Page 72 of Mr. Perfect

He and his mom had discussed it several times during their journey of healing and growth. Kelly’s ideas about sex and intimacy had gotten so warped over the years that she’d started seeing a therapist. Maybe it was an odd conversation for a mother and son to have, but Felix respected Kelly more for her honesty.

“I know, Ace.”

Felix’s eyes were tired and gritty, but he wasn’t ready to wave a white flag yet. “What happened next?”

“The Monday after my club visit, my station manager called me into his office. He informed me there had been numerous sexual harassment complaints filed against me.”

“What? The fucker couldn’t have been a little more creative?” Felix asked.

Jude snorted. “It is a little funny now that you bring it up.”

Felix tried to fight off a yawn but failed. “I’d say more ironic than humorous.”

“You look so tired. Are you sure you don’t want to do this in the morning? You can have my bed, and I’ll sleep in the guest room.”

No fucking way.

“Positive,” Felix said around a bigger yawn. “On with the story.”

“We argued. Bob showed me the complaints submitted to HR. My only options were to accept their decision or sue them.”

“Which did you take?”

Jude smiled at Felix. “I chose door number one at first, then hired a good lawyer to help me navigate door number two.”

“Best of both worlds,” Felix said, blinking his eyes extra to keep the heavy lids from closing.

“I had the freedom to investigate Mercy further while my lawyer worked her magic. Luckily, the news station didn’t have a leg to stand on. They agreed to expunge my record of the false reports if I dropped the lawsuit.”

Felix scrunched up his nose. “Doesn’t sound like much of a victory for you.”

“It allowed me to find another job doing what I love. That’s when I started evaluating the other aspects of my life. I’d met Jed at a convention a few months before getting fired. He’d just taken the job as station manager at Channel Eleven. He’d mentioned wanting to find an investigative reporter like myself, so I called and offered my services to him.”

“Must’ve been one hell of a pay cut,” Felix said.

Jude chuckled. “The cost of living is much lower than in Atlanta, so it’s a pretty fair trade. Plus, you’re here.”

“If you weren’t a frequent visitor at Gentleman Jack’s, then how did you happen to be there the same night as us?”

“My undercover cop friend called me. He said he had something important he needed to tell me.”

“Why you? What did he say?”

“I don’t know because I never got a chance to speak to him. You saw me walk in, and we left at the same time.”

“You could’ve gone back in after we left,” Felix pointed out.

“I could have, but I didn’t. I’ve tried getting back in touch with Alejandro since then, but he hasn’t returned my calls.”

“The dark-haired Adonis. The two of you seemed cozy. Was it an act, or were you more than friends?” Felix asked.

“I thought you didn’t have the right to ask those questions.”

Felix narrowed his eyes. “Answer it anyway.”

Jude leaned forward and brushed his mouth against Felix’s. “We dated for a while. We didn’t love each other, and the chemistry fizzled out pretty fast.”

“Could’ve fooled me,” Felix groused.