Nine
The dining room smelled like bacon and eggs. Zayn savored the way Spencer played with his fingers beneath the dining room table. It felt strangely right to have Rocky and Jinx at the table, enjoying a peaceful breakfast with them. They felt like a family. Zayn’s chest swelled at the thought. He wanted this. He didn’t want to go back to living in silence and slogging through every moment alone.
“Spencer is moving in.” The words burst from Zayn. He hadn’t planned to make any huge announcement or anything. It simply happened.
Rocky never looked up from his plate. He kept eating like it was just another day. “Sounds good. I’ll make sure all the guys know.”
Jinx was all smiles. “That’s great. I’m so happy for you both. Seriously. It’s amazing to see you both smiling.”
Zayn wasn’t finished. “Also, we were thinking, how would you like to join us, Jinx? There’s plenty of room here.”
Jinx’s jaw dropped.
Zayn kept going, pleading his case. “There’s enough space in this house that you could see as little or as much of us as you like. I know I’m asking a lot, but we enjoy having you around and I don’t like the idea of you being alone right now.”
Spencer squeezed his fingers beneath the table.
Zayn didn’t dare glance his way since they hadn’t talked about this at all. It had been a spur-of-the-moment decision. Jinx was young and alone in the world. He was a genuinely sweet guy. Zayn couldn’t send him home to be alone with his dark thoughts after losing his mom.
Jinx glanced around the table, visibly grasping for anyone to help him deal with Zayn’s offer. Rocky was all about his food, proving his life wouldn’t be affected either way. Zayn tried to keep his expression hopeful. Jinx’s gaze landed on Spencer and didn’t move.
Spencer didn’t let Zayn down. “Seriously, Jinx. You’ve always been like family to me. We want you here with us. Plus, I’ll likely be working from here once I find a spot in the house to set up. It would be easier for you to be here than to make this drive every time I have a gig.”
Jinx’s eyes softened. His shoulders relaxed. “Okay. Yeah. I mean, if you two promise to tell me if you get sick of having me underfoot, then yeah. Wow.” He looked every bit as blown away as he sounded, and Zayn knew he had made the right decision.
“You have a guest.”
At the sudden interruption, Zayn glanced over his shoulder to find his mom standing in the doorway. Zayn fought through his shock to stumble to his feet.
“Mom. Hey. I didn’t know you were stopping by. Would you like some breakfast?”
Hana glanced around the kitchen, taking in the people at the table. “Good morning, boys. Maybe I’ll join you for a small bite. Spencer, Zayn, and I have plans to meet Elena and her boys for lunch today, but a few slices of bacon shouldn’t hurt.”
Zayn tried clinging to reality as he held a chair out for his mom to sit. There was so much to take in, Zayn didn’t know where to start. He hadn’t known about any plans with Elena. It was possible she had told Spencer since he had been at Elena’s yesterday, but Zayn doubted it. Zayn reclaimed his seat at Spencer’s side. He sat in a shocked haze while Hana introduced herself to Jinx. Spencer squeezed his fingers beneath the table again, somewhat pulling Zayn from his daze. Zayn noticed Rocky still stared at his plate, obviously trying to stay out of everything.
Hana wasn’t having it. She lightly smacked Rocky’s arm. “Hey there, boy. How have you been? Have you been staying out of trouble?”
“Yes, ma’am.” Rocky barely muttered the words before excusing himself from the table. Zayn understood. Rocky had always been super protective of Zayn. By extension, he didn’t care for anyone he felt took advantage of Zayn. That included Zayn’s mom.
The moment Rocky was gone, Hana turned Zayn’s way. “You did a great thing by giving Rocky a job. He’s a good boy.”
Zayn nodded. He was still trying to figure out what train had hit him. Slowly, Jinx and Spencer disappeared to do different things, leaving Zayn alone with his mom. She wasted no time once they were alone.
“It’s funny. Until I spoke to Spencer yesterday, I thought I was doing right by you.”
Zayn didn’t know what he was meant to say to that. He chose the bare minimum. “How’s that?”
Hana made a helpless gesture. “You live this lifestyle that I don’t understand. I never had money until you gave it to me. So, to me, I just imagined you out living some jet-setter life that I could only dream about having at your age. Instead, it seems you’ve been here, and I’ve been ignoring my only child. I honestly thought you wouldn’t want an old lady in the way of enjoying youth, wealth, and all those things have to offer.”
“And you learned all this from Spencer?” Zayn tried keeping up, but the shock kept his brain addled.
“Obviously, he wasn’t cruel and didn’t say all that, but he made me see I’ve been wrong.” Hana took his hand between hers. “You are my baby and always will be. Every day, I wake up full of pride for the man you’ve become. I’ll admit it was hard for me to accept that you’re gay, because it felt like I was losing any chance of being a grandmother someday. Having Elena around helped when I learned your truth, and it’s helping now that I see her with her grandchild. I’ve been wrong about a lot in my life, but I am here. I love you and I wish I could see you more often.”
“Of course, Momma. I love you too.”
She patted his hand. “Now tell me about Spencer and Jinx.”
Zayn held his mom’s hand and told her about Spencer moving in and Jinx losing his mom. He explained how he
