Page 61 of When Ben Loved Jace

“Allison! Hey! Nice to see you again.”

“Same to you,” she says, laughing in surprise when Tim hugs her, but even she’s not immune. “Mm-mm! I don’t remember you being this firm. Ben tells me that you’re bi?”

Tim laughs. “Yeah. And for the record, I always thought you were hot.”

“Too bad,” Allison says when disengaging. “Ben and I already share so much, but there are some lines I’m simply not willing to cross.”

“I would totally sleep with Ronnie,” I say with a shrug.

“He was hot too,” Tim says. “And speaking of which…”

He opens his arms. I let go of Jace, expecting to receive a hug of my own, but I’m not the intended target. Jace realizes this and takes a step back, thrusting out a hand. “Nice to see you again,” he says cordially.

“You too,” Tim replies while grasping his palm. “And hey, I see you brought your boyfriend.” He ruffles my hair. “Sorry, what was your name again?”

“Benjamina,” I retort, since we used to joke that it should be my alias back in high school. She would’ve been the never seen girlfriend he told his friends and family about.

“What a lovely name,” he says with a grin. “I’m sure you’re a fine young lady.” Tim clasps his hands together. “Welcome! You guys are gonna have so much fun. But first, you’ve gotta meet the birthday boy. Party central is right this way.”

“Should we have brought him a present?” Jace asks as we set out across the park. Which as promised, is so empty as to almost appear abandoned.

“Nah. Marcello already has everything he could ever want. Believe me. He’s filthy rich. With an emphasis on the filthy.”

“And who is he, exactly?” Allison enquires.

“A friend of a friend. The guy I live with, Eric, used to be a hot shot financial advisor. Like one of the biggest in his field. He single-handedly made Marcello rich, who provided the seed money Eric needed when first starting out, making him rich too. Marcello calls it a mutually beneficial something or rather.”

“I’ve got ten bucks I can pitch in,” I say, patting my pockets.

“I have twenty,” Allison adds. “Sign us up!”

Tim laughs. “Eric is retired now, but he could probably give you some advice. Although you’d probably need a little more startup capital than that.”

“I don’t suppose Marcello is single,” Allison says. “And interested in women?”

“You got one out of two right,” Tim says. “I’ll let you guess which.”

He nods ahead of us, where dance music is playing, and it’s instantly apparent what he means. Exploding forth from a cabana bar are a variety of rainbow-themed decorations, including streamers and balloons. If that wasn’t indication enough, a sea of scantily dressed men gyrate together to the beat.

“Am I the only woman here?” Allison asks, sounding distraught.

“You’ll fit right in,” Tim teases. “Just tell them you’re a drag queen.”

She slaps him on the ass, making him yipe. As for me, I can’t help but notice that his cheeks are so firm they don’t even jiggle.

Eric notices us and waves. He’s wearing a floppy-brimmed sun hat, which looks absolutely adorable on him, a pair of shades dangling from his partially unbuttoned shirt. Standing next to him is a portly gentleman who appears as though he overindulged in every pleasure life had to offer before inventing a few that nobody thought of yet. His hair is a gradient of grays that get lighter when nearing his temples. As he approaches, I notice the Hawaiian shirt he’s wearing incorporates a hula boy pattern, his devilish eyes dark and glimmering when sizing us up.

“What a pleasure to meet you all!” he declares in a deep booming voice. “My name is Marcello, the veritable man of the hour. Or perhaps I should say, the man of the half-century, seeing as itismy fiftieth birthday.”

“He’s had a few of those,” Tim murmurs from next to me.

“Nonsense!” Marcello shoots him a dirty look before his cherub smile returns. “You must be the legendary Benjamin.” He swiftly takes my hand to kiss it. “Welcome, darling boy. Ah, and this must be Jace, your charming beau.” His hand is kissed next. “And of course, the ever-underfoot Tim. What a handsome trio you make! One adorably short, another ponderouslystout—”

“Hey!” Tim complains.

“—and one enticingly tall. Why, it’s the complete set! What else could one possibly desire except perhaps…” Marcello gasps theatrically, as if only having noticed Allison. “I must know the name of the ebony goddess who so generously graces us with her presence.”

“Allison,” she says, smiling when her hand is kissed. “Oh, I like you already!”