Page 35 of Secret

Kasey waved him off. "It's all ready. I just need to put it on the table. Want another beer or something else?"

"Beer is good." Noam took a seat as Kasey put the roast on the table, then brought over several side dishes.

"Don't get used to this. I don't cook as often as I would like."

"Me either, but maybe having someone to cook for will motivate me. It's too much work for just me, but I could get used to sit down dinners with you." Noam started to fill his plate. "How did you learn to cook?"

"My friend, Bryon. I lived with him for a few years after going through some tough times. He was like a big brother to me. He's about fifteen years older than me, but he took me in and made sure I knew how to do everything for myself. He taught me to drive, cook, do the basic household chores. I owe him my life honestly."

"Where were your parents?" Noam took a bite of the roast, the meat melting in his mouth. He was going to tell Kasey how good it was until he looked up and saw the way his face paled at his question. "You okay?"

"Yeah, it's just something I don't talk about often." Kasey wiped his mouth with his napkin before setting his fork down and sitting back.

"You don't have to tell me." Noam was curious, but he could see how uncomfortable Kasey was with the subject. It was the first time he'd ever seen him look upset.

"No, you need to know sooner or later. It's nothing you couldn't find out on your own anyway. I'm a little surprised you haven't run my name through the system already." Kasey gave him a weak smile.

"Oh, I hadn't even thought of doing that honestly." Noam really wondered now what was in Kasey's past. Did he know the man across from him as well as he thought?

"It's not bad, at least not in the way you're probably thinking." Kasey reached for his beer and took a long drink. Once he set it down, he nodded to the food. "Can we eat first, then we'll move to the living room and I'll tell you everything? It's kind of a long story."

"Of course." Noam reached across the table, placing his hand on Kasey's arm. "I don't think anything you tell me will change how I feel."

"Thanks." Kasey smiled. "It's all in the past, and I don't regret any of what I did. I had my reasons."

"We all have a past," Noam said. "It's who we are now that matters." He hoped that was true, because if they were going to start opening up, telling each other personal things, he needed to be honest with Kasey as well. If they were going to date and give this relationship a serious try, everything had to be on the table up front. They didn't need secrets between them. "So, we'll change the topic until after dinner. Tell me more about cooking. What's your favorite meal to make?"

Kasey smiled, and as he went on to talk about food, Noam listened, but in the back of his mind he wondered what could Kasey have done that made him so uncomfortable, and was it going to change things between them?