Page 12 of All Mine (The All Mine #1)

Etienne

Etienne and Fox gathered round their usual high table in the far corner of The Bolthole.

Fox had swapped his soft flannel checked shirt of the day for a different flannel checked shirt and wore it open over a white T and jeans.

His silver hair stood up in a messy side quiff, his grey and black speckled stubble completing the picture.

He lifted a bottle of beer to his mouth and as he lowered it, smiled unselfconsciously at a passing blonde, who fell off her heel as a result and nearly died of embarrassment.

The Fox Effect. Women loved him. Especially when they realised the silver god of a man was the softest and most sentimental guy.

They’d fall at his feet and offer to have his babies if he didn’t already have two of his own.

They’d offer to step in as stepmum if he so much as looked in their direction.

But Fox would just smile and make polite chat, never going further than that.

He wasn’t interested in the slightest. He just wanted a night out with the big boys, before he went home again to his little ones.

Etienne had on a long-sleeved T-shirt that he liked the fit of, almost as much as the female population of Honeybridge did.

He knew his jeans fit his butt with precision and he was aware of the complimentary glances coming his way, but his mood was still lower than normal.

Walker was trying his best to solve this by buying another round of beers.

‘Bar’s busy,’ he said, appearing through the crowd and placing a tray containing six bottles of beer on the table. ‘So I bought doubles.’

Everyone lifted a bottle and sank a cold mouthful.

‘So, deadline over then, Fox?’ Walker shifted onto the stool beside him. His voice was a soft Scottish burr. ‘What you gonna do now?’

‘Hopefully have a couple of weeks off with the boys. This game’s been going on for months.’

‘How do you explain to them that playing computer games is your job?’ Etienne said.

‘I do have to design them first before I can play them, you know. And playing them is only to check that everything works. No glitches.’

‘So how many times have you played this one?’

Fox blew out his breath.

‘I’ve lost count. But I didn’t sleep at all Tuesday night so that I could get to the final level.’

‘Such dedication.’ Walker laughed. ‘I didn’t sleep either on Tuesday night, but it was more to do with saving people trapped in a rolled bus than playing on my computer.’

‘Yeah, yeah. We know you’re amazing. . .’

‘Firefighters are everyday heroes, you know,’ Walker announced proudly, as if this was news.

‘It’s only because everyone wants to see your hose,’ Fox said.

‘Or climb your pole,’ Etienne added.

‘Fuck off. At least my pole’s working,’ Walker said good-naturedly.

Etienne thought about retaliating but realised he hadn’t thought about his cock once all night, even when he was surrounded by gorgeous women. Maybe he really was broken.

‘Seriously, though,’ Fox said. ‘I’ve got a good feeling about this game. I think it could be popular.’ He lifted his beer and they all cheersed.

‘When will you hear?’

‘The investors’ meeting is next month. Gives them time to personally play it and get feedback from user groups.’

‘Then what?’

‘They’ll either produce it or they won’t, or they might ask for some changes or extensions. Have to wait and see. And spend some time with the hooligans until then.’

‘You could dedicate some time to getting laid too, you know,’ Walker suggested.

‘The only laying I’m going to be doing is down– for long naps when the kids are at school and lie-ins on Sundays to watch cartoons with them in bed.’

‘Seriously, one day someone will catch your eye again.’

‘And I’ll have to hope my body can keep up.

’ Fox seemed completely happy with his lot.

He’d come a long way from the first time Etienne met him, sitting at the corner table of The Bistro with a toddler in a high chair and a baby in a sling on his chest. He was trying to feed chopped-up Poulet Breton to the oldest as he banged a spoon repeatedly on the table, and balance a bottle under his chin to keep in direct contact with the baby’s crying mouth, all the while Fox’s own plate of boeuf bourguignon went cold and congealed.

‘Shall I feed you while you feed them?’ Etienne had joked, but the look of absolute despair on Fox’s face made him pull out a chair and take over the feeding of a very vocal two-year-old.

‘Thanks. You’re a lifesaver,’ Fox had said.

Fox’s wife had died the week before. Reggie was old enough to notice, George just clung to his daddy instead.

Now, four years later, Fox had hit his stride with the boys. His career was on the up, with his ‘FoxFun’ gaming designs gaining attention. He was a hot single daddy who had everything except time to focus on himself.

‘What about your sex drive then?’ Walker nudged Etienne. ‘Has it resurfaced?’

‘Not as yet,’ Etienne acknowledged. ‘Last brief appearance was when I licked Isabella’s arm.’

‘Whose?’ Walker said.

‘Isabella. The new restaurant owner.’

‘So, it worked for her then. All is not lost.’

Etienne swigged from his bottle and allowed himself to think of her. That gorgeous olive skin. The small freckle beside her mouth when she opened it in surprise.

‘Maybe you’re stressed. That can do it,’ Walker said.

Etienne’s train of thought was interrupted by the vibration of his phone against his leg.

He tugged it free of his pocket but the message was from his service provider, an update on his plan.

He tossed it on the table in frustration and looked up to see both men watching him closely.

‘What’s that phone ever done to you?’ Walker frowned.

‘Nothing.’ Etienne sighed and rubbed a hand over his face. ‘I’m waiting to hear from someone.’

‘Who?’

‘Why?’ Four elbows hit the table as the two men leaned in.

Etienne looked between them both for a long second before shaking his head.

‘My brother.’

Fox sat up straighter on his stool, and Walker cocked his head.

‘In fact, my twin.’

Fox and Walker glanced at each other, checking whether the other knew. By the confusion on each other’s faces, it was clear that it was new news to them both.

‘Why have we never heard about him before?’ Walker said, who Etienne knew had an older sister living in the Highlands.

‘Where have you been hiding him all these years?’ Fox said, who Etienne knew had a younger sister living in Barcelona.

‘It’s not so much that I’ve been hiding him,’ he said with a sigh. ‘It’s more that we’re not close any more. My fault entirely.’

‘So why’s it bothering you now?’ Walker said.

‘It’s complicated.’ Etienne swigged his beer.

The other two men both waited.

‘I fucked up in the past. Long ago. Before I moved here.’ He shut his eyes briefly against the flash of memory, Kira in his arms, nothing else mattering.

‘Can you put it right now?’

Etienne shook his head angrily. ‘No. Like I said, I fucked up. He left. In fact, he ran away. It was dangerous for him to stay. All because of me.’

Walker nodded. ‘Like you said, sounds complicated.’

‘But he got back in touch last week. A single message. And now he’s not answering again.’ He banged the table.

Fox, the patron saint of patience due to living with two demanding bosses under his roof day and night, nodded sagely. ‘If he’s contacted you once, he’ll do it again. And then you can fix it.’

Etienne searched Fox’s kind eyes and hoped to God he was right.

Walker nodded along. ‘Sounds like this could also be the problem with your penis.’

Etienne looked into his laughing eyes and gave him a swift dead arm.

The band ran onto the stage and put an end to their banter.