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Ben sat up with a small gasp and glanced around. “Shit. Was I asleep?”
“A light doze,” Nova said. He walked in and set a plate down in front of Ben, who had to blink at it for several seconds before he recognized what was there.
“Latkes?”
“No one should have to spend their holidays eating crappy fried cheese sticks,” Nova told him softly. “And we didn’t have applesauce, so I hope sour cream is okay.”
Ben couldn’t help his grin. He still wasn’t hungry, but the need for comfort food compelled him to dip one into the sour cream and take a bite. His eyes widened. “These are amazing.”
Nova blew on his fingernails and buffed them on his jacket. “I made them myself. Not that it’s complicated or anything. But, uh…yeah. Happy second night, Ben.”
He was touched. His chest was warm, and he didn’t know what to say. “You really didn’t need to do this.”
Nova gestured for him to keep eating. “It was no trouble, I promise. I looked up the recipe last night, and it’s not like a couple latkes are going to put a strain on our kitchen stock.”
Ben smiled as he polished off another latke, and then he suddenly remembered he was sitting in Nova’s office because shit had gone down with his date. He set his fork to the side and swiped the back of his hand over his mouth to make sure he didn’t have sour cream all over himself. “Uh. So…about my date?”
Nova rolled his eyes toward the ceiling and let out a slow breath as he flopped into the empty chair a foot away from Ben. “He’ll be spending the night in lockup.”
Ben coughed, choking on his swallow of potatoes. “I’m sorry, what?”
“Uh. Yeah. So.” Nova laughed nervously and bit his thumbnail before he went on. “I was gonna tell him that little lie about his car, but when I walked into the bathroom, he was. Um.” Nova hesitated, then cleared his throat. “Apparently, he thought it would be a good idea to have video sex in a public restroom. Like, not even in the stall.”
Ben’s eyes went wide. “Oh my God, you’re actually serious.”
“I’m actually serious,” Nova repeated with a small wince. “He told the cops that he was drunk when he got here, so he wasn’t thinking. He told the officer he and his boyfriend, uh…apparently do this from time to time.” Nova winced when he delivered that news. “I’m so sorry.”
Ben felt resignation hit him square in the chest, and he swiped his fingers over his slacks before shrugging and standing up. “It’s fine.”
“Dude, this was not fine,” Nova argued, rising with him.
“No, really,” Ben insisted. “All he did was talk about himself and his fucking film career—and he asked me to pay for dinner because he said all of his money is tied up in his current project.”
“Well, now it can be tied up in a lawyer,” Nova said. “Because the cops said he was going to be charged even if I didn’t agree.”
Rubbing his eyes, Ben turned his face toward his shoes and hunched his shoulders. “I guess now he and his boyfriend have a super-funny story to tell.”
From where his gaze was pointed at the floor, Ben could see Nova from one foot to the other, and then he felt a soft touch along the back of his arm. “Can I hug you?”
Ben frowned and looked up. “Why?”
“Because this is day two of totally shitty dates, and it’s the holidays, and…I don’t know. I want to hug you.”
Ben had never been given a hug by a stranger before—though he supposed he really couldn’t call Nova one anymore. But the moment Nova made the offer, Ben realized how badly he needed that. He nodded, then stepped forward into his embrace and let himself be held for a long, long moment. Nova’s fingers curled into Ben’s shirt like he didn’t want to let him go, and Ben wanted to lose himself in the touch for the rest of his life.
“Will you be here tomorrow night?” Nova asked against Ben’s shoulder.
Ben wanted to say no. Logic told him that he should cancel all the dates. But he realized if he did that, he had no reason to see Nova again, and he wasn’t sure he was ready to give this up. Not yet. Not until he had a way to keep Nova in his life without resorting to bad dates from a shitty app.
“I guess so. I have date number three,” Ben answered, pulling back.
Nova was smiling softly. “What can I make for you? Think of something festive.”
Ben laughed. “The third night’s not, like, a big deal.”
“Indulge me,” Nova insisted, giving Ben a small shake. “The Chabad up the street has a website, and they posted some holiday recipes on their blog. That’s where I got the latke one.”
Ben glanced down at the desk, then laughed. “Then surprise me. I’m not picky.”
