He blushed. “Um, yeah. Chris and me.”
“Oh, my God. You guys made up?”
He nodded. “He’s out in the hall.”
“Chris?” she hollered.
So much for his weakling friend.
The door opened and in came Chris. Seth couldn’t tear his eyes away from him. He was having entirely too many inappropriate thoughts in an inappropriate place. But damn, he was just too sexy. His body couldn’t help but react.
Catching his stare, Chris shot him a smirk, and Seth’s cheeks heated. He stood as Chris rounded the bedand took his hand, placing a chaste kiss on his cheek.
“Hi, Karlee,” he said. “How are you doing?”
“I’m okay. Sore. But I have to get up and walk around some later. And they’re going to wheel me in to see Axel soon.”
“Axel. I love that!” Chris exclaimed.
She beamed and brought up her phone to show him Axel’s picture.
Chris smiled. “He’s beautiful.”
“He really is, isn’t he?” she asked, sniffling again. Seth gave her another tissue.
Chris handed back the phone. “And don’t worry about the shop. We stopped in today and Cody and Gavin have both stepped up to work more hours as needed.”
“That’s right, honey. You just rest and take care of yourself and your baby. We’ll hold down the fort,” Seth assured her.
“Thanks guys. I’m going to have to take it easy. I’ll be home in a few days, according to the nurses, but the doctor said I probably won’t be released to work for six to eight weeks, and then hopefully Axel will be coming home by then.” She leaned her head into her hands. “Oh, I have so much to do at home. I don’t even have his room ready!”
“No worries, Karlee,” Chris said, nodding at Seth. “We’ve talked and we’re going to paint the roomwhen you get home and then help you put together the crib and whatever else you need to set up.”
“Really? You guys are going to do that?” She looked surprised.
“Of course, Karlee!” Seth exclaimed. “I promised, didn’t I? You’re not alone.”
She teared up yet again, but by this time, Seth was getting used to it.
Chris pulled up another chair and the three of them talked until the nurse came in and said it was time for Karlee to go see her baby.
Seth and Chris took their leave and walked out to the parking lot. Chris touched his hand. “You okay there, Eggplant?”
A smile spread across Seth’s face as he looked at his boyfriend. “I was just thinking the next few months are going to be hard—finishing the renovation, starting the classes, Karlee’s baby in the hospital, you moving your catering business to the new space. My life is about to become a whirlwind.”
“Our lives.”
“Right. Our lives. You’re right. And it’s all so scary.”
Chris furrowed his brow. “Then why are you smiling?”
“Because I get to do all of it with you, Chris. Alone, I know I would still go through it all and I coulddo it. But with you by my side, I feel like I can do more than ‘get through’ it. I—no, we—can tackle it together and we’ll make it a success. The shop, the catering, the classes. And we’ll help with the baby when he comes home. So yes, it’s scary. Suddenly life is full and I may not know what to do at every turn, but it’s going to be okay. It’s going to be exciting! Because of you.”
Chris wrapped his arms around him before leaning in for a kiss. “Eggplant, you are amazing. You’ve brightened my world in more ways than you will ever know. I can’t wait for this whirlwind to get started.”
Epilogue
Karlee was on her way, and Seth could barely contain himself. He walked around the new space, admiring the new prep stations, the latest All-Clad Stainless Steel cookware waiting to be used for the first time, the Calphalon utensils resting neatly in their caddies, and the just-hung paintings covering the walls.
Seth had found a local artist when he and Chris had attended a Farmer’s Market a couple of cities over. Each canvas depicted either a fruit, a vegetable, or a variety of ingredients, and the vivid colors popped against the freshly painted yellow walls.
He and Chris liked the artist so much they’d hired him to paint a small mural of a garden on the far wall, with Karlee’s Kitchen Essentials written across the top in green lettering. Underneath that, they’d had Blue Berger Catering painted in black script.
Seth felt a hand on his shoulder and turned to see Chris.
“You nervous?”
“More like excited, really,” Seth answered. “It’s been a long road getting here.”
“You did great, Eggplant. Karlee’s going to love it. To be honest, I can’t believe you were able to keep her out of the new place for so long.”
Seth laughed. “I threatened to withdraw babysitting services.”
“And she bought that?” Chris asked, surprised.