Page 52 of The Quarterlands (Dark Water #4)

Chapter Fourteen

Alex

He took Alex’s arm and hurried him up the stairs in a frenzy of excited activity.

“You’ll sleep in here. This is where Chris kept his wardrobe.

He was such a vain tart that he needed a whole room for all his stuff.

” Elliot gave a delighted grin. “Here!” He flung open one of the four closets in the room and plucked out a pair of sparkly maroon LaRay trousers, a slinky green luminet shirt, and a cerise bubble-print scarf.

“Oh, yes. This was one of Christopher’s favourite ensembles.

You’ll make all those lecherous old queens at Marmaduke’s salivate in this.

Hurry up. I’ll see you downstairs in five minutes. ”

The clothes were far too neo-glam in style for Alex’s taste, but it hardly mattered.

Christopher had clearly been a certain kind of man because the trousers fitted very snugly, while the shirt seemed to be missing any buttons at all above the belly button.

The scarf was noisy and frankly clashed, but Alex didn’t care.

He’d worn far worse. He was struggling to get his head around the sudden change in his circumstances, not to mention make sense of it, but there was no time to think because, as he was about to find out, life with Elliot was a constant whirlwind.

“Oh, yes,” Elliot breathed as he walked down the stairs. “Oh, darling! Don’t you look a picture? I’d get my holocams out right now if it wasn’t for lunch. Never mind, we’ll get straight down to that tomorrow. Come on now, Chris. You always keep me waiting while you tart yourself up.”

Humming to himself, he bounced excitedly as he grabbed Alex’s arm and pulled him back outside to the duck. Alex noticed the black SUAV was still there – did Elliot know?

Marmaduke’s was one of those snooty eateries where the staff seemed to feel that serving people was beneath them. Elliot made a huge entrance, loudly declaring his name and complaining about the terrible parking situation.

“Crystal Palace is the best place to live but the traffic is hideous these days. My usual table, please.” He didn’t wait to be shown to the table, waltzing over and plonking himself down by the window. “Come on, Chris, it’s not like you to be shy,” he called.

Alex wondered if he even knew he was calling him Chris and referring to his personality as if it was the same as that of his dead husband.

Elliot talked such a lot that it was entirely possible he didn’t know what he was doing.

He was a strange person – sweet but capricious, prone to sudden outbursts that quickly blew over.

He wasn’t tricky like Tyler, though, and Alex started to relax.

Whatever was happening, he should appreciate it as the respite it was.

Marmaduke’s seemed to be a hub for local gay men as it was packed with them, and Elliot wasted no time in showing off his new acquisition.

He held court as if he were a king, waving to friends and acquaintances while fawning over Alex so everyone could see he was with a beautiful young man.

It was harmless, and Elliot had an easy-going charm that made him impossible to dislike.

“He’s my new muse. I mean, of course he is. Look at him! Such divine beauty. He’ll inspire me to produce works the world will swoon over.” Hyperbole, it seemed, was Elliot’s dish of the day.

After lunch, he whisked Alex off to an exclusive men’s boutique and sipped champagne while he selected various outfits for Alex to try on .

“Just the basics for now,” he announced. “Things for you to be seen on my arm in. You can wear Christopher’s clothes, too, but I want some outfits tailored precisely for you, my darling. Those trousers are a little too tight, fetching though they are, and a little too long on the leg as well.”

Alex was surprised that he’d noticed.

“Oh, I’m all about the details,” Elliot exclaimed. “I have an eye for these things. I’m a creative. When we’ve sorted out your everyday, we’ll come back another time and find you some fabulous fantasy costumes.”

Alex tensed, wondering what, precisely, that meant.

Elliot frowned and stroked his arm gently. “For the holocam, my love. We want to create moods and drama and themes, and—Oh! This will be such fun, trust me.”

Later, clutching several bags, they arrived back at Elliot’s house. Alex noticed the black SUAV had trailed them throughout but had made no move to intervene at any stage.

“Run upstairs and put your new clothes away, darling,” Elliot instructed. “No! Wait.” He pulled Alex back and wrapped his arms around his waist. “Don’t you have something to say to me for buying you all these lovely things?”

“Um… thank you?” Alex offered.

Elliot pouted, and Alex realised something more was required. He leaned forward and pressed a little kiss to the older man’s cheek.

“Oh! That’s better. Dear, sweet boy.” Elliot pulled him in for a more thorough kiss, then released him with a pat to his bottom. “Go on. Run along. And change into the gorgeous green velvet suit with the purple shirt. We’re going out tonight.”

Out? They’d only just got in. After the peace and quiet of Spain, it was all rather too much for Alex. He walked slowly up the stairs, his head pounding. He could hear Gideon giving him a pep-talk. “He’s your houder and you’re his servant. You’ll give him exactly what he wants.”

Unbidden, his song entered his head for the first time in months and worked its old magic, calming him.

When he reached the privacy of his bedroom, he hurriedly put the clothes away and then spent ten minutes performing a sun salutation.

The familiar actions, combined with his song, restored him even more, and he was able to dress himself in the ludicrous green velvet suit and purple shirt combo before returning downstairs, ready for whatever Elliot had planned.

He could have spent longer on his yoga because Elliot didn’t emerge for another hour.

Alex spent the time wandering around the lounge.

Elliot had several beautiful pieces of furniture that he admired: a Japanese lacquered cabinet and a stunning cream-coloured sofa by a modern designer whose work he was familiar with.

There were vases of flowers everywhere, dominated by Asiatic lilies that gave off a heady scent.

It was hard to ignore the lightboxes on the walls showcasing Elliot’s holopics. He appeared to have updated his collection since his last visit, and Alex noticed that he’d improved. There was no denying that Elliot had an exceptional eye; he was right about his meticulous attention to detail.

He paused, startled, in front of a picture of himself.

It was nothing special. In fact, compared to some of Elliot’s works, it was positively dull.

In it, he was gazing into the holocam, unblinking.

It was the first holopic Elliot had made of him, telling him to relax, that it was just a test pic.

But clearly he’d liked it enough to keep it.

He wondered why, as it was such a relatively uninteresting picture, but as he studied it, he understood.

It was the mask. He’d felt self-conscious, so he’d sung his song in his head to make himself feel better, and Elliot had taken the photo just as the mask had fallen into place.

Alex gazed at himself, fascinated by his expression.

He’d seen it in the mirror, but it was so much more interesting gazing back at him from a hologram.

“Beautiful, isn’t it?” a voice behind him murmured; Elliot had appeared. He wrapped his arms around Alex’s waist and rested his chin on his shoulder. “The holocam loves you, darling.”

“It was the first holopic you took of me. I thought it was just a test.”

“It was supposed to be, but then I saw the ineffable mystery that is you, my dear heart, and I knew I had to fully render it and have it in my house. There will be many more such pictures now that you’re mine.

” His lips trailed up the side of Alex’s face, kissing him repeatedly.

Alex did his best to hold still as the picture in front of him watched, unblinking. Elliot sighed and pulled away.

“You’ll warm up,” he said.

“Sorry,” Alex whispered. “Just… it’s been a long day.”

“Yes, of course. You’ll soon feel better when I tell you where we’re going.”

Alex managed to raise a polite eyebrow, although all he wanted was to lie down and rest.

“It’s the premiere of Hudson Brink’s new movie,” Elliot exclaimed delightedly. “And my date is even more beautiful than Hud himself.”

It was startling to be whisked out of the quiet, insular sanctuary of the hacienda to attend, of all things, a movie premiere.

Alex felt as if he was in a dream as Elliot led him down the red carpet, beaming and waving as if he was the star, not Hudson Brink.

He fell asleep during the film, which was quite a feat as it was a noisy holomovie with the action swirling all around and constant explosions.

Later, Elliot took him to the after-show party, and Hud greeted his new houder like the old friend he presumably was.

“Ell! How are ya doing?” Hudson Brink had a relaxed American drawl and was so impossibly handsome close up, with sparkling green eyes and blindingly white teeth, that even Alex was dazzled by him.

He stood to one side, saying nothing as Elliot and Hud caught up.

Hud glanced at him once or twice but didn’t speak to him.

“Are you in the UK for long? Can we go clubbing?” Elliot asked.

“No can do. I’m on a worldwide press junket for the next few months for this heap of shit.” Hud put two fingers up at the holoposter of the film Alex had just slept through.

“When are you back in the UK? I’ll hold one of my parties and you can be guest of honour.” Elliot clapped his hands together in excitement.

“Well, if I’m free, sure.” Hud gave a slow, non-committal grin, and then, with a last glance at Alex, he moved away.