Page 24 of I Do, or Dye Trying

“Is everything else okay? Are you having any problems in town?” I asked.

“You mean besides Mrs. Haskerville trying to set me up with her daughter?” Emory let out a soft sigh. “I broke the news to her gently.”

“How’d she take it?” I asked with a smile

“Pretty well. Mrs. Haskerville said she should’ve known by how well-decorated and clean my house was when she brought over cookies to welcome me to the neighborhood. I never get tired of hearing that people think all gay men know how to decorate or keep things tidy. River couldn’t match a pillow to a sofa if he was paid and never had I seen a bigger slob.” He let out a broken sigh before he said, “I’d give anything to trip over one of his shoes again.”

“I wish you could have that too, Emory,” I told him.

“Thanks, Gabe.” We were almost home before he cleared his throat and spoke again. “Have you heard from Jonathon Silver lately?”

His question shocked me because I knew that Jonathon was the one person he didn’t want to discuss. He’d had a vision of the two of them, and although he didn’t go into great detail, I was sure it was intimate. Since then, he cut his hair and made certain that Silver wouldn’t be at our house before he accepted an invitation. Silver had only been there the one time they’d met, and I didn’t expect him to turn up again. “No, why do you ask?”

“I feel like there’s something wrong,” Emory answered.

“Like he’s in danger?” I probed.

“No, that’s not the vibe I get. It’s more like loneliness,” Emory told me. “I think he could use a friend.”

I thought back to what Josh said about Emory’s purpose for moving to Blissville; he said it was because of Silver, not me. Between the vision Emory had of Silver and the connection they shared, I was starting to agree with him. I wasn’t about to play matchmaker like my guy though. “I’ll give him a call and check on him.”

“Thanks,” Emory said before he turned up the sidewalk to his front porch.

“See you tomorrow,” I said, making sure he knew we expected his attendance at the barbecue.

“Yeah, okay,” he said with a sigh that made me smile.

Buddy and I headed home to find that our apartment above the salon was empty. The music coming from the attic let me know where I could find my man. I gave Buddy a treat then filled his water bowl before I went upstairs.

Josh was lost in the music and didn’t know I was there. I happily watched him spin around to Pink’s “Try” so naturally that it seemed like the pole was an extension of him. I was always caught up in his spell no matter what he was doing, and I’d never choose for it to be any other way. When the song ended, I clapped softly.

“I didn’t hear you come back,” he said breathlessly. “You boys have a good walk?”

I rose from the chair and went to him. Later, I’d tell him about my run-in with Emory but not until after I got my most pressing thoughts out in the open. “You were right,” I said.

“No, I wasn’t,” Josh replied. “I acted like you’re trying to bethe manand own me and that’s not what you were trying to do.”

“You tried to share with me your most treasured possession, and I resisted. I was wrong, Sunshine. Let’s talk to your banker next week and figure out a way to make this work so that we only have one mortgage and we jointly own both properties. It’s not yours and mine; it’s ours. All of it.”

“Yes, that’s what I meant, but I should’ve worded it better,” Josh said softly as the tension faded from him. He wrapped his arms around me and pressed his forehead into my shoulder. “I’m sorry that I upset you so much that you needed to leave. Thank you for coming back.”

I tipped his chin up so that he was looking in my eyes. “Never doubt it,” I told him. “Especially when you’re about to bake pies.” His laughter warmed my heart and was happy that our argument was over.

“There’s something else I want to talk about, but I don’t want to ruin this happy vibe we have working right now.” Josh bit his lips nervously while he looked down at his hand that sported the ring I gave him.

“You can tell me anything,” I replied, even though I knew for a fact I was going to hate the words that came out of his mouth next. I listened patiently as he explained that he wanted us to remove our rings until our wedding day. I bit down my frustrated response because I didn’t want to undo the progress we made that night.

“That pulsing vein on your forehead tells me how much you hate the idea,” Josh said. “Can I ask exactly why it bothers you?”

“Because I want the world to know that you’re mine,” I told him, sounding like a jealous knuckle dragger.

“I’m already yours and nothing will change that,” Josh said patiently. “I just want our rings to be a symbol of that special day.”

I blew out a frustrated sigh and nodded my head. I thought he had a valid point, even though I hated the thought of him taking off his ring. “Fine, but I’ll slap a collar on your neck if I start seeing the dudes sniffing around outside our door.” My remark eased the tension and I was rewarded with a sweet kiss.

“It better be shiny and pretty,” Josh replied.

“Black leather with metal spikes,” I countered.