Page 105 of Enchanted

Then I saw Nox turn that smile on Micah, and I understood. Some couples were just meant to be, and they were one of those.

Rami pointed to a beautiful man with long purple hair swept up in an elegant bun. “This is Noah, and next to him is his partner, Jeremiah.”

“Oh, I have your old room,” I blurted out before immediately blushing. “I mean, thank you. Not that you had anything to do with it, and you probably don’t care seeing as you live here now, but thank you.”

Jeremiah didn’t comment on my babbling, just smiled kindly. “I’m so glad you like it. I wasn’t there long, but it was a beautiful space.”

“Obviously, Sam and Ez you know.” Rami continued before I could blather on and make more of a fool of myself. “Theo and Nate you’ve met too. Theo’s on the left today.”

“Spoilsport,” Theo muttered as he slathered a thick layer of marmalade over a slice of toast. “Way to ruin our fun before we even get started.”

“Finally, we have Benji.” Rami gestured to the man sat at the end of the table. He was a little shorter than the rest, but no less beautiful.

“Hello.” Benji nodded. “I’d recommend sitting next to Sam rather than the twins. You’ll be more comfortable.”

I didn’t need the advice, but I appreciated it all the same. “It’s great to meet you all. Thanks for letting me join you.”

“You’re always welcome,” Micah said. “Rami’s told us a lot about you.”

“Oh dear.” I slid into the chair Rami had pulled out for me—next to Sam, naturally. “Should I just leave now or…?”

“Brat,” Rami said, ruffling my curls. “You know everything I ever say about you is good.”

He took the chair on my other side and started loading my plate up from the many dishes on the table. It was on the tip of my tongue to remind him that I was capable of doing it myself, but then I looked at his face and saw the quiet satisfaction he was getting from making sure I had a sample of each dish.

It made me so happy that I kept quiet.

That wasn’t the only reason, either. Secretly, I liked it when Rami did this. Eating had once been a favourite pastime of mine. As with a lot of things, chemo had killed off my enjoyment of it. Now, Rami was reminding me of how much I loved food…especially if I wasn’t the one cooking it.

I accepted the plate with a smile, fighting the urge to kiss him. “Thanks.”

“You’re welcome.” His eyes dipped down to my lips, like he was fighting the same temptation. “Got to restore your strength given you’ve been up half the night.”

“I see how it is,” Nate huffed. “Now you’ve got a boyfriend, you’re lording it around like the rest of them.”

Thank fuck I hadn’t had a sip of tea yet. Nate’s declaration would’ve had me spraying it everywhere. Not even out of surprise, but in recognition of how right that word felt.

Boyfriend.

“I didn’t mean it like that,” Rami growled before I could think on it more. “Get your mind out of the gutter.”

I couldn’t help it. I tried not to, even put a hand to my mouth to smother it, but it was too late. The half laugh, half snort burst out.

Every eye turned to me.

“Sorry,” I coughed, praying my cheeks weren’t burning as much as I suspected they were. “Ignore me.”

“Oh, I don’t think we can,” Theo purred, resting his chin on his hands. “Do share with the class, Ethan.”

I bit my lip, looking at Rami. He shrugged, gesturing for me to do whatever I wanted.

Fuck it. If I wanted to fit in with these people, I had to be myself.

And I certainly had a comment to make.

“I just found your statement funny, Rami,” I teased, looping my ankle around his under the table. “Quill and Below Deck might be responsible for today’s tiredness, but the previous three nights were all down to you, big guy. You and your gutter dwelling mind.”

Hoots and catcalls broke out around the table as everyone teased Rami. He rolled his eyes and pretended to huff, but I saw his secret smile. He liked that I’d alluded to how close we’d become. That we weren’t just friends.