“I’ve got to leave something for you to be a genius at.”
Lincoln rolled his eyes. “I’m going to bike to the store and pick up something better than plain ice cream.” He held out his hand and wiggled his fingers. “Since you muddled up this menu, you get to pay.”
Theo dug into his pocket and pulled out his wallet. “It had better be good and not a bunch of processed shit either.”
“I’m not going to dignify that with a response.” Lincoln took the twenty Theo gave him with a lofty air and headed out.
“You’re good with him,” Morris said as the front door closed. “If you don’t mind me asking, how do you have custody?”
“I split it with my sister. Our parents died last year.” Theo rubbed his knuckles over his heart as if he could somehow massage away the ache.
“I’m so sorry. I can’t even imagine what that must’ve been like,” Morris said softly, his dark brown eyes warm with empathy, not pity.
There were no words, but Theo didn’t feel like discussing it. He liked the mood they had going. Light and easy. “We all were living at our family’s house, but I have to tell you, once my sister and her husband decided to have a kid, Lincoln and I realized we needed a place to ourselves before the 2:00 a.m. feedings started.”
“Wise man,” Morris said with a faint hint of a smile. He stared at Theo for a long moment, his expression unreadable, and Theo wondered what he was thinking. Probably that Theo had too much baggage on top of not being a geek. Then Morris leaned down and brushed his lips over Theo’s.
Theo’s negative thoughts scattered under the electric contact. Before he had a chance to react, Morris was already pulling back. No way. Theo wanted more than that quick taste.
“I have been thinking about kissing you ever since I first saw you standing in the driveway.” Theo stepped closer to Morris.
“Is that right?” Morris leaned back against the counter, his posture an open invitation that Theo took. Morris’s gaze heated as Theo pinned him there, his hands on the counter on either side of Morris’s hips.
“That’s right. I just wasn’t sure if you were all that interested, not being as proudly geeky as yourself. You seemed to be resisting the idea.”
“I was…. But I can’t seem to remember why at the moment.” Morris’s voice was low and husky. The sound sent a tingle of anticipation through Theo.
“Good.” Theo breathed in the scent of him, slid his hand around the nape of Morris’s neck, and tugged him down. Morris settled his hands on Theo’s shoulders as he met Theo halfway. Theo drank in the warmth of his mouth, the sweet pressure as they nibbled and tasted. Then Morris’s lips parted and Theo swept his tongue in to tangle with Morris’s. Morris’s embrace tightened, and then it was all hot and heady sensation as their exploration deepened. Theo wanted more. He wanted to savor the touch and connection like a fine wine.
Morris drew in a shaky breath as they parted. “Damn.”
Theo laughed softly. “Yeah, I think that about sums it up.” His heart was still pounding as his gaze drifted from Morris’s mouth to the bemusement in his eyes.
Morris traced his thumb along Theo’s jaw. “You were teasing me about Star Trek and Star Wars, weren’t you?”
“A bit. I couldn’t help myself. Your reactions were priceless,” Theo admitted. “I know the difference. After all, I live with Lincoln, and there are shrines to both in his bedroom. I even know some superheroes. I just never paid attention to who owned them.”
“I think you’re going to be trouble,” Morris said with a shake of his head.
“You look like a man who can handle a little trouble.” Theo kissed him again, long and lingering. Morris’s kisses made him think of endless rainy afternoons, naked in bed, with nothing to do but each other. He wondered if a couple of heated kisses would be enough to convince Morris to give him the chance for a real date. If not, a home-cooked meal was always a path to seduction.
The buzzer on the oven rang, breaking into Theo’s fantasy of dates and rainy afternoons in bed. He didn’t know when he’d have an afternoon like that again. Reluctantly, Theo broke the embrace and flipped off the timer. His lips still tingled, and he could sense Morris’s gaze on him like a slow caress.
“So what now?” Morris asked, hooking his thumbs into the wide belt.
Theo gestured to the rest of the ingredients. “Now we start the rolls and let the dough rise while I clean up. We should have time to see what movies might be playing on TV while we wait.” Maybe neck a bit if Lincoln hadn’t returned from the store by then.
“No, I meant you and me and the flirting and the kissing.”
Theo cocked his head, studying Morris and the mix of bafflement and heat in his eyes. “I guess that depends on whether or not you’ve decided if I’m dateable.”
Morris hesitated, and Theo felt a tinge of disappointment. Morris was going to be a tougher nut to crack than he thought. “It’s not you. I’m haunted by the ghosts of jackasses past.”
Theo held up one hand, palm out, and crossed his heart. “I swear not to be a jackass. Well, at least 95 percent of the time. Nobody’s perfect.”
That teased a smile from Morris. “I was thinking since you’re so busy and I’m so busy and we’re feeling this out and getting to know each other…. Would you be adverse to a sexy fling?”
The suggestion sent a hot punch of desire right to Theo’s gut, but Morris’s reluctance to commit to a date only challenged him. He kissed Morris, hot and claiming as the oven timer buzzed again, and Morris gave back as good as he got, leaving Theo breathless. “A fling is good. I’ve been so crazy busy, I haven’t even had time for that this last year. And here I was worried you were going to shoot me down.” Theo opened the oven to check on the meat. The aroma of melting fat and the aromatics from the vegetables and seasonings wafted out.
“You kiss me until I can’t think and then you knock me around even more with a smell like that? There’s no way I could resist.” Morris gave him a shy smile that tickled Theo. He didn’t know what it was about it that got to him, but it did.
Theo lowered the temperature on the oven, added a little white wine to the leftover marinade, and poured it into the roasting pan. “To kick off our sexy fling, do you feel like going out for dinner and a movie, or something a little different?”
“We’re doing dinner and a movie tonight.” Morris slid the dirty dishes into the sink and paused with a perplexed expression before shaking his head with a smile. “I see what you did there. Sneaky.”
“We can incorporate the sexy fling by necking on the couch when my chaperone hides out in his room,” Theo offered.
“Good luck with that.” Morris pursed his lips. “I’ll think of something for our next outing. When are you off?”
Theo frowned, mentally going through his calendar. “I’m not… not for a bit. Hell, I don’t know when I’ll have another weekend off until the end of summer.”
“That’s okay, because I’ve got a lot of shows coming up on weekends. Summer’s a busy time, lots of cons all over the place. What about weeknights? I’m usually winding down by then unless I have a deadline.”
Theo scratched his cheek. He was going to be closing until they could figure out how they wanted to handle getting extra help at the restaurant, and then they had to go through the training, which meant being on hand. Jill had been pressuring him to look into it. She kept reminding him babies had a mind of their own and came on their own timetable, not the parents’. If he ever wanted to have a life outside of the restaurant, he’d have to give up a little control.
“What’s wrong?” Morris asked with a frown. “Already changing your mind?”
“Hell no.” Theo caught Morris’s hand and gave it a squeeze. “I’ll finagle a night off.”
Morris eyed him, his expression withdrawn, and Theo’s heart sank. “Unless you wanted to sneak in time together during the day. It’s easier right now for me to be off then. The restaurant isn’t open for breakfast, and I can g
et someone to cover lunch.”
Morris’s eyes lit up. “Leave that to me,” he said with a satisfied smile. “I have just the thing.”
Chapter Seven
MORRIS GLANCED at the thumbnails he’d sketched into the margins of his manuscript and pulled out a clean sheet of bristol board. He taped the corners down on his drawing table and began to measure out the panels for the next page. Once he got the pencils down, he’d call it a day. From his phone, Dakota’s voice rang out in another podcast episode of Geek Wars. Morris tapped the volume up. He’d been waiting to hear Dakota’s take on the Shannara Chronicles TV show versus the books, and the chances of it being picked up by a new network. People he found to argue both sides of a topic were always entertaining when Dakota egged them on.
He half listened as he transferred the thumbnails in the margins and the layout in his mind to actual images on paper. The page began to take shape under his constantly moving pencil. From time to time his gaze flicked up to catch sight of The Mummy running in the background on mute. “No harm ever came from reading a book,” he quoted under his breath, and then chuckled at the thought of using that line on Felipe the next time they played Call of Cthulhu. Felipe would lose his shit. If they ever got a chance to get some role-playing in again.
Finally, he straightened, cracking his neck as he studied the penciled page with quiet satisfaction. Not bad. Not bad at all. One more page, and then he could do some inks. No… he was going to stick to his schedule. His back ached from hunching over the table, and his fingers were starting to cramp. He had the pencils done for the first seven pages. Morris set his pencil down and shook his wrist to ease the stiffness.
As if the motion summoned her, Cassie appeared and wound around his ankles with a plaintive mewl. “I just fed you,” Morris said and scooped her up. She batted her cheek against him and mewled again as Morris’s stomach started to rumble. “What time is it?”
Morris stood up with Cassie cradled against his chest and checked the clock. “Damn, boo, it’s almost seven. I guess I didn’t just feed you.”
Cassie purred, her silky body rumbling as he headed toward the kitchen. The moment he reached for the kibble, her ears pricked up. “Yeah, you know what you want. Does this mean you’re not going to plot my death tonight?”
He set her on the floor and scratched her head. She permitted the caress for a moment before she ducked away and sniffed at the remnants in her bowl with a tragic air. “Okay, okay, I hear you. You’re eating better than me tonight.”
He filled her bowl and topped off her water before eyeing his fridge. He was all out of the leftovers Theo pressed on him the other night. Not that there had been much left. The main dish had been meat nirvana, and the simple macerated strawberries and homemade whipped cream Lincoln put together had made a perfect topping as they ended their evening on the front lawn watching the stars and fireflies come out. They’d talked until they were both half asleep in their chairs, and Lincoln disappeared inside to play video games. Morris couldn’t remember the last time he’d been so quickly comfortable with someone outside his circle.
Morris opened the fridge and stared glumly at the contents. He had half a leftover sub, but when he touched it, he discovered it had gone hard. How many days had it been there? Morris tossed it into the trash. There was a dish that looked more like an out-of-control science experiment than something edible. Shuddering, Morris tossed the dish. No sense in contaminating his sink drain. Besides, he was not putting his fingers in that to wash it.
Nope, nothing appetizing. Morris shut the fridge and looked morosely at the array of pizza coupons and delivery menus stuck on with cat magnets. Not one of them appealed to him. Not after having real meals again at his mom’s and Theo’s. And he was out of root beer. That had to be a capital crime.
“Sorry, Cassie, I’m going out.”
Morris grabbed his keys as Cassie ignored him now that her immediate needs were met. He quickly cleaned up his workspace and tucked the newly penciled pages into a folder for safekeeping.
It was a beautiful evening. The day’s heat hung in the air, and the cicadas roared in the trees, singing their mad song of mating before the summer ended. Morris always liked the sound. It was a comforting white noise that always brought him back to the endless summers when he was a boy and his biggest worry had been running out of books to read.
With the sun setting, the punishing heat had lessened, so Morris rolled down the windows of his car and headed toward town with the radio blaring. As he drove by the bridge and turned in the direction of the waterfront, he considered what he wanted to do for a date with Theo. Their evening together had convinced him they’d easily find things to talk about, so the idea of making conversation that didn’t center around art or work wasn’t so intimidating. Considering their schedules, maybe something that took them both as far away from work as possible.
The soaring bridge stretched out over the Patuxent River, a sparkling sheet of dark slate-blue glittering in the sun. Gulls dipped and swooped, hovering in the air before banking off again. Fishing boats bobbed in the water as pleasure boats skipped across the waves heading farther up the river or out toward the Chesapeake Bay. A boating trip might be an idea. Morris hadn’t gone boating in forever. He’d met a group at a show that designed and built Viking ships, armor, and other accessories. They were based around here somewhere, and they did boat tours along the rivers.
Morris frowned and drummed his fingers on the windowsill. Nope, best not to scare off Theo with the extent of his geekiness yet. There would be time enough to do that when the Ren Faire hit in the fall. He still liked the idea of a boat outing. It had been far too long since he’d been on the water. If they left early, they’d have plenty of time to enjoy together before Theo had to return to the restaurant. And that would give Morris time in the afternoon and evening to work as well. Deadlines never ended; they only changed from one project to another.
Morris found a decent parking space along the waterfront sandwiched between the river and Back Creek. He checked his pocket for his wallet, worried for a second he’d left it at home until he found it in the glove compartment. He surveyed the waterfront, his stomach rumbling, and his eyes lit on the Chesapeake Bistro. The deck had been opened for the summer, the tables covered by cheerful white-and-blue umbrellas. There was a stiff breeze coming off the water, but it was warm and carried with it the scent of salt water and life. A chance to see Theo again coupled with a dinner outside on a night like tonight couldn’t be passed up.
The restaurant had a steady crowd going for a weeknight. Morris spied Lincoln’s lanky form bent over a booth as he cleaned up with quick, efficient movements. For all of his speed he didn’t slack on cleanliness—the entire table was wiped down, condiments and napkin holder lifted. The booth itself was also wiped down before Lincoln grabbed a broom and carefully swept under as well. Then he hefted the bin full of heavy dishes and made his way toward the back.
Jill was at the bar, pen tucked behind her ear as she went over documents on her clipboard. The image amused Morris. Brenden would appreciate that approach. He wondered if Theo’s sister had her carefully crafted check-off lists too. The hostess greeted him with a smile. “By yourself? Booth or table?”
“Would it be a problem if I sat outside?” Morris asked as he glanced toward the glass doors leading to the wraparound deck that had an amazing view of the water. It didn’t look like it was filled up, but it had been his experience restaurants didn’t always have small tables in prime locations.
“Not at all.” She whipped out a menu and a roll of silverware and led him out on the deck. The breeze tugged at the umbrellas and whipped around Morris’s legs, but it wasn’t so obnoxious he wanted to go inside. He sat down and debated whether or not he should let Theo know he was here and decided against it. He didn’t want to be a distraction when Theo was trying to work. It wasn’t like he could pop out of the kitchen whenever Morris showed up.
He studied the menu, the scent o
f other diners’ food making him even hungrier. He was sure he’d had breakfast, but lunch was another matter. He often forgot meals when he was on a roll.
When the waitress arrived, Morris ordered Old Bay wings and a root beer to start. Just to take the edge off before he decided he wanted every entrée listed, including the damn specials. He sat back, tossing his phone on the table as it buzzed with a message from Felipe.
Don’t forget. Yer turn to host game night.
Morris tapped out a reply as the waitress returned with his drink and a basket of oven-fresh biscuits. He pounced on them as he considered his empty fridge. He’d have to make time to go grocery shopping before then or his gaming group would never let him live it down. As if Felipe heard his thoughts, his phone buzzed again.
Real food motherfucker. Not beer and pretzels.
Whiner.
He’d order one of those deli trays from the grocery store and grab some donuts from the bakery. That should be enough. Then he thought of the spreads the others usually laid out. Felipe and his lola always had several tasty options. Jackie went on a cooking binge. Even their old gamemaster, Glen, usually had a pot of chili or something else kept warm in the Crock-Pot.
Beer we brought!
Morris winced. Okay, he could do better. He thought of the little savories Theo had whipped up to hold them over as they waited for dinner to cook. Maybe Theo would give him a recipe or two. Something easy, and then Morris could have a nice offering to go with the deli platter and donuts. The savories had been little bite-sized things, and Theo had kept them in the fridge until they were needed. They couldn’t be that hard to put together.
I hear u. Trust me. There will b food.
He was going to wow them all. Then all thoughts of what he was going to cook slid right out of his head as the waitress returned with his wings. “Theo says to tell me when you’re ready for the entrée and he’ll bring it out.”
A Little Side of Geek Page 7
