Microsoft Word - MeantForEachOther.doc (13 page)

Andrew grabbed two glasses of champagne from a passing waiter and handed one to him. “Let’s go look at the pictures.” He lifted his elbow and Jeremy hooked his hand in the space provided.

As they walked along one wall of pictures, Jeremy was struck by the look and tone of the images. Something about them felt familiar to him. A wooden beam here, a fireplace there. Several images touched at something deep inside him, giving him a sense of déjà vu. Unable to place his finger on what seemed familiar to him, he simply took in the designs, surprised by how much he enjoyed the images. If this is what Andrew wants, I could actually get into the idea of remodeling. Although he acknowledged the thought, his pride wouldn’t allow him to say so. He had made a big enough deal of arguing the remodeling in the first place that to back down now would seem like he was caving in.

After a few minutes, they were accosted by a short man with receding curly hair.

The man seemed to know Andrew, approaching the two of them with a wide smile on his face. “Andrew, I’m so glad that you made it.” He then turned to Jeremy, extending his thick hand with stubby fingers. “You must be Jeremy. Andrew mentioned he would be bringing you.” Jeremy took it, staring at Andrew who wore a bemused expression.

“I’m so excited at the prospect of working with you. The Central Park location is one 56

D.H. Starr

Meant For Each Other

that excites me. Perfect for the type of design we do. And my artist…he’s brilliant at bringing a natural feel to a modern environment.”

Andrew turned towards Boris and smiled. “Thanks. This is quite a turnout.” He placed his arm around Jeremy’s shoulder. “As you’ve guessed, this is my boyfriend, Jeremy. He will be the one making all of the big decisions,” Jeremy felt his shoulders tense, but raised his glass to his lips and allowed the sweet nectar and light bubbles to ease his fraying nerves.

Jeremy, whose hand was still held in Boris’s stubby grasp, extricated himself as politely as possible. “Nice to meet you Boris. Andrew came home excited after meeting you. I had a chance to view some of the designs and can understand why. The combination of modern design with the use of natural resources and colors is quite surprising and pleasant.”

Boris smiled. “Do they match your vision for your condo?”

Jeremy glanced at Andrew who nodded. “I like where I live to feel homey, not sterile. The pictures show lots of work using unfinished wood which I find refreshing.

Central Park was what drew the two of us to the condo in the first place.

Boris listened, but seemed fidgety, darting glances to his left and right periodically.

“Well, your tastes match the specific skills of the graphic designer I selected for this work. I am going to be recommending him to all potential clients.” Boris leaned in, whispering conspiratorially. “To tell the truth, I’m hoping to steal this guy from his current job. He’s that good.”

Jeremy smiled politely. “Well, he certainly wins my vote. If he’s able to bring this kind of warmth to a home, I believe I would enjoy working with him on ideas for our condo.”

Andrew wrapped his arm around Jeremy’s waist. “Really?”

Jeremy looked at Andrew. “Yes, I like the work. It might make a real difference to the cold feel of the place.”

When Jeremy called the place cold, Andrew’s shoulder hunched. “Let me introduce you to the designer. I’m sure he would love to discuss your ideas with you. He’s here tonight.”

He glanced around the room. ”Let me go find him.”

* * * * *

Craig pulled on his cigarette one last time before dropping it to the ground and crushing it with his foot. The evening was fun, or it would have been if Robert hadn’t come. I can’t believe he’s purposely doing everything I asked him not to do. Why can’t I have a boyfriend who treats me with respect and supports me? As if on cue, an image of Jeremy filled his mind. Jeremy would have simply enjoyed this evening and let Craig have his moment of glory. In fact, he probably wouldn’t have left Craig’s side.

57

D.H. Starr

Meant For Each Other

He could picture exactly how the evening would have gone. As clients droned on about their ideas, Jeremy would patiently listen, probably admiring his expertise and his ability to make clients comfortable, but he would know when Craig needed a break and would serve as the perfect partner in creating subtle reasons for breaking away for a moment here and there.

He had been busy meeting with clients and the evening was going well. Boris was a schmoosing machine, and was probably wondering where he was right now. Better go back in. Releasing his lungful of smoke, he watched the white cloud hang in the air before it began to dissipate.

He turned to enter the building as Boris came barreling toward him. “Craig. I’ve been looking for you. I have some clients I want to introduce you to.”

Craig plastered a smile on his face, inwardly wanting to kick Boris in the shins for interrupting his small break. Allowing himself to be led back into the party, he prepared for another round of listening and headed in his direction.

As he got closer, the two men he was supposed to meet came into better focus. The taller man had broad shoulders, blond hair, and was quite handsome, but something about the dark haired man seemed familiar to him; something that reminded him of.

His thoughts froze at the same time his muscles stopped working. His heart began to pound inside his chest and his skin tingled as each nerve-ending seemed to reach forward, protesting against Craig’s delay. It wasn’t until his lungs began to ache that he realized he wasn’t breathing. The only thing filing his vision, his thoughts, was Jeremy.

Older, a man now, but definitely Jeremy.

Craig managed to begin moving, although he had to focus on one part of his body at a time. First he moved his feet, then remembered to breath, finally he wiped his sweaty palms along his pants, before taking the final steps to close the gap. The whole time, he never moved his eyes from Jeremy, who, if looks were any indication, was experiencing a similar sense of recognition and shock. His amber eyes widened and his mouth formed an oh and then began to pull up at the corners into a smile.

“Craig?”

His smile broadened, lighting up his face, filling Craig with a rush of happiness he hadn’t felt in fifteen years. Boris and the blond man both turned to face Jeremy, then turned to face him, but he could only focus on one person.

“What are you doing here? Oh…you’re the artist! Oh my God!” Jeremy laughed, that tremulous sound he’d always made when nervous, then stepped forward and grabbed Craig in a tight hug.

Craig’s heart thrashed wildly, as he returned the hug. He had been thinking about Jeremy and here he was, as if summoned by magic. Craig squeezed tighter, fearing he might disappear if he let go. Finally, Craig pulled back so he could survey his friend once again; dark hair, smooth-as-silk tanned skin, lanky muscles, not overly developed, but, if memory served, taut nonetheless. Handsome. “My God, Jeremy, you haven’t changed at all in fifteen years.”

58

D.H. Starr

Meant For Each Other

Jeremy laughed again. “You mean like a pimply fifteen year old kid? Thanks.”

Heat rushed to Craig’s cheeks. “No, I didn’t mean…Hell, I can’t believe you’re here.” An image of their last day together, their kiss in The Love Tree, flashed through Craig’s mind again. He grabbed Jeremy into another hug. Just hearing his voice, listening to his laugh, smelling that mixture of sweetness and muskiness, brought him back to a time when he had been the happiest in his life. Heat radiated between them.

After another minute, Jeremy stepped back, a wide grin on his face. “I was telling Boris how much I loved the artwork and he told me about this brilliant artist he had found. I’m not surprised the pictures gave me a sense of home.” A look passed over Jeremy’s face. The same expression he’d worn up in the Love Tree that day…

The man with Jeremy cleared his throat.

Jeremy turned to him. “Andrew, I’m sorry. This is Craig. He and I spent every minute together until I moved to Arizona.”

Andrew’s face lit up. “So, this is the famous Craig? Your first kiss?”

Jeremy’s cheeks pinked and he gave Andrew’s shoulder a shove. “Sorry about him, Craig. He’s not trained yet. Says whatever comes to his mind.”

Craig smiled, ignoring the dark feeling passing over him. He has a boyfriend. His heart sank, but he managed to keep his voice cheerful. “Hey, if my reputation is going to precede me, I guess being known as a good kisser is better than a lot of other things.”

“I never told him you were a good kisser.” Jeremy’s teasing smile said he was lying.

Andrew snickered. “Are you kidding? You said you dumped the next four guys you dated simply because their kisses didn’t measure up to his.” Craig’s cheeks flamed hot. If they hadn’t turned red before, they certainly must be now. Jeremy compared other guys to me. Just like I did.

“Andrew! I’m sure we can find better things to talk about than first kisses.” Jeremy shifted uncomfortably from foot to foot. Craig regarded him with wonder and, as Jeremy shifted, he swore he glimpsed a bulge at his crotch which hadn’t been there a moment earlier. “So, Craig, how long have you been in New York City?”

Too many thoughts crowded his mind for him to answer right away. Jeremy had compared other men to him. He was becoming aroused just thinking about it. Shaking his head, he managed to clear his mind enough to respond. “Eight years. I moved here after college. You?”

“Same. I can’t believe we’ve lived in the same city for the past eight years and never ran into each other!” Jeremy shook his head.

Craig’s gut tightened into a small knot. Eight years in the same city. What would eight years have been like if—he cut off his own thoughts. “Well, we didn’t do the best job of keeping in touch after we graduated from high school. You remember. When you first moved, we talked every week, but three years of high school went by and we talked less and less. When we both went to college we sort of fell out of touch.” That hadn’t been the reason at all. Once Jeremy had started to call less frequently, the pain of loss 59

D.H. Starr

Meant For Each Other

had sent him into a downward spiral. When the calls ended altogether, it had been easier to let the past be the past. It still hurt, but to reopen that wound—Craig didn’t want to allow the unpleasant thoughts back into his mind.

Jeremy sighed. “I can’t believe we let that happen. But here we are, both living in the same city. They say it’s never too late, right?”

Craig smiled. Is he right? Is this a second chance? The same feeling of hope from that morning filled him. The hope Robert had dashed. Reflexively, Craig corrected his thinking. Jeremy had a boyfriend. The most he could hope for was friendship from Jeremy. Just because his own relationship was failing didn’t mean Jeremy’s was. Hope led to disappointment. “Right. So why don’t we catch up?” He turned to Andrew. “I got your name since Jeremy scolded you for embarrassing him—which wins you points by the way.”

A warm smile crossed Andrew’s face. “And I’ve figured out you’re Craig, the kiss I had to measure up against.” Jeremy punched his arm, but Andrew ignored him. He cupped Craig’s hand in his. “I’m pleased to meet you.”

Andrew’s grip was strong, but Craig noted gentleness as well. So, Jeremy had found a really nice guy. Unlike Robert… “My boyfriend is around here somewhere,” he said, once again forcing a cheerfulness into his voice that he didn’t feel. “I’ve been neglecting him.”

Jeremy’s head snapped up. “Your boyfriend is here? Let me meet him. Fifteen years of friendship means I still get the right to judge a boyfriend, don’t I?”

Craig laughed, “I guess.” He felt his mouth pull up into a smile. Seeing Jeremy brought back feelings he had forgotten; a sense of confidence, like nothing could go wrong as long as they were together. He had buried that loss so deep that feeling it again created a sense of sadness and excitement at once.

Jeremy raised one eyebrow, an expression Craig had loved. Not many people possessed the muscle skill to lift one brow while leaving the other motionless. “You’re thinking something. I would recognize that pensive expression from across a room.”

Just a mere mention of familiarity sent waves of physical and emotional stimulation through him, making his cock shift, lengthening and pressing against the inside of his pants. “I was just thinking that seeing you now, it seems like no time has passed.”

“We may not have seen each other in years, but I think we could pick back up where we left off.” Jeremy flashed a sheepish glance at Craig, one Craig had seen so many times growing up. Of course when they were younger, the look had been precipitated by Jeremy trying to convince Craig to engage in some kind of trouble or other and inevitably was followed by both of them getting caught and grounded for various lengths of time.

“Well, you do make a good point.” Craig scanned the room and found Robert talking to a few people by the banquet table. Robert was waving one hand, another glass of champagne in the other. His hand gesture made him wobble a bit before an audience of three men who looked at once amused and embarrassed. Craig sighed.

60

D.H. Starr

Meant For Each Other

Robert drunk, meeting his lover’s first boyfriend. Not good. But how could he not introduce them? “He’s over by the food.”