Page 3 of Forgiven

“You don’t know Jared,” Ezra said. “You’ve probably got more in common than you think.”

Like feeling like a stranger.

Callum sighed. “It doesn’t matter whether it’s true or not, it’s how I feel.”

“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have put either of you on the spot like that.”

Callum shrugged. “It’s okay. You meant well.”

“You should think about asking for a job at the club.”

“I can’t.”

“Why?”

“Youknowwhy. I’m surprised you let me stay with you.” His throat was tight, his voice strained. “Aside from the fact that I’ll get disowned if I do, it wouldn’t be right. Not after what Dad did.”

“You’re not your dad, Cal. No one is going to blame you for what he did.”

“Are you sure about that? I mean, you didn’t even tell me you were gay and…well… Why keep it from me unless you were worried I’m just likehim?” He gritted his teeth.

Ezra moved to the other side of the reception desk. “I made a bad call, Callum. That’s on me, not you.” He rubbed the back of his neck. “Look, I’ve got no right to ask you to keep secrets from your mum. So, if you feel you need to tell her—”

Callum shook his head. “I’m not going to out you. What kind of a jerk do you think I am?”

“I don’t think you’re a jerk at all.”

Callum let out a sharp cough. From where he was standing, that wasn’t true. But he also didn’t want to make an enemy of the one and only person who was still even partially on his side. Fuck knewwhyEzra was giving him any kind of a chance, but he wasn’t going to ruin it.

He closed the small distance between them and hugged his uncle. “I love you.” He let go and stepped back. “I’m ratty because I didn’t get the job. Thanks for trusting me.”

“You’ll find something,” Ezra said confidently. “You know you can stay with me for as long as it takes to get back on your feet.”

“I know. Thanks.”

“And don’t rule out the Heaven and Hell Club.”

“Mum would hate me if I even stepped foot in the place.”

“Maybe, but you moved out of her house to start over. What’s the point if you’re going to let her bigoted ideas keep you shackled?”

“She’s my mum,” Callum said weakly. “I don’t want her to hate me.” It was bad enough that she was disappointed in him. “If I can sort myself out, and prove to her that I’m not a total loser, things might get better between us.”

Ezra’s eyes narrowed for the briefest of seconds. “At least think about it.”

“I will.”

Ezra squeezed his shoulder. “I’m here until six. Do you have any more interviews lined up today?”

“No. I thought I’d go back to your place and do a few more online applications.”

“That’s the spirit. Don’t give up.”

Callumwasclose to giving up. He’d screwed his life up and now he was paying the price, but at least he was owning the fact that his current predicament was his own fault. He could have easily blamed his dad, or even his mum, and expected everyone to give him sympathy, but that would have been a total cop-out.

“Whatever you decide about the club, you could do a lot worse than making friends with Jared,” Ezra advised. “He’s had a really rough time of it too. I think you’d get along.”

Callum nodded, if only to keep Ezra happy. No matter how nice Jared was, Callum doubted he’d want to know him once he found out what his dad was in jail for. Even if Jared could look past Callum’s dad’s crime, would he be able to look past the long list of dangerously stupid things that had landed him in a juvenile detention centre? If he were Jared, he’d run a mile. Sometimes, he wished he could run away from his own life, but even moving to the other side of the country couldn’t help him escape the long reaching shadow of his past.