Authors: Xondra Day
Keith’s
place wasn’t easy to find, but the man operating the
town’s
only gas station was helpful with the directions he gave her.
Jayne
knocked on the door first. She hoped she had the right house. She waited, and
after getting no answer, she knocked again. It would be her luck for him to not
be at home. Maybe he was inside but couldn’t hear her?
Jayne
tried the door, and surprisingly it wasn’t locked. It wasn’t polite to walk
into someone’s house unannounced, but she did it anyway. She pushed the door
open slowly and peered inside first before she stepped over the threshold. “Mr.
Barrington?” she called. No reply.
This
was a total invasion of privacy. Jayne would not have liked it if someone had
walked into her house like she was doing. Yet, she felt a small thrill being in
this man’s personal space without him knowing. It gave her insight into his
life that she wouldn’t have otherwise been privy to. The rough décor around her
left a lot to be desired, and she smirked at the neon beer sign hanging on one
wall. That was super tacky. The man had to be a bachelor. Jayne stopped and
called his name again.
Nothing.
She
walked farther into the house. She heard snoring. He was home! The door to the
bedroom was easily found. Jayne knocked on it lightly and much to her dismay
there was no answer. He was a deep sleeper, but she also needed her key. Jayne
went ahead and opened the door slowly.
In
the bed there were two men entwined in each other’s arms. Jayne said nothing as
her eyes moved over them. It wasn’t like she’d never been around gay men
before, but this was her first time seeing men in bed together. She felt like a
total voyeur. It was wrong to come into the house like this. She backed up
slowly as to not make her presence known. The plan was to slip back outside
without either of them knowing she was ever in there.
****
Keith
opened his eyes slowly. He squinted to block out the sun’s strong rays that
flooded the room. He sat up in bed and glanced at Tom sleeping next to him. It
all came back to him---
Lucky’s
and his impaired
judgement. He turned and stepped out of bed. That’s when it happened. He was
face to face with a woman standing in his bedroom doorway looking scared.
“Fuck! What the hell?” he
yelled,
startled. Who the
fuck was she, and what was she doing in his freaking house?
“Before
you say anything else, let me explain why I’m here.” The woman backed away from
him slowly.
Keith
looked down and realized he was completely naked. He pulled a sheet from the
bed next to him and wrapped it around his waist. “Could you fucking explain to
me what you’re doing in my house? Who are you? You have thirty seconds to reply
before I call the police. I’ll have you charged and arrested for breaking and
entering.” She’d better start talking.
“What’s
happening?” Tom shifted in the bed.
“A friend of yours?”
He yawned and stretched his arms high over his head.
“I’m
Jayne Royale.”
“Jayne
Royale?” Keith repeated. The name rang a bell with him, but he couldn’t quite
place it. “Ms. Royale, why are you in my house?”
“I
came up here to my house at Somerset Lake. I forgot the keys, and I knew you
had one,” she explained. “I’m so sorry to have barged in on you like this. I
really am.”
She
was a client. She was right. It was rude of her to come in here like this. It
wouldn’t have been so bad if he’d been alone. “Wait for me in the living room,”
he directed. “I need to put some clothes on.” He shut the bedroom door and
pulled on a pair of jeans along with a t-shirt. He didn’t have time to think
about how embarrassed he was by this confrontation.
“Is
that her?” Tom asked.
“Who?”
“The
bestselling author,” Tom explained. “I’ve read a couple of her books. She
writes some hot stuff.”
Keith
knew this already. His stash of Ms. Royale’s books was still neatly hidden
under his bed. “Give me a few minutes to sort this out.” He let out a small
sigh as he left the bedroom.
****
Jayne
felt absolutely terrible. She waited for her property manager to appear with
her nerves on edge.
“Here
are the keys.” Keith handed them to her. “I trust that what you saw here today
will stay between us?” He raised one brow as he looked her up and down. “I
value my privacy. I don’t like others knowing my personal business. Pine Bluff
is a small town. You know how that can be.”
She
nodded. “Yes, you have no worries about me saying one word.” He was terribly
handsome. The men that were totally out of reach always were. “Your sexuality
is safe with me. Equal rights for everyone, right?”
He
shuffled awkwardly from side to side with his hands buried deep in the pockets
of his jeans. “And things are not always what they seem, but this isn’t the
time to discuss that. I’ll come around sometime this afternoon to check in with
you. If you see anything that needs tending to at the house, make note of it.
If you’ll excuse me, I have to get back to my friend. Otherwise, he’ll think
I’m some rude bastard.”
Once
outside, Jayne took a deep breath and heaved a huge sigh of relief. That wasn’t
the right way to make a good first impression. She’d screwed up majorly. She
nearly smacked herself in the head for being so damned stupid. It was too late
to do anything about it. She’d have to suck it up and move on.
****
“It
isn’t funny,” Keith said.
“It
so is! I bet she got an eyeful when she opened that bedroom door.” Tom laughed
and patted the spot on the bed next to him. “Come back to bed and forget about
it. You’re taking this much too seriously.”
“I
take my reputation very serious. I live here all year around. You’re new and
most likely just passing through.” He sat on the edge of the bed. Tom didn’t
understand his predicament.
“First,
you don’t know my plans for the future. I might stay, and I don’t think you
have to worry about her. She’s not going to say anything about us.”
Tom’s
reassuring words did little to comfort him, but it was a nice gesture. He hoped
that Tom would stay around. “Let’s hope you’re right about that.”
“Have
faith. What would she gain by blabbing?”
“Nothing at all.”
“Exactly.
Now come back
to bed.”
As
good as Tom’s offer sounded, he couldn’t. “I can’t. I have to shower. I have
things to do.” Keith pulled off his clothes. “You can join me if you like.”
Tom
grinned. “Now that’s an invitation I’d never refuse. Lead on, sexy!”
Chapter Four
Everything
around Jayne was pretty much as she’d left it since the last time she’d been
there. The upkeep on the place was well worth the money she paid from what she
saw.
Jayne
walked room to room before settling in one of the two bedrooms to pack her
things away. The air was a tad stale, but she solved that by opening a nearby
window to let in a cool breeze.
Back
in the living room, she placed her laptop on the desk and turned it on. A brief
check of her email revealed nothing other than a few messages in her spam
folder. Much to her delight there were a couple of emails from fans too. This
made up for the crappy spam. She loved hearing from readers, and she valued
their often constructive feedback. After dinner, she’d get to work on the book.
But for now, she had to head back into Pine Bluff. If her property manager was
going to come around at some point today, she needed to be back at the house
before his arrival. He’d looked so flustered with that whole mess at his house.
Jayne wondered what it was like for him having to hide his true self like that.
Keeping secrets was hard for anyone. She pitied him.
The
ride back into Pine Bluff helped clear her mind, and in less than twenty
minutes, she was dead center in the middle of town parked in front of one of
two supermarkets located there. The building was small and certainly a
throwback to a much simpler time. This was small-town America at its best.
Green’s Market carried a mix of just about everything. It’s was perfect for
Jayne’s one stop and shop plan.
Inside
a myriad of smells overtook her senses. Jayne pushed a small shopping cart down
each aisle as she selected what she needed, but it was the bakery that caused
her to stop and browse the glass display case filled with many cakes, cookies,
and cupcakes.
“Well
now, look
who’s
back in town,” Miriam Jenkins said
greeting her. A smile formed across her red painted lips as she straightened
her crisp white apron over her more than ample bosom.
“I
arrived today,” Jayne replied. She’d met Miriam just after she’d bought the
house up here. She liked the older woman even if she did tend to pry at times.
“I’m in desperate need of something decadent with chocolate. You know how much
I love everything you have here.” It was the truth. Jayne had an extreme
weakness for sweets of all varieties.
“Everything
is fresh, but I recommend these.” Miriam pointed to a row of fancy decorated
cupcakes. “They’re my own creation. Triple chocolate cupcakes with a gooey
center. I call them Mud Fudge. They’re simply sinful.”
Who
could resist chocolate? “I’ll take six.”
“I’ll
box them up for you. Dare I ask about you next book? You know I’m one of your
biggest fans,” Miriam gushed.
For
a brief moment an image of Annie Wilkes filled Jayne’s mind. She’d read Stephen
King’s novel
Misery
years ago. It was
a great suspense-filled read. “I’m not at liberty to reveal anything
information about it,” she replied, keeping the conversation light. “You know
how it is. Everything has to stay confidential.”
“I
adored your last one, and you can be sure that I’ll have your next as soon as
it’s out and available up here.”
“Thank
you so much. It means a lot to hear you say that.”
Miriam
smiled again and handed Jayne the cupcake filled box. “No problem. Your books
entertain me. They’re exciting. It’s great seeing you again.”
****
“You
can cook,” Tom said. Keith handed him a plate piled high with scrambled eggs, toast,
and bacon.
“You
sound surprised.” Keith sat across from him at the small kitchen table while
pouring cream into his steaming coffee.
“Not
really, I guess, but it goes to show how little I know about you.”
“We
only met last night, and we didn’t do a whole lot of talking.”
Tom
grinned as he thought about how they’d connected sexually. It had been
fantastic. “Then tell me more about you. I’m listening.”
“There
isn’t much to tell. I was born and raised here in Pine Bluff. My parents are
both dead, and I don’t have any siblings.”
“I’m
sorry to hear that.” Tom hoped he hadn’t opened any old wounds. That was the
last thing he wanted to do.
“Cancer
got both Mom and Dad. They’re better off. It wasn’t easy to watch them suffer
like they did, but life goes on and time waits for no one. It gets easier as
the years pass.”
“Any past relationships?”
“None recently.”
“But
in the past you have?” Prying wasn’t in his nature, but he desperately wanted
to know more about Keith.
“Yes,
but nothing has ever worked out. It’s not easy when you have needs that can’t
be totally met by one sex.”
“You’re
bisexual?” They had that much in common.
“I
hate labelling myself, but that’s the easiest way to put it. Contrary to what
some people think, bisexuality is real. I’m attracted to both men and women.”
Keith sipped his coffee and glanced at Tom. “What about you? Do you bat for
both teams?”
“You’re
the first person to ever ask me that. I do. I was engaged to a woman, but I had
to break it off for reasons other than my inclinations towards men. I realized
that I wasn’t in love with her. I mean, I had feelings for her, but not like a
man should have for a woman he’s going to make his wife.”
“And family?”
“My
father was a police officer. He’s retired and living in Florida. My parents are
divorced and my mother is living somewhere in the Midwest. I haven’t had
contact with her in years.”
“That
sucks not having her in your life.” Keith flashed him a sympathetic look.
“I
guess. I can’t say that I think about it or her much. The past is the past. I
can’t change anything about it.” His mother was a short-tempered woman who had
little time for him. His father worked long hours, and she often had gentlemen
friends at the house when he was a kid. He didn’t miss her. He wasn’t sad. It
was a relief not having to deal with her or her crap. His life was better
without her and so was his father’s.
“I
need a lift back to
Lucky’s
to get my truck. You
drove us here, right?
“I
did, and it’s no problem. I’d heading that way myself.” Tom half grinned. He
liked Keith, and he sincerely hoped they’d see each other again soon.