Page 34 of To Cuddle A Gremlin

“Who? Everyone who’s met you knows you’d never do that. Same with Charles. You’ve been reading too much.”

“I have not. And you can never read too much. Reading is good for the soul. You should read a book or two,” Sebastian shot back, his dignity taking the hit.

“Oh? Really? Who says I don’t read?” Isadore’s voice changed, and it sent shivers down Sebastian’s spine. The sound was rough and growly, creating lightning sparks everywhere.

“You just did!” Sebastian squawked. If he remained indignant, Isadore wouldn’t know his voice affected Sebastian in a sexy way.

“No, I just said that you read too much–”

“Which is the same as not reading enough. Only people who don’t read feel that way.” Sebastian pulled his feet up on the couch while he reclined. Talking on the phone was fun. Teasing Isadore gave Sebastian joy and sent the butterflies in his stomach fluttering. God, Isadore’s words caused the fluttering to move up into his heart and spread joy throughout his whole self.

“The point I was trying to make before you derailed me–thank you very much–is from what I’ve observed, friends go on friend dates without their significant others on evenings such as your panto. No one gets called out. It’s all in good fun, which is what I want the most from you. For you to enjoy yourself. And I think Charles will help you. He’s not overwhelming, and he can read a person like no one’s business. Be glad I didn’t suggest Harry.”

“I like Harry.”

“Me too. But Charles is a better fit.”

They continued to chat for another twenty minutes before Sebastian got antsy. Being on the phone wasn’t his favourite thing, even if it was Isadore on the other side.

“Enjoy your date with Charles. I’ll be dreaming of you,” Isadore said in a raspy voice.

“You could come, you know?” The words popped out of his mouth before Sebastian finished the thought in his head.

“No, darling. This is for you. I’d just get in the way, and we don’t want me to distract you. Thank you. That you extendedthe invitation means so much.” Isadore rebuffed Sebastian’s suggestion. “I will see you for breakfast on the Sunday after.”

“Oh? Okay, I didn’t realize that was a thing.” Sebastian sat up, waking Tiger with his abrupt movements.

“It is now. We need to dish about all the details, right? So I’ll see you on Sunday morning,” Isadore explained. “Bye, Bastian. Have fun with Charles.”

“Bye.”

Saturday came and along with it the nerves. Sebastian stood outside the theatre doors while he waited for Charles. Familiar carols cheerfully played on the outdoor speaker system, drawing in the attendees. The Christmas season was upon them. Snowflake lights adorned every streetlight and brightened the atmosphere.

“There you are! I was hoping I’d beat you here, but parking was tragic.” Charles gasped as he bent over to catch his breath. “What about you?”

Sebastian smiled. “I only had to walk down the street. But yeah, with the show tonight and the Sip ’n Shop event, the whole town came. It's so nice to see how happy everyone is after the last couple of seasons.”

“Were you able to get to the Light Up Night?” Charles asked as they waited in line.

“No, with Isadore’s leg, I thought it’d be better to stay away.” Not going to the nighttime festival had been a bone of contention between Isadore and Sebastian. Isadore wanted to prove to Sebastian he was stable enough to enjoy the evening despite his broken leg by attending. Though Sebastian had been okay about Isadore’s leg, the slick sidewalk and his not-so-terrible curse caused him so much more anxiety.

“He’s been grumpier than a bear with a thorn,” Charles said before passing his receipt to the ticket collector. “Thank you, love.”

Sebastian handed his coat and mitts to the person at coat check and adjusted his sweater. The lobby was full as they gaped at the decorations dotting every conceivable surface. Every surface was silver and gold with animals from the North Pole. The theme was Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.

“You did a fantastic job!”

“Aww, this wasn’t just me. A lot of the other members of my team had the ideas.” Charles waved away Sebastian’s compliment.

“They did amazing. Congratulations,” Sebastian said with a decisive nod.

“Charles!” a deep and familiar voice called across from the sea of people. Bone-deep recognition of knowing who spoke sent tingles up and down Sebastian’s back and softly pooled arousal and joy in his stomach.

“Looks like someone couldn’t stay away,” Charles teased.

“What do I do?” Sebastian whispered. This was not in his plans. He was not prepared.

“Say hi, be happy. Be you?” Charles answered, before patting his shoulder. “Incoming!”

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