Rainbow Blues (18 page)

“Okay. Let’s do it.” Jimmy wiggled in his seat. “I’m great with color schemes. I can pick out paint and fabrics and matching upholstery.”

Luke laughed. “Don’t get ahead of yourself. We might only be able to afford something that needs a bit of work. You’ll have to let me do my thing before you can do yours.”

Jimmy held in an unmanly squeal of delight. Luke was going to let him decorate. Although he’d accessorized his apartment like a fiend, he’d never had a place where he could truly let his instincts take over. Bit of a fucking stereotype, but he loved acting, and he loved decorating. At least he had the whole biology teaching thing as a foil. Then again, maybe that just made him a nerdy stereotype.

But he was happy, and Luke loved him. Didn’t matter how anyone else labeled him. Amazing how it felt like all his dreams were coming true even though this was a completely different dream than the one he’d had twenty years ago.

“Y
OU
SURE
it’s okay that I’m here?” The first meeting with Luke’s son had gone well. Zach had seemed genuinely happy his dad had found a boyfriend. Jimmy had even tagged along for a couple of their father-son dinners since. Getting to know Zach was important to him, but that didn’t change the fact that he thought he might have been intruding a little. If Zach wanted more alone time with his father, he really hoped he would say so and not let any resentment toward Jimmy build up and fester.

“Of course it is. Besides, this is as good a time as any to share our news.”

Jimmy couldn’t stop the wide grin that stretched his face. The answering grin on Luke’s face warmed him inside. Three weeks after deciding to buy a house together, it was a done deal. The contract had been accepted yesterday, and they’d be taking possession of their house in June, just after school let out for the summer and a week before rehearsals started for Jimmy’s next show. When he wasn’t rehearsing, he’d do what he could to help Luke fix up the place, and then he’d have carte blanche to decorate.

He wanted to be living there with Luke already, settling into a domesticity he’d begun to think he’d never find. No more lonely Uncle Jimmy at family functions. No more pitying looks when his siblings asked if he was seeing someone. No more cheating. He’d never had the faith and trust in his previous boyfriends that he had in Luke. Lying and sneaking around just wasn’t in his nature, and Jimmy loved him even more for it, because he knew he was maybe a little sensitive on the issue.

“I can’t wait to live there with you.” Jimmy wanted to kiss Luke, but didn’t want to shock the plethora of little old ladies in the lobby of The Wheelhouse. Luke was getting more comfortable with PDAs, but for the most part, Jimmy let him initiate them—the last thing he wanted to do was make his boyfriend associate kissing with embarrassment or fear.

“Me neither.” Luke grabbed his hand and held on, and Jimmy thought he might just burst from happiness. The fact that they’d pretty much given up all pretense of living apart didn’t change the fact that a place of their own, bought together, was a significant milestone worthy of the expensive bottle of champagne they’d drunk last night, courtesy of Bennett.

Jimmy wasn’t much of a wine snob, and Luke didn’t drink much besides beer, but Bennett came from a much more refined background than either of them, and when Luke called to tell him about the house, he’d showed up on their doorstep with two bottles of champagne. Jimmy couldn’t read most of the French on the label and didn’t think he’d heard of it before. But it had slid down their throats like silk, attesting to the quality, and as soon as Bennett had taken his leave, they celebrated in a much more carnal way. In fact, Luke was the one wearing a turtleneck today. At least the spring weather was still cool.

If Jimmy spent too much time dwelling on the specifics of their celebration, he would end up with a raging erection in a room full of octogenarians, waiting for Luke’s son to arrive. Seemed inappropriate on a number of levels. With some effort, he turned his mind down a different path. Like their current location.

“So, is the food here really good?” This seemed an odd place for… anyone without dentures to choose.

“It’s not bad. They have great waffles. We used to bring Zach here as a kid, because, well….” Luke made an apologetic hand gesture with his free hand. “It’s not expensive. We didn’t go out much to eat, and it was one of the few places Kelly and I could afford. Zach’s attachment to the place is probably more sentimental than anything.”

“That’s a nice reason to come.” Jimmy looked forward to making their own traditions, but he was more than happy to share in the ones Luke had already created with his son.

“Hey, there he is.” Luke waved, but then his fingers tightened around Jimmy’s hand. Jimmy turned and froze. Ryan stood beside Zach, the blue streaks in his black hair not distracting from his reddened ears and uncomfortable expression.

Neither of them had seen Ryan since the night he’d tried to get in Luke’s pants. They’d agreed to keep Ryan’s secret, but Jimmy knew Luke wasn’t happy about it. Considering he’d kept the secret of his sexual orientation for so long, Jimmy wasn’t a bit surprised that Luke didn’t want to keep any more secrets.

A
FTER
FILLING
his plate with food, Jimmy sat next to Luke. “What the hell is that?”

Luke’s cheeks took on a rosy hue that lately Jimmy had come to associate with desire, since there was very little Luke had to be embarrassed about.

“Waffles?” Luke didn’t sound sure, and yet he must have gotten the plateful of waffles himself.

“Waffles? It looks like ice cream soup. Or Picasso’s interpretation of a dessert trolley.” Was that pineapple peeping out from underneath the chocolate soft-serve ice cream and syrup? A shudder rippled through him.

Luke shrugged. “I like it.”

Jimmy had already figured out his boyfriend had a sweet tooth, but he’d never witnessed Luke eating waffles before.

“Disgusting, isn’t it?” Zach commiserated with him. “He’s loaded his waffles up like that forever, though.”

“Huh.”

Ryan’s expression didn’t change, but then, aside from a mumbled greeting, he hadn’t spoken nor had he looked either Jimmy or Luke in the eye. Poor bastard. He’d like to say something, because he really hadn’t been as level-headed as he could be the last time he’d seen Ryan, but he sure as hell wasn’t about to out Ryan to his best friend Zach.

“You’ll just have to get used to it.” Luke’s words held a hopeful defiance, as though he was hoping Jimmy wasn’t going to push.

“Just as long as you don’t make me try to eat that, you enjoy your sugar coma.”

Luke grinned at him and stuffed a huge bite in his mouth, only to promptly wince and clutch the bridge of his nose.

“Brain freeze? Poor thing.” Judging from Zach’s guffaw, Jimmy hadn’t been quite able to pull off “sympathetic.”

He did, however, squeeze Luke’s knee under the table. Getting used to everything about Luke sounded like the best job in the world.

After gulping down half a cup of coffee to combat the cold, Luke cleared his throat. “Actually, we have a bit of news.”

Zach’s gaze popped up from his omelet while Ryan simply flinched.

Luke paused, but no one said anything, not even Jimmy for a change, although he couldn’t hold in a wiggle of excitement. Luke had to be the one to share this, and Jimmy wanted to shout it from the rooftops.

“Okay, then. Well, Jimmy and I… we bought a house together. It’s… it’s perfect.”

Luke put a hand over Jimmy’s and stroked his fingers, and the bubbly excitement they’d shared since first seeing the place arced between them.

“It is perfect.” Jimmy couldn’t keep quiet any longer. “Three bedroom side split. It’s got two fireplaces and a huge kitchen for your dad. The windows in the kitchen are enormous, and look out onto a cute yard. Your dad wants to plant a garden, and there is a ton of room for that.”

Luke spoke as soon as he took a breath. “It’ll need a bit of work, but nothing I can’t take care of on the weekends.”

“And then it will need some decorating help, but, oh, it’s got such potential. The backyard will be great for barbecues, and if we’re feeling adventurous, there’s even room for a pool.”

“Seriously, Dad?”

Uh-oh. Zach didn’t sound pleased at all. Even Ryan gave him a weird look.

Luke’s grip tightened on his hand, and Jimmy shifted his hand so they could clutch at each other.

“What do you mean?” Luke asked.

“You bought a house together? You’ve known each other for, what, three months? Have you lost your mind?”

Each word licked a stroke of fire across Jimmy’s heart. It was true, he and Luke hadn’t known each other long. If it came down to it, Luke would choose Zach—as it should be—but he’d thought Zach hadn’t minded sharing Luke with a boyfriend. If he lost Luke, his heart might never recover.

“Of course not. I know spending twenty plus years in the closet might indicate I don’t know how to make up my own mind, but that’s not the case. I’ve been at loose ends for a couple of years, and Jimmy’s the man I want to be with, forever. I have no doubts.”

“And what if it all goes tits up? Remember when you and Mom broke up? Even I know that your divorce was probably one of the smoothest on record, but you were both still miserable. Odds are, this time, it’ll be an ugly breakup.”

“Wow. Your lack of faith in my judgment is astonishing.” There was no doubt Luke was a dad, not when he spoke in that tone. “And the assumption that one, Jimmy and I will inevitably break up, and two, that we can’t be trusted to be adult about it should it happen, is a bit insulting. Even if you don’t know Jimmy well enough, you do know me well enough to know that’s not very likely.”

Zach rolled his eyes. “If I told you I wanted to move in with a girl I’d known for three months, you’d have a shit.”

“Zach.” Luke’s voice was sharp. “Jimmy’s the man I love. He loves me, and we’re both at a point in our lives where it would be stupid to play games or wait on someone else’s rules. We’ve both got plenty of life experience, and we know what we want. A house and life together. You, on the other hand, might need more time to make the same decision.”

“Are you sure you’re not just blinded by the chance to get laid regularly? Your boy toy has you thoroughly snowed. He’s an actor, after all.”

“Boy toy?” Jimmy had done his best to keep his mouth shut and let Luke handle things, but really. Boy toy?

Zach sneered at him. “He’s not rich, you know. If you want a sugar daddy, you should look elsewhere.”

Jimmy gasped at the venomous and unexpected attack. Zach knew he was a teacher. Luke, on the other hand, growled.

“You are out of line, Zachary Joshua Jordan.”

“No, Dad, you are. You’re making a fool of yourself over this guy who is way too young for you.”

Ryan glared at Zach as well. Not surprisingly, since Ryan had once thought he’d be happy dating his best friend’s father, and that age difference was rather more extreme.

“Dating is one thing. Buying a house? No way. You’re an idiot if you think you can keep a guy like this happy. He’s probably got a half dozen of you on a string. People are going to laugh at you, dating a guy young enough to be your son.”

Jimmy smothered a laugh, but Luke sputtered in anger, furious in a way Jimmy had never seen. He didn’t want Luke to say anything he’d regret, because the last thing Jimmy wanted was to be responsible for a rift between Luke and Zach. And really, a lot of the accusations were ones he should be answering anyway.

“Just how old do you think I am, Zach?”

Zach’s ire faltered. “Uh, you’re around my age, aren’t you? Or only a few years older.”

Jimmy sighed. Most times he enjoyed how youthful he appeared, but this time it wasn’t working in his favor. “It’s sweet of you to say so, but I’m thirty-eight. I’m going to be thirty-nine in the fall.”

This time, it was Ryan smothering a laugh while Zach was rendered speechless.

“And while some gay men have the faithfulness of a tomcat on the prowl, I am not one of them. I value fidelity and loyalty. I also love your father very much. More than I’ve ever loved another man. I will take good care of him, and I’m confident we can build a good life together.”

Zach’s face flushed red, making him and Luke look like a matching set, before he pushed back from the table and ran.

Luke and Ryan both stood, but Jimmy grabbed Ryan’s arm and held him back, letting Luke follow Zach out of sight.

“Let them talk.”

Ryan sank back reluctantly into his seat.

“I take it you haven’t told him yet.”

Jimmy’s comment prompted Ryan to look at him for the first time, wariness in his eyes.

“No, I can’t.”

Jimmy signaled for a server.

“Can we get a couple of mimosas please?”

“Of course, sir.”

“A mimosa?” Ryan’s lips pursed in a little pout like he didn’t know what to make of that.

“You’re old enough to drink, and a mimosa is the flagship drink of gays at brunch everywhere.”

“But….”

Jimmy patted Ryan’s hand. The poor kid acted so much younger than Jimmy had at the same age. But then, by the time Jimmy had reached Ryan’s age, he’d already come out of the closet, had his dreams of being a Hollywood actor broken, and was well on his way to his second career path. Normally, he looked back on his youth and thought he was a fool, but maybe he’d been fortunate. His choices had let him grow up.