Total pages in book: 93
Estimated words: 87942 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 440(@200wpm)___ 352(@250wpm)___ 293(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 87942 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 440(@200wpm)___ 352(@250wpm)___ 293(@300wpm)
And people like that wouldn’t hassle me, would they? I was big enough and strong enough to handle myself in most situations. Would it be different if Tucker and I were holding hands together in public?
I shot a glance at Clyde’s table as my head began to process things differently. I was just one person. Even though I’d known many of these guys for a long time, was it possible they’d feel differently about me if they knew I was in love with another man? Why hadn’t I realized how naive I’d been about this?
Carter reached a hand over and placed it over mine on the table. I started to pull away, feeling sudden, self-conscious nerves I’d never experienced before, but he tightened his grip. “Just stay still for a minute,” he said through a fake smile. “Humor me.” His thumb brushed intimately over the back of my hand, and he toyed with my fingers while he started flirting with me.
Sure enough, it only took a minute before two of the five guys sitting with Clyde eyeballed us with a noticeably peeved expression on their faces.
My entire body tightened.
“Shit,” I said, pulling my hand back and taking the shot of Jameson that had magically appeared in front of me. I was pretty sure if a doctor ordered it for me, it was considered medicinal. “You made your point.”
He reached for my hand again, and I let him take it. This time he squeezed it. “This is too new for you to really know how you’re going to handle things long term. It’s not about you and Tucker, Dunn. It’s about you. He’s scared you’re going to have regrets. That it’s going to be too hard. Hell, lots of gay guys worry when they date someone who’s bi. Maybe it’s not rational, but we think they’d have an easier life if they left us to find a good woman instead.”
He studied me and squeezed my hand again before letting go. “He’s scared, Dunn. That’s all.”
Chuck Grimball stood up from the table of guys and wandered over to us with a frown on his face. “What in the hell are you doing?” It was clear they’d had almost as much beer as I had. Lord only knew why they weren’t at work. “Holding hands with this guy? Are you crazy? What’s gotten into you, Dunn?”
By then, I was fired up and ready to take no shit from anyone. I scrambled my way out of the booth and stood face-to-face with him. “What’s it to you, huh? You got a problem with me?”
He poked me in the chest. “Yeah, I got a problem with you. My mama has spent three weeks talking about getting you together with Doc Wright, and now you’re here with this guy? What the hell, man? Tucker deserves better.”
Two of the guys plus Clyde all nodded their agreement while I stared at him in disbelief. Carter muttered, “Well, of course.”
I finally grinned like a loon. “I love you, man. You’re looking out for my baby.” I slapped Chuck on the shoulder and turned to Carter with a giant grin on my face. “He’s looking out for my man. See there? He cares about me and Tuck.”
Chuck looked confused. He thumbed over his shoulder at Carter. “So why you cheating on him with this guy?”
I sighed. Why did people have to be assholes? “I’ll have you know this guy is a good man,” I shouted, shoving Chuck in the chest. “He takes care of people’s hearts. Do you know how incredible that is? How smart you have to be to do that? He takes care of my daddy’s broken heart!” I shoved him again and wobbled a little bit myself. What was in that shot?
Carter stood up and threw some cash down on the table. “I think maybe it’s time to go, big guy.”
“There is nothing wrong with being a pretty boy!” I added. “Also? Until you’ve had your dick sucked by someone who has a dick, you don’t even know how good it can be. You don’t even know, do you hear me? You…” I pointed in a circle in the general direction of all the guys sitting with Clyde. It made me a little dizzy, if I was being honest. “All of you don’t. Even. Know.”
I was riled up, my adrenaline spiking because I was very aware now that things could have ended very differently and probably would have anywhere but Licking Thicket where these guys had known me half my life.
Carter mumbled some polite crap at them and grabbed me by the elbow. “Time to go, hot stuff,” he muttered as we made our way through Private’s and out into the fresh air of Great Nuthatch.
“That’s right,” I said, suddenly remembering something. “You gotta get to your lunch with Dr. Petersmith and Mr. Right.”