Page 92 of How Not to Date a Griffin

Beyond the love of his life waited his rather empty—for now—apartment.

“Holy shit,” he breathed. “I know you said your shares of the stock sold well, but…”

“Is it too much?”

It was certainly nicer than Reid had expected. The front door opened to the large living area, currently filled with boxes; a randomly placed couch; and a cat tower, sans cat.

To the left awaited the kitchen behind the bisecting breakfast bar, with three panels of windows casting afternoon light across the empty floor. Past the collection of Nolan’s belongings was a nook cornered by windows, and a hallway leading to what he supposed were the bedrooms.

“Wow, so you just got here?”

His voice echoed around the empty space.

“Yeah.” Nolan motioned to the pile. “I had most of it shipped ahead of time, but I’m still waiting on a few pieces to arrive.”

“This is really nice, Nolan,” Reid breathed, moving to the kitchen first to appreciate the new shiny, silver appliances.

Oh, he could see himself making breakfast here many mornings in a row.

Not that this was his place.

A first bedroom was located past the kitchen, windows along its right-hand wall. It was nice, but empty.

A spare, then?

His attention flicked to Nolan, who’d come to lean against the entryway to watch Reid’s reaction.

Their gazes danced like that for a while, unable to believe the other was real. Lips curling in a smile, Reid was unable to contain his endless bubbly and fizzy excitement. Nolan was here.

Part of him was afraid to let Nolan out of his sight, as if he might disappear again if Reid turned his back.

The other part of him just wanted.

“So,” he began, trailing a finger over the pristine counters. “D’you have a bed yet?”

“Oh, I thought you’d never ask,” Nolan practically purred, and wasn’t that supposed to be Reid’s thing?

Nolan grabbed his hand, touch electric, and dragged him through the empty apartment, past the nook—

“Can’t believe there’s an actual little reading nook in those windows, man—”

“You can appreciate it later,” Nolan growled.

“You could fuck me in it,” Reid retorted, and Nolan came to a stop right in the middle of the short hallway.

Reid could practically hear him weighing the connotations of that, but then he moved forward, fingers tightening in Reid’s. “Next time.”

“Presumptuous of you,” Reid muttered, failing to hide the smile in his voice.

The bedroom door was ajar, and Nolan pressed his hand to it, opening it before pausing once more. “Right,” he said softly, disconnecting their hands to pat Reid on the chest. “Reid, this is Sunny.”

Sunny, the yellow-orange tabby, ancient and bedraggled and all the cuter for it, winked at him from the middle of the bed, one eye missing.

Reid stilled, waiting for Sunny’s hackles to raise, but she only stared at him, bored and sleepy.

“She’s so much cuter in person,” Reid whispered.

“Isn’t she just the sweetest? Look at her permanent scraggle. So edgy.”