With Gabe volunteering to help plan the party for Jonah, the next couple of weeks flew by. He was still looking for a place to stay. Emily and Roger argued that he could stay as long as he wanted, but he couldn’t take up a room at the B&B much longer. So far, nothing had become available, at least nothing to his liking. Brody may have been fine smelling like burgers in the apartment above Max’s, but eau de ground beef would never work for Gabe.
Small town living was surprisingly growing on him, although he could do without the weekly barbecues. It was the end of September, for heaven’s sake, but the weather had continued to be warm and beautiful. Thank God he was taking Nate’s family out to dinner tomorrow night.
Jonah’s party was in a few weeks. With his permission, Gabe was throwing the party at Jonah’s house. Of course, Gabe made him promise not to lift a finger because…well, because he was Jonah and couldn’t help himself. With the Taylors coming, and Jonah feeling a little lonely in the rental by himself, Gabe thought he would welcome the opportunity for his home to be filled with people who loved him. However, not only would the event be catered, there wouldn’t be a single burger or hot dog to be found. A man had his limits.
“Gabe! You’re not playing!” Lily yelled.
“What? Oh, I’m sorry, honey.” For a moment his mind had drifted, floating over all that had changed in the last few months. Nate was running a little late, and Gabe had offered to be there when his mom dropped Lily off. It was a position he never thought he’d be in, but found himself loving, and it wasn’t as terrifying as he thought it would be. Now, there he sat on a Friday night, pink feather boa around his neck and a plastic tea set in front of him. Oddly enough, there was no place he’d rather be.
“Do you want some more tea, Prince Gabe?” Lily asked.
Apparently, he was a prince and she was a princess. He made a mental note to see if, in fact, Disney princes wore pink feather boas, and if so, maybe he needed to watch more Disney movies.
“I would love some more tea, thank you, Princess Lily.”
“Tell me you found a high-end designer to make you a pink feather boa?”
Gabe jumped, and if there had been any tea in that little, yellow tea cup, it most certainly would’ve been all over him right now. “Oh my Gucci, you scared me!” he yelled at Nate.
“Oh my Gucci?” Nate chuckled.
“You have your beliefs, and I have mine.” Gabe waved a hand in the air, dismissing Nate and his teasing.
“Yeah?” Nate raised an eyebrow skeptically and said in a voice that was too sexy for his own good, “Well, I’m pretty sure I’ve heard you say oh my God once or twice.” Then he wiggled his eyebrows, a goofy, teasing smile on his face.
Gabe could feel his face heating and glanced at Lily. They both knew she had no idea what they were talking about, and yet, he was still slightly embarrassed. He looked back at Nate and gave him his best I’ll-get-you-later-for-that-one stare. Watching Nate shiver with anticipation was like foreplay.
“Lily, I think your daddy wants to wear the purple feather boa…and princess tiara,” Gabe said with a sly smile.
“Yay! Daddy, here, you can wear it. Do you want tea?” Lily bounced up and down and then handed him the dress-up items.
Nate gave Gabe a warning glare then smirked. “Aw, Lilypop, I wish I could, but I’m all dirty from work. You don’t want me to get your beautiful boa and tiara all dirty, do you?” He handed them back to her, pausing as she shook her head no and frowned. “But I’m sure Gabe would love to wear both boas and the tiara, right Gabe?”
Why that sneaky… Well, played, sir.
Gabe looked at Lily’s adorably hopeful face. Who was he to say no? He sighed, conceding, then took the boa and tiara and put them on. Nate was so going to pay later. That notion was magnified as Nate backed out of the room and winked at him before taking off to his bedroom.
“Gabe, do you like my daddy?” Lily asked a few minutes later.
Oh no, maybe she did understand their flirting? Shit, what should he do? He glanced back at the door and heard the shower start down the hall. He could handle this, right? Looking back at her, he said, “Sure, honey. Your daddy and I have become really good friends.”
“Nicole has a mommy and a daddy, but Daddy says that every family is different. He says a little kid could even have two daddies!” The look of amazement on her face was one for the books.
Gabe cleared his throat and started to unwind the boas from his neck as the nervous sweating started to kick in. “Your daddy wouldn’t lie to you, sweetie, right?”
“No,” she said seriously, still thinking. “Daddy said it’s okay to love whoever you want, and you shouldn’t be prejustice.”
“Prejudice.” He found himself correcting her like Nate always did and laughed to himself.
“Yeah, prejustice. That means that you need to be nice to everybody, even if they’re different from you.” Lily came over and sat down in Gabe’s lap, melting his heart.
Gabe brushed her bangs back out of her eyes. “It sounds like you and your daddy are very smart and very nice people.”
“Are you a daddy, Gabe?”
The question caught him off guard, and he was floored by the sincerity in her blue eyes. She was patiently waiting for his answer, and he found himself wishing he could say yes. “No, sweetie, I’m not a daddy,” he said softly, hating the disappointment he could hear in his own voice. The pain in his chest with those four words was insurmountable. At one point in his life, he thought he’d be a father someday. He’d given up that fantasy long ago. Lily’s next question had him struggling for an answer he wasn’t sure he knew.
“Do you want to be?”
Nate held his breath on the other side of the door in the hall, not sure if he was ready to hear Gabe’s answer to Lily’s question. He’d be lying if he said the question hadn’t crossed his mind, but it seemed like such a serious thing to ask when their relationship hadn’t really been defined yet. Gabe was taking forever to answer. Nate wished he could see the look on his face, but he didn’t want to let on that he was standing there.
“I think I’d like to, but I don’t know if I will be. Some people don’t have children.” He sounded kind of sad. What did he mean? Did he want children? Nate didn’t want to allow himself to hope.
“I think you should be a daddy,” Lily said.
“You do?” Gabe asked with complete shock evident in his voice. Nate could imagine how wide those brown eyes were.
“Yeah, cuz you’re like my daddy.”
Nate could hear Gabe gasp, and then he whispered, “I am? How am I like your daddy?”
“Well, he’s nice, and he always plays with me, and he laughs, and he smiles. And you gave me the last red ice pop. I think a daddy would do that.”
“Oh…” Gabe paused and then said softly, “Well, I…” He seemed to be at a loss for words. Was this a first for Gabe D’Angelo?
“Since Daddy said some kids have two daddies, you could be my daddy too.”
Nate panicked—knowing by Gabe’s gasp that he was freaking out just as much—and stepped into the room. He clapped his hands together once making Gabe jump and said, “Okay, who’s ready to help with dinner? How about we make a pizza?”
“Yeah! Can I have cheese crackers and jelly beans on mine? That would be yummy.” Lily was taking her costume off that she had on over her clothes.
Nate caught Gabe’s eyes and the poor guy looked as white as a ghost. Nate answered Lily, but couldn’t make his gaze stray from Gabe’s. “Not on your pizza, Lilypop, but you can have some cheese crackers on your plate.”
“Okay,” she said with a pout, disappointed with his answer.
“And what would you like on yours?” Nate said to Gabe, trying to take the spooked look out of his eyes. Was he really that scared to have kids?
“Whatever you’re having. I’m not picky,” Gabe said with more confidence in his voice than was on his face.
“I usually put black and green olives and mushrooms on mine.”
“That’s fine. I’ve never had olives on pizza before, but I’m good with change.” Clearing his throat, Gabe added, “In fact, I welcome it.” His eyes were too serious to be talking about pizza anymore. Did he know Nate had been standing by the door the whole time and heard their conversation?
“Change can be good,” Nate replied as they continued to stare at each other.
“Come on, let’s go make the pizza!” Lily tugged Nate right out of his haze and down the hall into the kitchen. They definitely needed a distraction from the statement Lily made that was still hanging in the air. Nate didn’t know if she actually understood what it would mean for Gabe to be her daddy. Was she already that attached to him?
Gabe came into the kitchen and sat down at the island, watching Nate and Lily start the pizzas. “Don’t think you’re gonna sit there and not help, pretty boy,” Nate said jokingly.
“I would be happy to help. What should I do?”
“You could grate the cheese.”
Gabe got up and found the things he needed without much help from Nate. Nate already knew the guy knew his way around a kitchen. “So you like to cook too? I figured you had someone to do that for you.”
Gabe smiled, but it didn’t reach his eyes. “When I was younger, we did have a nanny who also cooked. Gwendolyn, the one I told you about. I learned early on that if I wanted anything edible, I’d need to make it for myself.”
“What about your parents? They were okay with a person who couldn’t cook? Couldn’t they afford to hire a top chef?” Nate opened the cabinet under the island and got out the pizza stone.
Gabe sat back down at the island with the block of mozzarella cheese, a plate, and the cheese grater. “We didn’t eat with our parents, barely saw them actually. They ate at the club or with business associates. I suppose they didn’t feel children needed a top chef.”
The more Nate found out about Gabe’s family, the more he lost respect for them. He cherished every minute he spent with Lily. How could they have ignored their children so much? The thought pissed him off. He was probably luckier than he thought that Eric left. Nate had no doubt he would’ve been exactly like Gabe’s parents.
Nate glanced at Gabe and saw the somber look on his face. He wanted nothing more than to change the subject and try to get that gorgeous dimpled smile back instead. “Do you want to go to Jonah’s party with me? I figured I’d pick you up.” Nate turned around and opened a cabinet. He reached for a jar of pizza sauce, pulling it out, while looking over his shoulder at Gabe for his response. He tried to push down the nervous feeling in his stomach.
As Nate hoped, Gabe smiled, and this time those dimples came out. “Why, that would be lovely, kind sir.”
“Am I going too?” Lily asked with a mouth full of cheese.
Nate shook his head and chuckled. “Hey, Lilypop, don’t eat all the cheese, or we won’t have any for the pizza. And yes, you’re going for a little while, then you’re going home with Grammy and Pop.”
There was that pout again from his little girl. Quickly, so as not to ruin the night with a tantrum of five-year-old proportions, he said, “Lily, are you excited to go out to dinner with Gabe tomorrow night?”
The light came back in her eyes, and she bounced on her knees on the stool. Nate was pretty damn proud of himself for making Gabe and Lily smile.
“Gabe, Daddy said I can wear a pretty dress.”
Gabe laughed. “Yes, and he’s going to have to dress up too.”
Damn, forgot about that part.
Nate looked up and saw Gabe staring at him like he was trying to figure something out. “You okay?”
“Oh…of course. Sorry, daydreaming, I guess.” Gabe glanced back down at the cheese and began grating again.
Nate took a chance and asked, “About anything good?”
Gabe shrugged his shoulders. “Possibilities,” he said, with a pensive expression.
“I hear they’re endless,” Nate replied.
“What?”
“Possibilities—they’re endless, if you let yourself believe in them.” Nate smiled at Gabe then turned to put the first pizza in the oven.
“Hmm…I’ll have to remember that,” Gabe said softly.
“Lily! Have you seen my dress shoes?” Nate called down the hall to his daughter, frustrated and almost out of time. They were going to be late, and he couldn’t find his damn shoes. He’d worn them for Brody’s mom’s funeral. Shit, that wasn’t even that long ago. Where the hell were they?
Lily walked into his bedroom while he sat on the floor, probably getting lint all over his black pants, and searched for his shoes on the closet floor. “Daddy, you’re gonna wear a dress?”
Nate looked up at his daughter and snorted out a soft laugh. She was wearing a pink dress and holding her purple dolphin, confusion scrunching up the little features of her face. “No, Lilypop, I’m not going to wear a dress. I just mean my dressy shoes. You know…the shiny black ones that I only wear for special occasions? I can’t find them, and we’re going to be late.”
He turned his attention back to his closet, wondering what the hell he’d gotten himself into. He wasn’t a dressy man, and he certainly wasn’t used to going to dinner at some fancy restaurant. At least, he hadn’t done anything like that in the last five years.
“Here, Daddy!” Lily was running back into his bedroom, a huge smile on her face. “Do you want to wear my dressy shoes?” In her hands was a pair of light blue, plastic Cinderella shoes. A look of complete pride was on her face at having found him an alternative to his own dress shoes. The sheer generosity of the gesture warmed his heart, and he took a deep calming breath.
“Thanks honey, but I don’t think they’ll fit. Come here, I need a hug.” Nate wrapped her in his arms and tried to remind himself it was just dinner. He was freaking himself out, and there was no reason to. Shifting his gaze, he had a clear view underneath his bed from his position on the closet floor. There were the shoes he’d spent the last fifteen minutes looking for. “I see my shoes. They were under the bed the whole time.”
“Silly shoes.” Lily giggled.
“Yeah, they are,” he agreed. “Okay, let’s get going. Grammy, Pop, and Gabe are probably going to be waiting for us at the restaurant.” It was going to take at least twenty minutes to get there.
Nate was right. By the time they arrived, Nate’s parents and Gabe were already sitting at a table waiting for them. Gabe raised his hand, signaling them over. Nate crossed the elegant room, holding Lily’s hand, and smiled as he got closer, trying to hide how nervous he actually was. “Sorry we’re late.”
“Daddy couldn’t find his shoes, and I told him he could wear my Cinderella shoes, but they wouldn’t fit, and then he found his shoes under the bed.” One of these days, Lily would learn to take a breath between thoughts when telling a story, although, she was great at summing up.
Nate knew he was blushing as he leaned down and kissed his mom on the cheek then shook his dad’s hand. Glancing at Gabe, he was at a loss as to how to greet the man. Did he kiss him? Shake his hand?
Instead, Nate opted for the cop-out. He sat Lily down next to his mom then excused himself, making a beeline for the men’s room. Leaning his hands on the sink, he took a few deep breaths, looking up into the mirror when the door behind him opened.
“Are you okay?” Gabe was concerned, and Nate felt like an ass. What the hell was wrong with him?
Nate hung his head in shame and whispered, “I’m sorry. I’m just nervous, I guess.” If he didn’t calm down, he was going to sweat through his damn shirt. Just what he needed: sweat stains on his twenty dollar Target shirt in the middle of a five star restaurant. Classy.
Gabe walked up behind him and rubbed his back. “No need to be sorry. Can I do anything?”
Nate locked eyes with Gabe in the mirror and sighed. “This place…it’s a really expensive place, Gabe, and then I saw you and I didn’t know…do I kiss you? Are we at that point? Are we making this official in front of my parents?” He dropped his head again, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Fuck, I’m making too much out of this, aren’t I?”
Gabe wrapped his arms around Nate from behind and leaned his chin on his shoulder, making Nate look up. Gabe held his gaze in the mirror and whispered, “Just you and me, remember? I’ll always welcome a kiss from you, but I’m letting you take the lead here. If it were up to me, I’d let everyone in the whole restaurant know you were mine.”
Nate turned and held Gabe, leaning their foreheads together. “Did the place really have to be this fancy? I feel like I’m going to have to keep my pinky up as I drink the incredibly expensive wine that probably costs more by the glass than my mortgage.”
Gabe ran his hands up and down Nate’s back, effectively soothing him. “Do I need to remind you of a certain lake I most recently took a very unwanted bath in? I think you can suffer through a night of delectable cuisine featuring melt-in-your-mouth filet mignon.”
“Well, when you put it that way…” Nate smirked.
“Hmm…the worst part of your evening should be the fact that they most definitely will not have ketchup here. You will have to actually taste the food you eat, but trust me, it’ll be worth it. Now, I believe you owe me a kiss.” Gabe held tighter to Nate’s waist.
“I do,” Nate whispered and softly pressed his lips to Gabe’s. He melted with relaxation, letting Gabe’s mouth kiss away all the tension and nervous energy.
They rejoined the table together, Nate apologizing to his parents for his immediate escape to the men’s room as soon as he’d gotten there.
As promised, the filet mignon was the most delicious he’d ever had. He’d tried to order something less expensive on the menu but changed his mind when he got a very serious, I-will-kick-your-ass glare from Gabe. The wine was so smooth. He didn’t even want to guess at how much a bottle like that cost. Gabe had ordered two of them.
“Gabe, this was absolutely delicious. How can we ever thank you for such an evening?” Nate’s mom ate the last bite of her salmon then took a sip of her wine.
“This was my way to thank you, remember?”
“I don’t think one of my home-cooked meals warrants a dinner like this in return.” She blushed.
“That’s where you’re wrong. You’ve welcomed me into your home on more than one occasion. It’s meant a lot to me.”
“I was lucky to meet you that day in the gym. I mean, I knew you were charming, but I had no idea you were such a miracle worker. Winning over Nate is no easy task.”
“Tell me about it.” Gabe sighed, rolling his eyes.
“Uh, hello? I’m right here,” Nate said defensively.
“It’s no use, son,” Nate’s dad said. “They speak the same language…eye rolling.”
“Very funny,” Nate’s mom replied.
Nate felt Gabe’s hand grip his thigh under the table. He tried not to groan at the contact…or encourage that hand to go further up.
“You all are very lucky,” Gabe said. “Your family is remarkable, and I’m lucky to have met you.”
Although it had been said to everyone at the table, Nate felt like that last part had been meant for him. He couldn’t help but feel the same way. So, it was with tremendous strength and respect that he didn’t try to see how much the bill was when it was handed to Gabe. Letting him pay was more difficult than Nate wanted to admit. It had been weeks since he’d compared Gabe to Eric, but the similarities would always be there. He knew Gabe wasn’t trying to buy his love with nights like this. Truth was, Gabe didn’t need to buy his love at all. It seemed lately Nate was leaning toward offering it—and himself—to Gabe completely.
They’d only had a few stolen moments since that amazing night two weeks ago. It was difficult with Lily. The last thing he wanted to do was confuse her. Hell, being open about his relationship with Gabe in front of her was something that confused him. He’d never dated anyone in the years since Lily had come into his life. Now, the thought of Gabe being in his arms again tonight stirred something in him he hadn’t let himself feel in years. His parents planned to take Lily home for another sleepover, so he and Gabe had planned a sleepover of their own. Of course, for their sleepover, there was no need for Gabe to pack pajamas.
The feeling of Gabe’s hand on his startled him, and embarrassment washed over him when Gabe gave him a knowing look. Was he really that transparent? Gabe smiled wickedly as if to say—I know you want to fuck me into the mattress, and I’m all for it.
“Ready?” Gabe asked the question and Nate laughed.
He looked up and realized his parents and Lily were already standing, waiting for him. “Absolutely.”