“Can you cook?” Julio asked, raising an elegant eyebrow. He was a drama professor, and I could totally see him onstage himself. I hadn’t known many older same-sex couples, and he and Professor Tuttle fascinated me.

“Better than I can help with the vlog stuff,” I admitted. “But not like expert level.”

“Fair enough. In that case, you can stir this pot.” In short order, Julio had me in an apron, stirring a giant pot of beans with a long wooden spoon while he carried on an entertaining monologue about the hazards of loving a gamer. I liked that he didn’t require much conversation from me, which gave me ample time to peek into the dining room where the play mats had come out and much discussion was had as to who was playing whom.

And Jasper was right in the middle of things, talking animatedly, hands flying, smile never dipping. Others had louder opinions and might have been objectively better players, but to me, Jasper was the sun to which my eyes kept returning.

“How long have you been friends?” Julio asked, probably catching on to the direction of my gaze.

“Uh…this time around, like, two weeks? But we went to school together.” I left out a giant chunk of our history while also trying not to outright lie.

“He’s a great kid. One of my favorites of the Gamer Grandpa gang.”

“He’s the best.” Of that I was sure, and watching him with his friends from a distance only made me more aware of how lucky I was that he was having anything to do with me, especially given our past. And I didn’t ever want to be the one who dimmed that light inside him, that light that I couldn’t get enough of. Even now, it wasn’t only kisses I was counting down to, but simply getting a slice of that attention and energy. Forget spring. It was his warmth I wanted to bask in, even if meant risking getting burned.

Chapter Nineteen

Jasper

Milo wasn’t the only one with kissing on his brain. As my friends and I took a break from filming so that Professor Tuttle could go find a missing deck in his office with Jasmine’s help, my thoughts kept drifting back to Milo’s unexpected but very welcome new interest. The kisses hello had been sweet, especially knowing he was risking James or Luther seeing. I had no clue what we were doing other than that I liked it and wasn’t about to put a stop to it, not yet.

“So. Your friend. The one with a burning desire for the Royal Frog Court cards. He’s…different.” Conrad looked up from shuffling cards. He seemed older than the last time I’d seen him—nicer clothes, good haircut, all those real-world employment perks.