Page 32 of Tall, Dark, & Ginger

“What are you waiting on?”

“Wings and rings.”

“Two minutes,” he says. “Saucing them up now.”

“I got two minutes.”

Wren nods, his eyes capturing every movement and action in his kitchen. It’s wild how he stays on top of it all. I think I’d be overwhelmed.

I watch him choreograph orders and check on his line cooks, testing doneness on burgers and crispiness of fries. Damn, this man is gorgeous.

“Order up,” he says, sliding the tray of food toward me.

“Thanks, man.”

I exit the kitchen, hoping I come across as chill as I’m playing it. Thank fuck there aren’t any feelings involved, or I’d be even worse. I spend my waking hours jonesing for another hit of Wren as it is.

After delivering the food to my table, I pause to take in the place, visually checking to see if anyone needs anything. All looks calm, so I turn to go out to the patio for a minute of fresh air, when I’m blocked by a familiar face.

“Hey, Ridley.”

The man in front of me is an adorable twink, and suddenly, memories of our night together flood my mind. And that’s why he doesn’t look exactly happy to see me.

“Remember me?”

I nod, forcing a smile to my face. “Yeah. Yeah, of course. How are you?”

“What’s my name?”

“Um, I…” I open my mouth and close it several times, like a gaping fish.

“You don’t remember.”

“Names aren’t really my strong suit, but I remember you, of course.”

He twists his lips, glancing over his shoulder. “Why did you ghost me?”

I scrunch my nose.This is why, my guy. I wanted a hookup and you wanted romantic dinners.“It wasn’t personal.”

“I don’t believe you. I just want to know what I did wrong. I thought we had fun.”

“We did have fun.” I tug his arm off to the side to get out of the way of people. “Listen, man, I swear it’s not you. I’m just not a repeat kind of guy. I’m sorry if I hurt your feelings or made you feel like shit.”

He nods, gazing up at me with doe eyes. I do remember him. He was eager to do anything I wanted and could suck a golf ball through a hose. I met him at a bar in New Onyx when I was out trolling one night, and after buying him a drink, I was sold. He seemed chill and on the same page, until he got majorly clingy after his orgasm.

“Is this just an older guy thing?” he asks. “It seems to happen a lot.”

“I’m not the over-forty spokesman, but maybe it’s more about intentions than age.”

“What do you mean?”

“If you’re looking for something more substantial, then hooking up with a random guy at a bar probably isn’t gonna be it.”

He scrunches his cute nose. “Yeah, but how else do I meet men who aren’t my age?”

“I’m hardly the guy to give relationship advice.”

The pout on his face is cute, and I’m reminded of what drew me to him in the first place. I put my hand on his shoulder, gently squeezing.

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