Page 63 of Wanted
Ezra grabbed the jug of coffee and poured it down the drain. On the upside, he instantly filled it with water, to make a fresh batch. “Myfiancé. There’s no hard rules. Don’t walk around naked, but as long as you’re not trying to actively seduce me, we’re good. You’re hardly the first naked torso I’ve seen,” he said and started grinding coffee beans.
Knox snorted, put at ease. “Okay. No seducing. Just existing over here with my man tits out. So if he’s the fiancé, are you the fiancée…?” He could only hope that wasn’t offensive.
Ezra squinted as if he were certain he’d misheard something. Knox was ready to pretend that nothing happened, but Ezra’s gaze sharpened, telling him that would not fly.
“Nooo, please tell me you’re not one ofthosepeople,” he moaned and spilled the ground coffee into the machine.
Knox scratched his head and opened the fridge to avoid confrontation. “Sorry, forget it. Would it be possible to buy some food off you? We don’t have a car. Nothing, like, too expensive,” he added looking at the sliced ham in packaging that featured names he couldn’t pronounce.
Ezra made an annoyed, shushing sound and switched on the coffee maker. “No, no, no, explain to me what you really wanted to ask.”
Fuck. This would be walking on eggshells, and Ezra was the owner of all this food. Knox needed to make him happy. He closed the fridge when it started beeping at him over being open too long.
“I just… Like… Can you tell if someone bottoms? Am I ‘the girl’ now? I know I’m not, but, like… should I be? Are there things I’m obligated to do? We’re the same, me and him. Just two guys, but now… not?”
Was he making any sense? He now had all these tender feelings for Liv. Wanted to make him smile, bring him coffee, maybe a sandwich, but not in, like, a girl way.
Despite the anxiety choking Knox, Ezra seemed satisfied with his answer and leaned against the counter as he faced him. “No, you can’t tell if someone bottoms. You might guess and be right eight times out of ten, but it’s not foolproof, because the reason you can even guess is because people present themselves in a way that draws in the right guy for them. But there are no rules.I know a top who’s a very campy drag queen and some very masc bottoms. If there are any rules at all to this, it’s don’t ask people who the girl in the relationship is, because the whole point of being a gay man is wanting to have sex and relationships with men, and many of themwillmind.
“And if you and Liv arejust guys, as you put it, then that’s fine too. Lots of people are into that kind of thing. The way you two do your relationship is really only up to you, but I admit that in any kind of relationship, straight or gay, people will fall into roles that fit them best, that’s just a fact of life. I enjoy taking care of Frank, and dealing with most of the housework. He enjoys feeling he can take care of me as a provider. I can move a sofa just fine, but Iwillask him to do it because I know it’ll make him feel like he is being useful to me. It suits us, but that does not mean I’m a woman. It just happens that I like stuff people associate with women.”
"Whoa. You're like… really smart about these things," Knox said, and he didn't just mean it as flattery. He was soaking it all up like a sponge. "This is actually very helpful.”
Ezra sighed. “And no, I won’t ‘sell you food’. That’s weird and goes against my sense of hospitality. So tell me what you want to eat.”
Which was a huge relief, because Knox and Liv barely had a few bucks between them. “Do you have pancakes? I was kinda thinking Liv would enjoy that when he wakes up.” Knox smiled, leaning against the counter. “We used to live together before gettingtogether,and we’d share a lot of stuff like food or household goods, but now I’ve got all these… feelings. Like I wanna treat him, you know? Just because, not because the pizza was two for one or something.”
A small smile crooked Ezra’s lips. “Wow. You’re cute as a puppy wanting to bring its owner a saliva-stained ball. Andthat tells me you should do it. Bring him the ball. I mean, the pancakes,” he added in response to Knox’s frown.
Did Ezra just offend him? Puppieswerecute, so maybe it wasn’t the worst thing to be compared to.
Knox smiled and opened the fridge.
Ezra spoke as the coffee machine made a long buzz. “The milk is on the door, and the flour is in the bottom drawer to the left. Unless you need gluten-free.”
Knox frowned, staring at the milk. “You mean, for the coffee…?” Why would he need flour for coffee? Knox wouldn’t question it, since Ezra seemed like a classy guy with refined taste, but he didn’t get it.
Ezra turned to him, cocking his head. “Knox. For the pancakes.”
Knox’s brows went up. “Oh. To, like, make them? But I don’t know how much I’d need, and how long to fry them. If I end up feeding him raw batter, because they’re not ready inside, won’t he… die? Or at least, get really sick?”
Did Ezra just pale or was it a trick of the light? “Wait a minute, when you asked if I ‘had’ pancakes, did you mean ready-to-eat ones?”
There was definitely judgment in that question.
“Mmm… maybe?” Knox bit his lip, feeling like a scolded dog.
Ezra shook his head. “No, no, no. You’re learning how to make pancakes right now.”
“I am?” Knox asked, staring as Ezra grabbed the flour from the drawer. “That would actually be kinda amazing. Liv won’t believe me when I tell him I made them myself.”
“It’s really easy once you get the hang of it. And you don’t even have to tell him you had help.” Ezra grinned at him. “I can tell you from experience that a breakfast in bed can get you far in life.” He followed that with a comment about Knox lacking a basic life skill, but when Knox told him about his mom neverbeing around much when he was growing up, Ezra’s demeanor softened. But he still made Knox do most of the work“so that he remembered”.
Much faster than Knox expected, they ended up with a whole stack of fresh pancakes. In the meantime, Ezra had fried some bacon in a pan right next to Knox’s, so everything was hot at the same time.
And while Knox couldn’t wait to wake up Liv to a feast, he and Ezra shared one maple syrup-drizzled, bacon-topped pancake. The food was heaven in Knox’s mouth, and he moaned so loudly Frank might get suspicious if he heard it from somewhere outside.
“Oh, my God! I think these are the best pancakes I’ve ever had. AndImade them? Wow.”
