Love Is Always Write Volume 4

overwhelmed as the restaurant erupted in greetings for Chase. The place was packed with people he had known his whole life, and some he'd never met before.
    Chase wrapped an arm around him. Then he leaned down and whispered, "We'll stick together."
    Owen nodded again, still unable to speak. Stuart walked up to them. "Bunny!" he exclaimed and hauled Owen into a bear hug.
    "Ignore him," Chase laughed.
    "We've got a table over here," Stuart said and led them through the restaurant. They stopped where several tables had been fitted together for a large crowd.
    "Hi, honey," Grace stood up and bussed Owen's cheeks. "You look smokin' hot," she whispered.
    "You look stunning as always," Owen kissed her.
    Chase pulled out the chair next to Grace, and motioned for Owen to sit down. "Thank you." Owen raised his brows secretly at Grace.
    "Oh, God." Grace covered her mouth. "He's such a gentleman."
    "I hope not," Owen whispered.
    Grace burst out laughing. "You can't say these things if you want me to behave."
    Chase leaned down between them and kissed Grace's cheek. "You look lovely," he said and smiled. "And well-behaved women rarely make history."
    They all laughed at the quote. Chase took a seat on the other side of Owen. Stuart sat across the table directly in front of Owen. Stuart winked as he picked up his wine glass. His Rolex slipped out from under the cuff of his shirt as he played with his glass. Owen frowned at Stuart and turned his attention to Chase.
    Chase was immersed in a conversation with Pierre Broussard, who was sitting on the other side of him. Owen smiled at Pierre. He'd known the man since he was an infant. Pierre had helped restore Wildwood. Over the years, he bought every piece of commercial property in their neighborhood. He had even donated the old mill to the community. It was renovated and turned into the Broussard Community Center. Owen couldn't think of Wildwood without thinking of Pierre.
    A waitress stopped behind Owen with options for red or white wine. Chase slipped his hand onto Owen's thigh and squeezed. Owen opted for the cold white wine. He needed to cool off. A group of servers started placing appetizers on the table.
    Owen wasn't sure if he could eat, until he spied the signature spinach-artichoke flatbread with pesto. He slid a few pieces on his plate, and then put some on Chase's plate. Chase was still chatting with Pierre. Owen watched as Chase absently picked up a piece of the flatbread and ate it.
    "Honey, that was too sweet." Grace leaned over and was whispering. "You're sympatico."
    Owen took a sip of his wine. Chase's hand was moving up his thigh. He tried not to spill his drink. He set his glass down and looked at the group around the table. Familiar faces, a familiar restaurant, but he didn't feel familiar to himself. Yet, he was happy. He imagined more nights like this with Chase. Dinner with other couples and the annual community events Wildwood was so fond of organizing.
    Pizzas were delivered to the table, as appetizers were cleared away. Chase took his hand off Owen's leg and wrapped it around his shoulders. He touched his head to Owen's. "Having fun?" he asked.
    "Yeah," Owen smiled. He recognized he was having fun. "I am."
    They ate, and Grace regaled Chase with some of Owen's less than stellar teenage exploits. Owen interrupted Grace a few times to point out that she was no angel. When Grace got to what they referred to as the "eyeliner experience," Chase was holding a hand to his chest and laughing hysterically.
    "We were fifteen years old," Owen said between laughs. "Jay and I thought we could get into Richard's if we dressed up."
    "I have pictures," Grace said. "Raccoons have less black around their eyes."
    "Okay, that's it." Owen put a hand over Grace's mouth. "You are cut off from saying anything else for the rest of the evening."
    Grace mimed with her hands "call me" to Chase.
    "I bet you look sexy with eyeliner," Chase winked.
    Owen really needed to get a heart replacement at this point. Chase's voice in his ear was causing him to check his pulse again. What was wrong with him? Usually, he was the pursuer. Owen cleared his thoughts and leaned over. He placed a kiss behind Chase's ear. Then he whispered, "An eyeliner experience is in your future."
    Chase coughed. Obviously, he had swallowed his wine wrong. Owen grinned, pleased with the reaction. Across the table Stuart was watching, he made bunny ears with his fingers and winked.
    "More wine," a server asked from