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“No. Thanks, I owe you.”
“No, you don’t.”
He ended the call and scrolled through his contacts, transferring a few onto the new sim—just in case—then making the call he probably should have done first since he’d registered under his name.
No answer. He tried again. On the fourth attempt, the call was answered. “Yes?”
“Ben, it’s me. Dorian.”
“Dorian? It’s nearly bloody midnight.”
He’d forgotten about the time difference. “Shit, sorry, I didn’t think. I’ll call back.”
“No, don’t be silly. A certain littlest viscount has me up on daddy duty, so no harm no foul.” Ben sounded knackered.
“Midnight’s not exactly late for you… it used to be the time the party started.”
Ben chuckled. “That was before I became a devoted family man. Still, it’s not like you to mess up time zones. What’s wrong?”
“I’ve come out. And not exactly in the controlled and careful manner we discussed.” Ben had always been a good friend, told him what he needed to hear, and didn’t make him think he was a complete twat.
“Oh God. Did you get caught sucking someone’s cock?”
Dorian snorted. “Give me some credit, you giant arse. I sort of blurted it out during an interview. It wasn’t live, and despite Zak being there, I can’t see it staying quiet.”
Ben muttered something under his breath which Dorian didn’t catch but probably wasn’t complimentary. “Hang on a sec.”
He waited and a few moments later Ben was back. “I take it you’ve not checked social media?”
“No, I avoid it like the plague most of the time.”
“Put it this way Instagram is one giant rainbow flag draped over your face. You can safely say it’s not been contained.”
“To be honest, I’m glad. It’s been a long time coming.” He puffed out his cheeks. “I haven’t the first fucking clue what to do now, though.”
“Where are you?”
“In our favourite Hollywood hotel. I’ve used your name for the room. Obviously, it’s my credit card but I sort of said Redbourn without thinking.”
“It’s okay.”
Ben sighed and he thought he heard another voice but then he realised Ben must be holding Davy and his son was making the strange gurgling noises only babies made. He shouldn’t be doing this to Ben, he had other responsibilities now, and Dorian was being selfish.
“Look, I just needed to tell someone. You head off to bed, I’ll call tomorrow.”
“It’s fine, it really is. We came up with some ideas before, try and follow those. I know you were thinking of doing something more controlled but now that ship has sailed it doesn’t mean this has to be a complete car crash.”
He wasn’t convinced, but that wasn’t Ben’s problem. “I’m gonna order room service and chill. I’m sure it’ll look better in the morning. Or at least I’ll have a clearer head to think about it.”
“Do you want me to come over?”
The acceptance was on the tip of his tongue, but he couldn’t ask that of Ben. “Nah, you’re good.”
“How about you text Robin? You could see if you could use one of the Flint properties in the city. Or you could even join him in New York. You’re less likely to be tracked to one of them than an exclusive Hollywood hotel.”
Actually, that was a pretty good idea. “Robin did offer before—on both counts. I’ll see if I can get hold of him tomorrow. I think he’s back in London this weekend, so I don’t want to eat into his time with Simon.”
“Yeah, well, that’s a different issue.” Ben tutted. “You and Robin are as bad as each other sometimes. Simon must have the patience of a saint.”
