Tonight, Jayden had insisted on cooking dinner when I’d told him about my overbearing sister’s plans to come and check him out. I’d told him as much as I could about Alexis as he grilled me while he prepped for dinner. He seemed unusually nervous, so I had pulled down his pants an hour before she arrived, calming him in the way I knew might work, in addition to making him a fresh pot of coffee.
Jay said the coffee was a stimulant and had the opposite effect on him than it did most people. He’d been sharing with me more and more about the reasons behind his idiosyncrasies. He’d said he’d stopped taking the medicine in his cabinets years ago and had learned to deal with his “shit” on his own. I didn’t fight him on it, because in truth, I didn’t really ever see a need to. Every day I learned something new about my love, and everyday had created a new memory.
Now at the table, he gripped my hand, giving it a quick squeeze as Alexis took a bite of his mother’s famous chicken casserole.
“Holy shit, this is amazing!” Alexis looked to me, her curly brown hair piled on top of her head, brown eyes bulging as she moaned in appreciation.
“Told you.” I smiled with pride as I looked to Jayden, who winked conspiratorially.
We sat through only a few minutes of forced conversation before it became natural. The wine flowed as the laughter poured out, and I found myself smiling like an idiot between the two. When dinner was done, we kept residence at the table.
Alexis looked at Jayden with amusement. Jayden, still slightly nervous under Alexis’ scrutinizing eyes, kept the wine flowing and got up when the music stopped to start a new playlist. He’d also told me music was the greatest coping mechanism for him when he couldn’t get quietude. He sat back down and sipped his wine.
I grabbed my glass as a few minutes of silence followed.
“So, Jay, what do you do?”
“I already told you, Lexi, he’s a woodworker.” She gave me an ‘eat shit’ look and turned to Jayden for her explanation.
He grinned and answered, “I’m a woodworker.” Alexis giggled and it was then that I realized she was crushing on my man. Alexis didn’t giggle. “Really, my uncle and I make custom cabinets and furniture. I like the design aspect and he’s more hands on.”
“That’s really cool,” she said, her wine buzz showing in her reddening cheeks. A knock at the door puzzled me as I looked to Jayden. “You expecting someone?”
“Owen is supposed to stop by with an order,” he said with a wink. “Excuse me.”
He met Owen at the door, and curiosity got the best of me as he greeted us and my eyes bulged as I noticed how handsome he was. He had been my second option in the job department. He was older, probably around thirty-five, with dark, sandy blond hair and tan skin. He had an athletic build and almond-shaped, green eyes. It surprised me that Jayden would trust me to work with a friend so good looking considering his jealous streak. But then again, I could be surrounded by a sea of penises and would zero in on Jay’s without hesitation. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d noticed another man. It was as if that world had disappeared.
Alexis stiffened when Owen walked into the living room, continuing to sip her wine, her eyes deadlocked on our visitor.
Alexis likey.
He greeted us both warmly. Jay insisted, after a slight hesitation on Owen’s part, for him to join us. Jay set a plate down and Owen declined dinner but agreed to a beer. He seemed to do a slight double take as he surveyed my sister, and I couldn’t help but notice Jay’s subtle smile as he noticed it, too.
That’s when I realized that Owen dropping by was not just coincidence. I narrowed my eyes at Jayden across the table as his gaze averted from mine. He gave me a shrug as Alexis and Owen struck up a conversation. I sucked my lips in my mouth and slowly shook my head, letting him know I was onto to him. He mouthed “I love you” and was instantly out of trouble.
An hour later, we decided to head to the living room with our booze and conversation. Alexis was all but too happy to keep Owen company as Jayden and I cleared the dishes.
“Slick, baby, but you know the whole point of this was for you to get to know my family,” I said, wrapping my arms around his waist as he scrubbed dried casserole off one of the plates.
“I have all the time in the world for that, and based on what you told me about her, I thought of Owen. He’s just as much of a workaholic as she is. He’s been divorced for years and I knew it couldn’t hurt to at least introduce them...and take the pressure off of me.”
I squeezed his waist tighter, placing my cheek on his back. “I’m sorry you felt that way.”
“I wanted to meet your family,” he promised.
“How do you know Owen? He’s older than you.”
He hesitated slightly before answering. “He helped me out once in a big way and we’ve been friends ever since.”
“Oh, how?” I asked as I put my back to the counter, leaning back to gaze at my beautiful man. He had on a collared, light green shirt and khakis. His typically messy brown hair was combed back neatly. Leaning in, I kissed the divot in his chin and he grunted mildly, sounding irritated because I was keeping him from his task. When I reached out to put my hands in his hair, he gave me the stink eye.
“Out.” I chuckled and rewrapped my hands around him only to hear his exasperated sigh. I was purposefully distracting him and chuckled as he scrambled to complete his chore. It was cute watching him get bent out of shape. I knew multitasking was difficult for him, especially when I was attempting to turn him on. I was put off by it the first time I straddled him while he was playing his Xbox only to be quickly discarded off of his lap and scorned. I’d been temporarily hurt by it, but understood it was just one of his quirks. And so I decided I liked it much better when his focus was solely on me. I would bide my time until that was the case, because the payoff was fucking phenomenal.
“I’m leaving, babe,” I said lightly as I took one last look at him before rounding the corner to join my sister and Owen in the living room. Jayden refused to let me help him with any household chore— another one of his quirks. I had folded a load of towels for him one day and watched him at the same time thank me while completely refolding them. It was pointless to try.
Rejoining my sister and Owen in the living room, I noticed my sister’s attentiveness towards Owen and felt slightly intrusive in my interruption. They seemed rapt in conversation as I took a seat next to my sister on the couch.
“So you are in Columbia?” Owen asked. “I designed the Timber building.”
“Really? That was you?! It’s beautiful. It absolutely changed the skyline for the better.”
“You think so? Thanks,” he added proudly.
“Absolutely. I’m looking to purchase a bigger space soon, or renovate. Maybe you could give me some pointers on expanding where I’m at?”
Owen didn’t hesitate before pulling out his card and handing it to her. “I’d love to help.” His words were suggestive in a way that made my sister’s lips turn up in a small smile.
“Well, I should go. I’ve interrupted your time with your sister long enough.” He turned to me and addressed me. “If things don’t work out at the agency, give me a call. I’ll make room for you.”
“Thank you, that’s so kind. And really, you aren’t interrupting anything by staying for one more beer,” I offered. He looked from me to my sister and nodded with a ‘sure.’ I stood up to get his beer and he looked back at me. “I’ve known Jayden a long time and I have to tell you I’ve never seen him so happy. Whatever you are doing, it’s working.”
My chest expanded with his words as I replied, “I’m loving him.”
“Well...keep it up,” he said with a wink.
“Not even a question,” I said, making my way to the kitchen to grab a beer. I twisted off the top and turned to Jayden who was still elbows deep in dishes, humming along to his playlist, completely oblivious to the world. I left him to it as I rejoined our guests. Owen thanked me as their topic transitioned from architecture to family. Owen mentioned he had a three-year-old daughter, and Alexis who was completely anti-little-people actually asked to see a picture. Owen proudly produced a thousand on his iPhone, and I noticed my sister’s eyes light up as she commented on the photo.