In Strange Woods - Claire Cray Page 0,85

own face. “How are you?”

“Good.” Hunter’s gaze wandered over his shoulders, chest, arms and hands before settling back on his face. “You?”

“Good.” James rotated his coffee cup between his hands. “Spent the day taking care of business with Sully. Beau’s free now. So am I, for the most part.”

“That’s awesome.” Hunter was still smiling a little. “I was thinking about you earlier.”

“I thought about you, too. Actually, I was listening to Nirvana.” They both laughed, but James insisted, “You remind me of Kurt Cobain. Well, now he reminds me of you.”

“That’s flattering.” Hunter seemed taken aback, and then said, “You remind me of James Dean.”

“Come on,” James said wryly. “We don’t look alike at all.”

“I know.” Hunter shrugged with a small, appreciative smile. “But you’re cool.”

Their eyes held for a second, and then the waitress arrived to take their orders.

They talked easily throughout the meal. Now that his own drama was settling down, James was dying to know everything about Hunter. But he found himself amazed once again by how well they seemed to know each other already. Their conversations had been so intimate from the beginning that it felt perfectly natural when Hunter confided that he’d ignored a call from his family earlier in the day, and then had blocked all of their numbers.

“Good for you,” James said, moved by the thought of how hard it would be to give up on being loved by your family. “You’re right not to put up with it. You deserve so much more.”

Hunter smiled ruefully and changed the subject. “So, how long you think you’ll stick around this time?”

“Uh…” Forever, buddy. “Good question.” James looked down, straightening his silverware on the napkin and wondering what it meant that Hunter kept asking about his plans.

James had never been a patient person, nor was he often unsure of himself. He wasn’t slow to speak his thoughts or act on his feelings. He wasn’t scared of new ideas or big decisions. When he wanted something, he went for it. And what he wanted now was to live here in Creek County and spend his time with Hunter and Beau.

But now wasn’t the time to be reckless. This was too important. This time he had to be strategic, deliberate, serious. This time he had to be sure he was getting it right. Because there wasn’t going to be another Hunter.

“Hey, Hunter.” Smooth.

“Hey, James.”

“Hypothetically speaking.” James paused. “If I lived here…”

Hunter ate another French fry, slowly raising his eyebrows as he waited for James to continue.

“Let’s just say I live here now.” James was gambling on his understanding that Hunter was a man who did need to think things through. “And let’s say I want to see you all the time.”

Hunter blinked in surprise, and then exhaled a laugh that sounded almost alarmed.

“What would it be like to date another man here?” James asked, studying him openly. “Would you ever do it?”

“I…” Hunter still looked disarmed, and for a second James thought he’d overdone it. But then the bewilderment in those brown eyes shifted toward something more contemplative, cautious, and his shoulders rose in a slow shrug. “Well, yeah.”

“You would?” James started to grin, but caught himself. Play it cool. “All right, anyway. Let’s say I live here now, and I want to see you all the time. And hypothetically, I’m not a disaster.”

Hunter was now studying him closely. “Okay,” he said at length. “Hypothetically, where exactly do you live?”

Aha. Hunter was playing along. That was good. “Here in Brooks,” James answered easily. “In a house where I can see the ocean. Obviously, I spend a lot of time in Woodstock.”

“That right?” The answer seemed to surprise Hunter, then intrigue him. “What about work?”

“Photography?” James was really starting to enjoy this exercise. He shrugged. “Same as before. I still travel when I need to. Maybe not as much, though.” His eyes wandered over the beautifully lit old diner, and out to the melancholy harbor. “There’s enough for me right here.”

Hunter was now staring at him in fascination. The waitress returned and took their plates away.

“I know you’re not the kind of person to just jump into things,” James said when she was gone. “Actually, neither am I, when it comes to people. I know I’m at a weird time in my life right now, and maybe you are, too. But we could take it slow. I think we…we might be a good team.”

A fond, tender expression crossed Hunter’s brow, and he gave a small, barely perceptible nod.

“Hypothetically,”