Page 14 of Walking on Broken Paths

Chapter Twelve

Early July in Toronto was hot, but it hadn’t hit the level of gross mugginess that would surely come within the next couple of weeks. Parker wheeled his carry-on into the hotel behind Jesse and gawped at the lobby of the five-star hotel Jesse had booked them into.

And this was after Jesse had shelled out for first-class seats on the flight—even though it was only two and a half hours from Charlottetown to Toronto.

Parker had made a token protest about paying him back, to which Jesse had simply said, “You know how much I make, right?”

Yes, Parker knew. He was—had been—a sports reporter. He’d covered minor league hockey in Quebec, so he and Jesse had never run in the same circles, but he’d googled his friend enough over the years to know what Jesse’s contract was worth.

And if Jesse wanted to pay for first-class seats and expensive hotel rooms, Parker wasn’t going to argue. It was kind of nice to be spoiled.

The check-in process was as smooth as to be expected from a five-star hotel, and Jesse was addressed as Mr. Melnik so many times that Parker started looking around for Jesse’s dad.

Then he let out a laugh at himself that made the check-in staff look at him sideways and Jesse smile at him for no discernible reason.

Jesse smiling at him for no reason was pretty much the best feeling ever.

They got adjoining suites with king beds, sitting areas, fireplaces they wouldn’t need, and huge bathrooms with glass-enclosed showers.

“I could get used to this,” Parker muttered to himself. He left his suitcase by the bed and tugged apart the drapes.

His window overlooked Front Street and Union Station below.

To the west, the CN Tower shot up into a blue sky.

There were high-rises everywhere, and it was slightly claustrophobic.

That sensation of being stuck with no way out was why he’d opted not to live in downtown Montreal but instead in Boucherville on the South Shore, a cute little suburb that was much more his style than the big city.

He’d enjoyed being in the city when he’d first started at Concordia University, but once he’d graduated and matured and found his footing, it had quickly lost its shine.

A noise had him turning, and he found Jesse lounging in the doorway of their connecting rooms. Hands shoved in the pockets of his jeans, he looked effortlessly casual and confident.

Christ. He made Parker’s stomach somersault just by existing in the same room.

“Do I want to know how much this hotel room cost for two nights?” he asked, just to distract himself.

Jesse shrugged. “Don’t worry about it.”

Parker wasn’t going to worry about it, but he was curious as hell.

“Want to grab dinner before the show?”

“Sure. Let me change real quick.” Parker unfolded the suitcase stand and lifted his carry-on onto it. “What do people wear to the theatre these days?”

“That.” Jesse jerked his chin at Parker.

Parker looked down at himself. “I think I can do better than hole-y jeans and a Henley. What are you wearing? And don’t say that .” Parker jerked his own chin at Jesse.

Backing away with a deep chuckle that Parker felt all the way to his toes, Jesse said, “Be ready in twenty,” and disappeared into his room.

Parker took a quick shower, then opted for white jeans and a navy linen V-neck shirt that he tucked into his pants. He rolled the sleeves to his elbows and was slipping into his shoes when Jesse reappeared.

Hot damn, Parker got to go out and be seen with this guy?

This guy who was all muscled and bearded and looking stylish in a short-sleeved, burnt-orange shirt open at the throat that was tucked into belted black slacks?

Why did that shirt have to hug every part of him?

Why did the slacks so perfectly cup his junk?

Parker gulped.

Fuck, Jesse looked good.

“You look good, Parks,” Jesse said, taking the words right out of Parker’s mouth.

And was it Parker’s imagination, or had Jesse’s voice lowered a touch when he’d given the compliment?

“Well.” Parker cleared any hint of desire out of his voice. “People know you, right? Hockey players might as well be given god status in this country. I had to make sure I looked good enough to stand next to you.”

“You’d look good wearing a monkey suit.” Before Parker could fully process that, Jesse slipped sunglasses over his eyes, making him look like Parker’s every dream come true. “Now, come on. Let’s eat.”

Parker was sweating before they made it outside.

And it wasn’t because of the heat.

On the sidewalk, Jesse paused and pulled out his phone, bringing up his map app.

“The theatre’s about a ten-minute walk that way.

” He gestured over his shoulder, and given the location of the CN Tower and the lake, Parker guessed the theatre was somewhere northwest. Ish.

Maybe? “Why don’t we head in that direction?

” Jesse said. “There are probably tons of restaurants along the way. Let’s see if we can find one that’ll take us without a reservation. ”

“On a Wednesday evening? Not sure that will be a problem.”

Given the hour was creeping ever closer to five, the sidewalks teemed with commuters heading to and from the subway or train station.

Parker dodged fast-walkers juggling cell phones and laptop bags, got slapped in the hip several times by someone’s messenger bag, nearly missed colliding with a cyclist delivering takeout, and was given the stink eye for walking too slowly.

Jesse, meanwhile, had people move aside for him. It was like Moses and the fucking Red Sea. Parker tucked himself behind him and let Jesse guide them.

He seemed to know where he was going anyway.

“Come here often?” he asked when they stopped at a red light.

“Not really,” Jesse said. “Just for games. Why?”

“You seem to know your way around.”

Jesse held up his phone, where his maps app was still displayed. The blue line going from the hotel to the theatre went straight up York Street, then took a left on King. Easy enough.

“Not complicated, right?” Jesse said, reading Parker’s mind.

They ended up at a pub at the corner of King and Simcoe with an old-fashioned red telephone stand out front. They were seated on the patio, and although the hostess squinted at Jesse like she recognized him, she didn’t say anything except to let them know that their server would be right with them.

Parker side-eyed the pedestrians. It was nice on the patio, but would they attract the attention of hockey fans?

A few moments later, he shook his head at himself. Nobody was paying them any attention, too busy rushing from point A to point B to worry about who was dining at the Elephant & Castle.

Across from him, Jesse looked all suave and sexy. Sitting back in his chair, one elbow propped on the arm as he read the menu, he was oblivious to everything from the double take a patron at a nearby table gave him to the way Parker practically salivated over him from two feet away.

The problem, the way Parker saw it, was that he still wasn’t sure if he should say anything about this inconvenient attraction.

It wasn’t like he was still harbouring a crush on his teenage best friend.

He’d had no idea what to do with his crush at sixteen and seventeen, so he’d mostly ignored it when he wasn’t jerking off in his bedroom.

He had no idea what to do with his crush at thirty-two either, so he was still ignoring it when he wasn’t jerking off in his bedroom.

But what he felt now... it was more than a crush.

This wasn’t teenage infatuation. It was attraction, sure, but there were feelings involved too, and that was what made Parker nervous.

Feelings complicated things.

A lot.

Jesse was and wasn’t the same person he’d been fifteen years ago. He was still quiet and slow to smile, but whereas he’d had the fake swagger of an up-and-coming hockey player as a teenager, now the swagger was all real. There was a self-assurance to him that hadn’t been there in their youth.

Sadness too. But that was to be expected.

“What are you having?” Jesse asked with his gaze on his menu.

“Uh...” Parker picked up his menu and scanned it for the first time. “Not sure yet. You?”

“Probably the roast and the fried pickle chips to start.”

Goddamn useless, inane conversation when all Parker wanted to do was throw himself across the table.

Their server arrived, and since Jesse already knew what he wanted, he went ahead and ordered, so Parker picked the first thing off the menu that whet his appetite. Once the server had departed, Parker sat back and kicked out his legs. “Thanks for inviting me along on your trip.”

Jesse pushed his sunglasses to the top of his head. “I’m glad you came. It’s nice to have the company.”

“What would you have done on your own?”

“This.” Jesse waved a hand, as though to encompass their current situation. “Just by myself.”

“I never asked, but what do you have planned for tomorrow?”

Their flight home was two days from now. Surely Jesse must’ve had something planned for tomorrow.

“Having brunch with my friend, the one who’s in the play. After that, I thought I’d do some sightseeing.”

Parker cocked his head. “Do I get to tag along on this brunch?”

“I thought I’d go alone and catch up with you afterwards.”

Jesse said it so convincingly that for a second, Parker believed him.

Parker kicked his ankle under the table. “Asshole.”

Jesse’s quiet laugh was more of a rumble than anything. “Of course you get to tag along. Dumbass.”

The affection in his voice had Parker biting back a delirious grin. “Tell me about this friend whose show we’re seeing.”

“Gavin. We met... damn, almost a decade ago now.” Jesse rubbed a palm over his jaw. “His after-school theatre group was putting on a musical of Hocus Pocus . We were introduced by a mutual friend after the show, and we just... clicked.”