Lone Star (8 page)
Mitch stared up at him. “Okay.” Web’s face was so serious in the shadow-light.
Web sat down across from him. “I know you didn’t believe me when I told you I was coming around to your way of thinkin’ twelve years back. That I was willing to come out for you.”
“It doesn’t matter now.”
“It does. I know it hurt you. But it’s the truth. I was going to tell you the next day, but when I got out to your place, you were gone. Your daddy was drunk.”
“
Drunk?”
Mitch repeated in disbelief. “My father?” He had never once seen his father the worse for drink. Not once in eighteen years.
Web nodded grimly. “He said you were gone and that was all he said. All he ever would say.” Web drew a deep breath. “I waited for you to call. I kept waiting for you to let me know where you were. I couldn’t believe you’d leave without tellin’ me after…everything. But you did.”
Mitch didn’t know what to think, let alone say. In all these years it had never occurred to him that Web had grieved over him as much as he had grieved over Web.
Web’s voice was very quiet, almost a whisper. “That night in the park when I told you I couldn’t do what you wanted, you cried.”
Mitch threw him a quick, startled look. “I guess I did.”
“I knew you all your life. From the time you were a little boy, you never cried. Not about anythin’. Not when you drove a nail through your foot, not when your daddy whipped you and not when those the little shits used to ride you for takin’ sissy dance lessons. But that night in the park, after we argued and I told you no, you turned away from me and you leaned against that big old pecan tree and you cried. You cried like it was tearing you apart, like your heart was breakin’, like everything you’d ever known and wanted was lost.” Web’s voice shook. “And then you wiped your eyes and you went home.”
Where things had gone even better. Mitch fought the old tide of hurt and bitterness. But he had read it wrong all those years ago. Web had suffered too. “It was a long time ago.”
“After you left, I walked in the park some more, by myself, and I realized that anythin’,
anything
, was better than letting you go on feelin’ that way. I went and bought you this.”
He handed Mitch a small box wrapped in Christmas paper. Mitch took the box and studied the faded red paper with tiny smiling reindeers.
“What is it?”
“Open it.” Web added, “Just keep in mind I didn’t have much of a salary in those days.”
Mitch pulled off the green ribbon and tore open the paper to reveal a little white cardboard box. He took the lid off. His brows drew together at the sight of a pair of earrings. Two small golden studs shaped like tiny stars.
“Very pretty.”
Web gave a smothered laugh. “You don’t understand. Only one was for you. The other one was for me.”
Puzzlement gave way to understanding. Mitch looked down and the small gold stars seemed to flash and scintillate against the blue velvet card. Something funny had happened to his vision.
He said huskily, “How come you haven’t asked me if I love you?”
“Oh, I know you love me,” Web said. “I knew the minute I saw you pouring your drink into that potted palm at Erik’s house. When you walked out of those elevators this evening, I knew this time we’d find our way. You could say it if you want to. I guess I won’t get tired of hearing it in this lifetime.”
Mitch reached for him. “Merry Christmas. I love you.”
A distinct voice in gay fiction, multi-award-winning author Josh Lanyon has been writing gay mystery and romance for over a decade. In addition to numerous short stories, novellas and novels, Josh is the author of the critically acclaimed Adrien English series, including
The Hell You Say,
winner of the 2006
USA Book News
award for GLBT Fiction. Josh is an EPIC Award winner and a three-time Lambda Literary Award finalist. Josh is also the author of the definitive M/M writing guide
Man, Oh Man! Writing M/M Fiction for Kinks & Ca$h.
To learn more about Josh, please visit www.joshlanyon.com or join his mailing list at groups.yahoo.com/group/JoshLanyon.
Baby, it’s cold outside…
A man receives the gift of pleasure at the hands of two expert lovers. Boyhood sweethearts get a second chance at romance. Two very proper gentlemen indulge their forbidden desires. A Christmas tree farmer has an epiphany. It may be cold outside, but these four holiday novellas will warm you up. Anthology includes:
My True Love Gave to Me
by Ava March
Winter Knights
by Harper Fox
Lone Star
by Josh Lanyon
The Christmas Proposition
by K.A. Mitchell
Stories also available for purchase separately.
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ISBN: 978-1-4268-9280-6
Copyright © 2011 by Josh Lanyon
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All characters in this book have no existence outside the imagination of the author and have no relation whatsoever to anyone bearing the same name or names. They are not even distantly inspired by any individual known or unknown to the author, and all incidents are pure invention.
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