Page 130 of The Holy Grail
“Well, don’t get used to me being dressed like this,” Evan told her, motioning to what he was wearing. “This is my ‘funeral’ outfit, so I’m pretty sure it’s full of bad energy.”
“Your ‘funeral’ outfit?”
“Yes. I wear it to funerals.”
“How many funerals do you attend?”
“Two in the last year, actually. They were cousins of my mom’s, so they were like my second cousins, once or twice removed, or something. I’m not sure, but she made me go with her.”
“God, I’ve never even been to a funeral,” Jules mused.
“I’ve been to a few, when I was a lot younger,” Malcom said. “Both sets of grandparents, and an uncle. I don’t remember much, other than the food was pretty good.”
“Well, you look nice in slacks,” Jules told Evan. “So, maybe you should buy a pair that has good energy?”
He made a face. “I hate shopping.”
“You’ll like it when I go with you,” she promised. “Mal can come, too.”
Evan slowly looked from one to the other, as if suspecting a trap was being laid. “All right … I guess.”
Just then, a waiter approached the table, and as Jules turned, she couldn’t help but smile when she recognized Anthony, who smiled in return—although his smile was a little taken aback.
“I’m not used to seeing you without your friend,” he said.
“I know. It’s a little strange being here without her,” she replied.
Turning to Malcom and Evan, Anthony introduced himself. “Good evening. I’m Anthony, and I’ll be taking care of you tonight. Can I get you started off with something to drink?”
Malcom ordered a bottle of what sounded like expensive red wine, and then Anthony left them to look over their menus. By the time he returned with the wine, they had all decided on Spaghetti Bolognese, and once he’d taken their orders, Anthony left them alone again.
After pouring each of them a glass of wine, Malcom held his up and waited until Jules and Evan followed suit. “Here’s to us.”
“Here’s to us,” Jules and Evan echoed, before clinking their glasses with Malcom’s.
After sharing the details of their day (Jules had started working with a new company, Malcom’s had been boring, and Evan’s had been laundry-oriented), Jules cleared her throat.
“I was wondering about something,” she began, looking at Evan.
Figuring it was directed at him specifically, he replied, “What?”
“I was wondering about boundaries … like in your previous relationships.”
“You mean the triads?”
“Yes.”
“Well, you know what the boundaries were with Mal and Gwen, but most of my other relationships didn’t really have boundaries.”
“Like, none?” Malcom asked, clearly surprised to hear that.
“Yeah. Well, I mean in the beginning there were usually a few—like sex had to include all three people until trust was established—but then it could be just two people.”
“So, theoretically speaking,” Jules said, “once we establish trust, if I were to be working late one night, I might come over to Mal’s place and find you two engaging in fuckery—”
“Here are some complimentary breadsticks for you,” Anthony announced, smoothly placing a wicker basket down on the table. “Fresh out of the oven.”
“Thank you,” Evan said, immediately reaching over to pluck one of the breadsticks out of the basket.
