Page 55 of Moonlight Hearts

“Oh my.”

I lifted my head.“It’s not a shindig though, just some food and everyone being together.Rae and Ben if Ben doesn’t have plans with the writer.And Dwayne.Kasey… Soyer, should we invite Kasey?”

Soyer didn’t meet my eyes.“I’m not getting involved in this.I’ll just be making the food.”

“Oh my.” Elias sounded like I’d told him elephants could fly.

“Are you going to come?You don’t have to stay long if it’s awkward or anything.”

I heard a long inhale from Elias’s end.“Oh, I like coming.A lot.But that aside, I’ll make the two fiends who imprisoned me attend your gathering.If you’d like Kasey there, you’ll have to extend invitations to Vico and his Parisian, and if you’re having Ben over, you must invite Anton.Rae shall have a plus one, and the plus one shall have a plus one, and honestly, I’d make you invite the other human cook as well, except no one made sure to introduce her to our world, so maybe not.For her own sake.Who by the devil’s balls is the writer?”

Soyer groaned.“The regular Amory hopes Ben will date.”

“Oh.Well, I’ll make inquiries.When should everyone arrive?”

I frowned.Elias sounded much too excited about this.“Hey, it’s just a small party for friends, you know.And really just for people who don’t have anything else planned.”

“Mm-hmm,” Elias said.“I will tell them.”

“Four or five for time of arrival.You pick.Can we leave you with this?”Soyer asked.“Can you handle it?”

“Oh, yes.I shall request dispensation from my unfair imprisonment, and it shall be my joy to plan for a successful…small party for friends.”

“Great.Bye then,” Soyer said and hung up, then tossed my phone to the edge of the bed.It left him above me, his body close.He looked right into my eyes.“Hi there.”

“Hi.”

“Can I kiss you?”

I put my arms around him.“Only if I can kiss you too.”

We spent about another hour in bed doing just that, being close and holding each other tight.

Soyer froze some of the delicious breads he’d baked when we finally made our way downstairs.It was about one o’clock by then, and we were having the stuffed rolls that hadn’t gone into the freezer.Sunlight broken by clouds cast long shadows, and we were comfortable at his table, sharing a chair to put our feet up on.Soyer had his spiced coffee, and I was having mine black.

“Where do you want to go?For your kitchen shopping, I mean.”

“I know a place.It’s in the underground.”

I straightened in my chair.“You didn’t say we were going down there again.Way to bury the lede.”

He pointed at me.“Too much excitement.You’d have wanted to go right away, and I’m enjoying having breakfast with you.”He lifted his feet off the chair and stood.“I have a present for you.Wait right here.”

“Huh?”

But Soyer was on the way past the window gallery and toward his office.Part of me wanted to follow, but he’d asked me to wait.I racked my brain for anything I might’ve missed, any sort of anniversary that required a gift.When I saw him come out of his office again, I was starting to get worried and already feeling more than a little guilty.

Soyer had a small box in his hand, but he frowned when he saw me.“What the fuck?Why do you look like that?”

“Uh…it’s my face?I forgot something, didn’t I?I don’t know what though, but I’m sorry.”

Soyer stood there, one hand on the back of his chair.He didn’t look angry exactly, just like someone who wanted to speak to the manager.And I was the manager.

“I swear to every fucking circle of hell or whichever underworld you care to pray to, you are too good for this world, my heart.Too good for me.”He sat heavily.“There’s nothing you missed.”He held out the little box to me.It was almost like a ring box, but bigger.“This is a present for you, no occasion.I still owe you for leaving without a word yesterday, but this isn’t for that.Take it.”

“But—”

“If you don’t want to upset me, Amory, you’ll take this.”