“Sure am.” I gripped his hand and gave a friendly shake, my gaze glued to his piercing green eyes. They contrasted to his dark skin so dramatically it was hard to not stare at just how mesmerizing they were.
“Thanks for agreeing to meet,” he said, his broad grin friendly and seeming genuine.
“No worries. You wanna grab a coffee first?”
“That would be great. It’s been a long morning.”
“Let’s get you caffeinated then,” I said with a chuckle, heading to the kitchenette out back. “Grab a bottle of water from the fridge too.” I indicated in the direction of the small fridge. “One of these pod things okay?”
“Sure. A little more upscale than a heaped scoop of the generic stuff I’m used to.”
Tallis’s laughter was light, nice; he was also easy on the eyes. Just the thought of that was a reminder of how long it had been since I got myself out there. It had been a while since I’d been to Brissie. The Zone was my not-so-usual haunt, since it had been over a year. Considering my appreciation of the handsome man casting what I thought was an interested glance my way, it was in my best interest to take a visit to the city sooner rather than later.
After our coffees were poured, we took a seat, generally shooting the shit before we got down to business. After thirty minutes of chatting and another two hours of talking mower models and stock, Tallis said, “Perhaps one night you want to head a little further south and join my boyfriend and me for a beer.” While his friendly smile was still fixed in place, I didn’t miss how he eyed me, perhaps waiting for a reaction at the mention of his boyfriend and making sure he’d read me right.
I grinned immediately, right along with my brows shooting high. “Yeah, that sounds great,” I replied, surprised by his offer.
His shoulders relaxed. “Sounds good. There’s a decent LGBTQ bar we tend to go to. I’ll invite a couple of friends too. Are you dating anyone?”
I shook my head. “Nope.”
A mischievous smile appeared when he spoke. “In that case, I’ll make sure at least a couple are single.”
I snorted. “Uhm, okay. It’ll just be good to hang out and great to check out a new bar.” Was it crazy that the thought of hooking up made my stomach swirl with unease? I couldn’t even fool myself about the reason why that was, either. Ryan bloody Broadwater filled my thoughts far too often.
“Sounds good. I’ve got your number, so we’ll make plans soon.” He left with a friendly handshake.
I grinned after him, stoked that less than an hour away, I had a new connection and the possibility of a fun night out. As much as I loved my town, there wasn’t much happening in terms of a queer community. While I was out and didn’t keep my sexuality a secret, I expected many steadfast locals would be happy not to be reminded of the fact either.
A night out, maybe even a night away from being a dependable uncle, would do me a world of good. It may even help get my mind off the man I’d never really let go.
CHAPTER4
RYAN
END OF FEBRUARY
It waseasy to lose track of the day of the week, but having no idea which city we were staying in was a given. It was so good to be back on the court and well into the season. The days, the games, the training all blurred into one. My focus was fixed on the team, the players; there was barely time to shit, let alone think about anything else.
Like every year at this time, I felt more relaxed and together, completely in my element.
Almost halfway through the season, and our team had suffered too many injuries to be comfortable. It was to the point where everyone was stressed to hell and Coach was pushing us hard. There was a challenging battle to come for a playoff spot, and honestly, with Higgins and McGuire out, the whole team was feeling despondent.
That hadn’t impacted on the satisfaction I experienced every time I stepped onto the court, though.
“Just get your ass to Lucas’s, no excuses,” Jayden called out before he left the change room. He’d been giving me shit for ages about not joining him and a bunch of the other players for downtime drinks. My excuses were wearing thin, and it was clear he wasn’t going to let me keep giving him and everyone else the brush-off. It wasn’t like I didn’t love hanging out with the guys. I seriously did. But it was the whole drama of fending off women or dealing with digs from my team about me needing to get laid.
It was hard to believe that as a teenager, I’d lapped up attention. These days, I was all about keeping my personal life—and absolute lack of it—completely private.
“I’ll be right behind you,” I hollered in defeat. It wasn’t the worse thing to be doing after a game, especially as practice tomorrow wasn’t till the afternoon, and our next game wasn’t for another three days.
The players on my team were good guys. When I was traded to the Minnesota Eagles, it had been the right call, even though the team was in the infancy of a big overhaul three years back. Back then, we were far from a championship team, but we were definitely heading in the right direction three years in, despite the smattering of injuries. And I liked to think I played some part in the turn.
But injuries, bad games, as well as shit-hot ones, were just part of the journey. I’d discovered that early in college and had it reaffirmed when I was lucky enough to be drafted. My focus had been absolute and unwavering. Time and time again, that had been my excuse for the distance I’d put between me and home, and there was some truth to it. Had I stayed in touch, been more invested in my family and Nate, there wasn’t a chance I could have lasted so long in the States, even in pursuit of my dream job.
That first year in college, I’d made myself sick with homesickness and loneliness. While I’d covered up, played the role of happy, carefree, put-together jock, nothing could have been farther from the truth. By my second year, I’d known in my gut the only way to make a go of it was to all but cut ties. It was shit and wrong and made me feel sick to my stomach even today thinking about it. But I’d done it, believing it was the only way to survive, and for the most part, it had worked.
I cut off my engine in the parking lot of Lucas’s, a small bar not too far from the court. It was a local hangout for the team; it meant everyone was usually left alone. The security helped with that, for sure.
