Total pages in book: 39
Estimated words: 37426 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 187(@200wpm)___ 150(@250wpm)___ 125(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 37426 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 187(@200wpm)___ 150(@250wpm)___ 125(@300wpm)
“Do you want a beer?” DJ asked, making Seamus realize he had been standing in his own home watching DJ get their meal together without helping.
“Thanks for doing all that.” He was already caught up in his head. Drinking probably wasn’t a good idea. “I think I’ll surprise my liver and stick with water.”
Still smiling, DJ walked over to the coffee table and set their glasses and napkins down. “How many slices do you want?” he said as he returned to the counter.
“I can get it.” Seamus stepped forward.
“I'm already here.” Pizza box lid in his hand, DJ looked at him expectantly.
“Two. Thanks, DJ.”
He put slices on both of their plates and then took his usual spot on the armchair. “Mmm.” He chewed and swallowed his first bite. “You’d think I’d get tired of pizza after eating it most nights, but I still love it.”
“Why do you eat so much pizza?”
“Brent lets us eat for free after our shifts.”
“That’s really generous of him.” And it was an opening for Seamus to ask if DJ needed help.
“He’s great. Tanner is too. Everyone gets free meals at Jesse’s. And Brewster doesn’t mind if we have coffee and we can eat any of the pastries that haven’t sold by closing. I’m really lucky to work for such wonderful people.”
So he didn't spend money on food because he ate while he was working his three jobs. What exactly was going on with his husband’s finances?
“DJ, is everything okay?”
“What do you mean?” he said, still looking light and happy, which meant he didn’t understand the question.
Knowing he was going to dampen the mood, but needing to address the situation, he drew in a deep breath and said, “With money, is everything okay? You work so much.”
“Oh.” The genuine smile was replaced with the one he used when he was avoiding the issue. “I’m good. Don’t worry.” He stood. “Do you want more pizza?” He looked down at Seamus’s plate. “You haven’t eaten. Are you feeling okay?”
“I’m fine.” He really didn’t want to ruin their night. DJ had so little downtime, he deserved to enjoy it. “Sullie sent me a card game that he said we’d like. He said it’s popular for newlyweds in Claddagh.”
“We’re probably different from other Claddagh newlyweds, but sure.”
His genuine grin was back, and his eyes were sparkling, confirming to Seamus that he was right to postpone the difficult conversation for another time. Besides, that would give him time to come up with the right thing to say. He wished he could ask someone for advice, but he didn’t want to embarrass DJ by talking about his personal problems with people in Hope and there would be no way to bring the issue up with his brothers or his parents because DJ was his husband, which meant they assumed DJ was living with him and that, if he needed money, Seamus would provide for him.
“Do you want to start on the cards while we eat?” Seamus asked.
“Okay. How does the game work?”
Seamus picked up the box from the end table and opened it. “Um, from what I can tell, there’s a bunch of questions in different categories. We take turns rolling the die and the other person asks a question from whatever category we landed on.”
“I’m not sure I understand how that’s a game but I’m into it. What are the categories?” DJ came back to his chair, another slice of pizza on his plate.
“Let’s see.” He looked at the back of the box. “Blue is work. Red is hobbies. Purple is goals. Green is history. Orange is beliefs. And yellow is sex.”
The first category was work. Maybe he’d get lucky and the game would ask the questions he couldn’t. Surely DJ couldn’t change the topic if a roll of the die chose it. Hopefully he wouldn’t refuse to play now that he knew he’d have to answer work-related questions.
“That sounds interesting, actually.” DJ sat up straight.
“You roll first,” Seamus said excitedly as he set up the cards. He took them out of the box and separated them by color, stacking each one upside down so only the category written on the back was visible. “Ready.”
DJ tossed his die onto the coffee table. “Green,” he said. “That’s history.”
Seamus picked up the card from the top of the green pile and read it. “What’s the best pickup line you’ve ever heard or used?”
“That’s in the history category?” DJ asked skeptically.
“I think it means your history?”
“Oh, I guess that makes sense.” He furrowed his brow in thought. “I don’t know if I’ve ever used a pickup line on someone, but I’ve heard some here and there. I’m not sure if it’s the best one, but it’s the most memorable. I was working at Strong Brew and I had just taken this woman’s order when a man marched up, handed me cash, and said he was paying for her drink and to make him the same one. She looked completely confused and asked if she knew him; he said no, but he wanted to tell her a story and would she mind sitting with him. The whole thing was so odd that I think she agreed without really thinking about it. After I gave them their drinks, I found tasks to do close enough so I could hear them because I’d never seen either of them before and I didn’t know what he was up to.”