“Are the fucks really necessary?” Lucah asked.
“Oh, come on. You’re perfectly happy to use it whenever you want,” Rory said, raising her eyebrows suggestively.
Lucah sighed and then smiled at her. “Yeah, I guess I can’t be the fuck police.”
“Fuck the police,” Ryder said. I didn’t know the details, but he’d definitely had his fair share of interactions with the law, which probably didn’t help in the job department.
“A-fucking-men,” Rory said, raising her glass. She’d broken out the wine, but Ryder had declined and gone with soda instead.
“Fuck yeah,” I said, raising my glass. The guys joined us and we all clinked our drinks together.
Lucah and Rory took the dishes to the sink to rinse them off, and I got out the gelato and bowls.
“Hey, LJ, remember when we used to eat ice cream out of the container and Mom would freak out?” Ryder asked. I almost laughed at the nickname Ryder had for Lucah.
Lucah didn’t turn around when Ryder said something to him, but his back stiffened. Both their parents had died in a fire, and I knew it was a sore subject for the both of them. More so for Lucah since he took on a lot of parental duties with Ryder, even though both of them were grown.
“Yeah,” Lucah said softly. “I do remember.” He and Ryder shared a look, and then the moment was over.
Rory cursed as she accidentally dropped a plate and Lucah sprang into action, making sure she didn’t cut her foot on any shards while Ryder got out the vacuum. The two guys cleaned up as Rory and I watched.
“Man, I should drop plates more often. This is great,” Rory said, patting Lucah on the back. “Thanks, Mr. Blythe.”
“No problem,” he said, throwing the broken plate bits into the trash as Ryder put away the vacuum.
“Thanks for everything again. I’ll buy you a new plate,” Rory said. I waved her off and said it was no big deal. I didn’t have a complete set of plates anyway.
“A game. Let’s play a game,” Lucah blurted out.
“Yeah, sure. We could do that. Cards Against Humanity?” I said. It was one of our favorite games to play together and was a guaranteed good time.
I had the feeling Lucah didn’t want me and Ryder to be alone much and was trying to be sneaky about it.
“Oooohhh, I love that game,” Rory said. “It makes me feel like a terrible person, but it’s so good.”
I got down the cards, and we headed to the living room. “Does anyone want coffee?” I asked, then I went to make some. Ryder came to “help” me.
“I think I can handle it,” I said, firing up the new machine. I’d splurged on it because it made the best coffee I’d ever tasted.
Ryder got down the cups and placed them on a tray. “I know. I just wanted to give you a hand anyway.”
Lucah and Rory were talking quietly, their heads close together. Hers a honey blonde, his carrot red. They were such a pretty couple.
“Well, thank you,” I said.
“You’re fucking welcome.” He grinned at me and I had to smile back.
“So, how’s the apartment?” I hadn’t seen the place, but reading between the lines, it was probably a dump. He couldn’t really afford anything decent in the city.
“It’s an absolute shithole, thanks for reminding me.”
“I was just making conversation, Ryder.” He didn’t have to be a dick about it.
He sighed. “Yeah, I know. Sorry about that. I’m not very good at thinking about what I’m going to say before I say it. But I’m working on it. I’m working on a lot of shit.” I could tell. He was trying.
“The place is . . . it’s a place to crash and not much else. But at least I can afford the rent without a roommate, and I don’t have to worry about someone showing up at my door and offering me stuff. I haven’t told anyone where I moved.”
I had no idea who Ryder used to hang out with and I wasn’t sure I wanted to know.