Page 46 of Ethan

"Tell us about her," Michael said.

I took a sip of my wine. "What if I told you, it isn't a her?"

Derek coughed and clapped his hand over his mouth to keep wine from escaping. Michael patted his back until he recovered. Derek raised his eyebrows at me. "What?"

"I'm seeing a man." And I was damned proud of it.

"Since when are you gay, Dad?"

"I'm not. I'm bisexual."

"Um … original questions. What? And since when?"

"Always. My bisexuality just never came up before."

"Does Mom know?"

"No. And please don't tell her yet. About any of it."

Michael put his hand on Derek's thigh. "Are you going to tell us about him?"

Where to start?

"His name is Ethan. And right off … he's gorgeous."

"Good start," Michael prompted me forward.

"He's intelligent and funny and so full of joy all the time." I gripped my wine glass. "He owns a fabulous coffee shop. It caters to the community. He's made it an incredible success. He went to Paris to study as a pastry chef. Makes all his own baked goods. And he's thoughtful and he's kind. So good with his staff and the way he talks about his friends. He listens, even when I'm talking about work. Remembers everything. Oh, and he wears the craziest shirts—"

Derek laughed. "Okay, so you're taken with this man."

I shook my head. "More than taken with him. Ethan is completely under my skin." It was true. I couldn't get him off my mind. It had only been three days since we'd been together, but it felt like a million. We talked to each other on the phone every night. Texted throughout the day.

I took a sip of my wine. "I took him camping with me last weekend."

"Oh, wow," Michael replied. "An overnighter. How long have you been seeing him?"

"Just a couple of weeks."

"But it feels right?" Derek asked.

"I couldn't have imagined anyone this special. We had a wonderful time."

Michael snorted. "I don't want to know details."

Derek smiled at me. "It looks good on you, Dad. When do we get to meet him?"

"I want to keep him to myself for a while longer."

Michael nodded. "Fair enough."

"Papa," Cara shouted from the top of the stairs. "Rufus is throwing up."

I chuckled. "Might have to do with all the food they gave him under the table."

Derek rolled his eyes. "Oh … are you serious?" He leapt to his feet alongside his husband, and they raced upstairs to deal with dog vomit.

I enjoyed my wine; glad my days of children were behind me. Then I thought of Ethan. What if he wanted kids? He was still a young man. It wouldn't be unreasonable.

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