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The silence was deafening. Tris looked up to see all eyes on him. “Your mum sent you a new Mac, just…out of the blue?” Jack asked slowly.
“Um, yeah? They like to give me things.” Tristan shrugged. He turned to Harry. “Hey, you want my old laptop? It’s a couple of years old, but it’s hardly worth the effort of selling it.”
Harry gasped like a scandalised Victorian maiden. “You can’t just give away a laptop.”
Tristan shrugged again. He didn’t see what the big deal was. “Okay, fine. How about you pay me by helping me find something to wear to this big dinner on Friday night? I need to be the worst boyfriend ever, but I also need to get in the door of the Point Seymour Yacht Club. So slutty, but slutty formal.”
“But—”
Tristan leaned forward and placed a finger across Harry’s lips. “Shhh. Stop arguing and think of something fabulously decadent for me to wear, preferably with sequins.”
Harry huffed a breath against Tristan’s finger. “Yeah, I was never really decadent. I was more dole bludger.”
“Same,” Ambrose said, his eyes alight with mischief. “But I have ideas.”
Once all the chips had been consumed and Liam and Ambrose had gone home, Tristan called his mum. She picked up on the first ring. “Darling! Did you get my present?”
“Yeah, it was great!” Tristan said. “Thanks!”
“Don’t mention it, sweetheart. You know your father and I are so proud of how well you’re doing at uni. I can’t believe you’re almost qualified.”
“Me either. Six more months and no more uni. I’ll have to work like an actual adult.”
“You’re a perfectly fine adult, Tristan, and don’t let anyone tell you otherwise. Now I’ve been meaning to ask, are you busy on Saturday night?”
“Actually, I’m going on a date,” Tristan said, “with my boyfriend.”
There was a moment’s silence. “Tristan Montague, are you telling me you’re actually dating?”
“Yeah,” Tristan said. “Nobody’s more shocked than me, but Leo’s special. I really like him, Mum, and he likes me back.” He got a warm glow just thinking about it.
“Oh darling, that’s wonderful! I can’t wait to meet him. When can you bring him for dinner?”
Tristan didn’t know why he was surprised at his mother’s enthusiasm. Half the reason he’d moved out of home in the first place was that his mother had kept insisting on feeding his hook-ups breakfast then asking to add them on Facebook, which had gotten awkward really fast when most of the time Tristan didn’t even remember their names. But in this case, he wanted his parents to meet Leo, just so they could see how amazing he was.
“We have this thing on Saturday night, but I’ll check with Leo and get back to you. We could do Sunday lunch?”
“I can’t wait. How did you meet? How long have you been dating? I want to know everything.”
Tristan laughed. “Slow down, Mum. It’s pretty new. Don’t start sending out invitations to the Fisher-Montague nuptials just yet!”
“Fisher-Montague or Montague-Fisher?”
“Maybe I’ll just take his name.”
“Or keep your own, darling. That’s what I did. Be a strong independent woman like me,” his mother teased.
“Strong independent woman, got it.” Tristan laughed. “I have to go, Mum. I’m taking dinner over to Leo’s.”
“Look at you, being all considerate. I hope this boy knows what a catch you are.”
“If he doesn’t, I’ll make sure to remind him. Bye, Mum!”
Tristan ended the call and took a moment to smile over how much he genuinely liked his parents. He was still smiling over it as he ordered their dinner—Indian, because it was Leo’s favourite.
His mum was right. He was a catch.
When Leo opened the door of his flat, he looked distinctly frazzled. His expression brightened when he saw Tristan, and his smile widened even further when he saw the bag of Indian takeaway Tristan was carrying. “Food! Tris!” He stood aside so Tristan could come in.
