Sometimes Love Lasts by Jake Wells

Author:Jake Wells
Language: eng
Format: mobi, epub, pdf
Tags: gay romance
ISBN: 9781634769273
Publisher: Dreamspinner Press
Published: 2016-05-13T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Twelve

MATEO SUGGESTED that we meet at the Fitness Wrap, an eatery on Wilshire Boulevard known for its casual atmosphere and healthy cuisine. Feeling a little bit guilty about blowing Ollie and Kevin off, I texted Ollie before I started the car.

Hey, man! The day is proving to be busier than I anticipated. I’m gonna have to take a rain check on dinner. I tried to reassure myself that my explanation was truthful even if it was intentionally vague.

Before I even put the car into reverse, Ollie responded. You busy stalking?

His reply really did make me laugh. Maybe Ollie was psychic. My fingers skimmed across the keypad: How did you guess? I would fill him in on the details later but didn’t want to start the discussion now. He would never believe I had actually met Mateo. After all, I was having trouble believing it myself. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Mateo turn into traffic. I had to get moving.

Even as I tossed the phone down onto the seat next to me, I was able to read Ollie’s follow-up text: All right, my man. Don’t work too hard. We’ll catch up later. (I’ll start raising bail!) A smiley face emoticon punctuated his text. I chuckled as I accelerated out of the gas station exit and forced myself to remember I had accepted an invitation. I wasn’t technically stalking.

Mateo was waiting at the hostess station when I arrived. The woman behind it pulled out two menus and escorted us to a table. It was early enough that the restaurant was still relatively empty, and we were able to sit in a booth that afforded us a fair amount of privacy.

We had no sooner sat down than Mateo picked up the menu. “At the risk of being rude, I have to order. I’m so hungry, I feel like my stomach is going to start eating itself.”

I smiled but didn’t reach for my menu. “Please feel free. You just succeeded in nailing a difficult dive. It would be a shame to see you pass out now and hit your head on the table edge.”

He nodded appreciatively but then noticed that I wasn’t looking at the menu. “Aren’t you ordering? I’m sorry. If you don’t like this place, we can eat somewhere else.”

I laughed and quickly assured him, “No, no. This place is great. I eat here all the time since I don’t live very far from here. I have the menu memorized.”

Mateo looked relieved. “That’s good. I don’t think I could survive having to drive somewhere else.” He continued to peruse the options. “What do you recommend?”

“I’m going to have the Farmer’s Chicken Wrap. It’s a spinach tortilla filled with shaved brussels sprouts, slivered almonds, avocado, chicken, and a sprinkle of parmesan cheese. It comes with either fresh fruit or a quinoa salad. It’s delicious.”

“Sold!” He tossed the menu back onto the table resolutely. “But you have to split an order of the truffle fries with me. Diving always gives me cravings, and I feel like eating something decadent.

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