Page 210 of The Holy Grail
Each of them picked a room and began going through boxes.
Malcom took the kitchen, so he could go through all of Jules’ and Evan’s kitchenware. Some of it would be kept, but most of it was likely going to be donated. When it came to kitchenware, Malcom was a total snob.
Jules took the boxes in the formal living room, unwrapping hers and Evan’s knick-knacks, and displaying them throughout the house.
Evan emptied all the bathroom boxes, mixing his and Jules’ towels with the ones Malcom had, so each of the three bathrooms were equally uncoordinated, with yellow, aqua blue, and gray-and-white striped towels.
When it came time to put all their personal products in the master bath, Evan marveled at all the shit Jules had—and that was before he started to unpack the boxes of her clothes. Thank God the master closet was so huge, otherwise the two men would likely be putting their clothes in the guest room closets.
When he was finally done (but knowing Jules would probably rearrange things a bit), he took a moment to admire all of their clothes taking up space together in the closet.
It looked good. Really good.
By the time they called it quits, it was almost midnight, but all the rooms were mostly done (including the two guest bedrooms, one of which had been filled with Jules’ bedroom set, and the other with Evan’s), except for the pictures that needed to be hung on the walls.
As they trudged up the stairs, Malcom couldn’t help but notice how the house no longer echoed, now that each room had furnishings in them to absorb sound.
For the first time since buying the place, it felt like an honest-to-God home … and he loved it.
In the master bedroom, the three of them flopped down on the bed.
“Jesus, I’m beat,” Evan said with a loud groan. “I’m even too tired for sex.”
“Same,” Malcom said. “Wake me up in two days.”
“Wrong,” Jules told them. “I don’t care who, but one of you needs to come and get on top of me.”
“Are you serious?” Evan and Malcom asked together.
“I’m dead serious. Our first official night in the house together needs to be celebrated.”
Chapter 70
“You sank my battleship!”
“I have a surprise for you guys,” Malcom announced.
Evan and Jules glanced at one another; the last surprise had been a bed the size of Rhode Island, and before that, a sectional the size of Delaware.
Malcom led them into the formal dining room, and on Jules’ kitchen table, sat a large box. “Well, it’s not a bed,” Evan teased.
“Or a couch,” Jules noted.
The return address was from ‘Colleen’s Collectibles’. Evan and Jules opened it to find several board games, most of them the vintage version, not unlike what her parents had. Monopoly, Battleship, Clue, Yahtzee, Risk, Scrabble, Trivial Pursuit, Life, Candyland, Chutes and Ladders, and Sorry!.
“Where did you get all these?” she asked, amazed.
“I found them on eBay, in a store selling vintage items. I basically bought all her games, even the ones for little kids, because they might come in handy when Jacob and Julian come over.”
“These are all amazing ... and you’re incredibly sweet for getting them.”
As she and Evan looked at all the games, she whispered to Evan, “We need to be careful about what we talk about. I’m afraid if I say I like a particular wine, we’ll end up with a fully stocked wine cellar or something.”
“Actually, I think we could have fun with this,” Evan whispered back. “I’ll mention sex toys.”
At that, they both laughed together.
“What’s so funny?” Malcom asked.
