Unfortunate Son (25 page)

Riley sat in the bedside chair.

He had a book in his hands and appeared to be engrossed, which gave Evan a chance to study him. He looked older, somehow, more like his actual age than his usual barely legal appearance. His blond curls were smoothed behind his ears, and his eyes were shadowed, circles under them so dark he looked bruised. He wore a simple T-shirt and jeans, snug-fitting but not skintight.

Just looking at him made Evan’s heart feel lighter.

A pang in his back forced Evan to move, and Riley’s head popped up immediately. His gaze met Evan’s, layers of emotion laid bare by that one simple look.

“Hey.” As conversation openers went, it was far from brilliant, but Evan had plenty of excuses.

“Hey,” Riley replied as he leaned to set his book on the floor. “How are you feeling?”

Evan shifted again, the pain in his back not letting up. “Like hell,” he admitted. “Kind of hurts everywhere. Some places worse than others.”

Riley scooted forward in his chair. “The nurse was in about twenty minutes ago. She said she’d check on you again soon, but I can call if you need painkillers?”

“No.” Evan reached out his good hand, and Riley hesitated only a moment before stretching his own out to meet it. Evan folded his fingers around Riley’s and sighed, just that simple touch relaxing him.

Evan lifted his head from the pillow and raised an eyebrow. “How’d you know I was here, anyway?”

Riley chuckled. “A long, complicated story running from Cory through Mikey and then to me,” he replied. “I got here about thirty minutes ago.”

Evan could just imagine that process. He lowered his head and just looked at Riley, and after a long pause, Riley spoke again. “I’m sorry.”

Evan blinked. “For what?”

Riley shrugged one shoulder. “For everything. For pushing you away.”

He stopped short, and Evan waited. Finally, Riley took in a breath and blew it out. “You were right,” he said, lifting his gaze to meet Evan’s. “I never got over the thing with my parents. I talk a big game about how I’m the black sheep and all that, but the truth is, it hurt. It still hurts, that they treat me like some kind of sideshow freak instead of their son.”

His voice cracked on the last word, and Evan wanted to wrap his arms around Riley so much that he nearly climbed out of the bed, despite the throbbing in his back and head and all the tubes and wires attached to his body. He tightened his grip on Riley’s hand, feeling wholly inadequate and wishing he could do so much more.

Riley took a few deep, cleansing breaths and then gave Evan a tremulous smile. “So it seems we’re equally fucked up,” he said. “I guess that’s as good a place as any to start, right?”

Evan had to smile at that. “Yeah. Maybe we can help each other get to not-fucked-up from here.”

Riley leaned in, and Evan let his eyes fall shut as Riley kissed him softly. “It’ll be okay,” he murmured. “We’ll make it okay.”

And Evan believed him.

T
HE
NURSE
did come in shortly after their conversation, and another dose of painkillers meant Evan fell asleep again. This time, though, he slept with Riley’s hand still in his.

He woke with his hand empty and his father sitting at his bedside.

Evan’s heart jumped into his throat. “Mom! Is she…?”

“She’s fine.” Riley stepped in front of Charles. “Cory told your parents about you, and your father came to tell you about her. I’ll be right outside, okay?”

Evan almost begged Riley to stay, but he had no idea what his father might come out with this time, and he didn’t want Riley caught in the crossfire. He nodded, and Riley smiled softly and left.

Evan turned his attention to Charles Day. The man looked crumpled, and not just because of the wrinkles in his clothes. Lines that hadn’t been apparent two days earlier were etched deep into his face, and he looked much older than his fifty-five years.

“How is she?”

Charles sighed. “She’ll be fine. She had a hairline fracture and some swelling underneath, but they’ve been monitoring her closely, and the swelling is almost gone. They’ll keep her another couple of days to be safe, and she’ll need to take it easy for a few weeks, but….” He trailed off, and something deep inside Evan relaxed, a knot he hadn’t even been aware of.

“Thank God,” he breathed. “Jesus. I was so….”

He didn’t know how to finish that sentence. Scared? Worried? Guilty?
All of the above
, he thought.

His father shifted in his seat, drawing Evan’s attention back. “Look,” Charles said. “I know we got off on the wrong foot the other day. I let my temper get the best of me, and your mother is paying the price.” He met Evan’s gaze for the first time. “We’re sorry that we never told you about the money. We set up the fund for you, and when your brother—” He cut off and swallowed hard. “Anyway, all the money is yours, and we want you to have it. No strings. We can put that in writing if you want.”

Evan didn’t want to talk about this now, but then, he doubted he ever would. “I don’t know if I can trust that,” he said. “I lost
everything
five years ago. I know you don’t want to hear it, but I was in love with Lucas, and I lost him, and then I lost my job and my family. I had
nothing
left. And now you’re telling me I can have almost all of it back, and I don’t know if I can believe it. You cut me off five years ago. How do I know you won’t pull me in and then do it again?”

Charles nodded. “I understand completely. We haven’t exactly been trustworthy so far.” He leaned forward. “But I mean every word of it, Evan. The money is yours. I want you to use it to go to college. I want you to get out of that business you’re in now. You can do so much more with your life.”

Evan reined in, barely, his first instinct, which was to defend “that business” and his role in it.
Keep it together
, he told himself. “That business is the reason I’m not starving on the streets,” he pointed out. “If it hadn’t been for Cory and his boyfriend—”

“I know.” Charles deflated a little. “That came out wrong. I…. Well, I’d be a hypocrite to say anything against adult entertainment. I’m no saint.”

Evan did
not
need the image of his father watching porn in his brain. “It’s a job like any other,” he said.
And I’m good at it
, he thought, but he didn’t need his father to hear that any more than he wanted to think about the man watching porn. He held back a shudder.

“I understand. I… I overreacted. I didn’t expect to hear anything like that from you, and I lashed out.” He lifted an eyebrow. “Though I think you do owe your mother an apology for the language you used to break that news.”

Evan dropped his chin and nodded. “I was angry too,” he replied. “And I will.”

“She’s been caught in the middle. Getting back in touch with you was her idea. I didn’t want to do it.” Charles barked out a soft laugh. “Damn pride. It sinks its teeth into you and doesn’t want to let go.”

That, Evan understood all too well. “We wasted a lot of time.”

Charles gave him a small smile. “That we did.” He leaned in closer, forearms resting on his thighs, and rubbed his palms together. “How about we start over? The money is yours if you want it. We won’t dictate what you do with it, but we hope you’ll use it to go to school. Or maybe start a business, if that’s what you want. Hell, you can blow it all if you want.” He grinned, and he looked so much like Charlie in that moment that Evan’s breath stopped. “Though we’d draw the line at bailing you out after the fact if you went that route.”

Evan let out a soft laugh. “I’ve thought a few times about taking some classes,” he admitted. “Having the money would make it easier.”

“Definitely.” Charles’s smile fell away. “And like I said, no strings. But it would be a load off our minds if you stopped….”

He didn’t finish, and Evan rolled his eyes. “It’s called ‘porn,’ Dad. It’s okay to say it out loud.”

Evan didn’t understand the expression that crossed his father’s face. Charles rubbed his eyes with his thumb and forefinger and then dropped his hand and smiled at Evan.

“You haven’t called me ‘Dad’ since you were fourteen years old,” he said.

Since before Charlie died
, Evan’s mind supplied. He bit his lower lip to keep from losing it again.

“I guess I haven’t acted like much of a dad since then.” Charles folded in on himself again. “I know I can’t make up for it. It’s far too late for that. But I want to start fresh, son. I want my family back.”

Evan wanted that too, more than he could have imagined. He nodded and held out his uninjured hand, and without hesitation, his father reached out to take it in a firm grip.

For the first time in five long years, Evan felt hope creep in.

T
ALKING
TO
his father exhausted Evan. He fell asleep again even before his next dose of painkillers. The nurse roused him briefly when she came in to check on him, and he was otherwise alone in the room. The next time he woke, though, two people were waiting for him.

“Hey there, gorgeous.” Jimmy had apparently seen Evan’s eyes open first and bounced up from his seat to lay a big smooch on Evan’s cheek. He smiled, his eyes soft. “How are you feeling?”

“Groggy.” Evan managed a half smile as Cory appeared next to Jimmy. “Hey,” he said, and Cory leaned in to kiss his other cheek. Then Evan frowned and turned his attention back to Jimmy. “Wait, I thought you were busy this week?”

Jimmy shook his head. “Just ’til yesterday, hon. The last of the stragglers cleared out this morning and I left the place in Shaun’s capable hands.” He cocked his head to one side. “What’s this I hear about a kink scene gone wrong? Do I need to roll some heads?”

Evan rolled his eyes. “Mine, for starters. I ignored way too many warning signs with the whole thing. Oh.” He lifted his head off the pillow. “It’d be nice to get paid, though. We didn’t finish the scene, but I figure after that mess, they owe me.”

Jimmy’s smile was feral. “I’m pretty sure I can arrange that. Just give me the info.”

“It’s all in my phone.” He looked around. “Which I guess is still in my bag?”

“Yep,” Cory confirmed. He turned toward the storage cabinet in the corner. “The one good thing those idiots did,” he said over his shoulder, “other than calling 911, was put your duffel in the ambulance with you.” He turned back. “Phone, wallet, clothes, all accounted for. Oh, and your keys.” He set the bag on the foot of the bed and rummaged through it for the phone. “I guess your car’s still in the parking lot over there, but now that Jimmy’s here, we can go fetch it for you.”

He produced the phone and handed it over, and Evan turned it on, waiting for the screen to light up. He hoped it still had enough charge for him to get the information for Jimmy. Good thing he’d turned it off completely before the shoot.

Within a couple of minutes, he’d found the e-mail and forwarded it to Jimmy so he could deal with it. Evan knew if there was any way to make the studio pay for any of this, Jimmy would figure it out. Jimmy gave Evan another big kiss on the cheek and headed out to make some calls. Cory dragged a chair close to the bed and settled in. “So. How are you really feeling?”

Evan shrugged one shoulder. “Sore. Stiff. Beyond ready to get out of here.”

Cory nodded. “And your parents?”

Evan sighed. “Dad and I talked. It was… rough. But good. I’m…. Things might be okay there.”

“What did he say about the money?”

Evan’s wrist throbbed, and he moved it to a different position. “It’s mine. I mean, I guess part of it was Charlie’s to start with, but now they say it’s all mine, and they won’t tell me what to do with it. They want me to go to college, but he says no strings. I don’t know if I believe it, but….”

“But you want to.”

“Oh God, yes.” Evan blurted it out without hesitation. “You have no idea.”

“I can imagine.” Cory studied Evan’s face. “I mean, the money’s a big enough deal, but if your parents are actually willing to start making up for the way they treated you, then that would be fuckin’ amazing.”

Evan nodded, then turned as a soft knock came at the door. Riley’s head appeared at the opening. “Oh,” he said when he saw Cory. “We’ll come back.”

“No, honey, come on in.” Cory pushed to his feet. “I need to go track down Jimmy anyway.” He glanced over Riley’s shoulder. “You said ‘we’?”

Riley smirked. “Mikey’s in the hall.”

Cory grinned. “Well, then,
we’ll
go track down Jimmy. It’s time he got an introduction anyway, and we can go get Evan’s car too.”

Riley’s hesitance was obvious, so Evan stepped in. “They’ll be good,” he said. “They might be dirty old men, but they’re not predators.”

Cory glared. “Thanks for the backhanded compliment.”

Evan winked at him. “You know you like it like that.”

Cory winked back and headed for the hallway, pausing to drop a light kiss on Riley’s cheek as he passed by. Riley lifted a hand to touch the spot, looking a little shell-shocked as he crossed the room to the chair Cory had vacated.

“They really are harmless.” Evan thought Riley could use a little more assurance. “They’re a handful, but they wouldn’t hurt a fly. Or a twink.”