Conversations flowed easily and Kingston is easy to be around and he’s engaging. I find myself laughing, something I haven’t done in a long time.
When we are finished, I clear the table and start washing the dishes.
“You don’t have to do that,” Kingston says, setting plates on the counter.
“You cooked, so I’ll clean. Only fair,” I reply.
“You wash, I’ll dry,” he grabs a towel and takes the plate from me to dry and put away.
I could just put them in the dishwasher but I like washing dishes and I love that he’s so close to me.
“Thorn, you can watch some TV if you want, the remote is in the center console of the couch,” Kingston says to Thorn.
“Okay and sorry we didn’t get movie night, Briar,” Thorn looks at me sadly. I reassure him I’m okay with a smile, it’s one night.
“Movie night?” Kingston tips his head toward me as he dries a dish.
“We have a ritual where we watch a movie every night before bed. We’ve been doing it for a long time. When he was younger, it was the only way I could get him to fall asleep.”
“We can watch one here,” he suggests.
“We don’t want to overstay our welcome,” I hedge.
“I don’t mind.”
“If that’s what you want to do,” I reply. I mean it is his house.
“I have a movie room,” he says.
“Of course you do,” I chuckle and continue washing.
We clean in silence, not uncomfortable silence. I’m lost in my thoughts that it’s second nature for me to not talk while washing.
I do catch him watching me a few times, but he looks away when I turn my head.
When we are done, we walk into the living room to find Thorn passed out on the couch.
“I hate to wake him, he must really be exhausted,” I whisper.
I don’t think Kingston heard me, nor did I want to.
“You can stay here if you want,” he says.
“I don’t want to trouble you,” I tell him.
“No trouble. He’ll be okay on the couch. We can still watch a movie or sit in the hot tub,” he says as he grabs a blanket and covers Thorn.
“Hot tub sounds relaxing,” I admit.
“Do you work tomorrow?”
“No, I’m off the next three days. That’s why I was able to stay today.”
“Will you come to the gym again?” he asks, sounding hopeful.
“Probably. I want to show Thorn that I do support him and that I’m willing to give the sport a chance. And there are really hot shirtless guys that work out there,” I tease.
He laughs but it sounds off, like he’s jealous.