Barging In (22 page)

Robin’s arms folded around him, keeping him steady. The weird thing was, Robin seemed to be trembling too. Not shaking like Dan was, but thrumming like a wire under tension.

“You shouldn’t have done it,” Robin said, his voice softer now as he gently released Dan.

“Hey, I’m okay. I didn’t fall in.”

“That’s not what I meant.” Robin’s brow was still furrowed, but bemused affection danced in his eyes.

Dan plastered on a smile and aimed for a light tone. “Look at it this way, your folks get to see you, and you can still spend time with me.” He thought he did a pretty good job of hiding his agitation.

Robin sighed. “Come on, then. You’d better fill me in on what you said to her.”

“Me? Nothing incriminating came out of these innocent lips. Picture of discretion, I was.”

Robin gave him an incredulous look.

Dan smirked. “It’s not me you should be worried about. What’s all this I hear about you scaring the waiters with your tongue stud?” The flush that spread over Robin’s cheeks made Dan chuckle. “I hear you gave them an explanation of what it’s for as well.”

“Um, I may have done. It was a while ago.”

“Care to give me a demo?” Dan cocked his hip and tilted his head. It was so much easier to steer clear of this bewildering intensity and stick to the flirting. Fortunately, Robin always responded well.

This time Robin reached out and pulled Dan close, arms tight around his waist. “I thought I’d already shown you this morning.”

“I think I’m in need of a refresher.”

For the first time, Robin initiated a kiss in public. A slow, deliberate and deep kiss. A kiss that made Dan’s knees weak. When Robin finally let him go, Dan had to turn away to hide his confusion. He didn’t want to feel like this. It wasn’t wise—not when he had to leave the day after tomorrow. He shouldn’t have let himself get so involved.

Yet when he looked at Robin—striding over the lock gate with supple grace before turning to grin back at him—he couldn’t bring himself to regret one moment of their time together.

Not one single sodding moment of it.

“We’re not mooring up here, are we?” Dan shouted, making his way down towards Robin. The engine cut out while he was speaking, his voice ringing out embarrassingly loud across Smiler’s car park.

“No, I just needed to stop for a pump out. The tank’s getting critical.”

Dan frowned, trying to figure out what tank would get filled rather than depleted. Oh yeah, the sewage tank. That would explain the ripe smell last time he flushed the toilet. Gross.

He definitely wasn’t going to offer to help with that one. But then again, he really didn’t want Robin thinking he was such a dyed-in-the-wool city boy he couldn’t cope with getting his hands dirty. God, he really hoped this wouldn’t involve getting his hands dirty.

“Want a hand?” Oh bugger, he’d gone and offered and couldn’t take it back now.

Robin’s mouth twitched. “You think you can handle it? You’ve gone green.”

“I have not.”

Robin just raised an eyebrow. “Okay then, I’ll sort out the hose and you can press the button. How does that sound?”

“Sounds fine.” Buttons he could cope with, no problem.

“We’ll have to go find Smiler first.”

They strode across the car park. It was populated with an odd assortment of cars, mainly old, a few downright vintage—although that term was a rather generous way to describe the mismatched bangers.

“Do many boaters have cars?”

“A few, why?”

“Just wondered. Seems odd to have a car when you’ve got to move around. Bit of a liability.”

Robin nodded.

“How come you don’t have one?”

Robin looked away. “Like you said. A liability. What about you?”

“Huh?”

Robin turned back to him. Dan couldn’t read his expression, yet again. “Do you have a car?”

“No. Not a lot of point in Balham. The parking’s a nightmare, and it’s much quicker to get around on the bike. Besides”—now it was his turn to look away—“I never took my test.”

“You can’t drive?”

“There’s no need to sound horrified. And anyway, I can drive. Dad taught me, but we fell out before I was ready for my test, and then I moved out soon after. Never really needed a car since then. Tris drives me places if I really need a lift.”

“Tris. That’s your best mate, isn’t it?” Robin sniffed and looked away again.

What was this? Surely Robin couldn’t be jealous of Tris! But then Dan remembered showing him the portfolio shots he’d taken for Tris. Robin had merely grunted, but then immediately afterwards, he’d set about giving Dan a brand-new set of love bites. He hadn’t connected the two things at the time.

“That’s right. I know him like the back of my hand.”

“Not your boyfriend, though?”

Oho, this really was jealousy. Dan grinned. It was too cute. He had an evil urge to bait Robin and see if it made him all growly and possessive again.

“I wouldn’t call him a boyfriend, exactly. I mean, we shag occasionally, a bit like you and Mel, but we don’t let it get in the way of being friends.”

But Robin didn’t take the bait. He just brooded silently and picked up his pace.

Bugger.

Robin stayed surly all through the transaction with Smiler, turning down the offer of a few hours’ work in the chandlery point-blank. They walked back to
Serendipity
in an uncomfortable silence. Dan started to wonder how they were going to break it.

It was the pipe that did it, in the end. Of all the unlikely things, a clear plastic sewage pipe. Dan was aghast.

“You mean we’ve actually got to watch it all being pumped up the tube?”

Finally, Robin smiled. “I thought you said you could handle it. Go on, then, press the button.”

“Yeah, I…uh… That’s disgusting! Oh my God, it stinks!” He screwed his eyes shut and clapped his hand over his nose and mouth. He could still hear the squelchy sound of the pump, though. That and Robin pissing himself laughing.

“All right, all right, I admit it. I’m not man enough to deal with this. Just shoot me now!”

Robin strode over with that look in his eyes. The one that made Dan’s knees go weak. He reached out.

Dan jumped back. “Not until you wash your hands, Mister.”

Robin planted a wet kiss on his lips instead. Dan found himself shoved back against the pump-out wall. It was a good thing the air stank of sewage and the pipe was still making that nauseating sound. Even with those passion killers, he was half-hard and dazed by the time Robin pulled back.

“You’re man enough for me,” Robin said.

Dan’s head swam.

Best blame the smell. Any other explanation was plain disturbing.

Chapter Twenty-Two

“Jesus, do we have to?” Robin asked, glaring at the front doors of the restaurant.

“They’re your family.” Dan gave his hand a quick squeeze before dropping it. “I think we probably do.”

Robin rolled his eyes. “Fine. Don’t say I didn’t warn you.” He pushed open the heavy doors before Dan could make any smart comments.

Popjoy’s was situated on the ground floor of an enormous Georgian building. It was the kind of place Robin’s mum loved: high ceilings with elaborate wedding-cake mouldings picked out in historic colours, enormous potted palms and a hushed calm that lay over the diners while the waiters dashed around seeing to their every last demand. His family were already seated, and the maitre d’ led them over.

“Robin! Darling! You look wonderful.” His mum was practically gushing in her effort to lavish praise on him. Most unexpected. “Doesn’t he look smart, Edward? So much better than last time we visited.”

“Leave him be,” Robin’s dad said. “You won’t be able to nag him into a better wardrobe. You should have realised that by now.” Robin flashed him a grateful smile, but he’d already turned his sharp gaze on Dan, holding back and assessing while his wife unleashed her maternal affection on the unsuspecting newcomer.

“And you must be Dan,” she simpered. “It’s a pleasure to meet you. I can see you’ve been a good influence on my boy already.”

Robin watched him fielding the cheek kisses and fawning attentions and hoped Dan would end up with a great big lipstick mark on his face. It would serve him right, forcing Robin into going shopping and insisting on buying a brand-new outfit. He’d felt humiliated accepting the gift, but even Robin had had to agree that he really didn’t own any clothes suitable for Popjoy’s, and he’d conveniently forgotten to take out his wallet. Not that there was anything much left in it, but Dan didn’t need to know that.

It wasn’t a bad outfit. He’d insisted on his usual style of combat trousers, but these were from Gap rather than the army surplus store. They probably wouldn’t last as long, but at least he’d get some use out of them over the winter. Dan had picked out a black collarless shirt for him, which he had to admit looked good, but he felt odd. It was like wearing some kind of disguise or costume—the sort of thing he’d wear to a wedding or funeral. Or perhaps a christening, which was the most likely celebration to be coming up soon. Could you wear black to a christening? No doubt his mum would have something to say on the matter. He glanced at her tastefully coordinated ensemble of neutral-coloured clothing that looked deceptively simple but, knowing her, cost a small fortune. She’d always tried to bully him into polo shirts and chinos like his father wore, which was why he took such pleasure in thwarting her by wearing scruffy combat gear.

Robin bent down to kiss his sister, who was too big now to get up easily, or so she said. It was a shock to see her like that—so large and round, her cheeks glowing and her eyes bright.

“How’s my nephew getting along in there?” he asked.

“Oh just fine. We think Patrick junior’s going to be a rugby player when he’s older. He already seems determined to throw his weight around as much as possible.” Miranda smiled up at Robin, and for the first time he could remember since they were kids, it seemed genuine. “You’re looking well, little brother. Your friend Dan here must be a good influence after all. So, are you and he…?”

Thankfully she didn’t seem able to finish the sentence, because Robin didn’t have a clue how to answer. To be honest, he wasn’t sure he could say whether he and Dan were anything more than fuck-buddies, and he didn’t think that term would go down too well.

“He’s very dashing,” Miranda continued. “Quite a catch, I should say.” She winked at Robin, who hid his confusion by fixing his eyes on the dashing Mr. Taylor. Even though Robin didn’t have the fashion consciousness to fully appreciate the cut of Dan’s new suit, he could certainly enjoy the way the cream wool hung on his slim body. The salesman had called the colour ecru, and it looked drab on the hanger, but when Dan tried it on, it had made his skin and hair radiant. Yeah, he could probably get into the idea of having a boyfriend who looked that good in smart gear. But of course, Dan wasn’t his boyfriend, so thinking like that was a pointless waste of time.

They all sat down at the round table, Robin between Dan and Miranda, with his mum on the other side of Dan. He eyed the white linen tablecloth and array of eating implements with trepidation. God, he hoped Dan knew which forks to use for which course. Trust Mum to book them into somewhere this stuffy and staid. The bloody waiters were in smarter clothing than he was, for Christ’s sake.

The tiny, cursive script on the leather-bound menu danced in front of Robin’s eyes. He scowled. How the hell was he meant to read that? He’d have to order steak and chips. Every restaurant seemed to be able to cope with that one, although it did get dull, always having the same thing.

But then Dan squeezed his thigh, gently kneading the flesh as he carried on his conversation with Robin’s mum, and the pressure was reassuring. It wasn’t until he felt his shoulders ease that he realised just how tense he’d been.

“What are you going for, Robin?” Dan asked. “I can’t decide between the salmon fettuccine, the lamb burger with roast potatoes, or the mixed grill.”

Dan must have ended up mulling over almost every item on the menu before Robin finally realised what was going on. He selected a lemon sole with thick-cut chips and roasted baby vegetables, giving Dan a grateful smile. It meant a lot to be helped out in an unobtrusive way. No one else had ever managed to do that without him ending up feeling patronised.

The first couple of courses went well. Surprisingly well, with Dan keeping his mum distracted with a constant stream of chatter. Dan seemed far more interested in the Hamilton family history than Robin himself was, and it pleased her no end. Even his dad smiled a little, and when Dan asked him about the rugby match, they had a whole conversation over Rosemary’s head.

“I didn’t know you liked rugby,” Robin said when there was a lull.

“Yep, certainly do. I could pretend it was purely for the love of the game, but really, have you seen some of those players?”

“Not my type,” Robin mumbled, staring down at his half-eaten fish. Did Dan really have to flame quite so brightly in front of his dad? If there had been any doubt about Dan’s sexuality in their minds, there certainly wouldn’t be any longer. Now they’d all be wondering what was going on between the two of them.

Not that his dad seemed bothered. “I suppose you like that Gareth Thomas, then, do you? Must say I was a bit surprised when he came out, but just goes to show you never can tell.”

His mum butted in. “That’s right, darling. Like with our Robin here—you never would have thought it to see him as a teenager. He was always such a lad. Running around, getting into trouble, swearing and drinking. You should have seen him then, Dan. A right little tearaway, he was. Not even a trace of a limp wrist.”

Robin glared at her. Was his mum determined to wreck whatever this thing was he had going with Dan?

This thing that would be over tomorrow when Dan went back to London. Back to his other fuckbuddy, Tris. Bile rose in his throat at the thought.

“Excuse me,” he said, almost knocking over his chair in his haste to get away.

He made for the gents.

The stomach acid burnt his throat, but the food stubbornly refused to make a reappearance. He stared into the empty toilet bowl. Just dessert to get through now.