Page 24 of Leather and Longing (Island Tales #3)

Adam’s lips pinched together for a second. He took a breath and nodded, settling back into his chair. “Okay, where’s this crab tart you were teasing me about this morning?”

“Don’t you want to hear what else is on the menu?” Paul asked him.

Adam shook his head. “You had me at the tart.” He smiled, all sign of nerves fled.

Taylor got up. “I’ll go order the food. We can sort out payment later, all right?”

Paul nodded and ordered a prawn salad, while David chose the crab version. Taylor hurried off to order.

“How long have you lived in the UK?” Adam asked David, before feeling across the table for his glass.

“A couple of years now, ever since I came here one September and met Taylor. Of course, it took a whole year to get through the mess that was immigration, but once that was over, I put a ring on his finger in double quick time.”

“Are you a UK citizen now?”

“Not yet. I have to have been working over here for three years before that can happen, but yeah, I wanna make the UK my permanent home.” David smiled. “Like geography matters. Wherever Taylor is, that’s home.”

Paul loved that.

“I hope you don’t mind me asking a personal question, but what’s the age difference between you?” Adam asked.

David shrugged, clearly not minding the question in the least, but it surprised the hell out of Paul. “Twenty years. I’m forty-eight, in case you’re interested. Personally, I don’t think it matters. Age is just a number in my book. What’s important is that we love each other.”

“I happen to agree. Besides, it’s no one’s business but yours.”

David snorted. “Hah. You should’ve seen the faces of some of my relatives back in the States when I took Taylor over there for his first visit to New York. They had me pegged as some kind of dirty old man. For God’s sake, he was twenty-six when we met. I wasn’t exactly robbing a cradle, right?”

Adam laughed. “I can imagine you getting similar looks over here, unless the British are better at biting their tongues?”

David let rip with a belly laugh. “Fuck, no. And the island isn’t known for its forward thinking. Hell, most of the population is over the age of retirement. Can you imagine the looks we get from some of those old folks? A gay married couple, with me at my age?”

Taylor re-joined them, sliding along the bench to lean against David’s shoulder. “You slagging off my island again?” He grinned and kissed David’s cheek.

David put his arm around his husband and pulled him close. He addressed Adam. “Any time you wanna come chat, Adam, you’re welcome to knock on my door, y’hear? We live here in the bay. Paul’ll show ya.”

“I’d like that.” There was no mistaking the expression of genuine interest on Adam’s face.

This is working out better than I’d expected.

“By the way,” Taylor said, “I got a text from Shane and the gang while I was ordering lunch. They’re gonna meet us there.”

“Okay.” Paul noticed Adam’s lips twitching, his head tilted to one side, eyebrows lifted. He waited for his boss to say something, but nothing was forthcoming.

Paul grinned to himself. He couldn’t wait.

The food arrived and all talk ceased for a while. The look of rapture on Adam’s face after taking that first bite of warm crab tart and garlic mayonnaise was a sight to behold. Paul didn’t stop smiling the whole way through lunch as he watched Adam’s enjoyment.

When every last trace of food had disappeared from their plates, Adam leaned back with a contented sigh.

“That was delicious. I think eating it outdoors where all you can smell is the sea and all you can hear are the waves and the seagulls makes it taste even better.” He felt for Paul’s arm and patted it. “We need to do this again.”

Paul wasn’t sure what he’d expected to hear—an apology? A vote of thanks?—but after the last few days, anything was an improvement. He’d take what was offered.

“Do you often come down here to write?” Adam asked David.

He smiled. “Yeah. Funny thing is, I love the sound of the waves, but I can dial out people’s voices. And it has its moments. One time I met two guys who’d read the book I wrote that was set here in Steephill Cove.”

“It was David’s wedding present to me,” Taylor said with a beaming smile. “Our story immortalized in paperback, telling how he came to stay in the Lighthouse.”

David squeezed Taylor’s hand. “So these guys read it, Googled the cove, found out it was a real place, and came here on vacation.”

“They were thrilled to meet you.” Taylor kissed David’s cheek.

Adam nudged Paul with his elbow. “I never got this sort of reaction with my books,” he admitted quietly. There was an air of sadness about him. “I only got emails from political history professors and their students. Quite boring in comparison.”

“But you did get a reaction,” Paul insisted. “There are people out there who appreciate your books. You’ve made a living from it. Do you want to hazard a guess how many writers out there can’t exist on what they make from their writing?”

Adam became quiet for a moment, his face tight. He raised his chin and turned toward Paul. “You always seem to know exactly what to say.”

“Meeting readers is a rare thing for me,” David admitted.

“I don’t attend conventions or book signings.

No one knows I’m James Blanchette, and I don’t want them to, because a gay James Blanchette might not go down so well.

I’ve only been writing as myself for a couple years so far, and that was my first Oh My God moment.

” He cleared his throat. “Please tell me you’re not done writing, Adam. Are you going to write more books?”

Paul stilled, his gaze on Adam’s face.

Adam’s hand trembled slightly as he drank some of his water.

“That’s the plan. No idea when that might be, but at least I’m thinking about it.

” He drained his glass. “So, Paul, when are you going to tell me what else you’ve got planned for the rest of my grand day out?

” He managed a smile. “Because if lunch is anything to go by, you’re off to a great start. ”

Paul got the message. Change the subject.

“Nope, it’s still a secret. You’ll have to wait until we get there.”

Adam straightened. “Get where? Where are we going?”

Paul chuckled. “Uh-uh. First things first, you have to climb back up the hill. That’ll work off a few calories.

” He picked up the backpack that contained Adam’s light jacket.

“Let me go pay for lunch, and then we can leave.” He glanced at Taylor and David.

“You two going to come with us or get there under your own steam?”

“We’ll meet you there,” David told him. “I need to change my clothes first. And forget about paying. Lunch is on me. My treat.” He smiled.

“Are you sure?” Adam asked him.

“God, you British,” he groused good-naturedly. “It’s only a lunch, for Christ’s sake. You can return the favour another day, okay?”

“You’re on.” Adam’s smile was more relaxed.

“Thank God for that,” David said with a low growl. “Now get going, you two. You’ve got a hill to climb.” His eyes sparkled. “See ya later.”

Adam pushed back his chair and stood. “You know, I’m dying to know what this is all about.”

“You’ll have to wait. Not long now and all will be revealed.

” Paul led him along the walkway, and then they left the café, Paul raising his hand to wave at Richard as they passed.

He paused at the foot of the path. “I don’t know about you, but I find it’s always worse going up this bloody hill than coming down it. And after eating all that food, too.”

Adam lifted his hand to grasp Paul’s arm. “We’ll take it slow.” He grinned. “You do your best to keep up with the dinosaur, all right?” Before Paul could retaliate, Adam had started up the path, cane moving in its slow arc in front of him, and in an unmistakable good mood.

Paul followed, unable to keep the smile off his face, delighted by Adam’s unexpected surge of confidence.

This is gonna be so good.