Freedom (The F-Word #5) - E. Davies Page 0,12

and their names printed on it, confirming they’d gotten to the right place.

Around them, trails snaked around trees, and the parkland felt open and surprisingly quiet. The underbrush was low and scrubby, but shade-loving desert wildflowers were here, too.

It was the perfect chance to really talk to each other. They’d already made the usual boring small talk in the car on the way from the airport, and up in the helicopter. There wasn’t much left in the way of shallow get-to-know-each-other games.

Henry felt safe enough with Jaden to talk about his own past, present, and… well, future.

Jaden was leagues ahead of most guys Henry had tried to talk to already.

Years of transition had taught Henry how to deflect questions—not how to soften the blows that inevitably lay within innocent questions. He would have to absorb some hits from unintended ignorance.

But Jaden was clearly kind and meant no harm, so he was off to a good start. Henry was willing to be patient and take a chance on him.

And it was a beautiful setting to stop and relax. The trees were tall, elegant Ponderosa pines and oaks. The dirt was still the distinctive rusty red of the canyon, but elderberry, broad-leafed shrubs, and tufted grasses filled the spaces between the trees.

“Want some lemonade?” Jaden asked, smiling brightly at Henry. He’d relaxed since they’d entered the woods. With less open space around them, Jaden came alive, his eyes bright and smile eager.

“Yes, thanks,” Henry answered, settling on the picnic basket to accept the drink. Was now a good moment to talk? They had food and drinks to enjoy, and nothing else to distract them.

As if reading his mind, Jaden spoke up. “Can I talk a bit?”

“Of course.”

As they took in the scenery and Henry noted the very different plant life, Jaden talked in that quiet, lilting voice about his past. He’d been in college, like he’d said before. As for the incident that prompted him to leave SoCal and come all the way out to Denver, Henry was sad to hear that he’d privately guessed right.

“I got nearly beaten up for looking a little too gay. The Santa Monica boardwalk, of all places.”

Henry’s eyes widened. He was planning on going there in just a few weeks! Should he tell him? No, definitely not the moment.

Jaden saw him stare. “I know. But…” Jaden trailed off with a miserable shrug. “They didn’t care where they were. They hit my boyfriend instead of me. We broke up a couple weeks later. He moved out of the state, and he’s never talked to me again. You know how in all those videos about gay guys who’ve been attacked, they say they’re stronger now? What if you’re not? What if you just crumbled?”

He wasn’t crying, though his voice wavered. He cast little glances around the clearing and up to Henry as he talked.

Jesus, Henry wished he could have been there to protect and support Jaden. It was suddenly hard to breathe. All he wanted to do now was sweep Jaden into the world’s tightest hug.

And never let anyone harm a hair on his head again.

Henry scooted closer, putting an arm around Jaden’s shoulders. He swallowed back his anger and grief and frustration as he nodded. “And that’s what you feel like you did? Crumble?”

“Well, I stopped leaving the house,” Jaden mumbled. “And I ran away, too.”

“But you’re out here now,” Henry told him, soft and admiring. “Maybe you needed that time to rebuild yourself.”

Jaden nodded. “I’m working on it. I’m getting a service dog really soon, actually.” He brightened up just a little. “I want to be able to go get my own groceries. That’s the goal. But I’m not there yet. Barely keeping it together today.”

“I can tell,” Henry admitted. The strain it was taking on Jaden was obvious. “But you’re doing so damn well.”

“It’s just because I’ve gone through so much panic that my panic button has broken and I’m stuck in is this reality or a dream mode.” Jaden managed a smile.

“But you haven’t turned tail and run away,” Henry urged, wanting Jaden to think better of himself.

Jaden cast him a small smile, then cleared his throat. “And you’re getting out into… the dating world. So that’s something to be proud of.”

“I’m just glad you didn’t immediately go ew, get away from me,” Henry admitted with a breathy laugh to cover up the jolt in his stomach. The self-deprecation had hit a little too close to home.

Sure, Henry was about as okay with himself