Fake Friends - Saxon James Page 0,44
up a stool at the counter. His eyes have dark smudges underneath them, and his graying hair is a mess.
“Long night?” I can barely make out his grin behind his beard.
“Oh yeah. I have a few bruises to prove it.”
“Say what now?”
He laughs and glances around. “Once you go gay, you’ll understand.”
“At this stage that feels like it will never happen.”
“That’s too bad. If I had to miss out on sex, I’d go nuts.”
“I’m already halfway there.”
“Not surprised.” He watches me. “Especially with all those photos you’ve been taking with Circus. I’d find it impossible to keep my hands to myself after taking hot photos with the guy I’m into.”
“What makes you think I’m into him?”
Leon laughs. “You two are like magnets. No point trying to deny it, I’m not an idiot. Can you put a black coffee on for me, please? I haven’t had a minute’s sleep, and I need to head over to Port Welling before starting work on my place.”
I start his coffee. “Are you doing up your house as well?”
“I am. There’s a lot of old houses around here that need a bit of loving.”
“That’s true. My grandparents’ place was getting old by the time we moved them out of there.”
“Well, now’s a good time to buy if you’re sticking around. There have been a few people driving up on the weekends, looking at land. The bigger Portland gets, the more it pushes people out. And Sunbury is a good distance for a quiet life but big-city money. Plus once the shopping complex I’ve been contracted for gets built over at Port Welling, there’ll be even more people sniffing around.”
I hand Leon his coffee. “Yeah, but it’ll mean we need more businesses around here to make the place more attractive.”
He grunts and takes a sip of the steaming drink. “Like a gym. It’s a pain in the ass driving over to Port Welling every time I want to work out.”
“A gym.” I rub my chin. “You think there’s enough interest for that?”
“I think people around here would kill for it.”
Well, Leita and her mom’s group are always heading over to Port Welling too. It sets the gears in my head in motion.
“I have to admit, I’ve missed working out too. And I’ve been looking for a way to get out of this diner … maybe I should open a gym?”
Surprise flickers across his features. “That would mean … you’re sticking around?”
“Yeah. Circus and I made a deal that if I help out and play fake boyfriend, Circus forgets about trying to get me to leave.”
“Interesting.” Leon doesn’t look happy.
“What’s that face for?”
“Real talk. I told Circus I would back off you and let him do whatever he needed to because you were leaving. If you guys needed to fuck and move on, then fine. But I knew that sooner or later, you’d be out of town.”
My brain is still stuck on fuck. I shake my head. “Remind me what any of that has to do with you?”
“Circus is my best friend, and I don’t want to see him get hurt again. You have no idea what it was like after … you know. Even after what you did, he wouldn’t say a bad word about you. He refused to report it and told me I didn’t understand. I know now what he was talking about with the whole homophobic family thing, but that still doesn’t make it okay.”
“I know that. And like I told him, I’ll probably never forgive myself. But that doesn’t mean I need you throwing it back in my face every time I see you.”
“And I’m not trying to.” He sets his cup down. “I want him to be happy. If you can do that, fine, stick around, date, whatever you need to do. But if you can’t make him happy—and if you’re never planning to come out, that would be a no—you’ve got to tell him that. Leave him alone, stop playing happy families, and both of you can move on.”
I know Leon is talking sense and that he has Circus’s best interests in mind. I know he’s looking out for his friend and this is him being kind and whatever else, but …
“I’m not saying this to be a dick, but you have to let me work that out in my own time.”
“But—”
“Nope. Sorry, Leon. I know what you’re saying and why, but at the end of the day, people don’t go out of their way to hurt the people they