Page 197 of Delicious

“Because you’ve been making weird faces since you started running.”

Ah, right. The panic. “I just have a date tonight.”

He frowns. “You have a boyfriend. I know your boyfriend. Hot chef guy.” He uses Mellie’s sign name.

“Yeah. We have a date. It’s…kind of a big deal.”

“Oh? Ohhhhh.” His eyes light up with understanding. “I get it.”

“I’m not proposing,” I tell him.

He holds his hands up in surrender. “No, yeah, I get it. Fuck the man! Fuck the system!”

Rolling my eyes, I hit the cooldown button and begin a slow walk to get my heart rate down. I need to get Robbie in here. He’s been bitching nonstop about needing a place to work out, and he flat-out refuses to even touch the door handles of the campus gym.

“I’m not against marriage, but it’s only been a year. I want to see if he wants to take the next step.”

He bobs his head, all-knowing. “Sixty-nine?”

I blink at him.

“Snowballing?”

“Moving in together,” I say when I realize this precious dipshit is serious.

His face lights up with his grin, and he lifts his fist for a fist bump. “Fuck yeah, man. Let me know how it goes! Oh shit, my six o’clock is here.” He walks off before I can even let our knuckles connect, but that’s just how he is.

And his enthusiasm helped reinvigorate mine.

I hop off the machine and wipe it down before hitting the showers. I don’t linger, instead rushing through soaping up and rinsing off, and I duck out after I get dressed so I don’t get roped into conversation because although Zev hasn’t been working for a few weeks, all his coworkers have been trained into using a Deaf goodbye.

The drive to Mellie’s is just long enough to re-trigger my nerves, and eventually, I pull up beside a car marked with an Uber sign.

Heading to the passenger door is a man with a white cane I immediately recognize as Mellie’s brother. Otto’s head turns toward me, probably because he can hear my car, and I wave before remembering he can’t see it. I’m also too far to shout, so I just wait until he’s inside the car.

I’ll text him later.

When the Uber takes off, I pull into the empty space beside Mellie’s car and take a breath. The box with the key is in my pocket—it’s a symbol. I’ll happily move here if he’ll have me. It’s just a physical representation of how I want our future to go.

By the time I make it to the door, he’s waiting for me. He’s as tall and gorgeous as ever. He drags me close and kisses the breath out of me as he slams the door shut, humming loudly against my lips. He pulls away with a loud smack and curls his hands around my cheeks.

We bask for a short forever.

‘Can you stay tonight?’ There’s an almost desperate look on his face. We haven’t seen each other in a few days.

‘I can stay.’

His smile widens. ‘Good. I hate not seeing you.’

The key is an even heavier weight in my pocket now but in the best way. He’s going to say yes when I ask. And everything is going to be alright.

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