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uh… me… so we should be fine,” he said, his voice chock-full of false bravado.
    Danny’s eye roll would have been visible from space. “Or they’re coming with, like, religious pamphlets or something, and it’ll be all tense.” Danny didn’t see the bright side of things very often, and Matt could understand why. He hadn’t had an easy road so far, and he was only twelve.
    “People don’t do that,” Matt scoffed, lying again, because of course people did that. Sweat beads popped on his skin. “That’s, like, stuff that happens in movies and TV.”
    “Right.”
    Matt sighed. “I’ll talk to Dad, and we’ll… we’ll talk to Miranda and….” The plan died quickly. At least the most recent look Danny shot him included sympathy. “Well, shit.”
    “Yeah, exactly.”

Chapter 6

     
    “S O , ANY clue on this kid’s parents?”
    The question was casual, but something made Evan look up from his beans and rice to give Matt a glance. Danny, sitting to his left, had stopped shoveling food in his mouth for the first time in five minutes, and even Elizabeth looked up from whatever daydream she was ensconced in.
    “Uh, no. They’re from Connecticut, and that’s pretty much it.” Evan frowned. He had been so preoccupied thinking about Kent and creating nightmare scenarios of pregnancy and elopement for Miranda he’d forgotten to ask.
    “Oh. Okay.” Matt went back to his meal after exchanging a look with Danny.
    “I can ask Miranda….”
    “No, we’ll let it be a surprise.” The grimace on Matt’s face sent Evan’s stomach plummeting. “To add to the already festive cheer of the holiday.”
    “We’re afraid they might be homophobic,” Elizabeth blurted out, resulting in a filmworthy double take from Matt and Danny. She gave them both a pout. “I was listening, okay?”
    Evan groaned inwardly. Fuck . Because, good point.
    “They’re probably not,” Matt attempted. “Because Miranda must’ve told them about us and they’re still coming, right?”
    “Right.” Evan leaned back in his chair, surveying his boyfriend and two kids. These people were walking into a less-than-typical household, and God only knew what their attitude was like. Evan might have issues with his own sexuality and labels, but he was also a bulldog about his family. And if these people were going to walk in and start passing judgment….
    “See, this is why we weren’t going to be blunt,” Matt said with a sigh. “Stop thinking. The vein in your forehead is about to burst.”
    Evan wiped his mouth on his napkin. “Right.”
    Dinner ground to a halt as everyone looked at everyone else and tried to smile. It was horrible.
    “Right,” he said again. “Let’s go get ice cream.”
    Elizabeth looked faintly scandalized. “It’s November!”
    “And a school night. I’ve clearly gone mad, so now is a great time to take advantage of me.” Evan pushed his chair back, then stood up. “Who’s coming?”
    Danny and Elizabeth vacated their chairs with sonic booms. Evan glanced across the table at Matt, who was scrutinizing him carefully. “Ice cream?”
    “Well, you can’t fuck this away just yet, so we’ll start with forbidden desserts,” he muttered.
    Matt cackled with delight. “If these people are homophobes, I’m grabbing your ass every chance I get.”
    Evan didn’t doubt it.
     
     
    T WO WEEKS flew by quickly, and as Miranda was conveniently unavailable for the entire time, except for the occasional text message, Evan had no clue what Kent’s parents were like. He managed to get their names—Blake and Cornelia—and the fact they were not vegans but mostly ate organic and would be bringing the wine.
    Matt stocked up on red, white, and beer just in case.
    He also found out that they owned a very successful nursery in Danbury, which meant nothing. Their professions told him little about the type of people they would be, and he restrained himself from running a background check because Elena told him