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“What’s this, Zeb?” asked Mason.

“My resignation.”

The man who rarely showed any emotions besides grumpiness and anger looked shocked.

“Why?” asked Mason, his voice cracking.

“I’m going to start college in the February semester.”

He hadn’t applied anywhere yet, and he didn’t have a specific college in mind. As long as it was close by, so he could commute every day. Kaden didn’t want him to stay on campus.

“We could look at your schedule and fit it around your studies, like we do with Hunter.”

“We think it’s best if I just focus on studying.”

“We? You mean Kaden?”

Zeb felt annoyed. What business was it of Mason’s if he talked these things through with his boyfriend? Mason had made it clear nothing was going to happen, so he would not walk around for the rest of his life single and pining. The look on Mason’s face was one of concern, which made it hard to get angry, but he had to say something.

“It’s normal for couples to make important decisions together.”

Mason looked at him for a few seconds. “Of course,” he said, opening the letter. “Why does it say you’ll be leaving at the end of November, if you aren’t starting your studies until February?”

“We thought . . .”

Mason raised an eyebrow at him. Why had Zeb done this first thing? The only other people here right now were the cleaners. The restaurant didn’t open until lunchtime, so it wasn’t uncommon for it to just be the two of them for the first couple of hours. He used to like that. Now it made him feel untethered, and he wasn’t sure why Mason still had this hold over him. He was with Kaden now. The man loved him, and he told Zeb all the time. He wasn’t sure if he was there yet, but he’d said the words. How could you not say it back when someone said it to you? It would only hurt them, and that’s something Zeb would never do to anyone.

“I only have to give you two weeks, but I didn’t want to drop you in it before Thanksgiving.”

“Then why not stay until the end of the year and see us through the holidays as well?”

He had suggested that to Kaden, who just wanted him to do the two weeks and then focus his attention on applying to colleges. Staying for another month had been the compromise.

“I’ll be leaving at the end of the month,” said Zeb, holding eye contact with Mason.

After working with Mason for over two years, Zeb had a good read on him. The man was pissed, but he was also eyeing Zeb like he was something to scrutinize.

“Fine. We’ll discuss the details later. You can get back to work.”

Zeb felt as if he’d been punched in the gut. He’d decided, but he thought Mason might have tried harder to persuade him to stay. He could feel himself getting choked up, so he left quickly. Once he was outside Mason’s office, he closed the door and took a moment to breathe. There was no way he was getting upset over the man. He’d done that enough over the last two years.

“Fuck!” shouted Mason, accompanied by the sound of something smashing.

Zeb moved his ass quickly. The last thing he needed was to be caught listening outside Mason’s office. He darted into his own office. It had been a random store cupboard until Mason had all the crap removed, had it decorated, and had office furniture added. He’d done all that in a weekend after Zeb had suggested that he could look into it. That was how thoughtful the man could be, but he wasn’t sure what had happened today. Zeb had been scared of resigning. He’d expected a bit of a battle, and not for Mason to just readily accept it, but then he’d gotten angry when Zeb had left. What had that been about?

Rather than stress himself out by worrying, he focused on his work. There were orders he needed to get out for the kitchen, staff schedules that needed posting on the portal, and he needed to speak with the events manager about any extras they needed for this week.

He was so engrossed in his work that he didn’t realize someone was at his door until they coughed. He looked up; it was Hunter. Zeb smiled and waved for his best friend to come in. Before word got out, he needed to let Hunter know he was leaving.

“Close the door,” said Zeb.

“Is everything okay?”

“Yeah. I just need to tell you something.”

Hunter closed the door and sat down with a concerned look on his face.

“I handed my notice in this morning.”