Page 70 of Unforgettable

“You don’t have to. I know where everything is so it might be easier if I do it.”

Reeve covers my mouth with his hand. “I’ll figure it out.”

And he does.

By the time I’ve filled the mushrooms with the stuffing, added the breadcrumbs and cheese, my dining table is set with plates, cutlery, wine glasses, and a perfect looking cheese board courtesy of Reeve. I put the tray of mushrooms onto the waiting cork board in the middle of the table and take a seat.

My table is square shaped so Reeve has set it up so we’re beside one another instead of opposite, and it reminds me of our first night together.And just like that night, I want to lean in and kiss him on the mouth. This time hard.

But since tonight he and I are just two friends, eating dinner, I help him plate up his food, thank him for the amazing day together, and kiss him on the cheek instead.

17

Reeve

“Damn, Oz, these photos are beautiful,” I say, flicking through the different staged photos Oz took while we were eating dinner. “It’s amazing how they turn out, because the food doesn’t look like this to the naked eye.”

He shrugs. “It’s nothing.”

“Oh, no,” I chide. “There will be none of that. These shots are everything. It’s like the food is literally popping off the screen. You can imagine the taste almost immediately.”

“That’s because you, in fact, did taste it.”

Grabbing a tea towel off the counter, I hold both ends and twirl it before flicking it at his ass.

“Ouch,” he hisses.

“Is this what giving you compliments is like?”

“What?”

“You’re acting like this is no big deal. Don’t shy away now. We just spoke about how you were going to make this work for real. That means accepting compliments.”

When we got back from my place, I didn’t think there was a chance in hell the rest of the night was salvageable, but after that delicious meal and a bottle of wine between us, everything is right in the world.

It’s actually more than right. It’s perfect.

There’s no denying Oz and I mean something to one another. It may not be official or permanent, but there is no way I’ll look back at this time of my life and think of Oz with anything but awe and adoration.

And his decision to open up to me about his wants and hopes for the future only solidifies that.

The only issue I have with being Oz’s sounding board is that I won’t be around to see it all come to fruition. The plans he has for Meals and Melodies are as much creative as they are business centered. In a few short weeks he has managed to convince himself this is no longer a hobby and he is sitting on a landmine of opportunity.

Because he is.

People love food, people love music, and people love social media. Meals and Melodies was a one-stop shop. You didn’t have to do anything but tap the picture, see what products or places were tagged, and follow them.

Oz was already getting inundated with review and feature requests, but now that he was keen about the idea of working with smaller business and potentially partnering with food brands and affiliate marketing, there is no reason why Meals and Melodies can’t grow and be profitable for him.

Finished with the dinner clean up, we both fall onto his couch, exhausted but extremely satisfied.

Sitting on the opposite end, Oz grabs my ankles and swings my legs up until my feet are in his lap. I’ve come to terms with the fact that not touching is impossible for us, and our version of platonic touching probably doesn’t fit with the general standard, but hands off clearly doesn’t seem to be an option.

“When are you going to post those photos?” I ask.

“Now. I’m just going through my playlists to see what song to match them up with,” he tells me. “Not all the stallholders have a social media presence, so I’ll tag the market as well.”

“Oh my god. What if you created playlists that you shared with people who followed you?” I suggest, feeling absolutely invested in Oz’s success. “And we can ask Murph to design you a website. And you can put some of the recipes up there maybe?”

---