Of Love and Corn Dogs (21 page)

Ricky's mom glowed with pride as he stood by Darwin, arm wrapped around him.

“The two of you are so cute together,” she gushed.

“We are, aren't we?” Ricky teased.

Ricky took his family into the kitchen with a promise of Maria's homemade Christmas cookies, which the kids seemed especially excited about, while Darwin waited for their other guests.

They trickled in over the next hour. Darwin welcomed his former executive assistant, Heather, who had been promoted to their Human Resources manager, as well as Dylan Simons, his new assistant who seemed like Heather on steroids. Where she was efficient, Dylan strived to be hyper-efficient. Darwin had to remind him that the office would be closed, and even then the young man wanted to go in to catch up on work. The only way he could be certain Dylan wouldn't go in was to invite him to the party. The last to arrive, much to Darwin's surprise, had been Jeff Tan, Henley's boyfriend and former driver for Eric Tremaine, who had been a friend of Dean's.

Henley had been dating the man for several months now, and they seemed very much in tune with one another. When his friend saw Jeff, he rushed over, hugged him and gave him a kiss.

“So glad you made it,” Henley gushed.

“Thank you for inviting me, Mr. Kincade.”

Darwin held out his hand. “Darwin, please.”

Ricky came back from the kitchen and directed his family to take a seat in the great room. Jeff and Henley followed them, Jeff accepting a glass of eggnog from his boyfriend.

Henley had whispered something to Jeff, kissed him again, then strode over to Darwin and Ricky. “Hey, Dare? Can I borrow the two of you for a minute?”

Darwin shrugged. “I guess.”

They went into the kitchen, checked the mulled cider, added a dash of brandy to it, and then all sat at the table, Ricky sitting to Darwin's left.

“I see you and Jeff are getting pretty serious,” Ricky said.

Henley blushed. The first time Darwin had seen him with Jeff…when he actually had been introduced, and not worrying about getting to Ricky's house, had been a very welcome surprise. And watching them together, it made Darwin think that it wouldn't be long before his friend asked about Jeff living with him. He couldn't wait for that day.

“We are. It's…different. We talked about taking things slow, but they're moving at their own pace. I really like him.”

Darwin gave two seconds thought to teasing Henley, then decided against it. His friend deserved happiness, too. “So, what did you want to talk to us about?”

Henley smiled. “I hope that there isn't a gift beneath the tree for me.”

“What?” Darwin snapped. “That's silly. Why wouldn't—”

“I've got mine already,” Henley continued, ignoring Darwin's outburst. “After Dean died, there was something missing in the house. We all pretended it hadn't left, but it did. He took the life and love with him. We existed, and clung to one another, because we needed to. But when Ricky came into your life—into
our
lives—everything seemed to click back into place.

“I don't want this to sound sappy, honest, but being here now is like coming back together as a family, and we have Ricky to thank for that. You've opened up the remaining wings, hired new staff to start after the new year. The house is going to be alive again.”

Ricky's fingers clenched under the table, and a startling blush crept up his cheeks.

“I'm not sure what to say,” Ricky admitted. “I thought I wouldn't fit in here. I figured Darwin would come to his senses, and we'd go our separate ways. But every night we sit in front of the fire, cup of Maria's hot cocoa in hand, and we just talk about our days. He listens when I tell him about the parties I served, how grateful I am he helped me to pay off my student loans, and how proud I am to have him in my life. He smiles at me, then we talk about his day.”

And Ricky had loved everything they'd discussed, because it made him more comfortable in his expanded family. Things like how Kent had surprised him when he said the new product would be made available to anyone who wanted it. Those who couldn't afford it would be able to get one through a special fund that had been set up to help low-income families. And larger versions were being offered in partnership with smaller towns because it was something KK's team could do to give back to the community. The best part, at least for Ricky, was when Darwin told him Kent said it might not be the moneymaker he'd envisioned, but the resulting PR had others coming forward to invest in new projects Kent and his team had come up with. Also, his wife, Mila, had stood up with him at their last board meeting, and called up the people who had made it possible, and said how proud she was of the changes he'd made in their lives. Ricky doubted he could be happier about the new direction his life had taken, and that he finally realized it.

Ricky sighed, and folded his hands in front of him on the table. “I'm sorry it took me so long to figure out how much I wanted—needed—to be here.”

Everyone stayed quiet for a few moments. Then Darwin clapped his hands and smiled. “Okay, enough of this. We've got guests who've got gifts to open.”

The three men went back to the great room, where everyone sat near the fireplace. Darwin and Ricky slid into an open spot on the couch, while Henley sat on the floor between Jeff's legs.

“Do we want to wait for Kent and Mila?” Ricky asked.

Darwin considered it for a moment. “No. They'll be by for dinner. I don't want to make anyone suffer if they can't open their presents.”

Martín and Tomás had the decency to at least appear sheepish, but they didn't take their eyes of the stack of gifts that bore their names.

“You can open one,
niños
,” Maria chided.

They dug in the pile and pulled out the two biggest packages. Wrapping paper flew as they yanked it off the boxes. When they saw the two new Mac computers, they turned toward Darwin, their expressions a joy to see. They launched themselves at him, thanking him for the gift. Then they jumped on Ricky, hugging him, and saying, “Thank you, Uncle Ricky.”

Ricky seemed shell-shocked, like he'd just realized that he belonged in the family, too. He didn't hesitate to accept the hugs.

After the boys ran to their rooms to put the new computers to use, Ricky handed his mother and sister a small box each.

“So the boys get a computer, and we get matchbooks,” Megan teased. When they opened the boxes, though, their breath caught.

“Ooh. This is gorgeous,” Trish exclaimed, pulling out a bracelet dotted with sapphires.”

“It's platinum,” Ricky told them, helping his mother latch it around her wrist. “I don't want either of you having your skin turn green.”

Megan clutched him to her. “Oh, thank you both so much, honey. It's beautiful.” She kissed him on the cheek, which had Ricky's smile a mile wide.

Darwin grinned. “It's all Ricky. My gift to you is still under the tree. But it's going to pale in comparison to that.”

Ricky preened a little. Darwin knew how proud he'd been when he saved up enough money to buy the gifts. He realized it was something his lover wanted to do on his own, and he'd told him that if he wanted help, he only needed to say so. Ricky hadn't, though. He'd worked extra shifts at Rossi's to make sure he could afford what his mother had asked for, even if it had only been her teasing him.

The fact Ricky had done this on his own showed his fierce independent streak, and hadn't upset Darwin at all. While he wanted to give Ricky everything, he knew that sometimes—not always—he'd want to show he could do things himself. And that was okay with him.

Ricky caught his attention and gave Darwin a wink and mouthed ‘I love you.'

****

The great room had been covered in wrapping paper, ribbons, and assorted boxes. Everyone laughed as Merlin dove into the paper, winding his way through it, his head popping up at intervals to make sure people were watching. Eventually Ricky picked the cat up and teased him with a ribbon until his furry friend fell asleep next to him.

It looked every bit a family celebration, and Ricky couldn't help but feel proud to be part of it. He let his gaze wander over those who had come, and his heart felt full to bursting. Kent and Mila had shown up, arms laden with gifts, and had been absorbed into the throng of guests. His mother and sister had fallen asleep in front of the fire, their bracelets reflecting the dancing flames. Jack had taken the kids and put them to bed in one of the guest rooms. Darwin had said that Heather had been doing her best to keep Dylan occupied, because he seemed lost without work to do. Ricky hoped the young man worked out as Darwin's assistant, because he seemed sweet. And the last time he'd seen Henley was hours ago when the man had Jeff under the mistletoe.

Ricky looked around the room at the people who now made up his family and wondered once again why he'd been so resistant. Why he'd denied his feelings, even though doing so hurt him deeply. Darwin hadn't tried once to control him or make him feel as though he were the lesser partner. On the contrary, he'd gone out of his way to encourage Ricky. To give him a push when he thought it necessary, but backing off when he could see Ricky had things under control.

Since he'd moved into the mansion, Darwin had set him up with an office, shelves loaded with books on running your own restaurant, computers, and even an on-call advisor to help him. Ricky had initially chafed, but his mother reminded him that we allowed the ones we loved to help when they could. Ricky listened—finally—to what she had to say and threw himself into studies. With the help of the company Darwin set up to assist him, he learned more than he ever had at school.

Darwin had gone off to help the boys, who were having a problem setting up the new computers. Maria had snuck off to the kitchen to check on their dinner. When Darwin had told her they could have the whole thing catered, she'd smacked him upside the head and told him he should never say such things to her. He'd wrapped her in a hug and kissed her cheek, which had made her giggle like a schoolgirl.

“Darwin?” Maria called. “Dinner will be ready in ten minutes. Do you think it's time?”

With a grin, Darwin came in from the other room, both boys in tow. They were decked out in white tuxedos, and each of Maria's sons carried a small silver tray with a domed lid atop it.

“What's this?” Ricky demanded.

“Your gift, of course.”

He looked down at the watch Darwin had given him. A high-end, scratch-resistant, accurate to a second every millennium thing, with more bells and whistles than a whole fleet of space shuttles, or so Tomás had explained as Ricky had slipped it onto his wrist. Then he and his brother had said how they'd helped to pick it out, which gave Ricky a laugh.

“This is my gift.”

“Nah, that's just a distraction. These are your gifts.”

Martín went first. He held out the silver tray, removing the lid with flair. Ricky saw that it contained an envelope. He couldn't imagine why, but his nerves jangled. He opened the gift, and his jaw dropped.

“I'm not sure I understand,” he exclaimed.

“You are now the proud owner of Asiago. Or, whatever you choose to name it.”

“But…you can't.”

“Oh, yeah, I can,” Darwin said smugly. He dropped the pitch of his voice and did a very bad Godfather imitation. “I made Berkhardt an offer he couldn't refuse.”

Everyone cracked up, and after they'd settled down, Ricky turned to Darwin and asked, “Why?”

Darwin cupped Ricky's cheek. “Because he fired the best waiter that the place had. And he treats his employees like crap. Asiago may have the finest reputation in town, but they have—well, had—a bully for an owner. I sat down with him and gave him an offer. His eyes bugged out, and he signed it over a few days later. Now the place is in your name. Make something wonderful out of it. If you need help, Louisa is still there. Though I did find out from Berkhardt that he'd intended to eliminate her. Something about her countermanding him once too often.”

Ricky laughed, despite the shock he felt. Who gave a restaurant as a gift?

“I suppose you can do that when you're a billionaire,” he said, detecting a hint of bitterness in his tone.

“Wait. What? Oh, no. You don't understand. You own the restaurant, but I'm giving it to you as sort of a pay-as-you-go kind of thing. You'll find the payment plan and interest rates are very reasonable.”

Ricky reached up and pulled Darwin down on the couch. “Explain.”

“I know you well enough by now that no matter how much I wanted to give it to you, you'd feel you needed to earn it. And you will.” He paused for a moment. “I'm hoping that one day you'll be able to accept a gift when I give it to you. But until you're ready, we'll figure it out. As for the restaurant, this is going to be a lot of work. I'm certain you're up to the challenge, though.”

Tears pricked the corners of Ricky's eyes. Darwin believed in him, and he'd always known it. But now? This? Ricky knew he could never have opened his own restaurant without help. He'd planned on talking to the bank, but with no collateral, no background beyond school, they'd have laughed at him. Darwin had handed him a golden opportunity to prove himself.

Tomás held out the second tray.

“I'm scared,” Ricky admitted. The man had given him a restaurant. What could possibly be left to give?

He took the cover from the tray and discovered a ring box. The enormity of what lay inside hit him hard. He opened it with shaky hands, to find a plain silver band inside.

“This isn't an engagement ring,” Darwin told him hastily. “I want to wait on that until we're both in a good spot. You'll be really busy for a while, and I'm going to back you. For now, I guess you could call this a promise ring. It symbolizes my commitment to you now and in the future. Where we go, we'll be together. We will never go to bed angry. We will work out our little problems so they won't become big ones.