh my God. When Mom said it was ‘totes awesome’….” Ryan shook his head. “You don’t think she’ll come out with stuff like that when we bring friends back here, do ya? I swear, if she’d said you being gay was lit, I’d have barfed up my turkey and all the trimmings.” He cocked his head. “D’you think she’s going through a phase?”
“Huh?”
“You know, trying to sound like she’s our age.”
Robin gaped. “A phase? Where do you