Page 33 of Under the Shade of the Sycamore

“Bonsoir,” Claude replied as he exhaled. “You’re roaming about the school late. Did your win pump you full of adrenaline?”

“Probably,” I replied. “Can I sit?”

“Please do.”

I lowered myself down beside him. He watched me tentatively, as if a grizzly bear were taking a seat at his left.

“It’s a nice night,” I stated after a moment or two had passed.

“Oui, yes, chilly. Fall is coming.” I nodded. He drew in a large inhalation then exhaled it slowly. “Congratulations are in order. You…how is it you American say it? You sure showed me?”

“That wasn’t my intention. I just thought the set had merit and while I value your critiques and years of experience, in the end if I don’t stand up for my visions who will?”

“Not so many years…” he mumbled before drawing in a puff then releasing it. A smile tugged at my lips. “I admire your courage. You’re right. Our vision is ours and we should die defending it. Pity the others don’t have your temerity.”

“They’re terrified of you,” I replied, looking to my right to enjoy the play of dancing weak moonlight on his face. God he was handsome. A tiny twist of his lips told me he found that to be amusing. Then he turned his attention to me.

“But you are not.” Not a question, just a statement of fact.

“No, not really. I admire you, and I winced when you tore into my clothing, but I’m not scared of you. The day at the Arc I saw a side of you that you rarely show. I liked it.”

His eyes roamed over my face. “You are far too candid for this world, Kinder.” I shrugged. “Mom tells me that a lot. I just dislike bullshit lies.”

“Well, the world is built on deceptions and avarice.” He held up the bottle. “Would you like to join me in drowning a thoroughly terrible two days?”

“Is it that wine we had at the restaurant?” He nodded. I took the bottle carefully, ensuring that my fingers brushed his as I’d seen in a gay romance movie not that long ago. His breath hitched slightly at the contact. Without moving my eyes from his face I took a small gulp. Mickey had been pretty specific about maintaining eye contact. If it worked for a blowjob it should work for sharing some wine. “I still like it.” I passed it back. There was no contact this time sadly. Claude lifted it to his lips, took a sip, and then lowered it to rest the bottom of the bottle on his thigh. Pamplemousse rustled around in from some bright red mums to our left. “Want to talk about your two terrible days?”

His lips flattened momentarily. “Perhaps we should at least discuss part of the reason. The second part has to do with my school and my ex which are tragically intertwined.”

“Okay, well, I’m cool with hearing you out no matter what’s eating at you.”

He placed a hand on mine as it lay on my knee. Warm, rough, gentle. His touch raced right to my groin.

“The afternoon we snuck off was amazing. Truly. I’ve not smiled or felt so light of heart in many years. Dare I say your attention boosted my ego tremendously?”

“It’s easy to pay attention to you. Hell, it’s hard to focus at all when you’re in the room.”

“Such a sweet young man.” His hand rose from my knee to cradle my face. “Such a handsome, earnest man. I could easily fall for you, Kinder. Which is part of the reason I was so ugly the past few days. Soline and I, well, we had a rather heated discussion after I saw you off outside the theater. She seems to think that my spending time with you alone while the show is filming could be seen as partiality.”

“Oh.” That was kind of a blindsided truth. “Maybe, like, I guess. But you’re not a judge.”

“True, but I am your advisor. I am considerably older than you, have more clout than you, and am the founder of this academie. The power dynamic is bad, you see? Surely you must see? I do, now. Pah. Perhaps I did the moment we met in person. No, before that. I was struck by your beauty on your video. How could anyone not be stunned?”

“I’m not really all that,” I whispered, my blood racing through my veins, heat pooling low in my belly, as his thumb rubbed my cheekbone.

“Oh yes, you are, and I have not steeled myself well against your pull. Sneaking off was poorly done of me. Soline tore me a new asshole for my behavior. Telling me that if the press were to find out we’d been skipping about the city, holding hands, they would bring into question the validity of the show. We cannot have that. This show, and the revenue that it will bring in, are vital to the academie staying open.”

My eyes flared. That was news to me. Of course I wasn’t privy to his personal funds but how could someone as wealthy as Claude Barrons be in need of cash from a streaming company?

“I’m sorry to hear that,” I finally said leaning my face deeper into his palm even though he was clearly saying we should not be doing this. This being sitting under a sycamore tree, alone, staring into each other’s eyes as we yearned to kiss. Maybe it was just me doing the yearning but I didn’t think so. My experience with men was nil but even a know nothing like me could feel the sexual tension on the cool night air.

“The money concerns are not yours but thank you. The worry is mine, as is maintaining decorum with a contestant. So, to that end, I should not have lured you—”

“Lured? You didn’t lure me anywhere. I’m not a kid. You didn’t dangle a candy car in front of me. I’m a full grown man. I make my own decisions.”

“I’m so very much aware that you are a man. A kind, courageous, honest man that I wish I could…” He let it drift off.

“Could what?” I pushed as the fire in my gut began to spread to my chest then limbs. There was nothing in the world outside of this quad, of the warmth of his hand on my cheek, of the tender words being whispered.