“No buts,” Kyrone cut in. “I subjected you to my family, so I think we’re pretty much even.” He sighed. “You make me happy, babe. That’s all that matters.”
He stopped stroking Jared’s hair but left his hand where it was, cupping the crown of his head, his thumb resting on Jared’s temple. It felt like Kyrone was waiting for Jared to carry on at his own pace, something he was definitely growing to love about him.
“This thing between us is still pretty new,” Jared said.
“Five weeks,” Kyrone said softly.
“Almostfive weeks.” Jared rolled his eyes. “Which when you’ve got less than eighteen months’ worth of memories is actually a pretty long time.” He paused as Kyrone chuckled. “But in the grand scheme of things, it’s not long at all. We’re still figuring things out and learning about each other. Relationships are supposed to be about give and take. I don’t want to be the one who constantly takes and never gives anything back.”
“You realise you’re rambling, don’t you?”
“Probably.” Jared tickled his fingers over the back of Kyrone’s hand. His thoughts were still leaping from one worry to another, so he kept on going. “I don’t want you to have to choose between me and your friends at the club because things are weird with Jag and I.”
“And you say you don’t talk posh,” Kyrone said, digging him playfully in the ribs.
Jared wrinkled his nose. “I’m trying to be serious, Ky.”
“I know, and it’s cute, but there’s no need for you to worry. I don’t feel like I need to choose who to spend my time with,” Kyrone promised. “I’m still going to hang out with the guys, and I know they’ll welcome you too. As for Jag… I hardly ever spend time with him away from the club anyway.” He started stroking Jared’s hair again, and they lapsed into silence for a while.
If it hadn’t been so cold and noisy, Jared could have probably fallen asleep, especially now Kyrone had allayed some of his fears.
“There are some amazing buildings around here,” Kyrone said after they’d been silent for some time.
Frowning, Jared glanced around the square. There was a real mixture of buildings from the city museum and the town hall, which were both made out of stone, to a red brick restaurant and the concrete frontage of the Carriageworks Theatre.
“I suppose so.” When the weather was warmer, it would be nice to bring his sketch pad here to draw some of them.
“When I spoke to Jag last night, he said you wanted to be an architect. I wasn’t sure if I should tell you,” Kyrone said uncertainly.
Jared blinked back tears. He hadn’t known. What else hadn’t his parents told him? He sucked in a breath. “It’s in the past,” he said. “It doesn’t matter anymore.” He put on a smile that he hoped was braver than he felt.
“Jared…” Kyrone began.
Jared raised his hand to cover Kyrone’s mouth. Not that it smothered the look of concern in his boyfriend’s eyes. “It doesn’t matter,” he reiterated. “Besides, I obviously changed my mind, didn’t I? I was doing a law degree. I know that for afact. I saw my textbooks and essays.” He lowered his hand. “I’m concentrating on the here and now, remember? On the life I’ve built for myself. Onus.”
“But you didn’t know, did you?” Kyrone pressed.
There was no point in denying it. Kyrone must have read it in his face. “No.”
“Don’t you want to talk it through? You must be angry or upset that your parents kept it from you.”
Jared squeezed his eyes shut.
“You apologised for pushing me away a few minutes ago,” Kyrone said. “Don’t do it again.”
“I’m not.”
Maybe he was, a little bit, but he couldn’t cope with the conversation. Being upset led to stress. Stress led to headaches. A headache would ruin his afternoon at Ink Envy, and he’d already missed too many days due to his frailties.
“Being angry or upset won’t change anything,” he said, choosing pragmatism. It had got him this far. “I need to concentrate on getting better, and that’s what I’m going to do.”
Kyrone sighed but nodded all the same. “I understand.”
Jared hoped he did.
“If Jag could let go of the past, would you consider seeing him again?” Kyrone asked.
Jared swiped his tongue over his lips nervously. “Do you think he could?”
