Even though they'd talked about another date on Friday when they’d said goodbye, Liam didn’t want to sound too impatient, so he had to talk himself out of suggesting another meeting.

That didn’t stop him from spending the entire weekend glued to his phone, ready for any new message from Gavin, though.

James made fun of him, but it was clear that he was happy for his best friend’s newfound happiness—especially since he’d helped him get there with the right conversation and support.

"So, when are you going to introduce us?" his roommate asked at one point, catching him smiling at his phone screen again, but the blond just shook his head.

He and Gavin weren’t in a relationship yet, and judging by the unconventional nature of their courtship, Liam couldn’t even guess after how many dates it would be appropriate to suggest that they were exclusively dating.

They’d been flirting with each other for months, and Liam had been aware of his (and, when he thought about it more, Gavin’s) crush for weeks. But in reality, they’d only had one single date—and no set date for the next one.

However, even that didn’t deter Liam from being hopeful.

Although Gavin still managed to be the most annoying person in the room when he wanted to, Liam was also hoping very much that he would be his person one day.

Even if, right now, he was sending him memes that he didn’t find funny in the slightest.

Gavin had an odd sense of humor, and for some reason, he seemed to be fond of videos of parrots and orange cats. And while Liam didn’t laugh at all of them, he couldn’t help but find it cute. Or rather, he found him cute.

As it turned out, however, his penchant wasn’t the only thing Liam hadn’t expected from him, as Gavin was still full of surprises.

“What are you doing here?” Liam asked when he spotted the tall man in the doorway of his office on Monday morning, holding two cups of coffee.

“What do you mean?” Gavin returned his question and walked closer. “I’m here to share my feelings after the date.”

As he had so many times before, the tanned man sat down across from him and then handed him a cup of cappuccino.

“You mean the date with me?” Liam was still confused, as he definitely wasn’t expecting him in his office again, though Gavin hadn’t said he was officially unsigning from their application.

“Is that a problem?” the tall man answered with a question of his own again. Unlike Liam, he seemed completely at ease and even took a sip of his coffee as if this were their usual meeting.

“Are you fucking with me?” the blond tried again.

An amused smile appeared on Gavin’s face, assuring him that he liked his choice of words, and Liam rolled his eyes.

Thankfully, Gavin spared him the remark and instead replied, “I’m still a client of Cupid, Inc. Shouldn’t you hear me out?”

Since Liam still had no idea where he was going with this and his curiosity was too strong, he finally agreed. “Fine.”

"Aren’t you going to start asking?" Gavin beckoned him.

"You want the usual question? Fine." Liam nodded, ready to play the game, though he had no idea what he was going to learn through it. "What was the problem this time?"

"He was too sexy for his own good," the tall man answered without hesitation.

He seemed satisfied with his answer, unlike a shocked Liam, who narrowed his eyes and reached across the table to poke him in the shoulder — but Gavin quickly managed to scoot his chair back.

He was laughing, and Liam couldn’t help himself — a soft smile clawed its way to the surface of his face as well, ready to replace his grimace.

"You’re unbelievable," the blond commented.

"And yet you still like me," Gavin said, giving him another beaming smile.

"Why are you really here?" Liam asked him.

"I didn’t want to break our tradition," the man across from him replied simply.

But Liam decided to push a little further with his next question. "Did you miss me?"

"Maybe," the tanned man replied, giving the same answer to that question that Liam had given him a few days ago.

"Maybe?" the blond repeated.

"And maybe I wanted to sign off your app and see your opinion on it," Gavin added.

"Well, do you still need it?" Liam gave him a question instead of a direct answer.

"Depends."

Liam raised an eyebrow, giving the man across from him an almost warning look. He still didn’t lose the satisfied smile from his face, though.

"On what?"

"Whether you’re planning on creating a profile as well, or if it’s enough that I have your number," Gavin replied, and Liam rolled his eyes.

"I can delete your profile," the agency owner suggested.

"Okay." Gavin nodded. "Then we can schedule another date. I quite liked the last one."

"Oh, really?" Liam asked with interest in his voice, just as he would have with any other client — but now his surprise was only feigned. "What was so great about it?"

"Great company, of course," Gavin answered without hesitation. "Besides, it was my first date thanks to Cupid, Inc. that ended with a kiss."

"Really?" This time, the blond’s surprise was genuine.

"Uh-huh." Gavin nodded. "I don’t kiss people I don’t like."

"Technically, I kissed you," Liam reminded him.

"I don’t remember." Gavin frowned, his smile replaced for a moment by a furrowed brow and an exaggerated grimace. "Maybe I need a reminder?" he suggested.

Liam rolled his eyes but, feeling bold, stood and walked around his desk. Thanks to Gavin moving his chair further back earlier, there was now enough space between him and the desk for the blond to squeeze in, Gavin’s knees brushing against his legs.

The tanned man didn’t lack courage either, as he placed his palms on Liam’s hips without hesitation and lifted his gaze to his. "Can I?"

The blond nodded, and in a flash, thanks to Gavin’s firm grip, he found himself on his lap. Automatically, he wrapped his arms around his neck and brought his face closer to his, running the tip of his nose along the curve of his.

The gesture brought a tender, intimate smile to both of their faces. It didn’t last long, however, as they quickly occupied their lips differently, meeting in the middle.

"Any chance you can find time for me this week sooner than Friday?" Gavin asked almost breathlessly the moment his mouth was free. "Or rather, how many days can you find time for me?"

His question took Liam by surprise, but instead of showing it, he smiled and countered with an even better question for the handsome man. "What happened to your one-date rule? I thought even one was plenty for a man with traditional values like you."

Gavin immediately realized he was alluding to his words from the first time they'd met and gave him an unamused look. "It never applied to you," he assured him.

"So you’ve missed me." The blond nodded gravely. "That’s kind of embarrassing," he declared—though he was in the same boat.

Finally, it was Gavin who was left shocked at the other man's words, and seeing his expression, Liam couldn’t hold back a laugh. He didn’t laugh for long, though, as Gavin quickly silenced his teasing reaction by seizing his bottom lip with his teeth.

Immediately after the stinging bite, however, came the sweet treat of a kiss.

"So?"

"Tell me when, and I’ll make time for you," Liam promised, this time without any provocation or beating around the bush.

"Anytime?" the tall man asked, just to be sure.

"Anytime," the blond nodded.

And so began a series of short visits. On Tuesday morning, Gavin stopped by again to hand him coffee, but then he had to go to work too, so he didn't stick around for a conversation.

On Wednesday, the tanned man came up with a new plan and asked Liam in advance when his lunch break was so he could invite him to eat out. Of course, the agency owner immediately agreed.

Gavin seemed to precisely respect Liam’s efforts at professionalism and did everything he could to see him during the day without disrupting his work. Poor Liam’s heart could barely handle it.

Thursday was the first day of the week they hadn’t seen each other, but they still texted. The blond was surprised at how much effort Gavin was putting into it, and he almost didn’t recognize him after all the post-date meetings they'd had, but Gavin’s words—that it was different with Liam—kept playing in his head.

"I’ll cover for you again Friday afternoon?" his aunt had asked him on Thursday as she walked past his office, and he’d lifted his head to her in confusion.

"No?"

"Judging by the way you’ve been smiling at your phone all week, I thought it was a sure thing," she answered him with a knowing smile.

"I don’t have plans for Friday," he assured her. 

"Really?" She still didn’t believe him and leaned against the doorframe, crossing her arms. "Then ask him," she instructed, nodding toward the phone still in his hands.

"If I ask him if he wants to do anything on Friday afternoon, I’m pretty sure he’ll say yes," he said without thinking. The triumphant smile on his aunt’s face showed that she had heard exactly what she wanted.

"Ask him on a date. I’ve got this." She finally seemed to head back to her office, but after a few steps, she returned, holding onto the doorframe and peeking back into the room. "He comes in here practically every day, and while he’s nice to look at, you should start putting in some effort too.”

Liam was left with his cheeks flushing as her ringing laughter echoed through the office. With his head full of the tall man, he forgot for a moment that he wasn’t the only love expert in the family — and it quickly backfired on him.

Still, he was aware that his aunt was right, and so he reopened the conversation with Gavin to ask if he could make time for him. And just as he expected, the answer was yes.

"Where are you taking him?" James asked that evening as Liam revealed his plans for the next day.

"I have an idea," Liam replied vaguely. "I'll tell you when I'm sure it turned out well."

"And then you'll introduce us?" his best friend repeated the question from a few days ago.

"I'll introduce you if he officially becomes my boyfriend," Liam assured him.

"You say if as if he's not completely obsessed with you and doesn’t spend every spare moment with you." James raised a knowing eyebrow.

"That doesn't mean he's going to want to be my boyfriend right away," the blond protested. If he had his way, he'd ask Gavin immediately. In his mind, they'd met enough times and knew enough about each other to use that official title. But Liam was a helpless romantic.

"Then why don't you ask him?" James suggested amusedly, as if he already knew the answer. Instead of replying, Liam just threw a pillow at his face.

And though he pretended to be nonchalant for the rest of the evening, James’ suggestion stayed in the back of his mind all Friday. He hoped Gavin’s presence would distract him enough to put it out of his head for a while—but it didn’t. Looking at Gavin in a shirt only intensified his desire to make him his.

"Do I look appropriate for where you’re taking me?" the tanned man asked after greeting him with a kiss.

"You look hot," Liam replied automatically, still mesmerized by his attractive looks and that intoxicating kiss—a lethal combination for his thinking.

Gavin laughed, and heat rose to the blond's cheeks, coloring them a darker shade.

"You look good," Liam assured him, this time answering his question for real.

"Just good?" Gavin raised an eyebrow in amusement.

"You know what I mean." Liam narrowed his eyes at him.

"So, where are you taking me?" the tall man asked, bringing them back to the important stuff.

"Here, actually." Liam turned his head toward the other side of the street, and Gavin immediately followed his motion.

"The gallery?"

"Uh-huh," the blond agreed. "I want you to find the worst feature of each piece. Think you can do that?" He turned back to Gavin, his smile a challenge.

The tanned man accepted it, of course, and looked more than determined as he declared, "Let’s fucking do it."

So this time, it was Liam who came up with the perfect date. Little did he know at the time that it would quickly become a competition, and they would spend the next few weeks trying to plan the perfect date for each other—until Gavin won, after asking him a certain question over dinner:

"Will you be my boyfriend?"