“Yes, I’m Andrew, Curtis’s Dom.” He knew it was petty, rubbing this special part of their relationship in, but he couldn’t help it. Even though Jasper and Curtis had parted ways long ago and Curtis had made it crystal clear what he thought about Jasper, an animalistic part of Andrew still wanted to stake his claim against this rival.
Jasper huffed. “For now. How long do you think Curtis will put up with your vulgar upbringing and low financial status? He’s used to better.”
Wow. Jasper didn’t pull any punches. He was here to draw blood, figuratively speaking—at least Andrew hoped so, because the last thing he wanted or needed was a fight in his bakery.
“Like somebody who lost all his money?” It was a low blow. Very immature. It felt great. Especially when Jasper’s eyes lit up in pure rage.
“That was just a stroke of bad luck. Curtis will understand as soon as you stop distracting him. I’m a much better match for him than you. You have to know that.”
“Do I?” Andrew raised a brow, which Jasper seemed to interpret as an invitation to go on.
“Why do you think Curtis took Martin to that dinner with me? Because you don’t belong, because he knew you wouldn’t get the subtleties, and because he didn’t trust you to not make a scene. The game is played differently in our circles, and seeing as you have no clue about it, you can never truly have his back.”
Andrew grabbed the tongs for the macarons so hard, his knuckles turned white. Jasper spoke like a cheap imitation of a Bond villain, and Andrew knew the man was an entitled, self-important prick, a desperate prick to boot, but he still felt there was a kernel of truth to what he said.
Curtis hadn’t taken him to that dinner because he had been afraid of his reaction. If Andrew was honest with himself, he had been afraid of his own reaction as well. And yes, they didn’t move in the same social circles. But those were things he would contemplate later, when he had some peace and quiet. Now he had to get rid of a barking dog in his place of work. He put on his best sneer.
“Interesting, hearing this from you, of all people. According to Curtis, you’re not running in his circles anymore.” When Jasper flinched, Andrew knew he’d found gold. Without giving the man a chance to speak up, he went on. “Face it, Jasper. Curtis is mine now, and you’ve lost the only thing that might have driven him back to you—your social standing, which seems to be your only redeeming quality. You have nothing to offer him, and you know it.”
Jasper opened and closed his mouth a few times before he finally spat out, “Neither do you, toy boy. Curtis will soon grow tired of your inaptitude, and then he’ll dump you as soon as you fail to satisfy him in bed. Given how demanding and hard to please he is, I give you till the end of the year, tops. Mark my words when you’re all alone again.”
With that, Jasper turned on his heel and marched out of Sweet Break. Andrew’s only consolation was that he looked a little deflated while doing so. Sighing, Andrew put the tongs down, stared mindlessly at the macarons in front of him. Jasper’s words had reminded him of the differences between him and Curtis. Differences he thought he had gotten over. Given how much he was affected, he probably still had some unresolved issues—which he should work through, because he had no intention of ever letting go of Curtis. He was going to need time, though. Time on his own, to take a good, long look at himself and to be brutally honest. Perhaps it would even be a good idea to talk to a therapist if he couldn’t figure out how to deal with his problems regarding social status.
Andrew looked at the clock. He and Curtis had planned to go to Whisper tonight to do a scene. A plan he would have to cancel. There was no way he could play with Curtis when his mind was still munching on their differences. Andrew hated himself when he picked up his phone and started dialing Curtis’s number. He knew he was going to hurt him with this call, and not in the good way. But there was no way he would hurt his boy even more by doing a scene while he was not in his right headspace.
The phone rang twice before Curtis’s happy voice greeted him.
“Hello, Andrew. To what do I owe this call?”
“Hello, Curtis. It’s good to hear you. I have bad news, I’m afraid.” There was no reason to dance around the subject. If he had to hurt his boy, he wouldn’t draw it out unnecessarily.
“What kind of bad news? Is everything all right?” Worry was clear in Curtis’s voice.
“Jasper came by Sweet Break today. He blabbed about how I’m not suitable to be your Dom and partner, how you’re going to get tired of me and dump me.”
“You believed him?” Andrew wasn’t sure if it was a question or a statement. Somehow, it sounded a bit like both, and the hurt in Curtis’s voice was like a knife to his gut.
“No. Yes. Maybe a bit. I know he was just trying to needle me, to make me insecure. It wasn’t hard to look through him. He’s angry and lashing out at anybody he can reach.”
“But—I sense a but coming.” The hurt was now infused with a dose of anger.
“Yes. What he said… there is a kernel of truth to it. Don’t get me wrong, Curtis. I definitely have no problem with you being financially more potent than me—and yes, I did choose my words deliberately. What I do seem to have a problem with are the different social circles we’re moving in and me potentially ruining something for you because I don’t know how to act ‘properly’. And yes, I just put in air quotes around ‘properly’ because I don’t think not knowing which fork to use first during dinner should be a criteria of whether somebody is fit for certain company or not. Don’t get me wrong, Curtis,boy. I want us to be together. I want you, more than I can say. But I also want our relationship to stand on solid ground so that we can grow it from a base of mutual trust. For that to happen, I need to get my shit together. I’m definitely not breaking up with you, Curtis. Do you hear me? I’m just asking you to give me some space to get my thoughts in order. Can you do that for me?” Andrew knew he sounded desperate. He was desperate. There was a long sigh at the other end of the line.
“How long?”
“Just a few days. I—I’ll call you as soon as I’ve thought this through. I swear, Curtis.”
“Yes. Yes, I know.” Curtis sounded so defeated. So sad. Andrew wanted to tell him to come over so he could comfort him. He had to stay strong, though.
“I’m sorry, Curtis. I really am.”
Andrew heard a dry laugh that ended in a snort. “Probably not as sorry as me. Bye, Andrew.”
Curtis ended the call, and Andrew couldn’t blame him for being so terse. Thanks to his insecurities, everything he had gained with Curtis was up in the air again. Andrew hated it. It also gave him the resolve to clear his head as quickly as possible.
Chapter 21
CURTIS STAREDat his cell as if it had grown a pair of wings. He couldn’t believe the rubbish Andrew had just uttered. Of course it sounded all mature and reasonable, which made Curtis even angrier. Why did the man have to be right in such a spectacularly wrong kind of way? There was no way he would be able to get over this on his own. Curtis needed his friends. After thinking about it shortly, he called Dean, who was the best at organizing things on short notice.
