Page 66 of A Match Made In Evan
“You’re our bonus kid,” I agree, while I watch Jay’s expression flash through a number of emotions. He’s gotten much better about handling changes, I’ll give him that, but sometimes he still struggles with the sudden realisation of feelings. Like working out that he really does love our bonus kid, who isn’t really ours but might as well be.
“Think about it this way, baby,” I tell him when he still hasn’t said anything, “you fed the stray puppy, and it followed you home, and now it lives here.”
To be honest, I’m a little surprised that Joe’s parents haven’t realised who he’s staying with ninety percent of the time. I was also surprised that the kid was still enrolled at Winchester, because I half expected that his dad would pull the funding, but Mia said that Joe threatened to post about it online and his dad decided that his own reputation meant more to him than destroying his gay son’s senior year of high school.
Rich people are still so weird to me.
“I liked you better before you called me a stray, Ev,” Joe sighs.
I shrug. “I just call ’em like I see ’em.”
“Rude,” he responds, then turns to Mia, “did you see who they cast as Sam in the musical?” He makes a face, then answers forher, “Freaking Scott Fairweather. It’s like,hello, do you want the whole thing to flop?”
“Why are you complaining, though?” she asks him, then attempts to sneak another piece of cheese out from under Jay’s nose. He swats her hand away, too. With a sigh, she turns back to Joe. “You got Harry, which is what you auditioned for.”
“Only because I can do his part in tenor. I can’t sing baritone to save my life.” Sighing dramatically, he looks at me. “Whyare all lead male parts always so…masculine? It’s amusical. We’re all gay.” He holds up his hand to forestall James’ rant about stereotypes. “I know, I know. I’m just venting. It’s not my faultI’ma walking, talking cliché. I was born this way.” He groans and points at me next. “Don’t you dare start singing that Lady Gaga song.”
I frown and, in an aside to Jay, complain, “You’re right: he’s been spending too much time here.”
“Is it too late to put him up for adoption?” Jay plays along.
God, I love him.
“Oh, no. No, no, no, no.” Mia snatches up the tea-towel from where it was tossed on top of the kitchen bench earlier and, with a swirl of her wrist, twists it in the air. Then she flicks her wrist and snaps the improvised weapon at me. “Bad.BadEvvy. Stop making googly eyes at Dad. There arechildrenpresent. Plus,” she makes a face, “you’ll spoil our appetites.”
“Oh,” I widen my eyes, feigning surprise and apology, “I amsosorry. I didn’t realise!” Then, a split second later, my lips curl upwards and I set down my knife and turn to close the distance between myself and Jay. Wrapping my arm around his waist, I say, “I guess you’llreallyhate it if I dothis.”
Jay melts into the kiss, as he always does, and it quickly changes from being a playful act to a proper, decadent, loving kiss. The world around us fades into the background, and I’m just as lost in him as the first time we kissed.
Somewhere in the background, I can hear Mia making exaggerated gagging sounds, but it’s interspersed with her laughter. She’s actually really cool about our relationship, though she hates that we make it our life’s goal to embarrass her in public wherever possible. Not in a negative way, but in a ‘my parents are dorks, feel sorry for me’ kind of way.
It’s a lot of fun.
Of course, the bonus kid ruins it by loudly declaring, “Thisis why I stay here. Who needs porn when you get live shows?”
“Well, that’s my libido dead forever,” James declares as he steps out of my embrace. He points at the two miscreants on the other side of the kitchen bench. “You two can go set the table outside.”
Mia rolls her eyes, while Joey smirks and says, “Yes, Daddy.”
“Don’t—” I start, but it’s too late.
James makes an almost agonised, frustrated sound at the back of his throat. “Stop calling me that!”
I can’t help but burst into laughter, and my boyfriend rounds on me with a scowl. “This bratty behaviour is all your fault.”
“Mine? How?”
“Well, he’s your kid.”
“Uh…”
“Mimi’s mine, and Joe is yours.”
“That’s not how it works, Jay.”
“It is now.”
Have I mentioned I love him? He’s so ridiculous that it’s adorable.
