Gabe was grateful he didn’t have to stay with his family when he was in Boston. As he stood in his own townhouse in Beacon Hill—the one he’d dropped over a million on five years ago—he had this strange feeling of not belonging anymore. It was odd to him since all he’d wanted while he was living at the B&B in Haven’s Cove was to be in his own bed. Now, he felt like a visitor in his own home, which he wasn’t expecting. He’d never counted on that small town to feel more like his home than the extravagant, sleek building he was standing in right now.
As he looked around, Gabe wondered what the hell he was going to do for the next two hours. Unfortunately, he had to have brunch with his family at eleven. The wedding was the next day. Then on Saturday, he needed to get up the nerve to tell his father he intended on going back to Haven’s Cove. That was a conversation he was not looking forward to.
Gabe took the only bag he’d brought with him into his bedroom and kicked off his shoes. Exhaustion had him laying down on his bed, on top of the covers, clothes still on. He glanced at the time on his cellphone and saw only two minutes had passed since the last time he’d looked. Of course, he was up bright and early this morning, giving Nate a proper goodbye. He smiled at the thought, swept his tongue around his mouth, and still felt his man on his tongue.
His man. Was Nate his man?
Gabe suddenly found himself wishing they’d had that conversation before he left. Somehow, he thought maybe it would’ve given him strength for the dreaded talk with his father on Saturday. Nate’s ears must have been ringing because it was at that moment Gabe’s phone rang, flashing Nate’s name on the screen.
“I miss you,” Gabe said as soon as he answered, getting a low, deep laugh on the other end.
“It’s only been a couple of hours,” Nate replied.
“Your point being?”
“I miss you too.”
“That’s more like it,” Gabe playfully scolded, smiling at just the sound of Nate’s voice. “Tell me it’s Sunday and I should get right back in my car and come home.” Come home. Well, that just said it all, didn’t it?
“It’ll go by fast. Just suck it up, smile when you’re supposed to, and don’t let them get to you. You’re better than all of them.” Nate’s tune sure had changed about him in the last few months. Gabe never thought they’d get there, but there they were. He couldn’t be happier.
“What do you have to do today?” Nate asked.
“Brunch at eleven, then come back here and unwind next door at The Wine Loft. It’s no coincidence that I bought a place next to my favorite wine bar. The bartender knows me by name.”
“Why am I not surprised?” Nate chuckled, a low, husky sound that seemed to come from deep in that sexy chest of his. “Okay, well, I really don’t have much time to talk. I just wanted to see if you were there yet.”
“I’m here…unhappy, but here.” Gabe sighed.
“I’ll call back tonight.”
“I look forward to it.” The words I love you were on the tip of Gabe’s tongue, but he’d never said that to Nate before. He certainly didn’t want the first time to be on the phone.
“Me too,” Nate whispered.
Two and a half hours later Gabe found himself stuck in the middle of two incredibly boring conversations. One was between his mother and his aunt about the ongoing battle and strife of the extravagant and spoiled to find a decent caterer. The other was his cousin’s soon-to-be-groom with his expertise and seemingly endless—and unasked for—advice on stocks and bonds. Gabe never thought he’d want to be at a small town barbecue as much as he did at that moment.
“So, Gabe, what have you been up to? We haven’t seen you lately.” Gabe’s uncle had always seemed completely bored with life in general. There really was no love between his aunt and uncle, not that any marriages in the D’Angelo family had been based on love. He’d like to think his parents loved each other, but he’d never seen anything to support it.
“Oh, the usual. Tea parties and feather boas. You?” Gabe asked with a completely serious face, watching his uncle squirm, having no idea how to respond to that.
“Gabe, always the comedian,” his mother interrupted. “He actually was in New Hampshire consoling a close friend whose mother passed away from cancer.” She forced her best concerned face, feigning sympathy for a man she’d refused to even acknowledge.
Gabe stared at his mother, his blood boiling at the fucking nerve she had. His parents had never liked Brody, and Gabe sure as hell hadn’t told them about Brody’s mom. He didn’t even know how she’d found out. Now, she was using it to make his life seem acceptable in his uncle’s eyes? Use the death of his best friend’s mother to make Gabe seem like a better person than who they saw?
Before he said something he would most certainly regret, Gabe pushed his chair back abruptly and stood up. “Excuse me a moment.”
Gabe walked out the front of the restaurant and took a deep, cleansing breath. He was able to enjoy it for all of two seconds before his father polluted the air around him. “You’ve upset your mother. That was incredibly rude, not to mention embarrassing. Tea parties and feather boas? Just what kind of life have you been leading, Gabriel?”
Gabe faced the street, hands in his pockets, and refused to meet his father’s eyes. “You wouldn’t understand anything about my life.”
“Because it’s no way to live.”
Now Gabe faced him, fuming. “No, because you’ve never bothered to try and understand me or my life. You’d rather change me than accept me.”
“I’m not doing this today. You will go back inside, and you will put a goddamn smile on your face,” his father barked, pointing at the restaurant door.
“I’m going home. Tell them I’m not feeling well. You’re an amazing liar,” Gabe said sarcastically then laughed. “That, by the way, was not a compliment.”
“Gabriel,” his father warned, but Gabe had no intention of turning back around and going in that restaurant. How he was going to get through the next two days was beyond him.
“Fuck!” Nate cursed, throwing the second nail he bent on the ground. “What the fuck is wrong with me today? I can’t hit one fucking nail straight.”
“Too much Gabe on the brain,” Brody said jokingly.
“What?”
“Your boyfriend is away. What do you expect? You need to get laid.” Brody gave him a goofy smile and went back to painting a cabinet door.
Nate opened his mouth to argue and instead starting laughing. “You’re an idiot.”
“And I’m right.” He waggled his eyebrows and then said, “No, seriously, though, why don’t you just meet him there? God knows Gabe could use someone there on his side right now.”
“I don’t know. I figure if he wanted me there he would’ve asked. I don’t want to make things harder for him with his fucking shitty family.” Nate picked up another nail, thought better of it, and then threw it back down, shaking his head.
“He didn’t ask you because he doesn’t want to subject you to those bastards. They can’t stand me either.” Brody bent to open the cooler and pulled out two water bottles. He walked over and handed one to Nate. “Break time.”
They both sat down on the steps to the house they were working on. Brody had become a decent friend to Nate over the past couple of months. He wasn’t going to deny it; he needed one. It helped that they worked so well together. “This whole thing with him…” Nate paused, trying to find the words. “It still confuses the shit out of me. I have Lily to think about. I can’t be too quick to make any decisions that affect my future without considering her.”
“And you’re not sure if you see Gabe in your future?” Brody’s tone was curious with just a hint of defense. Nate understood where he was coming from.
“Like I said…I’m confused. If it were just me, I’d jump first and ask questions later, but I need to put her before my own needs. I can’t say he isn’t good with her—just the opposite, actually. He gets down on her level and plays with her. He talks to her like what she has to say is important, and I know he cares for her.”
“But…?”
Nate exhaled and scrubbed a hand over his face. “But can he really give up his playboy lifestyle for a small town nobody and his kid? Would he even want to?” He sounded desperate now, trying to make Brody understand how difficult this was.
“I get it, I do. She’s a lucky little girl, and you’re a great dad. I can’t really answer that for you though. It’s something you and Gabe have to talk about. Just do me a favor and keep something in mind. Gabe has the potential to get hurt here too. I can honestly say I’ve never seen Gabe like this with another guy. A year ago—fuck, make that four months ago—I never pictured Gabe as a man who could settle down, but you’ve changed that.”
“I don’t know…” Nate shook his head in doubt.
“You have, trust me.” Brody drank the rest of the water in his bottle then stood up, tossing the empty in a can. “You should go to Boston. Surprise him. God only knows, nothing takes Gabe’s mind off his awful family life like fucking his brains out.”
Nate thought about that night in his truck and chuckled, rolling his eyes. “That’s pretty much the remedy for anything clouding Gabe’s life.”
Brody snorted out a laugh. “Yup, pretty much.”
“Hey, can I ask you a question?”
“Yeah, go ahead.”
Nate could feel his face flush, still he needed to know. “How come you guys never…?”
“We came close when we first met, but I think we both needed a friend more than a quick fuck.”
“Would it be fucked up of me to admit I’m a little relieved?”
“Shit, it made Owen’s fucking day when he’d asked.” Brody laughed, picking up Nate’s hammer and handing it to him. “Ready to try aiming straight?”
Nate took it and said, “Nah, I’d rather have Gabe’s address in Boston.”
Later that night, Nate picked Lily up at his parents’ house and told his mom about his plan to surprise Gabe. There was no point in going tonight because Gabe would most likely be at the wedding late. His mom, of course, thought it was a great idea and offered to watch Lily until whatever time he and Gabe got back on Sunday.
Once Nate had Lily all ready for bed and tucked in, he went to his bedroom and debated about whether or not to call Gabe. The idea of going to Boston kind of freaked him out, but he was so fucking tired of being scared. He looked at the clock and figured what the hell. If Gabe was still at the wedding he just wouldn’t answer his phone, and Nate would go to sleep. Needless to say, he was relieved when Gabe answered on the third ring.
“Do you miss me?” Gabe said as soon as he answered.
“What do you think?” Nate played along, settling down on his bed.
“I think this night has been absolutely horrendous, and now hearing your voice has magically made it all better.”
“You’re a fucking sweet talker, you know that?”
“Hmm…could talk the panties off a virgin. You’re avoiding my question.”
Nate laughed softly, trying to think of some clever answer, but he was just too damn tired. “Yeah, I miss you.”
“I miss you too. It’s been a long night.”
“That bad, huh?”
Gabe laughed softly into the phone and it sent a shiver through Nate’s body. “Well, let’s see, my night consisted of posing for pictures with someone I physically have to pretend to like, cringing with every grope and brush of her fake tits against my arm, and watching my brother, Joe, openly flirt with a bridesmaid in front of his wife―but that’s okay as long as he’s married to a woman. It was just fucking fabulous.”
“Jeez, sounds like fun.”
“I assure you, it wasn’t.” Gabe took a deep breath. “I’m mentally trying to prepare myself for my conversation with my father tomorrow morning.” Nate could hear the sadness in Gabe’s voice, and it bothered him.
“What time do you plan to talk to him?” He needed to somehow get the info about the meeting with his father, without blowing his surprise.
Gabe yawned into the phone, his voice softening. “Well, the man so generously found time for me in his busy schedule, so my appointment is at ten.”
“He made you make an appointment? On a Saturday?”
“Of course. That’s his way.”
“Do you know what you’re going to say to him yet?”
There was silence on the other end until finally Gabe said, “I’m not really sure. I guess I’ll tell him I plan on going back to Haven’s Cove and take it from there. All I know is, this needs to end. I don’t want to look back on my life one day and regret that I let him have so much control. That’s not what love is. I know that now.”
Nate wasn’t sure how to respond to the last part so he talked around it. “I think you’re making the right decision. Whether it’s here or in Boston, you need control of your own life back, Gabe.”
“I know. You’re right.”
“If there’s one thing I’ve learned over the years, it’s that things don’t always end up how you expected them to,” Nate said. “You have to figure out what it is you want for your future and go after it. If it’s that important to you then nothing else matters.” Nate felt like he was giving himself a pep talk just as much as Gabe. This thing between them was scary and unexpected, but you couldn’t always plan out your future that strictly. Sometimes you just had to take a chance and see what happened.
“In the back of my mind, there is sadly a pathetic voice that tells me maybe this time he’ll give in. Maybe this time, he’ll let me be who I am and be okay with it.”
“Is there any part of your logic that believes that?” Nate asked, already knowing the answer.
“No, it’ll never happen, but a boy can dream.” Gabe sighed and went quiet.
“I’m sorry, Gabe. I wish I could change it somehow,” Nate said softly.
“You have,” Gabe replied quickly. “I may not sound like it right now because I’m stressed, and I’m tired, but I’m happy. I can’t remember the last time I’ve said that and truly meant it. You have a lot to do with it.”
“I know what you mean.” It was Nate’s turn to yawn and then asked, “What do you plan on doing after your meeting?” Nate was trying to get just a little more info about Gabe’s day tomorrow, so he had an idea what he was doing when he got there.
“No matter the outcome, I have a feeling I’m going to need a nice glass of wine. I’ll probably just go next door. Find something to occupy my time until Sunday. I was going to just drive home on Saturday night, but I think I want to gather a few more things to bring back with me. Now, before I embarrass myself and fall asleep while I’m on the phone with you, I’m going to say goodnight.”
“Goodnight, Gabe.”