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They ended up washing in tandem, like a four-armed octopus, rinsing, and loading the machine. Tyler’s skin tingled with each accidental brush of their skin.
Then they tackled the big pots.
At one point while scouring the roasting pan, Tyler playfully splashed Josh with suds. Josh laughed and sprayed him back in retaliation, and they wrestled, wet, for control of the faucet.
They froze, dripping in each other’s arms, pulses thrumming where their hands grasped slick wrists. Josh’s face only came to Tyler’s shoulder, and Tyler felt super aware of his groin against Josh’s abs. Just like when he’d pulled Josh down onto him after their duel, Tyler panicked. For a breathless moment, neither one seemed to know what to do.
Nadia called from the living room, “For the record, you two hoodlums are cleaning up whatever mess is happening in there.”
They separated sheepishly to dry off as Nadia poked her head in, cradling a sleepy Mr. Poops. “Fellas, I’m pretty wiped out. A little tipsy probably, so me and this rascal are heading to bed.” She gave them a knowing look. “No puddles. Play nice.”
Josh raised a soapy hand. “G’night, Nadia.”
“Night, sis.” Tyler bussed her cheek, certain he was blushing.
Once she was gone, the silence between them grew charged. They began tucking the leftovers into the fridge and freezer as needed. Josh grinned at something.
“What?”
Josh shook his head. “Those enchiladas are serious. The whole dinner. Delicious.”
“Awesome. Thanks for hanging out tonight.”
“Are you kidding?” Josh shrugged.
“We can do it whenever you want. Nadia loved it. I loved it.”
Josh blinked at that and nodded. Mr. Poops wandered back in for a drink of water or maybe to spy for Nadia.
Tyler cleared his throat, focusing on covering the tray of enchiladas with foil. “Oh! I forgot to say before: our library lock-in’s all set for next month. The librarians loved the idea of Three Musketeers, and Carver gave us the green light.”
“Seriously?” Josh’s smile was incandescent as a sunrise. “That’s—wow. Musketeers is a perfect idea. How did you manage that?”
Tyler shrugged, heat creeping up his neck. “Just got to get approval from the school board. But it’s a classic. And with Principal Carver on our side, should be simple enough.”
As Tyler and Josh finished cleaning the kitchen, an easy silence fell between them, broken only by Mr. Poops’s rumbling purr where he curled up on the windowsill, blinking his enormous orange eyes at them like a drowsy chaperone.
As they moved around the kitchen, Tyler savored each glance and casual touch, thrilling at the secret intimacy.
Once the kitchen was spotless, they stood there a moment, the only sound the dishwasher’s muted churn. Josh leaned against the counter, smiling at Tyler in a way that made him short-circuit.
Josh asked, “All good?”
“So good.” Tyler ambled back into the living area and realized that before Nadia hit the hay, she had gone for full, obvious, bachelor-pad mood lighting. Only things missing were low sax music, a bowl of condoms, and an ice bucket.
Tyler winced, torn between annoyance at his sister’s meddling and gratitude she approved of Josh.
“I guess my sister turned everything down when she went to bed.” He scratched the back of his neck. The low lights and plumped cushions all felt fake, like a staged seduction on a soap opera. “We could go outside. Get some air maybe? The moon should be risen by now.”
Tyler appreciated Nadia’s efforts, but Josh deserved something better, something real. He opened the door to the patio.
“Sure.” Josh followed Tyler out the back door into the cool night. “Oh… this is lovely. I’ve never seen all this.”
“Nadia’s kept it up. My mom put this in after my dad split.”
Josh nodded. “And that’s the gardenia. White flowers.”
“From the picture. Yeah.”
