  &quot;Is he here yet?&quot;
  James jumped a little, ignoring his mother s knowing smirk and his own embarrassment at being caught. &quot;Nope. Josh sent me a text message about fifteen minutes ago. Or maybe twenty minutes. I m not sure now. I ve been busy showing the guests where they re supposed to be seated. The older generation can t occupy the same tables as the younger one. They don t have anything much in common, and they will end up acting awkward and weird throughout dinner.&quot;
  His mother nodded. &quot;I know. I m thankful you remember to put our older or closer relatives nearer to the table where your father and I will be seated. They may take offence if they have to sit far away from us. You know what the old people in our family are like. They re traditional and obstinate.&quot;
  &quot;You aren t exactly a spring chicken yourself, Mom,&quot; James teased. &quot;Your s

  &quot;Joshua Wallace, blue-eyed redhead? Is he six feet tall and two hundred pounds?&quot;
  Michael gaped a little. &quot;I m not sure about his weight, but everything else is spot on. Do you know him?&quot;
  James snickered. &quot;I m dating him.&quot;
  &quot;What?&quot; Christine muttered out as her eyes widened a little bit more.
  Then he observed the flabbergasted expressions on his mother s face, which was reflected on Michael and Christine s faces. A short moment later, the four of them ended up chortling together. James couldn t believe this was happening. He remembered being furious at his parents for their attempts to match him with every gay and bisexual men they knew, including Michael and Christine s son, but he hadn t known about Joshua back then.
  A part of him was a bit regretful of the years being wasted, though. If he hadn t been so stubborn, he could have met Jos

  &quot;I ll do my best to talk to David, Mom. I know he won t mind doing you this favor.&quot;
  &quot;Thank you. That will be a dream come true.&quot;
  &quot;You re welcome. Anyway, back to my friends.&quot;
  His father took a small gulp of Thai iced tea while nodding. &quot;Right. What s going on with the rest of them?&quot;
  &quot;Vincent is dating Anthony Lim, the owner of The Torpedough, which is—&quot;
  &quot;—the bakery with some of the most delicious pastries ever,&quot; his mother cut him off midsentence. &quot;Oh, yet another benefit of knowing the right people.&quot;
  Joshua guffawed when his mother waggled her eyebrows at him. &quot;Fine, Mom. I ll introduce you to Anthony. You re an opportunist.&quot;
  His mother chuckled. &quot;It s called being smart.&quot;
  &quot;Whatever. Anyway, Keenan is now dating Pablo Cotilla, the owner of a bar called The Overrated Llama.&q

&quot;Is he here yet?&quot;
  James jumped a little, ignoring his mother s knowing smirk and his own embarrassment at being caught. &quot;Nope. Josh sent me a text message about fifteen minutes ago. Or maybe twenty minutes. I m not sure now. I ve been busy showing the guests where they re supposed to be seated. The older generation can t occupy the same tables as the younger one. They don t have anything much in common, and they will end up acting awkward and weird throughout dinner.&quot;
  His mother nodded. &quot;I know. I m thankful you remember to put our older or closer relatives nearer to the table where your father and I will be seated. They may take offence if they have to sit far away from us. You know what the old people in our family are like. They re traditional and obstinate.&quot;
  &quot;You aren t exactly a spring chicken yourself, Mom,&quot; James teased. &quot;Your seventieth birthday will be coming up soon.&quot;
  &quot;Hush,&quot; Lydia chided while narrowing 

Chapter 29