"What?"

"I love you, buddy."

"Can you come home now?"

"Soon, okay?" Grier disconnected and finished making the coffee, giving him something to do instead of punching a hole in the wall. He couldn't decide who to call without breaking Luca's confidence. Finally, he keyed in his father's number.

"h.e.l.lo," Santino's voice boomed across the wire.

"Hey, Dad."

"Grier. Is that you?"

"Yeah."

"How's it going?"

"Great."

"What do you need, son?"

"I just got off the phone with Luca, and he said something about a wedding."

"I guess your brother and Jillian are talking about tying the knot."

"Isn't this rather sudden?"

"I think so, but what do I know? I'm just the old fart who's going to foot half of the bill."

"Wait a second. When is this happening?"

"In a few weeks."

"Oh," Grier breathed in relief. "I've got time."

"For what?"

"Nothing, Dad. When I get back we need to talk."

"About what?"

"It's too important to discuss over the phone."

"Is it bad?"

"I guess it depends on how you look at it."

"Christ, son. Can you be anymore vague?"

Grier croaked out a self-conscious laugh. "I'm sorry. I'll talk to you as soon as I get home."

"You sure this can wait?"

"Yes." Not really, but I won't get into it now Not really, but I won't get into it now.

"Okay. Take care."

"You too."

"Grier?"

"Yeah?"

"Say h.e.l.lo to Lil."

"Oh. I will."

"Grier?"

Grier sighed. "Yes, Dad?"

"Are you happy?"

Grier paused, completely surprised by the question. "Very."

"I'm glad."

Grier felt the pressure in his throat as he choked back the emotion that rushed at him unexpectedly. He couldn't remember ever feeling this kind of support from his father, and he was deeply moved.

"Well, I guess we'd better hang up," Santino said gruffly.

"Okay, Dad. Bye."

Grier poured himself a large mug of coffee and prepared one for Lil. He carried them both into the bedroom and parked them on the nightstand on Lil's side of the bed.

"Wake up, sleepyhead," Grier said, nuzzling Lil's ear.

"Hey," Lil yawned. "I smell coffee."

"It's right beside you."

"Bless your efficient heart."

Lil pushed himself up to a sitting position and reached for the mug that Grier handed him. He took a tentative sip. "This is perfect, thanks."

"You're welcome."

Lil smiled. "I must look dreadful."

"You don't."

"They say that if you can stand to look at your partner after a night of raunchy s.e.x, there's hope for some kind of future."

"I like what I see."

"So do I," Lil smiled. "Would it be too repulsive to give me a coffee-breath kiss?"

"Not at all," Grier brushed his lips against Lil's and even gave him some tongue. "We both taste like coffee."

"I heard you talking to someone."

"First Luca and then my dad."

"What time is it?"

"It's early here, but nine o'clock in Illinois is practically midmorning in my family."

"Good Lord. So you're all morning people?"

"Pretty much. Luca was asking about Sebastian."

"We have to pick him up today."

"Who watched him while you were gone?"

"One of my a.s.sistants."

"Sounds good."

"Is everything alright?"

"I had a strange conversation with Luca."

"Do you want to talk about it?"

Grier recounted everything as Lil sipped his coffee and listened. "Well, that puts a new spin on things, doesn't it?"

"I have no issues with them getting married, if it's what they want. But I want my parental rights out in the open and acknowledged. I'm not going to let Ali walk into a ready-made family and declare himself the father by default. It's not fair to Luca."

"Or to yourself," Lil added. "It's time, Grier."

"I think you're right. I'd like to discuss this with a lawyer and see what he has to say."

"I'm certain we can fit that into the schedule. Now, let's take a nice warm shower and get ready for the day."

Grier's smile said it all.

Chapter 26.

LIL'S architectural firm was in the Transamerica Pyramid at 600 Montgomery Street, in the heart of San Francisco's financial district. It had started out as a two-room office after graduation, but as his clientele increased, so did his works.p.a.ce. He'd expanded little by little, taking over more and more square footage as the need arose, and eventually ended up occupying almost a third of the eighteenth floor. Lil kept meaning to find another location. He trembled each time there was a minor earthquake and the building did what it was supposed to dogently sway to accommodate the shifting tectonic platesbut the inconvenience of moving, along with having to redo business cards and stationery, was a pain in the a.s.s. So he stayed, and gritted his teeth every time he got into the elevator, hoping he'd made the right choice. architectural firm was in the Transamerica Pyramid at 600 Montgomery Street, in the heart of San Francisco's financial district. It had started out as a two-room office after graduation, but as his clientele increased, so did his works.p.a.ce. He'd expanded little by little, taking over more and more square footage as the need arose, and eventually ended up occupying almost a third of the eighteenth floor. Lil kept meaning to find another location. He trembled each time there was a minor earthquake and the building did what it was supposed to dogently sway to accommodate the shifting tectonic platesbut the inconvenience of moving, along with having to redo business cards and stationery, was a pain in the a.s.s. So he stayed, and gritted his teeth every time he got into the elevator, hoping he'd made the right choice.

The plus side was that he had a beautifully decorated office to showcase his talent, and Grier was blown away as Lil gave him one more tour. He would have never guessed how successful Lil was by his easy-going and una.s.suming manner. There wasn't a whiff of arrogance about his lover, which made Grier care for him that much more.

"This is the drafting room," Lil announced, pushing the door open. "Everyone, this is my friend Grier from Chicago."

There were ten drafting tables and a wall of shelves that held reams of paper and already completed plans, rolled and ready to go to job sites. Two enormous Xerox machines slid underneath the shelves, and computer terminals took up the other wall. Eight men were hunched over their projects and barely took the time to look up, but when they did, Grier could tell they were happy to see Lil and greeted him informally. Light poured in through the floor-to-ceiling windows, which gave the room a warm and cheerful atmosphere.

Lil took Grier's hand comfortably and headed out to another room across the hall. This one was far less utilitarian, and more like someone's living room, with cl.u.s.ters of sofas, easy chairs, and coffee tables. There was a wall of wooden shelves with large books, some of which lay open on the long trestle table close by.

"What's this?" Grier asked.

"This is the room where clients pick out their decor. We have hundreds of books with wallpaper and fabric samples. The floor covering choices are on the bottom shelf. If the clients can't find what they want here, we bring in more samples. I try and weed out this mess every six months or so because I don't want someone to fall in love with a fabric or a wallpaper that's no longer available."

"That would suck."

"Really. If you go into ID, you'll spend a lot of time in a room like this."

"I know this is a large part of it, but I think I'd prefer the s.p.a.ce designing more than the trim."

"You'll have to learn all aspects of interior design, including this part."

"I understand. Where is everyone?"

"They're probably at lunch, which means we get to go out as well."

"What did you have in mind?"

"North Beach."

"What's that?"

"It's the Italian section of town, where they have some great restaurants and bakeries. They also have primo shoppingleathers and lace," Lil said with a grin. "Alla Prima is on Grant Street, walking distance from the restaurant I have in mind."

"Aha! I see where you're going with this."

"I'm trying to feed our hunger and our kink in one location."

"Aren't they one and the same?" Grier teased.

"Come on." Lil draped an arm around Grier's shoulder. Before walking out the door, he stuck his head into the staff room and told his a.s.sistant he was leaving for the day. "I'll swing by your house this evening to pick up Sebastian."

"Okay," a woman in her forties replied. She was chewing on a sandwich and reading off her Kindle. "I don't mind keeping him longer, if you'd like. He's been a good companion."