Page 39 of Inevitable
“Nobody with a brain would ever in a million years entrust a kid in my care. I can barely take care of myself.”
He was not going to address the marriage part. There was no point in giving voice to those secret desires that resided somewhere in the back of his mind, hidden away from the light of day.
“You’re selling yourself short,” Drew said quietly. “You seem to be doing better than a lot of people.”
“I’m bumming in your guest room, and all my belongings fit into a duffel. Yeah, I’m a blinding beacon of success.”
“It always astounded me how we, as a society, measure success,” Drew said, ignoring Ezra’s sarcastic comment as he passed the vegetables to him. “The general consensus seems to be that nothing less than a billionaire businessman with a penthouse and a private jet qualifies. But I always wondered if maybe we’re doing it wrong. Maybe we shouldn’t equate wealth with success. Maybe we should consider other factors.”
“Such as?”
“Happiness. Whether or not you’re a good person who doesn’t actively harm others for their own gain.” Drew glanced at Ezra. “What’s that smile about?”
Ezra shook his head. “I never realized you were such an idealist.”
“I have to balance all those soul-sucking lawyer qualities.”
“You’re not that bad.”
The smile Drew sent his way was seasoned with so much affection that Ezra found it impossible to hold his gaze.
Drew seemed to sense his unease, though, so for the rest of the dinner, they chatted about topics that were far less heavy.
The only thing that ruined the mood at the table was the fact that, as was becoming a custom already, Bas never came home.
13
Bas stopped dead in the hallway, in front of Ezra’s doorway, when he saw Ezra on the bed. He looked startled for some reason. And a bit guilty. And like he was ready to escape. Ezra had hardly seen Bas between Christmas and New Year’s, so he drank him in greedily.
“I just came home to change my clothes. What are you doing here this early?” Bas asked as he slowly walked into the room and stopped next to the bed.
Ezra turned his head to the side and winced as a stabbing pain went through his temple.
“Headache,” he muttered, squeezing his eyes shut.
The man froze.
“Are you okay?”
“I will be. Just need a moment.”
He could feel Bas’s eyes on him.
“How long have you been here?”
Ezra cracked one eye open and looked at Bas.
“What time is it?”
Bas pulled out his phone and looked at the screen. “A little after eleven.”
“Then about twenty minutes or so.”
The next couple of minutes passed in silence. The only sound in the room was Bas’s clothes rustling as he moved around.
“What can I do?” he asked. “We have ibuprofen. Did you find the medicine cabinet?”
“I’m allergic,” Ezra muttered. “Just gotta tough it out. It’s not a big deal. Unpleasant, but I’ll survive. Lying still helps.”
