Javier laughed. God, Tony liked that sound more than he should. The last thing he needed was to fall for his boss, but in the last two weeks, all he’d required was a light push for that to happen. It didn’t help that Javier had saturnine good looks, with raven hair thick enough to lose a finger in and a close-cropped beard that gave him a devilish appearance. He was the opposite of devilish, however. Javier was kinder than most men Tony knew.

  “I’m serious. This year all I’m doing is taking them out of the box. She can put them where she wants them and guide me to the branches she can’t reach.”

  “Does she seriously have Star Trek ornaments?”

  “And Star Wars and Harry Potter. They’re all on one tree. The main tree is more traditional, but she loves the sunroom one better. I bought her a Thor: Ragnarok ornament for her stocking this year.”

  “I would love to see this.”

  Tony’s heart thundered hard enough to give homage to Thor. Surely Javier didn’t mean it in any sort of romantic way. He probably just wanted to see what geeks got up to.

  “She’d love to have you over and stuff you with cookies.”

  “That does sound good. But I will say, we get so many cookies and cakes here from our patients, it gets to be overwhelming.”

  “I’ll keep that in mind if Nonna plans on sending me here with a plate of something.”

  “There you go. Hey, have you ever gone to the St. Augustine Distillery? I know you said you used to visit St. Augustine a couple times a year when you were younger.”

  “I never got to play tourist as much as I would have liked. I’m grateful I got to see the Castillo de San Marcos before this happened.” Tony gestured to his eyes. “I used to love architecture and St. Augustine’s old town. It’s been hard to give it up.”

  “I can’t even imagine.”

  Tony sucked down a deep breath, fighting for calm. He didn’t want to depress himself or his boss. Worse, he didn’t want to be pitied. “I try to concentrate on the things I can do. But since you asked, no, I’ve never been to the distillery.”

  “It’s pretty new anyhow, but it’s in a turn-of-the-twentieth-century ice plant. It’s got some interesting offerings, and there’s a bar-restaurant attached. I have a few reports to write, but I thought you might like to go with me. I’d be happy to drive you home afterward.”

  The sensible thing would be to politely decline because he could imagine a million ways going out with the boss could cause tension at work, but who the hell would want to be sensible when presented with the intelligent, funny, and Florida-in-August hot man like Javier?

  “That sounds fun.”

  “We could get some appetizers to go with that drink if you’d like—my treat.”

  “You don’t have to do that.”

  “Consider it a welcome to the practice.”

  “I’d like that. Thanks.”

  A moment of silence blossomed, but before it could get awkward, Raven sighed mightily. Tony peered at her, taking a moment to spot the issue. A kitten had climbed onto her head, gone boneless, and was sleeping hard.

  Javier rescued her, pouring the liquidy kitten into Tony’s hands. “I’ll get those charts done.”

  Tony played with the kittens, having to rescue the long-suffering Raven once more. She actually liked playing with the kittens, and he often felt sorry that Raven couldn’t just be a dog. He loved having her as his guide, but it was like seeing someone so married to their job, they never had any fun.

  A kitten sank his needlelike teeth into the thick of Tony’s thumb hard enough to break skin, distracting him from worrying about whether going out for drinks was just two coworkers hanging out or if this counted as a date.

  He gave Nonna a call so she wouldn’t worry when he didn’t come home at his usual time. She didn’t help matters by adding she wouldn’t wait up for him. He wondered just how easy she thought he was. On the other hand, while a night of smoldering sex would be great, it probably wouldn’t bode well for the relationship in the long run, at least not in his experience.

  WHEN THEY got to the distillery, he was surprised when Javier opened the car’s back door for him, so he could get Raven out more easily. Smart, funny, and a gentleman—yes, it’d be too easy to fall hard for Javier.

  “Thanks.”

  “No problem. They have tours and tastings, but I’d rather go to the bar for cocktails and a little food, if you don’t mind.”

  “Not at all. Lead the way.”

  Trusting Raven to keep him safe, Tony spared a glance to watch Javier’s lean back and narrow hips. He’d been doing that from time to time while he played with the kittens. Javier moved like he had music in his muscle fibers. Tony couldn’t concentrate on Javier in motion or things at work would get quickly awkward.

  The scents of seafood tickled his nose once they entered the restaurant. “Mmm, smells delicious.”

  “I love the smoked fish dip appetizer, so I’m definitely getting that.”

  “Sounds interesting.”

  Once they were seated, Tony’s happy bubble of “I’m out for drinks with a great guy” popped. The lighting was so low, he wasn’t sure how he was going to see anything. He didn’t want Javier to have to read him the menu, his pride be damned.

  Tony was forced to lift the drinks menu close to his face in order to position it over the parts of his eyes that still worked. “I hope this isn’t bothering you,” he said, meaning “he hoped it wasn’t embarrassing Javier,” but couldn’t bring himself to say that.

  Raven shifted, putting her weight against his ankle.

  “It’s fine. You do what you have to do. Mind if I tell you the appetizers?”

  A fission of embarrassment welled up, but he knew Javier was still trying to be considerate. “Besides the fish dip? Sure.”

  In the end he chose a rum drink, and Javier ordered a bourbon concoction, and they got some buttermilk-fried oysters to go with the fish dip, all of which came quickly.

  “Mmm, this is delicious.” Tony chased a bit of smoky goodness off his lips with his tongue.

  “Drink or fish dip?”

  “Both. Thanks for inviting me here. I have to admit, I almost said no.”

  “Oh?”

  Tony heard no judgment in that, just honest curiosity and maybe a bit of disappointment. “It’s not that I didn’t want to go.”

  “But you were uneasy because I’m the boss.”

  Tony trailed a piece of sourdough through the dip, wishing he hadn’t made this awkward. He should have let himself enjoy it. “That was mostly it.” He set the bread on his plate. “It’s not that I don’t trust you, but I’m new. I wasn’t sure what the rest of the office might think about it.”

  “I should have considered that. Sorry, that was a little thoughtless. Believe me. None of the girls will care. They know I don’t play favorites.”

  Tony hoped that was true. It was almost frightening how much he needed it to be real.

  “Aracelli was pushing me to ask you out the moment you came in for the interview. Since we’re being honest, I almost didn’t hire you because it’s awkward to be the boss and want to ask someone out. I didn’t want it to seem like harassment.”

  Tony held up his hands. “I wasn’t thinking that at all, but I can see why it would make you nervous.” He paused. Wait, this isn’t just drinks with a coworker? He’d hoped Javier was gay but hadn’t been sure. He knew being out wasn’t easy in the Latino community, or so he’d heard. “You wanted to ask me out from the get-go?”

  “That might have been overstating it a bit, but I was definitely attracted to you. How could I not be?” Javier took a swallow of his bourbon and rum drink, turning his face away. “You’re intelligent and good-looking, so it was hard to resist.”

  Tony chuckled. “I think you read my mind about how I feel about you.”

  “I’m oddly proud that my devastatingly good looks were noticed.” Javier stroked his close-cropped beard.

  “And your humble personality too.” Tony popped an oyster into his mouth and chewed. Oysters weren’t his favorite, but these weren’t bad.

  “I am incredibly humble.”

  “So apparent.” He chuckled.

  “How about this? If it helps to take off the pressure and make this less like a date, we’re just two guys out for drinks.”

  Tony nodded. “That works, but I feel like I can you trust your judgment on whether this will be a problem at work. It might be nice to go out on a date, if you still want to after this. You could decide I’m boring.”

  “I think there’s little chance of that. Let’s start over. Anything in the city you’d like to do?” Javier asked.

  “It’s probably silly.”

  “I’m a devotee of the pirate museum. I’m not sure you can get sillier than that,” Javier said, then followed it with a soft, disgruntled sound. “Sorry, I just realized museums probably aren’t your thing.”

  “They used to be, but not so much anymore. On the other hand, I’ve been going to as many as I can before even more of my vision is gone.” Tony scowled. He felt like such a downer. “Sorry, don’t want to be depressing.”

  “Hey, no worries. You’re facing a difficult thing, and grieving is complex. It sounds like learning to come to terms with this sort of loss is what you have planned for your next career. You know way more about it than me.” Javier paused, staring down at the table. “But I do understand how much loss hurts. Let’s leave that story for another day.”

  “Okay. If it gets any grimmer, we’ll need another of these cocktails, and then we’ll have to call my nonna to come be the designated driver.” Tony fought to lighten the mood. The last thing he wanted was to plunge the atmosphere through the floorboards.

  “You have a point. You still haven’t told me this silly thing you’d like to do.”

  “I want to go on the haunted trolley.”

  Javier stopped midreach for an oyster. “If you had given me all night, I wouldn’t have said that. You’ve missed the proper holiday for that.”

  “That’s the nice thing about Florida. Back home, we’d be freezing our balls off trying right before Christmas, but here it’ll be pleasant.”

  “I’d have thought that sort of thing would have been hard on you, but that’s me assuming I have any idea of what you can and can’t do with your limited vision.”

  “I don’t do so well in the dark, which is why I want to go on the trolley with someone. I know you have to get on and off several times, and I’d probably rather use my cane than Raven. Well, not so much that I’d prefer it, but sometimes it’s easier not to have my service dog because in tight spaces, either you get someone who wants to play with her like she’s any other dog—”

  “And they never listen when you tell them not to.”

  “Exactly. Or I get people who don’t want to allow the dog onboard, even though by law they have to. And some people really do have allergies, so in crowded, enclosed spaces like that trolley, the cane is better. But I’d feel safer if I had someone with me. Nonna loves this stuff, but I don’t want her out in the dark after breaking her hip last year.”

  “Understandable. And I guess the real draw of these haunted tours isn’t so much the chance to see something, which I suppose could happen, but it’s more to hear the stories.”

  “That’s how I feel about it. I like history, and you get that with these tours—though, granted, some of it needs fact-checked. I thought it would be fun.”

  “I will keep that in mind. Sounds like an adventure.”

  “I thought so. Then again, giant geek that I am, I wouldn’t mind going to Diagon Alley down in Orlando.” Tony smiled.

  “Now that sounds like fun. Have you been there and tried the butterbeer?”

  Tony’s wilted spirits perked up. The geek might not be strong with Javier, but he had a touch of it if he knew about butterbeer. That worked for him. “I haven’t been yet. My brother and I were going to go when he came down with his wife and kids for Christmas.”

  “Is he a vet as well?”

  “No, he didn’t follow in the family footsteps. He’s a physical therapist. Luckily, neither he nor his kids seem to have inherited the retinitis pigmentosa gene. I can’t tell you how much of a relief that is to me.”

  “I can only imagine. So, you’ll have your whole family here for the holiday?”

  The sadness in Javier’s tone was unmistakable, but he didn’t elaborate, and Tony thought it was way too early in their relationship either as boss-employee or something more for him to press the issue.

  “After it. They’ll stay in the Pittsburgh area because of my sister-in-law’s family. And my sister is still in grad school, also training to be a vet. So, Karen and the kids will have the holiday with that side of the family, and then everyone will come here. I’m already helping Nonna make a thousand and one cookies.”

  “Oh, so you bake?”

  “And cook, as much as I can. I’m slower than I was because I must take my time and look to be sure I’m using the right spices, etcetera. Cooking is a serious affair with my family, stereotypically Italian in that respect.” Tony grinned.

  “Have you been to the Spice & Tea Exchange, then?”

  He shook his head, but the memory of the mouthwatering smell of the place made him smile. “Not in a long time. I was thinking about a stop there for some stocking stuffers. You cook as well?”

  “Mom made sure I knew a lot of Puerto Rican dishes. Dad’s grandparents were from Cuba, but that side’s been here for three generations now, so a lot of that was lost once his grandma was gone. She didn’t teach her sons how to cook.”

  “That’s sad.”

  “It is. I’m glad Mom wants to preserve her culture.”

  “Nonna too. She gave us all a flash drive of all her recipes.”

  “Cool.” Javier surveyed the table. “I think we’ve done all the damage we can here. I have to pop over to the gift shop to pick up a bottle of bourbon, if you don’t mind.”

  Tony didn’t want the night to come to an end, but he couldn’t argue that there was anything left of his cocktail or the appetizers. Also, it was past poor Raven’s dinnertime. “Sure.”

  Javier paid the bill, refusing to let Tony chip in. He didn’t fight hard, not wanting to be insulting. He grabbed Raven’s harness, and she followed Javier. He led the way to the gift shop, which played the requisite holiday music. Aracelli had mentioned playing some in the lobby at work. Tony was fairly sure shift after shift of listening to nothing but that would make him homicidal.

  “They have gin, vodka, and rum as well,” Javier told him as he selected his bourbon.

  “I liked the rum that was in my drink.”

  “I do, too, but I might get disowned if I don’t buy Puerto Rican rum.” Javier chuckled, but something sad lingered in that sound. There was a story hiding there that Tony wasn’t sure he wanted to hear.

  “Understood.” Spying something on a display, Tony lifted it closer for inspection. “Ooo, rum caramels. Okay, this is definitely for Mom.”

  “Those are delicious,” Javier assured him.

  They made their purchases, and Javier helped him secure Raven in the car. The trip home seemed impossibly fast. He was greedy for more time with Javier, not wanting it to end so soon. Javier escorted Raven out of the car again. He slipped an arm around Tony, drawing him closer, and Tony could smell the bourbon and sugar on Javier’s breath.

  “I would love to take you out this weekend.”

  A nervous tickle stilled Tony’s tongue for a moment. He swallowed hard. “I’d love that. Where would you like to go?”

  “I’d like to surprise you.”

  “Okay.” It was shocking how okay that was. Tony usually didn’t go in for surprises, but he felt like living a little dangerously.

  “Good.” Javier leaned in and kissed him. His beard scratched a bit, but his lips were soft, tasting of bourbon and seafood. The kiss was quick, chaste at first, then deepening. When it ended, Javier still held him close.

  Raven gently nudged him with her nose to remind him of her delayed dinner.

  Tony skimmed his hand over Javier’s arm. “Wonderful,” he said breathlessly.

  “You stole my word.”

  Tony chuckled. “You know Nonna is probably watching from the window.”

  Javier stepped back. “It won’t be a problem if she saw, will it?”

  “Not at all. She was prepared for me not to come home, wildly overestimating how fast I move.”

  Javier snorted. “She’s a cute old lady. I’m glad she’s okay with it, but yes, I’m not quite that fast either.” He stole another kiss. “Good night, Tony. See you tomorrow.”

  “Looking forward to it.”

  Tony walked to the front door, not hearing the car pull away since Javier waited for him to open the front door. Tony waved before going inside with Raven. Now how much about of the night should he tell Nonna?

  “I HOPE this will be fun,” Javier said as he led Tony and Raven onto the trail, carting a compartmentalized cooler bag over his shoulder. He had obsessed over what to do on this date. At the office he’d noticed Tony was pretty open about what he could and couldn’t do, but he wasn’t sure if that would translate to his off-duty time. Javier suspected it would. He didn’t want to presume anything. He enjoyed hiking the trails of Anastasia Island, though he felt awkward asking if Tony liked that. It was something he’d have to get over, but he also didn’t want to stir up too many bad memories. Now that they were here, Javier regretted not asking. This date could go so badly if Tony hated or felt depressed by this sort of thing.

  “Where are we?” Tony turned his face into the salt breeze. His sunglasses were too dark for Javier to see his eyes, but he got the impression Tony was trying to bring things into focus.

  “Anastasia Island.”

  “Oh, I haven’t been here in years. It has nice beaches, if I remember right.”

  “It does.”

  “I was glad to see the Bridge of Lions was restored.”

  “Me too.” Javier hated the lions’ years-long absence. “I thought we could have a picnic and then stroll the beach. I realize that’s probably unfair to Raven to have a Labrador so close to the water and not let her in.” Something else he should have thought of before planning this.

 

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