“I had to find some way to keep myself busy and out of trouble.”
“Glad to hear it’s something legal, Harlan.”
James stood in front of us, and my jaw dropped in surprise. I darted a quick glance over to Cort, only to see his equally shocked face.
“James? What’re you doing here?”
“I would think buying a book,” James said with that perpetually wry smile. “That is the usual reason people visit bookstores, if I’m not mistaken. Race.” He shook the man’s hand. “How are you? How’s the back? Any better?”
“Not at all. We were just talking about it before Harlan surprised us with his business savvy.”
“I think Harlan is a man full of many surprises, some even he may not be aware of.”
There went that cryptic sense of humor I enjoyed. “Oh, James.” The laughter bubbled out of me. “Believe it or not, I’ve missed you.” Despite his quirkiness, I meant it. Like Cort, James didn’t let me hide behind my bullshit, and I respected him for it. But when did he and Race get to be friendly? That was an unusual pairing, but then again, this was James. Nothing about the man was straightforward.
“Good to see you as well. You look as though you’re thriving here.”
Thriving? I certainly was happier than I could ever remember. For the first time, I looked forward to coming to work.
“I enjoy coming here and figuring out how to help Race increase sales. I used to think a bookstore was for one thing—books. Now that I’ve seen the behind-the-scenes machinations, it’s intriguing to track the sales patterns of the genres that sell more than others and figure out why, and how, in-store promotions affect sales.”
The three men stared at me, and I gave a self-conscious laugh. “What? You’re staring at me as if I had six heads.”
“I think,” James said, still giving me a thoughtful stare, “that despite all you went through, it might’ve been the best thing that ever happened to you. As I see it, you’ve come out on the other end clean and sober, truly invested in a job that excites you, and with a relationship you never anticipated.” His gaze shifted between Cort and me. “I am right? You and Cort are together?”
Warmth flooded me, and I caught Cort’s wide eyes. He pressed his lips together and waited. He wanted me to answer, needing me to validate it to our friends. It was one thing to let people assume, but it took it to the next level to say it out loud.
“We are.” My words came out strong, and I watched Cort’s face light up. “We’re together professionally, and where it really counts, personally.” There was something so right about what Cort and I had, like an organic experience we’d grown and nurtured to get to this point. “I can’t imagine myself without him.”
The first true smile I’d seen from James transformed him, and I wondered what his story was. As far as I could tell, he had no life outside the club, but there had to be a side to him none of us knew.
“I’m glad to see you’ve acknowledged what we all could see for months.”
“I had to come to terms with myself before telling others.”
Cort stepped to my side and put his arm around me, and as always I settled into that perfect place beside him. We fit together. “We talked about it, but it wasn’t my choice for Harlan to tell people. I’d never force anyone to come out before they were ready. Harlan had his reasons.”
“Thank you.” I kissed his cheek, aware that aside from that impulsive kiss here in the bookstore when Bobby showed up, this was the first spontaneous show of affection I’d allowed myself with Cort in public.
He tightened his arm around my shoulders and murmured in my ear, “It’s okay. I don’t need you to rush it or prove nothin’. As I see it, we got all the time in the world.”
“It’s time. I’ve nothing to hide, and if I want to kiss you, I will. Nobody’s going to tell me what I can or can’t do, not after everything I’ve put myself through.”
“A little humility does go a long way.” James pushed a book across the counter. “We all learn that one way or another.”
I rang up the sale, contemplating him. I’d never met a man who talked in circles or riddles like James. No wonder Cort’s friends were fascinated by him. He’d drive me crazy. I needed people to be direct with me. I was done with doublespeak. It had brought me nothing but trouble.
“Goddammit.” Race attempted to get up from his chair, and his normally ruddy skin paled. His hiss of pain had Cort speeding to his side to help him.
“What’s wrong?”
“What do you think? My damn back. I’m going to the doctor. Now. I don’t care if my appointment is later.”
I picked up my phone. “I’ll get you a car.”
“Don’t bother,” James said. “I have one waiting, and I can take him where he needs to go.”
“You don’t need to do that,” Race said. “I can take my own cab.”
