23. Chapter Twenty-Three
Chapter Twenty-Three
Simeon
J ake rose, nodded to me, nodded to Ryan, then headed back toward Marnie.
Goddamn it.
That hadn’t gone like I thought it might.
How did you think it would go? They’d have a kumbaya moment, and all Ryan’s problems would be solved?
Yeah…maybe not. But Marnie’d seen what I’d seen…right? That maybe Jake would be good for Ryan.
He has Justin. Remember? His therapist?
Right. Except Jake McGrath had seen the worst of the worst. Man’s inhumanity to man. Had, if rumors were true, saved a friend’s life and kept making world-changing reports. That kind of work had to leave a mark, right? Yet Jake appeared happy. Healthy.
Appears. Do you really know what goes on behind the walls of that house? Of any house?
Not really. People eluded me sometimes. I just didn’t always understand them. But when I was plastering a wall because someone put a fist or a foot through it? That was a side I wasn’t comfortable with.
“Simeon, you’re not paying attention.” Oliver nudged me.
“S-sorry, buddy.” I didn’t look at him. My gaze met Ryan’s.
He didn’t appear upset. At least I hoped he wasn’t. I didn’t really know him well enough to know for certain, though. Slowly, he offered a half-hearted smile.
I wasn’t as reassured as I hoped.
Quinton stepped into our little group. “Okay, these are cooled down enough. Pigs in a blanket, beef-curry puff straight from Australia, as well as his awesome tuna-and-chickpea patties.”
Oliver’s eyes widened.
“Your mom said three.” Quinton handed him a napkin. “Take a selection, okay? Don’t hog the pigs in a blanket.”
The kid rolled his eyes. Then carefully selected one pig in the blanket and two other treats.
I took the proffered napkin and followed instructions I assumed were meant for all of us and picked three. I really enjoyed Dean’s beef-curry puffs, so selecting those wasn’t a hardship.
Angus nabbed his three.
Finally, Ryan did the same. Again he held my gaze, then saluted me with one of them. He bit in and… His eyes opened wide.
I grinned. “Yeah, Dean r-really does make the best snacks. He m-made me some for the road when I fixed their g-gutter a few weeks back. I think they might’ve b-been able to do it themselves, but I was really glad they called me b-because it turned out to be a bit more complicated, and you d-didn’t need to know any of that.” Heat raced to my cheeks.
He swallowed. “It’s a cute story. I like your cute stories.”
Oliver snickered.
Ryan’s gaze narrowed.
The kid held up his hands. “You’re being, like mushy. My uncle Maddox is always mushy with Uncle Ravi. Nothing wrong with that,” he quickly added. “Just…I dunno…I’m never doing that.”
“You might meet the right person.” Ryan flicked his gaze from Oliver and then back to me.
“No. Gross. Girls have cooties and boys stink.”
I couldn’t help myself—I laughed. A hearty belly laugh. I was incredibly grateful he didn’t feel the need to pronounce heterosexuality. At seven that would be wrong—but I’d witnessed kids doing that. Kids whose parents insisted on it. Several of those kids had come out queer later on.
Quite suddenly, Violet toddled over. She made a beeline for Ryan and grabbed a curry puff.
His eyes widened.
Quinton had moved on, after winking at me. I didn’t think Ryan had witnessed the wink, and that felt like a good thing.
Ryan tried to keep hold of his food. “Can she just…?”
“She’s g-got teeth.” She’d chomped on me before. “She’s allowed. B-but you can say no—”
He handed over his food.
She held it aloft in triumph then bit a big piece.
“Is she going to choke?”
“D-doubt it. With two nurses, a f-former search-and-rescue guy, and several people who work with the p-public, I figure we have enough medical and first aid expertise.”
He eyed me.
Angus nabbed the controller. “I want to show Oliver my new game.” He gazed at me. “Do you want to play this new one?”
I shook my head. “A-another time.” I cast a covert look at Ryan.
He gave a subtle shake of his head. Still, I was so proud of him. He’d done so well. Several games and he’d been okay. Is this a breakthrough? I just didn’t know.
Violet toddled off as Hillary arrived. “Okay, you’ve played enough. You need to…socialize.”
Oliver snickered. “With who?”
Hillary bit her lower lip.
As if summoned, Marnie appeared. “I was hoping you guys could help me select some books for next year.” She held out her phone.
Angus popped out of his seat, clearly eager to contribute to the library’s future collection.
Oliver appeared marginally less eager, but a glare from his mom had him following Marnie and Angus over to the sofa. Hillary took off as well.
Ryan met my gaze. “So you thought Jake McGrath and I should talk.”
Am I supposed to lie? Prevaricate? Tell the truth? “I t-think you could help each other.”
He sighed dramatically. “The reporter gets his story, and I get outed…how is that helping me?”
I knew he didn’t mean outed as in him being gay—but the word still had a profound impact on me. “W-when you put it l-like that…no.”
“No I shouldn’t do it, or no, it isn’t helping me?”
“B-both.”
He beckoned me over.
Taking that as a good sign, I went. Belatedly, I realized he might’ve been calling me over so he could get mad and we wouldn’t be overheard.
Just as I plopped my butt on the ground, a little white ball of fur launched herself into my lap. The tongue licking—or kisses as Maddox called them—began immediately. My face, my neck, my hands…any exposed skin.
Ryan laughed, his eyes sparking amusement. “Well, she’s no Tiffany.”
“No.” I rolled my eyes. “P-princess Sofia is never going to be a therapy dog.”
He reached out to pet her fur.
Sensing another willing target—because she’d long figured out how pliable I was—she headed Ryan’s way. Just as he was about to speak, she planted one on his lips.
His face scrunched in obvious revulsion. “Did this cute dog just give me a French kiss?”
“She does have exceptional timing that way.” Quinton hovered another tray of hors d’oeuvres before us. “Eat up, guys. Remember there’s no dinner. Oh, but there’s dessert. Simeon, I’ve been eyeing those cookies your grandmother made. They look amazing.”
“They a-are.” I grinned at Quinton, snagged a Ritz cracker with a little square of cheese and offered him a genuine smile. “I s-should be helping.”
“Oh, there are several of us.” He glanced to Ryan. “What are you guys talking about? Any gossip to share?”
Ryan…growled? A sound in his chest that sounded distinctly like annoyance. Why does he hate Quinton so much? Because the nurse is perpetual sunshine and Ryan’s all grumpy? Of course, if I’d been through what he’d been through, I likely wouldn’t have been feeling magnanimous either.
I offered Quinton my best smile. “N-no gossip here.”
“Too bad.” He winked at me, grinned at Ryan, and took off after we’d each snagged several crackers.
“Jackass.” Ryan muttered the word—loud enough for me to hear, but not with enough volume that others might.
“H-he’s nice.”
“He’s flirting with you.”
I blinked.
Twice.
“N-no he’s not. Quinton d-doesn’t flirt with me.”
This time Ryan blinked. “Are you blind?”
I flinched.
He held up his hand. “Sorry, that was rude of me. I just—” He leaned forward. “—sometimes you seem really na?ve.”
I pursed my lips. “That’s b-because I am.” Was I going to go there? Be brutally honest? Nope. Couldn’t do it. “I’m not w-worldly.”
His eyes flashed with something dark. “I didn’t used to be either. And after what I’ve seen of the world, I’d be happy to never leave my house again.” He glanced around. “Okay, like, leave Mission City again.”
“T-that could be arranged.” I offered my best smile. “We h-have everything you could ever want.” That wasn’t true, of course. Mission City was a small town. For medical care alone, plenty of folks had to travel to bigger centers. But I knew what I meant…and I hoped he did as well.
“You guys mind if I join you?” Everett grinned.
Ryan offered a smile toward my friend. “Sure.”
“Great. I’m going to tell you about the time Maddox and Ravi tried to set Simeon and I up.”
“Oh really.” Ryan’s drawl was adorable. “Do tell.”
And thus slipped away the next couple of hours. Just about everyone took a turn at visiting us. Whether he realized it or not, Ryan was essentially holding court, and each of my friends dropped by to get the know the stranger. To make him feel welcome. To share some innocuous tidbit about someone else—so Ryan would be in the know without any real gossip having been exchanged.
God, I really loved my neighbors and friends.
The last straggler was Maddox himself.
Maddox dropping to the ground wasn’t as graceful as most of the others—but he managed. And grinned. “We thought a cocktail party would be simple.”
“No one wants to leave?” Ryan held up his second glass of eggnog. “The hospitality here is second to none.”
A chuckle came from Maddox. “Yeah, I think we did okay.”
“I had f-fun.” And I didn’t want to leave, but surely Maddox and Ravi wanted their home back.
Maddox waved
I glanced over to find Everett, completely bundled up, waving goodbye.
Another chuckle from Maddox. “I’d have pegged Marnie and Jake as the first to leave. What with the baby—”
Everett reappeared. “Uh…” He was brushing himself off. “Has anyone looked outside recently?”
A general murmur went up within the group.
“Fuck.” Maddox whispered the word—nearly under his breath. He turned to try to see outside, but the black of night only showed the reflection of the glowing inside lights.
Anticipating his next move, I rose and surreptitiously offered him a hand. With his bad knee, he probably shouldn’t have sat. Or, more appropriately, Ryan and I should’ve moved to seating. Just…we’d been in our bubble that people occasionally joined, but never stayed within for long.
Where I expected Maddox to maybe be affronted, he took my hand with a smile and happily let me guide him up. When he moved to the window, I knelt beside Ryan. “We should probably be heading out.” I placed my arm by him and held my breath.
He took it, offered the same smile Maddox had, and allowed me to help him. Very subtle. Someone would have to be watching closely to notice us.
Most people were either crowding around Everett—who was indicating a troubling high level with his hand—or they were with Maddox, trying to see outside.
“We need to be heading out as well.” Jake’s tone sounded more clipped than I was accustomed to. “We’re parked on the road.”
As Ryan and I headed into the front foyer, several people were already putting on boots.
Everett offered me a grin. “You’ll be all right—with your pickup truck.”
I blinked. “Did you d-drive a car up here?”
He shook his head. “Nah, I brought the SUV. I think just about everyone did.” He winced. “Except there’s a little car in the driveway—”
“Shit.” Ryan muttered that and no one even blinked.
Maddox rounded the corner. “I’m so sorry. The forecast was for light flurries changing to heavy snow at midnight.”
And we were nowhere near midnight.
Jake scrolled on his phone as Marnie donned her coat. “The app says it’s snowing lightly.”
Ravi, with Victor in his arms, joined the crowd. “Remember, that’s taken from down the hill. The mountains have their own weather system sometimes.” He nudged Maddox. “Like our first Christmas together.”
Maddox frowned. “We didn’t actually spend Christmas here. We were in Calgary. At your sister’s—”
“Oh my God, do not remind me.”
I cocked my head. I was worried about Ryan’s car, but curious about Maddox’s reddening cheeks. Even beneath his red beard, his skin had a ruddy color.
Stanley chuckled. “Coitus interruptus.”
Several heads swiveled to him. He shrugged. “Maddox’s friend Meg is also my friend, and she told me—”
“Hey. Shush.” Maddox hissed. “The whole world doesn’t need to know—”
“Lovely as this has been…” Jake stuck out his hand.
Maddox shook.
Marnie kissed Victor on the cheek
Hillary had scooped up Violet and had the baby on her hip.
Opal was in Justin’s arms. He grinned. “I think we should all bunk here for the night.”
“Hey.” Hillary glared. “We’d already arranged to. Steve and I have dibs on the spare bed. You all can crash by the fireplace.”
“And we’ll be off.” Jake held the door for Marnie.
Everett and Quinton all waved as they took off.
“Are they going to be okay?” Ryan had clearly caught sight of the swirling snow.
“They’ve all got SUVs. Well…” I frowned. “I’m not certain about Quinton.”
“I’m sure if he didn’t, he’d be begging a ride from you.”
I tried to glare at Ryan, but I kind of found this side of him amusing. Quinton wasn’t hitting on me. That wasn’t a thing.
Stanley zipped up his coat. “I’ll clear off the SUV and then you bring the kids?”
Justin nodded. “Yeah. No problem.”
“We can help.” Dean’s Australian accent carried across the small space. “Then we’ll follow you. We’ve got that extra climb to get up to the house.
“Sounds good.” Stanley headed out with Dean hard on his heels.
Adam chuckled. “He’d never seen snow before he came to Canada.”
“I think I’ve seen enough of it to last a lifetime.” Ryan shrugged gingerly into his coat. “Australia, eh? Sounds tempting.”
“Dean’s got a mate—Sam. Gives tours around Sydney. He might be looking for a partner.”
I cleared my throat.
Adam grinned. “Interesting response, Simeon.”
“He c-can’t just, like, move to Australia. Can he?”
Ryan stuck his feet into his running shoes.
“Whoa, that’s not going to work.” Ravi eyed the footwear.
“It’ll be fine. I never wore boots in Vancouver.”
“First, the mountains of Mission City are not Vancouver. Secondly…” He wrinkled his nose. “Vancouver does get snow. I might be from Calgary—where we get a whole hell of a lot more—but I know the city has snow days.”
Why did Ryan never wear boots? Had he never left his house? That felt sad. I would’ve been hustling him out the door, but all the SUVs behind his car had to get out first. Another reason that, even if I was the first to arrive at a party, I always parked on the street.
And why did he show up first? Not that he hadn’t always been prompt, but… Just another mystery.
Stanley returned a moment later with Dean. He snagged Opal from Justin. “We should be okay.” He glanced over at Ryan. “As Dean would say, sorry, mate. ”
Dean chuckled. “You almost have the accent.”
“Doing my best.” He met Maddox’s gaze. “It’s never boring.”
Maddox waved.
Angus, Justin, Stanley, and Opal left.
“And that’s our cue.” Adam slapped Dean on the back. “I’ll warm up the SUV while you clear it.”
Dean eyed him. “We’re going a mile. I don’t think the car needs to be warmed up.”
Adam offered a grin. “I’m sorry…who knows about vehicles in Canadian winters?”
Ravi chuckled. “Good luck arguing that.”
Aussie Dean grinned. “We’ll sort out the rest later.”
Adam grinned back. “Oh yeah.”
Well…no question what he was referring to.
Hillary popped her head around. “I swear it’s getting worse.”
Dean and Adam waved—then booted out.
I zipped up my jacket. “We’ll s-see if we can dig Ryan out.”
Maddox shook his head. “Past his wheels.”
“And I don’t have snow tires.” Ryan scratched his beard. “Because it’s not December yet, and I didn’t think I’d need them.”
“Even the r-ranch is at a higher elevation.” I wasn’t telling him anything he didn’t already know.
“You can stay here.” Hillary grinned, still gripping a twin. “Oliver will love to spend more time gaming with you.”
Ryan’s color changed almost before my eyes. Ah, so he’d been putting on a show. And they’re probably going to watch movies as well on Maddox and Ravi’s big screen television.
“He’s g-going to come home with me.” I patted his shoulder, trying to offer reassurance without spooking him.
After a moment, he gazed up at me. “I am?”
“Y-yep.”