CHAPTER 4 - PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE
CORVETTE - TEN MINUTES LATER
BRIAN
“Is it secure?” I scowl at his exasperated look. “It’s a new car, wait till you get yours!” I kill the engine, his stomach grumbles. “I can sit here all day and you know that.”
He scrunches his nose, then checks the box’s stability. “It’s secure.”
“Thank you.” As I pull out, I see Carl shake his head then shut the door. We’ve been driving for about half an hour, and the only sound is of me changing gears, he’s looking out the window. With a small frown, he turns to me. “I’ve moved. Loft’s still there, but I live outside of Pittsburgh.”
“Ah. I thought you were going the long way round like you did the first time we met.” He chuckles. “I’m pretty sure that their respective, though for how long is anyone’s guess, partners - or even Ted and Ems - have kept your besties in the diner.”
“True.” I smile ruefully, we lapse back into silence, a comfortable one. We could sit for hours and not speak, it was one of the joys of being with him. Not having to listen to endless white, and needless human noise! As I open the gates, he gasps. “Had a tiny upgrade.”
“Wow, it’s beautiful.” He sighs. “How many rooms?”
“Six.” I reply, leading him inside. “Stables, tennis court, large pool with a jacuzzi, ten acres and a studio.”
“What do you need a studio for?”
“I don’t. Give me the food. Washroom down the hall and to the left. Cellar to the right.”
FIVE MINUTES LATER
JUSTIN
“Vrede Pinot Noir, you have a case of perfectly chilled Vrede Pinot Noir!” I take two bottles to the kitchen, but he’s not there. “Where are you?!”
“Front room!” He waves a hand. When I join him, there’s no tuna, but there’s a pie. “Carl’s food will keep, this won’t.”
“What won’t?” I ask, opening the wine.
“Fois Gras de Strasbourg.” I start to drool. I love fois gras - as long as it’s ethical - and truffle, this has both! “It was delivered yesterday. I was going to take it to celebrate our impending parenthood, but that’s on the back burner now.”
“Couldn’t pony up?” I tease.
“Take a look.” His tone stops me pouring so I start reading.
I pause after the fourth page. “Musty Dusty had this drawn up, didn’t she?”
He looks surprised. “Yeah, how did you get that?”
“Same attorney that she and Lindsay wanted me to use, with my little artsy crafty habit.” He rolls his eyes and takes it away. “Who’s going to carry?”
“I really want Mel to.” He hands me the wine. “But she needs to get her medical issues sorted out first.” He goes to clink glasses. “You going to take your duties very seriously when he or she arrives?”
“I promise.” I clink, he looks relieved. “Can I tell him?”
“Yes. My kid gets the best godfather and only one.”
“What’s he done?”
“Later, okay? Let’s slice the pie. And you can tell me everything that you’ve been up to.”
For the next three hours I regale him with landing in London first and immediately being signed to a small but respectable gallery. Being still wary and wounded, I used my middle and late godmother’s maiden name so if I failed, at least they couldn’t gloat from afar. But everything mushroomed, first my painting, then Rage the Avenger, to which came about when I asked my agent what he thought of the chances. He immediately called Brett Keller and it was born.
“So what’s with the big house? Why move here?”
“I was going on an adventure, but that’s on the back burner too now?”
“Why?” I slice more pie, making sure they’re even.
“You came back before I could come and get you.” He watches me over his glass.
“You lied.” I take it from him and move the plates. “You lied to Lindsay.” He shrugs. “You knew about my art? Did you know about Rage?”
“No.” He looks thoughtful. “When you left, I got on with Kinnetic. A raging success by the way, left in the more than capable hands of Brandon.”
“Ben’s brother? Good choice.” I smile. “Glad you kept the name.”
“Why would I change it? Oh, you might want to say yes to any invites for dinner that Lindsay extends.”
“Like fuck! I am not spending any more time with her than I need to!”
“Not even to see your Moonlit Dawn picture hanging above her mantle?” As I put the wine down, his grin widens. “A present, which I made her both wait and beg for.”
BRIAN
I take advantage of his surprise and move closer.
What I’m going to say next can go one of two ways. “Don’t get too skinny again, it doesn’t suit you.”
His eyes fill, then he looks away, I let him compose himself. “Thought it was you.” He stares at my hands. “How many shows?”
“Just the ones in Milan. You know how much I love Italy.”
“Why not come and say hi?”
“I would’ve asked you to come home, but there wasn’t one for you to come back to then.” He entwines our fingers, stroking my palm.
“I would’ve.” He whispers. “And there is, it’s just not ready yet.” I stroke his face, still unsure. “It has a state of the art gym.”
“Hmm, and where is it?” He smirks, then points to the back of the house, I stare at him. “We’re neighbours?”
“We are. At least when we fight, as when we do they’re spectacular, one of us can stomp away to cool off.” I tug his chin, we melt into each other. For a few minutes, we say and do nothing but sit. It feels good to have him back, back where he belongs. He shifts so he's resting his chin on my chest, looking up with those sky blues of his, then I notice it and try not to scowl. I tell myself to focus on the moment, so push the thoughts away, but they’re right there!
“For goodness sake, where’s the bathroom?”
“Thank you! Second door on the right, long cupboard, and bring a towel too!” Even though he’s walking away, affording me sight of the second thing I like about him, I know he’s either rolling his eyes or muttering about me being an anally retentive nerk!
He settles opposite with the towel on his shoulders, his hair scraped back, well mostly. He hands me a comb. He keeps still whilst I even up his sideburns. “Perfect, just perfect.” I finger comb his hair back into place. He takes the scissors, then kisses my hand. “What are you going to do about the Ben situation?”
“What do you mean? Somehow, Michael will say or do the right thing, for now, and Ben will stay.”
“After what Michael said, and the problems they’ve been having, he's failing to find reasons to. But you being back gives him a reason to leave. He’s healthy, and you’ve got that history with him.”
JUSTIN
I scoot nearer. “How long have you known?”
“From the moment I met him. He’d look at you, then me, and smirk. Anytime we’d trick together, and you’d end up at mine, he would be a little too interested in the after party.”
“It was in the first week of school. I wanted to prove to myself that I could, he was willing, and I was still able. Another reason I went there was because he was supposed to be gone. Ben and I will never be. Ever. He accepts that, will you?”
“What happened?” His body feels like concrete, he’s dreading the answer.
I turn his face back and dead eye him. “He came to see me before I flew out. I said no. Never more than once. I stuck by that. Believe me and accept it is in the past?”
“Yeah, I stuck to that too.” I kiss his nose and get under his chin. “His needling digs about having your number pissed me off, so I fucked Brandon.”
“Before or after he started at Kinnetic?”
“After, of course, and in their lovely home.”
I snort with laughter. “Who was more annoyed?”
“About the same. Especially when I stayed for breakfast and he couldn’t sit properly. He's not as tight as I thought he would be for a top. Ben?”
“Same, but he has an extensive toy collection, most post diagnosis.”
“You and Blake are gonna make his life hell, aren’t you?”
“You mean Michael about Rage?” He nods. “Of course we are. He’ll never stock it.”
“And Lindsay?”
“Going to approach Sidney about bringing my, cough-cough, main client to do a show in his gallery.”
BRIAN
I pour his glass into mine. He picks up the papers and tosses them at the fire, they land dead centre. “I will also be dealing with her. She shat on me too, but that’s for later. For now, you light that and I’ll get the DVD.”
“Yellow Submarine?”
“One Eyed Jacks.”
And as simple as that, we’re back in each other's lives. Now all we have to do is keep us there.
Buy Foie Gras En Croute Online London U.K. (finefoodspecialist.co.uk)