Page 67 of Touch In Excess

Without really thinking much about it, Rami turned in his seat and ignored his brother’s waving hand of protest. His gaze scanned the patio, and then—to his both joy and horror—it settled on his beloved.

Skye was standing in the alcove that separated the indoor and outdoor seating with a very, very tall man behind him. Rami recognized him from the Tower data leak, but he couldn’t remember which one he was.

‘Your brother?’ Skye caught his eye and signed across the room.

Rami gave a slight nod, and then he heard Ahmed make a loud noise, and he turned back to him. He could lie again. He could say it was just a friend—just a guy he met. But he knew there was no way he could be anywhere near Skye and not touch him.

‘Is that him?’ Ahmed demanded. ‘Is he on a date with someone else?’

Rami heard Skye choke, and he knew it was all over. Rolling his eyes up toward the rolling clouds, he took a fortifying breath, then waved Skye over. ‘He’s not very fluent in ASL, so go slow. Don’t be rude.’

Ahmed had a glint in his eye that said he’d been thinking about it, but after he watched Rami’s face for a beat, he settled back with a small pout. ‘Fine.’

Skye was at Rami’s side in a moment, hovering a few feet away like he wasn’t sure what to do with himself. His tall friend wasn’t with him. ‘Hi,’ he finally signed.

Rami gestured at the empty chair between himself and his brother. ‘Skye,’ he said, spelling, then giving Skye’s sign name. He did the same for his brother, and then he turned to his love. ‘He knows.’

‘About…?’

Right. Yeah. That needed clarification. ‘You and me. Dating.’

Skye looked relieved, and Rami didn’t blame him. His biggest fear was having that conversation with his family, and he couldn’t imagine how it would feel if he’d had to do it with Skye’s. Turning, he extended his hand to Ahmed, then pulled back. ‘Nice to meet you. Sorry my ASL is slow. Rami told me a lot about you.’

Ahmed’s hands were still, his face unreadable. The moment of profound silence stretched on and on. Skye shifted in his seat, then fiddled with his hearing aids like maybe they were the problem. Finally, just before Rami kicked his brother under the table, Ahmed smiled.

‘Nice to meet you. You know my baby brother’s never had a boyfriend before.’

Rami’s face burned with embarrassment at both his brother’s confession and the fact that he used the sign ‘precious’ instead of ‘little’ when calling him the baby of all the siblings.

But Skye was very much himself. He just leaned over and snagged Rami’s hand, kissing his knuckles before letting go. ‘He and I have that in common. I’ve never felt this way about anyone before.’

Ahmed swallowed heavily as he stared at Skye, trying to search for the truth in his hands and face. After a beat, he nodded. ‘Come to dinner. Meet our family.’

Skye’s gaze darted over to Rami, and then he bit his lip. ‘I don’t speak any Arabic.’

Ahmed snorted. ‘Neither do I.’

Skye’s eyes widened, and then he burst into laughter. ‘I’m also bad at ASL.’

‘My parents are worse. You’ll be fine. They’ll like you.’

That might have been a stretch. Skye was as far from Rami’s culture as it got, really. His parents still struggled with the fact that Ahmed considered himself Deaf first and Lebanese second. They just couldn’t wrap their minds around the fact that hecould belong to a group of people who hadn’t birthed him or raised him.

So bringing Skye into the mix?

It would be hard. But Rami was too in love to really care, and he had a feeling he’d have his brother on his side. ‘Soon,’ he answered for them both. ‘I’ll let you know.’

Ahmed nodded, then pushed to stand. ‘I’m going to give you two a minute. Meet me at the car?’

Rami realized their lunch was over. Somewhere in the middle of the conversation, Ahmed had paid the bill, and the server cleared away their plates. He was so absorbed in his own situation, and his ears burned with slight embarrassment.

“What’s wrong?” Skye asked aloud as soon as Ahmed was gone.

Rami felt a punch of relief at hearing Skye’s voice. It was soft and soothing and careful without being patronizing. He slouched in his chair. “Can we talk about it later?”

“Was your brother being mean? Did I miss something?”

Rami shook his head a little too quickly, making himself dizzy for a second. He leaned in toward Skye so he wouldn’t have to struggle to rely solely on reading his lips amidst the conversational din of the restaurant and the noise of traffic. “I think he’ll be really supportive.”

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