We Have Till Monday

Nicky could teach me some things too. I knew he was spending the day sight-seeing and shopping with Gideon and the others, and maybe they could pick up August’s cookbooks for me in town.

True to his word, August put us to work in the kitchen all day. The island quickly filled up with a neat grid of containers and notes with instructions. Right now, I was tasked with dividing boxes of fancy pasta into servings. One cup in each plastic bag, and there was everything from tagliatelle and rigatoni to linguine and macaroni.

I kept telling him it was too much. I felt a little embarrassed too. Forty-three years old, and I couldn’t cook worth a damn.

“I don’t wanna hear it, boy,” August told me. “You’ve spent years building an institution that helps people. You think I don’t know? You may not enjoy speakin’ about yourself, but your brother doesn’t have that problem. He told me quite a bit at the barbecue.”

For chrissakes. “He was undoubtedly tryna be my wingman.”

“I don’t think so,” Camden said, wiping his hands on a towel. “I talked to him too. And Maria—and Luiz. You’re the freaking glue in your community—the one who fixes all the problems. You must’ve forgotten to tell us that part.”

I didn’t wanna hear it. They were exaggerating. I did my part at home, like everyone else, and it was no excuse for not taking the time to learn how to cook fucking pasta.

“They love you, darlin’, and it’s easy to see why.” August passed me with a smooch to my cheek before he went to pull something out of the fridge. “Now—cheese. I bought some fantastic Parmesan and Pecorino Romano for you—that you’ll be cutting into pieces when you’re done with the pasta—but you’ll have to drag your rear to the store and buy burrata and ricotta. That okay?”

I did my best to shake the discomfort and their kind words, and I slid onto one of the stools on this side of the island. “I know my way around a grocery store pretty well. I often pick things up for my grandmother.”

“Good.” August returned to the island with the cheese and a pack of something that looked like it came from a deli. “The day you’re using the burrata, there’ll be enough to make four meals, so pour four cups of farfalle into one bag.”

Yes, Sir.

“Fuck.” I flinched awake by a jolt of pain in my neck and straightened in my seat. Where was… Oh. Goddammit, we’d fallen asleep in their home theater. The big cushy loveseat at the center was the obvious choice so we could sit together, but it wasn’t meant to sleep on. I rolled my shoulders and looked around me. Camden must’ve gone to bed at some point. How nice of the little punk not to wake us up…

Two loveseats and four chairs split into two rows left him plenty of options for our movie nights, but he usually ended up with his blanket and pillow on the floor between our feet. No matter how many times we’d told him there was space between us, Camden preferred the soft carpet.

“August.” I rubbed the sleep from my eyes and got off the loveseat with a grunt that revealed my age a little too well.

“Mm.”

“Let’s go to bed.” I leaned over him and peppered his face with soft kisses. My God, he was beautiful. I touched his cheek and felt… It couldn’t be. It was too soon. I had my head in the damn clouds. “Wake up, love.” Evidently, it didn’t stop me from calling him that.

“Mmm…” He let out a yawn and stretched out. “Lead the way.”

I dragged him up from the seat. The screen on the wall had already gone dark, so I just flicked off the dim light and guided him out of the room.

On our way up the stairs, he hugged me from behind and dropped a kiss to my neck.

I sighed contentedly and turned around once I’d reached the landing. He met me in a sweet kiss and walked me backward toward his room.

I was gonna miss his kisses. His affection.

August and Camden had brought me back to life. They’d made me thirst for a better tomorrow. For adventures and little things that shook up the everyday routine.

“It’s fucked that I miss you already, isn’t it?” My back hit the doorframe, and he deepened the kiss and pushed his tongue into my mouth. I kissed him back hungrily and started unbuttoning his jeans.

“Not that fucked, baby.” He lifted my tee, and I pulled it over my head. “My chances of seein’ you sooner increase the more desperate I get you.”

“That’s an evil plan.”

“I’m merely a man on a mission.” With that said, he slipped his hand down my pants and palmed my cock. Combined with his lips on my neck, there was no stopping the shudder that ripped through me.