Page 45 of A Furry Thing Called Love
“Ror is on his way, he got sidelined at the office.Luka should be here soon, too,” Grae says.
“Perfect.”Jordan pulls out a chair and gestures to me, I urge Eli to go under the table before sitting.
Jordan sits next to me and I have to fight the urge to lean into him.Fuck, this trip is messing with my head.
Jordanmesses with my head.He always has.
“You okay?”he asks, leaning into me.
“Fine.”I’m careful not to turn my head to look at him, not needing the temptation of our mouths so close together.
And the thing is, Iamfine.Tired?Yes.But while the fatigue is maybe dragging me down a little, it’s not anything I can’t handle, so I don’t bother making a big deal out of it.
Thankfully, I’m saved from any follow up questions Jordan may have when Luka and Cal walk in, followed closely by two strangers.
“I see you’re havin’ a party and didn’t invite me,” one of them says, literally bouncing on their toes.
“This is my cousin, Jordan, and his friend Arlo,” Luka tells them.“Axel here works with me, and Lauri is their partner.”
“Nice to meet you both.”
“You too!Luka said he had family in town, and well, we’re not crashing your meal because my mama raised me better, but I mean, Lauri and I have to eat too.Luka only grumbled a little when I asked if we could come say hi.”The excitable blond one, Axel, barely takes a breath as they get all that out.
“You can sit with us, if you want to,” I tell them.“If it’s okay with everyone else, of course.”
“Fine with me!”Callum says.
“It’s really okay if you’re not fine with it,” Lauri tells us.“We understand this is a family thing, we wouldn’t want to intrude.”
“No, no,” Jordan reassures.“I promise, it’s fine.I’d love to get to know Luka’s friends, see if there are any embarrassing work stories you can tell me.”
“Oh, my God!”Luka groans.“I hate you so much.”
“No you don’t.”Jordan’s tone is teasing and light, and I love seeing him like this, so…carefree around a family member.In the past, whenever he talked about his family, he only mentioned their not-so-quiet homo and transphobia.
More chairs get added to the table, and it’s a game of musical seats as everyone finds a place, but finally, we all get settled, and the server Valery talked to when we first walked in comes over.
“Well, I see we’ve got ourselves sorted now, so how about I take some drink orders while you look over the menu?”
“Thanks, Henry,” Grae says.“We’re still waiting for Rory, but you can go ahead and get him his usual.”
The server leaves after he gets everyone’s drink orders, and Jordan and I look down at the menu.
“What’s good here?”Jordan asks.
“Everything,” Cal answers.“You can’t really go wrong.Just maybe be careful of the specials, as sometimes one of the cooks likes to try out their current fad diet on the rest of us, and it can get a bit…weird.”
“Noted.”
By the time we’re ready to order, Rory is sliding into a seat.“Need a few minutes, hun?”Henry asks.
“Nah, I’ll just take a BLT, and add grilled onions to that, please,” he responds.
“Okay.”
Callum makes a face.“You’re so weird.I can’t believe I’m related to you.”
“I can’t believe I’m related toyou,” Rory shoots back, reaching for his drink.
