Page 17 of The Virgin
“Then we won’t let it. We’re both adults. We’ll communicate often, and we won’t do anything the other one isn’t comfortable with. The minute one of us wants to stop, we stop. No hard feelings.”
Jonah bit his lower lip and nodded. He seemed hesitant about something, but Spencer got the feeling that he’d pushed enough for one day and that if he kept going, Jonah would retreat into himself again.
“Okay. Deal.”
CHAPTER 9
JONAH
Growing up,when other families were waking on Sunday morning and getting ready for church, Jonah and his brothers were already up and in the diner. Even as adults, it was no different. Sunday morning rolled around, and Jonah found himself getting out of bed and dragging his ass down to have breakfast with his family.
The diner was the thing that held them together after their mom died. His dad still had the business to run, and Jonah had done his best to chip in and keep things going. He’d kept an eye on his younger brothers and even persuaded them to pitch in at the diner.
Taylor was sixteen when he started cooking. Five years later, he was the diner’s full-time cook. Like their dad, he’d practically chained himself to the place. Located on the outskirts of town, they didn’t get many tourists, but they more than made up for it with a steady string of local customers. Even early on a Sunday morning, there were cars in the parking lot. Jonah parked around the back, out of the way of the paying customers, and slipped in through the back door.
Taylor was in the kitchen and glanced over his shoulder to shoot Jonah a smile. Taylor was still the baby of the family, no matter how old he got, and Jonah always saw him as the same gap-toothed kid he’d grown up with.
“Your admirer was here looking for you,” Taylor teased with obvious mirth.
“I will drown you in the dish pit.”
“No, you won’t. That’s against the rules.” Taylor went back to scrambling eggs, frying bacon, and doing at least fifty things at once. It was forty-nine more tasks than Jonah could handle at any one time.
Jonah’s admirer, as Taylor had teased, was the uncle of one of his summer students. He’d taken custody of his nephew when he lost his parents, and Jonah had tutored him over the summer to help him catch up on the work he’d missed the year before. Jonah doubted that Grant was actually interested in him. It was most likely some kind of misplaced gratitude that made it seem like he was interested in Jonah.
But that didn’t stop his family from teasing him. Most of the time, Jonah bit back, but he was in too good of a mood this morning to care much about some gentle teasing from Taylor.
“Can you do one of those bacon and eggers for me this morning?” Jonah asked on his way through to the front.
“Yeah. Tell Dad and Colby that breakfast is in fifteen.”
Taylor always took a break first thing Sunday so they could all have breakfast together as a family. It was a tradition that none of them seemed to mind keeping even as their lives changed and got busier. The diner was like another member of the family to Jonah. Coming here and being surrounded by the familiarity always comforted him.
Jonah dropped down into their booth. Colby was already there, nursing a cup of coffee and scrolling his phone. The thing Jonah loved the most about the diner was how it always felt like home. Plus, it looked like a typical diner you’d see in the movies. Red seats, chrome accents, black and white checkered floor.
“Morning, Colby.”
“Mornin’,” Colby said without looking up. “Sorry, be right with you. I promised to give Sophie more responsibility at the gym. She’s setting up the equipment for classes this afternoon, and she’s nervous about getting something wrong.” Colby had channeled his love of sports and his natural athletic ability into a career as a CrossFit instructor. At twenty-five years old, he managed one of the local gyms.
“Mornin’, kiddo.” Jonah’s dad swung past with a pot of coffee, and he filled a cup for Jonah. He paused to top off Colby’s too.
“Taylor said breakfast is ready in fifteen.” Jonah passed the message along.
“I’ll get everyone squared away then,” his dad said, ruffling Jonah’s hair before taking off to make sure everyone had everything they needed before they sat down to eat. The locals knew of their Sunday morning tradition and were generally supportive of it, even if it meant they waited a few minutes longer for a refill or for their order to be taken. The other staff covered the diner while they ate as a family, and most of the time it was a quiet, uneventful meal.
By the time Taylor appeared with four heaping plates of food, their dad had topped up everyone’s coffee. One of their part-timers would be able to take care of anyone who trickled in.
Usually they went around the table and shared any new developments in their lives. Most of the time there wasn’t much to report and, even now, the thing that was new in Jonah’s life wasn’t something he wanted to share with his family. Even if he was the sharing type, which he wasn’t, he wouldn’t even know where to begin. Connecting with Spencer in intimate ways had been mind-blowing, and Jonah was still trying to wrap his own head around it.
They’d survived their first week as colleagues who had been naked together without a problem. Where Jonah expected there to be awkwardness, there was only a deepening sense of camaraderie and friendship. And though he didn’t make plans with Spencer this weekend out of fear of becoming clingy and needy, Spencer was always on his mind.
Jonah listened to Taylor and their dad tell stories from the past week while he demolished the breakfast Taylor made for him. Colby also seemed to be preoccupied, but once his phone was confiscated by their dad, he managed to be more sociable.
Some Sunday mornings were slower than others, and this was one of those days when the crowd was thin. Jonah wished it were busier that morning so he could make a hasty exit.
Jonah’s phone buzzed, and he pulled it out of his pocket. It was Damon, wanting to know if he was free after breakfast. Jonah tapped away a response, agreeing to meet up with him.
“Why don’t you take Jonah’s phone away?” Colby asked, somewhat sullenly, and Jonah rolled his eyes.
