Page 40 of Best Supporting Actor

Itwasn’tfair, but the fact was, for the first time in his life, Tag was a beneficiary of that unfairness, if an indirect one, and he wasn’t sure what to make of that. There was much made of lucky breaks in the theatre world, and maybe that was how he should think about it. He’d struggled to land paid work since he’d left drama school and was not in a position, when he finally got an opportunity, to look a gift horse in the mouth.

“Good morning,” a new voice said, interrupting Tag’s reverie.

Jay.

Tag turned to see Jay standing beside him, reaching for the coffee jug to refill his mug. He wore jeans today, a faded blue sweatshirt with the sleeves rolled up, and those horn-rimmed glasses Tag had seen for the first time yesterday and that made him look like a sexy professor. Jay was clean-shaven too—Skye Jäger’s trademark facial hair was out, and Siegfried Sassoon’s smooth jaw was in. He’d need a haircut before opening night, though, Tag mused. It was too long for an officer, the thick, dark fringe falling into his eyes.

Jay set down the coffee jug and turned to face Tag and Freddie, mug in hand. He gave a slightly lopsided smile, and Tag’s stomach twisted. Why did he have to be so fuckinghandsome? So perfect, with his golden skin and that shiny, dark hair. Tag could still remember the feel of it between his fingers, slippery like silk. And his skin, so smooth and warm...

Tag swallowed back a groan at the memory and tried to make his features expressionless. To look like a normal person. It must be working because Jay didn’t give him a second glance, just lifted his mug to take a slurp of coffee, only to quickly grimace.

“Christ, that’s even worse than yesterday’s brew,” he said. “Thank God I’ve already had a decent coffee today.”

“Did you buy one on the way?” Freddie asked. “Yourotter. You should have got me one while you were at it. I’dkillfor a cappuccino right now.”

Jay laughed. “Calm down. I had my coffee at home, sitting at my little breakfast table, looking out over the river. Thankfully, my apartment has a good coffee machine. Just as well as I’d never be able to get going in the mornings otherwise.”

“Lucky you,” Freddie said enviously. “What kind? Is it one of those pod machines?”

“No, it’s actually a really fancy Gaggia one. It has one of those proper espresso drip things and the pipe for steaming milk.”

“Oooh!” Freddie said, impressed. She elbowed Tag. “Do you hear that? We should go round to Jay’s, and you can make us all a proper cappuccino.” She glanced at Jay and added, “Tag’s a professional barista.”

Tag’s face heated. Suddenly, he wished he hadn’t confided that to Freddie. The contrast was too painful: Jay was staying in a fancy riverside apartment complete with a top-of-the-range Gaggia machine. The nearest Tag got to one of those was when he was working a shift at City Beans.

And didn’t that just fucking say it all about the yawning gulf between him and Jay?

“Uh, yes, I know,” Jay said, offering an awkward smile. “Maybe you could give me some tips? I don’t think I’m heating the milk right.”

Tag’s smile felt tight and unfriendly. “Sorry,” he said. “I can’t be giving away my trade secrets to helpless rich dudes. Not when I’ll be needing my old job back when this is over.”

“Oh,” Jay said. He gave a weak, unhappy laugh. “Yeah, um, right.” He dropped his gaze to his coffee, staring into the black depths as though he might find some answer in there.

Tag looked quickly away, only to catch Freddie eyeing him with blatant interest, her head tilted to one side. It was unnerving, and he was glad when Henry clapped his hands and moved towards the table, saying loudly, “All right, people, let’s get started.”

CHAPTERTEN

Jay

As much as he hated to admit that Dame Cordelia was right, after two and a half weeks in the rehearsal room, Jay had to concede that he was enjoying himself. Henry’s deep-dive into character discovery was a luxury you didn’t often get in television work, at least not in the projects Jay shoehorned in betweenLeechesseasons. And of course he’d been playing Skye for years and knew him inside out, so no need for this level of exploration there.

This process was a change, and he was relishing the intellectual challenge of getting to grips with Sassoon’s spiky, contradictory character, discovering him in tandem with Tag’s discovery of Owen.

Tag…

Jay glanced surreptitiously across the rehearsal space to where Tag sat on the floor, leaning against the wall, head tipped back and eyes closed while they all took a break. As usual, Jay’s stomach gave a mortifying little flutter at the sight of his handsome, boyish face and tousled black hair. Christ, and that beautifully sculpted body, poorly hidden beneath faded jeans and an old t-shirt…

If only he could forget the night they’d shared, but every moment of it was burned into his memory—Tag’s touch, his taste, his unexpected tenderness. The only part starting to fade was the sting of Tag’s angry words before he’d left Jay’s room. In truth, neither of them had covered themselves in glory during that unpleasant scene—Jay cringed when he remembered suggesting Tag charged by the hour.

Christ, what an arse.

Anyway, the Tag he’d got to know over the last couple of weeks was different from the mercurial, prickly himbo who’d stormed out of his hotel room back in February. This Tag was bright, funny, and kind-hearted. Sure, he carried a chip the size of East London on his shoulder, but deep down, he was a very likeable guy. And Jay did like him. A lot. So much so that it was becoming a problem. Try as he might, Jay couldn’t seem to master the intense attraction to Tag he’d felt from the very first moment they met.

If anything, it was getting worse.

Tag didn’t seem to have any such problem with regard to Jay, however. His whole attention was on the play, and he was throwing himself into the rehearsal process with infectious abandon. Unapologetically himself, Tag laid himself wide open, day after day, in ways Jay found both impressive and terrifying. It was certainly part of why Jay was enjoying himself so much; working with a focused, collaborative, and energetic actor like Tag was a joy. Even when Jay found himself plagued by a ridiculous crush that was becoming increasingly hard to hide.

“Looks like someone’s sleepy,” Rafe said, glancing at Tag as he strolled towards Jay. In a louder voice, he added, “Too many late nights, Tag?”