Page 70 of This Changes Everything

VANCOUVER 24 years old

BEN AND I HAD GONE BACK TO VANCOUVER TO CELEBRATE OUR birthdays. Hannah, Kara, and Jacob wanted to take us out to dinner, and Jacob suggested the Hideaway. He didn’t realize I had no idea that the Hideaway was the restaurant Blair and Cameron had opened that year. We walked into the dark brewhouse and barbecue joint, which sat along False Creek in downtown Vancouver, and I tripped over my own feet, shocked to see the eldest Campbell boy greeting us with open arms.

“Blair?” I hugged him and looked at Hannah. Her eyes hit the floor so fast she could have won a world record.

“Hey, Cainey. Jacob told me you were coming to town. I got you a good table.”

Jacob and Blair still lived together, and even though I saw Jacob every time I came back to Vancouver, I hadn’t seen any of the Campbells in three years, since my twenty-first birthday.

Blair stretched out his hand to shake Ben’s. “Hey, good to see you again, man. Although I feel like I see you every time I turn on the TV now.”

Ben was starting to get real work in New York. He no longer needed a side job. He was a working actor and was even recognized on the street now and then. It was expected, but also bizarre.

“Yeah, good to see you, too. It’s been a minute.” Ben smiled warmly as he took off his coat.

Blair walked us to our waterfront table.

“This is your restaurant? It’s amazing.” I was flabbergasted. I had never thought about Blair as a fully functioning adult, and here he was, running his own restaurant. It was beautiful, and cool, and packed to the rafters.

“Cameron’s and mine.”

“Oh.” My eyes flicked over to Kara. “Is Cameron here?”

“No, not tonight,” Blair answered quietly. “Although word spread that you were all coming in, so . . .” Blair nodded to the bar, where Juniper’s own Orson Whitlock was having a beer.

“Holy shit. I haven’t seen Orson since my going-away party. This is weird.”

“Good weird?” Blair asked.

“Yeah. Yes. Of course.” I looked down at the large table, and there were too many seats. I knew what was happening next.

“Okay, good. Orson and I were hoping to eat with you tonight. It’s just us. No other surprises.” Blair crinkled his forehead, and I knew what he was implying: Rory wasn’t coming. “That okay?”

“Yeah. That’s awesome.” I nodded, though I wasn’t sure if anyone believed me.

Our table was packed with deliciousness. We had smoked rib tips with andouille sausage, pork belly burnt ends, smoked brisket, baked beans, cornbread salad, creamed corn—you name it, we had it—and after we ordered our third bottle of wine for the table, the questions started coming.

“So, how long have you two been together?” Orson asked Ben, sipping his freshly poured glass of wine.

“Three years now,” Ben said confidently.

Orson nodded, then turned to me. “Think you’ll ever come back?”

“To Vancouver? Um, honestly? No?” My eyes jumped from person to person around the table. “Not if I can help it.”

“You could always do a green card marriage, if it comes down to it,” Jacob suggested casually, as he dipped the last of the burnt ends into barbecue sauce and shoved them into his mouth. I saw Orson’s eyes flick to Blair to assess his reaction, which was muted.

“Are you thinking about that? About getting married?” Orson probed.

“The thought has crossed my mind.” Ben laughed softly.

“So, you live together, and you want to get married.”

I wasn’t sure Orson knew he was speaking his thoughts.

“Orson,” Blair warned with a steady voice. He subtly shook his head, silently communicating to Orson.

Ben laughed again, this time uncomfortably. He was reading the room correctly and recognized that we were being scrutinized.