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“I like it.” It was getting easier to admit things to him, as he was opening to me.
“And if you don’t mind, that talk of that ex of yours having written contracts in his safe… no. If we write stuff down, do it all traditionalist and such, well, it’ll be out, where we can make changes as we go.”
“I like that too.”
“I’d rather talk stuff out, but I guess it’s good to write them down, get it all out on the table. I will tell you up front, if you’re mine, my boy, I’ll push you to do things I like. That’s how I feel about things, if we’re getting to the nitty gritty of it. You have a say, of course, always, with your safeword.”
“That’s fine with me. Like I said, I want to serve, so you tell me how you want things, and if I really can’t handle it, I know my I can say my safeword and that’s binding for us.”
“It is.”
“I don’t want any festering on things. If we have issues, we’ll talk about them.”
It was good getting all that out up front, but it reminded me of the contract Harvey had. “What if I have to use that? Take it to court? Harvey’s and my contract.”
“Then you’ll do it and be proud of the fact you’re a gay man in the fucking lifestyle. It’s not as taboo as it used to be, Eli. People know about it. Don’t start worrying about that unless we have to.”
I said nothing because I didn’t want to lie. I knew Harvey, and I knew, even subconsciously, that if I took that watch, I’d drive Harvey’s anger. Shit, leaving at all was going to do that. He’d come after me no matter what I did, so taking the watch was an excuse.
Being with Noah, though, having a different view on things, I stopped letting that get to me. Harvey was my past, and I hoped my future was going to be with Noah. When I looked over at him, happily driving, thinking of the night ahead, I could see it, being with him for the long haul.
That was the first I’d ever thought of that. Even with Harvey, I knew it would end, eventually. That bothered me at times, always going into a relationship, knowing it would end. I maybe knew they would and didn’t want to get hurt, but with Noah, that feeling wasn’t there. That premonition or whatever was gone. I wanted Noah, and he wanted me. Maybe that was the difference.
They got to the motel and checked in quickly before heading to a coffee shop downtown. He’d never seen Noah really angry before that day, trying to find a place to park. Eli knew better than to show his humor, but it was funny as hell, watching him redden and cuss out words Eli had never heard him say.
The meter fed, they were late, but had finally found a parking spot in the middle of the tall buildings of downtown. The place was upscale, and Noah told me before we were seated, “This is a tactic they use to intimidate you.”
“Their own clients?”
“Yeah. They never want you to forget they can piss you out if they want. Your money doesn’t mean shit to them, because they have all the money they need. My husband told me about that years ago, and looks like Richard still does it.”
I thought that was fucked up, but I didn’t say anything. I got the feeling Noah held a lot against his late husband. That was his place to judge, not mine, I thought.
The place was all windows, looking out onto the street and a side alley, plants all over, glass tables, black round chairs. The ceiling was so tall it had to be two stories in height, and there was a definite echo.
The host led us to a table where a thin man in an expensive suit, Harvey expensive, stood to greet us. He reached out a big hand to Noah first, a fake smile on his full, pale lips. His eyes narrowed a little, though, telling me the smile was hurting him to make.
“Noah, so good to see you.”
“Richard.” He let go of Richard Chase’s hand and the lawyer reached for mine as Noah introduced us. “This is Elijah James. Eli, this is Richard Chase.”
“Thank you for meeting with me,” I said to him, shaking his clammy hand.
We all took seats, and a waitress came over, wearing all black except for a white apron, to take our orders. I ordered a caramel latte, and my Noah wanted plain coffee. I smiled in my hand as I covered my mouth.
“Well, Eli, when Noah Oliver calls me, I come running. I owe him, owe his late husband.”
“You got that right,” Noah grumbled, then just glared.
“Noah, we can deal with our issues after this, if you’d like,” he offered.
“No, I’m settled with everything. Take care of him, all the way through, and we’ll be square.”
I watched the exchange between them, wondering why Noah hated the man so, and the arrogant man Richard Chase was offering to do whatever it took was obviously out of character for him. The mystery was looming between them, but I knew it was none of my business. That didn’t kill my curiosity.
“We’ll be square? Noah… I’d do this regardless, you know that.”
“We’ll be square,” Noah repeated, then sat back and waved toward me. “Eli, tell him all of it. He knows, but not in your words.”
