“There you have it,” Derek told the older man. “Youradultson has made his decision. And now, we’ll be going.” Derek motioned Patrick toward the restaurant entrance. The young man kept Derek between himself and his dad as he moved away from the booth.
“Patrick…” Brian whispered, eyes pleading. “Please don’t go.”
Patrick didn’t look at him or respond.
“If you leave with him and allow him to draw you into his sinful lifestyle,” Patrick’s dad warned, “youwillgo to hell.”
Derek turned on the man, doing his damnedest to keep his temper in check and at the same time regretting not bringing Gideon with him. He’d heard the recount many times over how Gideon had stood up to Jack’s bigoted father and nearly decked the man when he raised his hand to Jack.
“How’s about he goes with me,” Derek told the man, “andyougo to hell.” He ushered Patrick toward the front of the restaurant before he got physical with his bastard father.
He glanced back as they passed through the entrance door.
Brian stared after them, a weakly veiled look of longing on his face.
More thanlonging—fuckingenvy.
. . .
He reached out to me. Someone he barely knows.
Dealing with the crushing stress of the day’s events, that little fact had gotten pushed to the back of his mind; he barely knew Derek. He didn’t know what his living situation was like, if he lived alone or with roommates. Did he drink? Do drugs? These questions hadn’t been addressed during their one brief date.
Patrick sat tensely in the passenger seat of Derek’s car as they sped away into the great unknown. He was running away with astranger.What if he’d inserted himself into a dangerous situation—more dangerous than the one awaiting him at home? Who would know where he was? Where to even start looking for him? He had read and watched enough psychological thrillers and crime shows to know this was a risky decision.
The car rolled to a stop at a small intersection and idled without moving forward. “I know you’re scared, Patrick,” Derek spoke softly. “If you want to go somewhere public and talk, I’m good with that. Or if you want to stay at a hotel rather than come home with me, that’s okay, too.”
“I was going to stay at a hotel,” Patrick whispered. “But I couldn’t.”
“Why?”
“My money is in my parents’ bank account and they canceled my debit card. I only have a few dollars on me.”
“If you still want to go to a hotel, I can pay for it. You need to be somewhere that you feel safe.”
Safe.He hadn’t felt safe at all today.Until Derek showed up.He couldn’t deny the relief that flooded over him when he saw Derek, or that sudden sense of safety and security when he immediately came to Patrick’s defense.
“You decide,” Derek murmured. “What do you want to do?”
Patrick stared at his lap, his heart beating wildly. He was afraid to stay alone, even at a hotel. The state of mind his dad was in—he might bring others toforcefullydrag Patrick back home… or someplace worse.
“I realize that you don’t know me from Adam,” Derek said. “Not really. But for whatever it’s worth… I would never hurt you, never try to make you do something you didn’t want to do. I know how society views people in my line of work, but I’m not a deviant and neither are my friends.” He looked at Patrick. “If you want to come home with me, I promise you will be safe. My boss, Gideon, said if you needed a place to go, you were welcome to stay with us.”
Patrick raised his eyes. “Us?”
“Gideon renovated an old inn. Some of the guys who work for him live there with him. I live there. It’s an amazing place, with friends who will do anything to make you feel welcome, make you laugh, protect you.” He looked forward and urged the car through the intersection. “But I understand if you’re not comfortable staying with… people like us, as your friend put it.”
Patrick looked out the side window, his throat hurting. “We’re not friends anymore.”
Derek thought about the look on Brian’s face as they walked out. There was some serious shit going on inside that boy. “Maybe one day you will be again.”
Patrick swallowed hard, blinking back tears. He missed his friend… or who he thought he had been. Maybe their whole friendship was a lie. “I don’t know,” he whispered. “Maybe.”
Silence settled through the car for a couple of minutes. “I didn’t see your car outside the restaurant.”
“My dad took the keys,” Patrick mumbled. “I’m on his insurance. So, he took my key so I couldn’t drive my car. Said I shouldn’t be out of the house unsupervised.”
“Seriously?”
