Landon giggled. “Are you always horny, or, like, what’s the deal?”

  “For you, baby? Yeah!” I said, laughing.

  “Fine. I’ll take it.”

  “Yeah, you will! Let’s go!”

  We split the check and left. We could barely keep our hands off one another at drinks, and we were making other people uncomfy as they kept staring and stealing glances.

  “Okay, enough of a show for the people. Let’s go back,” I said playfully, slamming my drink and dragging Landon with me.

  “Fine, let’s go!” he said, laughing and throwing cash on the table.

  We barely made it back to the room before ripping one another’s clothes off, and I shoved him onto the bed.

  “Tonight, I get to be in charge,” I said seductively and pulled out miscellaneous objects from my bag.

  “Yes, ma’am,” Landon said, looking excited.

  “First things first,” I said, grabbing scarves and an eye mask. “Are you okay with me tying you up and putting this over your eyes?”

  Landon nodded.

  “Okay, and how about this candle that doubles as massage oil? It will be hot, but it shouldn’t be too hot,” I said, lighting it on the bedside table.

  “I trust you,” he said.

  “Okay, and if you don’t like anything, all you have to do is tell me, okay?”

  I had been thinking about making a mess on his body for at least a week.

  “Okay, now relax and let me take care of you,” I said, pushing him down. I tied him up gently, then placed the eye mask over his eyes.

  “You’re not allowed to come until I say so. Understand?”

  He nodded.

  “Okay, good,” I said, scraping his nipples with my nails.

  “What do you want me to call you, darling?” I took the candle and poured a little wax over his budding nipples.

  Panting, he shivered and bit his lip as it hit his skin. “Call me?”

  “I was thinking kitten seems nice tonight.”

  “Okay, yes, please,” my kitten purred.

  “And, tonight, you can call me Miss Elena,” I said, liking the control. “Remember, no coming until I say so.”

  And my kitten did exactly that.

  CHAPTER Twenty-Eight

  "It’s so nice to finally meet you, Landon!” my mom gushed, grabbing Landon into a bear hug.

  We had been moving at what I considered a regular pace for an adult relationship. We had gotten back from Tulsa a couple weeks ago, and it felt like we were in the exciting honeymoon phase of the relationship.

  The sex had reached a new level of intimacy. We were fully integrated with one another’s friends, along with the casual meet-and-greet of our families. The only thing in the way of us was this label situation.

  I had told Landon I was fine with waiting, but I was getting more anxious and antsy to put a label on us. It felt like security and excitement. Maybe that was the heteronormative, patriarchal dating culture ingrained in my brain, but it felt normal to do.

  It made sense that this is what we would do, you know? Plus, I was bursting from the seams to say “I love you,” but I didn’t want to jump the gun and freak him out. Especially because labels were already so hard, and the word “love” was hard. I wasn’t mentally prepared to have him not say it back, so I would wait for him to come forward and start the conversation.

  My parents and siblings were delighted to meet Landon since we had been dating for several months. They had been asking about when they would get to see him, but I had to wait on Landon to come to me at the right time. I was confident and comfortable in us, but it seemed like Landon had nerves and anxiety at every step. I wanted to move at his pace, but I wasn’t patient.

  “It’s nice to meet you, too, Margaret,” Landon said, smiling at my mother.

  “Hi, Landon. I’m Blair, and this is Ren,” Blair said, her eyes shining.

  Ren looked like the ever doting husband beside her.

  “Hi! I’ve heard so much about you both!” Landon said as each went in for a hug.

  We are huggers here.

  “I’m the dad, Dave,” my dad said, smiling and going in for another hug.

  God, I hoped Landon wasn’t overwhelmed already.

  I looked for my brother and his partner. “Where’s Sam and Quartney?”

  “Oh, they are on the way. Sam got caught by a client at the grocery store, apparently, and derailed their whole timeline,” my mom said with a dismissive flick of her wrist like it was no big deal.

  It wasn’t. Sam got caught all the time by people when he was out because he was such a star around town.

  “Do you want something to drink? Wine? Beer? Water?” my dad said, ushering Landon to the kitchen and chatting with him to get him set up.

  I gave him a little wink, and Landon followed the way.

  My parents already knew all about Ella, which was another first for Landon. This didn’t need to come out—it just was. There were no secrets to unveil or pieces of him to hide. My parents already loved him because I did.

  “He’s cute and lovely,” Ren said, nudging me with his shoulder.

  “Thank you, Ren,” I said, giving him a hug.

  “I was bummed I couldn’t go with you all to the funeral,” Ren said, looking upset.

  “Well, you didn’t miss much except the usual homophobia, transphobia, and racism that accompanies all extended family functions that, apparently, also extends to someone’s life after death,” I said, cringing at the whole experience.

  “Yeah, Blair filled me in,” he said, making a face.

  I winced. “Really not our best look to be related to them.”

  “And it’s a good thing we don’t live close.” He laughed.

  Right then, Sam and Quartney opened the door and walked in. Sam looked a little disheveled and annoyed, and Quartney came in looking like a magazine cover, as usual.

  “You’re late,” I said, smiling, walking over to hug them.

  “You all were simply early,” Quartney said, winking and making his round of hellos to Blair and Ren.

  “You know how it is to be a local celebrity,” Sam said, looking even more annoyed. He closed his eyes and took a few deep breaths.

  I watched him zen out in real time before asking, “You okay?”

  “I’m great. Now, where is the guest of honor?” he said, replacing his frown with a smile that was slowly becoming more genuine.

  I chuckled. “It looks like you just ate a lemon. What do I have to do to get you to really smile?”

  “I’m working on it!” He whined like a child.

  “Okay, well, Landon is being introduced to all of the tequila and whiskey Dad has to offer and doing a taste test last I checked, so let me just go see where that’s at, and I’ll be back.”

  “Did someone say tequila?” Quartney said, grinning.

  I laughed and walked in to see Landon becoming indoctrinated into our family by fire with rows of tequila and whiskey in front of him to try.

  “I really know actually nothing about alcohol, so this is really interesting,” Landon said, smiling.

  My dad beamed, looking like he was having the time of his life. “Ah, well, I’m glad you are enjoying it!”

  Spotting ten shot glasses lined up, I asked, “Okay, how many of these have you all had? Jesus, Dad, way to start off the night.”

  “I offered Landon something to drink, and he said he didn’t know! So, I said, ‘Well let’s sample some things to find something you like,’ and it’s only been sips! Those two over there were the ones pressuring us to do full shots and did two themselves!” My dad pointed at my mom and Blair.

  “Guilty,” Blair said and flashed a peace sign.

  “Welcome to the family, Landon,” Ren said, coming into the kitchen and planting a light kiss on Blair’s cheek.

  “Who is doing shots without me?” Quartney said, coming in, looking mock offended.

  I looked at Landon. “Landon, this is Quartney.”

  Quartney beamed. “Lovely to meet you.”

  “Likewise,” Landon replied, looking amused by the chaos that was my family.

  “And this is my brother Sam!” I said as Sam walked in, who looked much less grumpy and annoyed.

  “It’s a pleasure to meet you. Elena talks about you all the time,” Landon replied.

  “So, I am the favorite. Blair, write this down and remember it forever, won’t you?” Sam teased.

  “Yeah, yeah, whatever,” she said, waving and sucking on a lime.

  “Okay, who’s ready to eat?” my mom said.

  “Meeeeee,” I said as my stomach gurgled.

  Everyone shuffled around, getting their plates and grabbing food.

  “You doing okay?” I whispered to Landon.

  “This is great. They’re so cool,” Landon said, gazing around at my loud family.

  “They’re pretty awesome.”

  “Thanks for coming tonight. It means a lot to me.”

  “Of course,” he said, and we settled back at the table.

  “I propose a toast,” Sam said as he popped a couple of bottles of champagne and poured a glass for everyone.

  “I swear to god,” I whispered.

  “To Elena—”

  “Oh, Jesus Christ, you are not my favorite anymore,” I said, frowning.

  “To Elena’s end in singledom.”

  “This is actually the most embarrassing moment of my life,” I groaned.

  Landon laughed, his eyes sparkling.

  “And to being with family,” my mom said.

  “And to being a weird one at that,” Blair said.

  “Oh my god, you all are too much,” I said, wanting this moment to be forever.

  “Okay, and to love,” my dad said.

  My face flushed with heat. I couldn’t even bring myself to look at Landon.

  “Cheers!” I said hurriedly and clinked my glass to everyone else’s before taking a huge sip. I snuck a peek at Landon, and he didn’t look anxious. In fact, he look dazzled. I prayed to whatever god above that this wouldn’t freak him out so much that he would run for the hills. I would have to talk with him later.

  “Okay, let’s dig in!” Ren said.

  The rest of the night was filled with laughter, food, games, and more drinks. Thankfully, no more awkward toasts were made, and I didn’t have to encounter any other painfully embarrassing moments.

  The night ended, and we said our goodbyes to everyone. I hugged my family and promised to see them all again. Then Landon and I headed out.

  “So, you survived?” I asked Landon as we were in the car.

  “That was so much fun. I love your family. They’re so cool!” Landon gushed.

  “I’m so glad I thought the whole night might go to shit after that god-awful toast Sam made,” I said, still wincing internally.

  He squeezed my hand. “I think it was fun. Don’t worry about it.”

  “So, you think you would want to come back or hang out with them again?” I said, rubbing my hands together.

  “Duh. What do you think they thought of me?”

  “They loved you. They already thought you were amazing before even meeting you, and you just sealed the deal, you know?”

  I was already receiving text messages from our different group chats and individual texts saying how much they enjoyed him.

  “It’s so cool to see a family that is so accepting of everyone and everything,” he said wistfully.

  We hadn’t met up with his family yet, and I knew it would be a different experience. They were uncomfortable with who Landon was, and I would stir up some feelings being there with him.

  I was thankful that my family was who they were, and it made me sad that Landon had grown up with anything except love and acceptance.

  “Yeah, it is,” I replied.

  “My family won’t be like that, unfortunately.”

  “That’s okay. We’ll be together, and we’ll make the most of it. And I’m more than happy to go to bat for you if you want or sit there if you don’t want to start anything. I care about you so much, and I am here to be your support system, no matter what.”

  I didn’t care if his family didn’t like me for standing up for someone I loved and for what I believed in.

  “But let’s not worry about that right now,” he said, shaking his head as if to clear it from his mind.

  “Okay, another problem for another day, kitten,” I said seductively.

  “Does that mean what I think it means?” he said excitedly.

  “Yes, I am horny, and I would like to have sex with you in my bed, like, ten minutes ago,” I said with a sugary-sweet smile on my face.

  “Shit,” Landon said, blushing.

  “Drive fast, kitten,” I said, raking my nails across his thigh.

  “Yes, ma’am.” He pushed the gas pedal down farther.

  I laughed.

  What a perfect end to our evening.

  CHAPTER Twenty-NiNe

  "Okay, so just to clarify, you don’t want me to get into a fight with anyone who says something insensitive?” I said as we pulled up to Landon’s parents’ home.

  He smiled cheekily at me. “They really wouldn’t be worth the physical effort.”

  “Got it,” I said, flashing a thumbs-up.

  Landon had prepared me for this. He had repeatedly told me it would be absolutely nothing like my family, which was fine. Not very many people had a family like mine, but I knew Landon’s family swung the opposite way.

  “Let’s just recap before we get there.”

  I wanted to be prepared going in, and all the details were swimming around in my head.

  “Your parents are a don’t-ask-don’t-tell situation in regards to Ella because, when they first found out, they flipped out in a really bad way. Your mom is more okay with your femininity now and will occasionally bring it up lightly. Your dad, however, just pretends it doesn’t exist and doesn’t say a damn thing.”

  It was a shame, really, that his family wanted to distinguish such a bright light in Landon’s life.

  “Yup.”

  “And your sister accepts you and sort of uses you for clout sometimes? Like, on her social media and shit? Like, Yay, look! I love trans folks!”

  That was arguably maybe worse than his parents? I mean, it wasn’t a game necessarily, but if it were, they all fucking deserved to lose.

  “Correct.”

  “And your brother is just an absolute dickhole who is full of misogyny but, oddly, doesn’t touch the Ella subject, so he is just inherently shitty?”

  I think that was all the detail I needed.

  “Nailed it.”

  “Great! Can’t wait to see how this all turns out,” I said, winking at him. He rolled his eyes and sighed.

  “Truly, thank you for doing this. My relationship with them is just so odd. Like negligent, but I still feel obligated to them? They were so excited when I told them about you as if I am now finally okay that I have someone who wants to date me.” He frowned and pulled into a driveway.

  I twisted my face into a sneer. Why did some people think their children would be better off if they’d pawned them off to another human being?

  “The house is nice,” I said, looking up at the suburban upper middle-class-looking home.

  It was exactly what I would expect from the Midwest upper crust.

  “Yeah, here it is.” Landon grimaced.

  “Any other ground rules you want to lay down before we go in?”

  “Yes, actually. I want to tell you something,” Landon said, looking at the steering wheel.

  “Sure, okay.” I reached over and squeezed his arm.

  “I . . .” He closed his mouth. “I don’t know if I know what love is.” He cleared his throat and looked away.

  I sat in stunned silence, not sure where this conversation would go.

  “But I think that I am in love with you,” he said, looking at me and looking absolutely fucking terrified.

  I broke into a wide grin.

  “I love you, Elena.”

  The words settled around me like a warm embrace, touching my heart and making my eyes water.

  “I love you, too, Landon.” I giggled.

  “You do?”

  “Of course I do! I knew I was falling in love with you, like, three dates in, you silly goose.” I nudged his arm.

  “I just wanted to say it before we go in and you decide maybe you don’t love me because my family is absolutely the fucking worst.”

  “Don’t worry, you aren’t your family, and I’m not worried about it. We will make it out alive.”

  “You ready?”

  “Ready!”

  We hopped out of the car, and I pulled him in for a kiss.

  “I love you,” I whispered against his lips.

  “I love you, too,” he whispered back.

  We smiled stupidly at each other before his mom burst through the front door, waving frantically.

  “And so it begins,” Landon said, closing his eyes and painting a fake smile on his face.

  “Hi, Mom, this is Elena. Elena, this is Barbara!”

  So, the evening had begun.

  “Elena, this is my dad, Mark. My sister Brittany and her husband Ryan. And this is my brother Jackson,” Landon said.

  No one moved to hug me or shake my hand. So, I smiled and said “Nice to meet you” to them all.

  “Dinner is ready, so should we eat?” Barbara said excitedly, looking at all of us in an expectant way.

  She looked like what I would expect a Barbara to look like. Brown hair in a mom cut with an average build. Mark was similar, with lighter hair shorter than Barbara’s. His siblings looked very much like his parents. They seemed to exude the energy that they had been forced to be here.