Picky Eater

Ch 28: He'll be back

Ben didn't think he was ever going to get used to this lavish lifestyle. The moment they walked into the penthouse suite of this hotel, Nino dropped on the couch, crumbling into a tired pile of bones. Dipping his head back, Nino closed his eyes, and he might've fallen asleep in seconds. Evie ran right to the bedroom, jumping onto the mattress and turning on the television.

Not Ben. He had to explore, going through the kitchen, traveling to both bathrooms, and the balcony, where he found a hot tub. Once he got it out of his system and this place got his poor kid seal of approval, Ben joined Evie in her room. He didn't want to think even a little bit and whatever musical kids cartoon Evie found root inside his brain at least for a few hours.

"Do you wanna talk about your parents?" Ben asked.

"No," she said.

"Whatever you tell me, I won't tell them or Nino."

Evie eyed him and adjusted her position. He raised his pinky. "I promise."

She hooked her little finger around his and they shook on it. She sat up, crossing her legs the same way they had their last meeting and Ben mirrored her stance.

"It started with this big job my dad did. Something about bootleg blood bags that wasn't approved. My mom thought it was great, until he got deeper and deeper and got a little obsessed with it." She took a deep breath. "My mom got mad that he was ignoring her, so she went to the Ventura castle, and she took me with her."

"Okay," Ben said, following along.

"Dad never came to pick us up, so we never went home."

"How long have you been living at the Ventura castle?"

"About a year."

"That sucks."

"It's..." Evie started to say but shrugged and kept the rest to herself.

"But I hope you know it's their problem. Not yours. They both love you very much."

Evie didn't answer. She just hunkered deeper into the bed and had her eyes back on the screen. Ben smoothed back her hair and kissed her forehead. "I'm going to check on Nino."

She threw up a thumbs-up and that was good enough for him. Scooting off the bed, Ben waltzed back into the living room to find Nino in the exact place he left him. Ben leaned against the edge, resting his cheek in his hand as he watched Nino breathe slowly. He was so pretty, it hurts. He lifted himself up, moving right behind Nino. He cupped Nino's face, leaning close to press a kiss on Nino's forehead.

Nino smiled. "Are you taking advantage of me?"

Ben flushed. "How long have you been awake?"

"I never went to sleep." Nino woke up, meeting Ben's eyes. Nino reached up, holding Ben's neck and brought him down to his lips. Ben tilted his head, kissing Nino nice and slow. Just one wasn't enough. He kissed him again, flicking his tongue across Nino's lips and smiling.

"You're cute," Nino said, rubbing his hand up Ben's neck and through his hair. "Do you come here often?"

"Not really, so you better shoot your shot."

Nino's face broke into a grin. He popped up and before Ben could blink, Nino jumped over the side and was standing right in front of Ben. Out of surprise, Ben stumbled back just as Nino caught him by the waist. "Going up," Nino warned, and he ducked down, throwing Ben over his shoulder. Ben laughed in amazement, yelping when Nino popped him on the ass. He enjoyed his ride to the bedroom, ready to hit the bed. Still grinning, he bounced up and down.