“Only because they didn’t have any choice. Plus when they saw how much that stint working overseas progressed my career, they saw the value.” One thing his parents put stock in was working hard and climbing the corporate ladder. His dad had worked his whole career in a government job and always espoused the benefits of hard work and a steady income. “On the good news front, I don’t think they’ve heard the gossip about us otherwise Mum would have made some sort of comment when your name came up. They don’t really follow social media for that kind of news and usually only find out when someone they know passes it on. I guess we’re lucky they don’t think we’re a pair of cheaters.” But he didn’t feel lucky, he felt like shit, especially when he saw a photographer circling the room. “I need to go to the bathroom. I’ll be back soon.”
He didn’t give Bo a chance to respond before disappearing out the back.
The concert the night before had been awesome, but Harvey had to admit he was relieved to have a night off. The plan was to have drinks in the hotel bar so Nigel could run over some details with them, then hit the town and check out the best nightlife that Reno had to offer.
Harvey sipped his bourbon as he checked out the room. Plush semi-circular booths, black walls, and brass fittings, with dim lighting adding an intimate feel—perfect, no bright lights or large crowds. The clientèle appeared to be people travelling on business, with a few couples. They were getting a few looks but nothing pushy. He glanced at his phone, wondering what was taking Bo and Rav so long. His fingers tapped on the tabletop as he looked around.
“Getting impatient?” Rafe asked, drawing his attention back to the group.
“Yep.”
Rafe laughed. “Look at you. Who’d have thought you’d be chomping at the bit for your boyfriends? Even one seems a stretch for you.”
“Piss off.” Harvey elbowed him in the ribs. Mind you, Rafe did have a point. Up until he’d committed himself to Rav he’d pretty much played the field.
“Took you all these years to find the men of your dreams,” Rafe joked. “I hope it was worth the wait.”
The reference to time had Harvey wondering what would have happened if he’d had a relationship with either of them earlier. God, Ravi had had a crush on him when he was eighteen, probably even before then. Teenage Ravi had been gorgeous—so serious, and family-oriented, and beautiful. Overnight it seemed he’d grown inches and filled out in all the right places with his lean body, long legs, and shoulders tapering to a narrow waist. His huge brown eyes framed with dark lashes had looked at Harvey with so much longing, it had been hard to turn him away. One thing was for sure, his body had wanted Rav and it had taken everything in his power to prevent Rav from seeing the reaction he had to him. He’d been five years older and he’d meant what he’d said—they’d been at different points in their lives. It was better to let Rav down as gently as he could, no matter how much he wanted to kiss him, rather than allow things to progress then turn around and leave him behind when he moved across the country. And Bo? That night with Bo was explosive. But they’d both known it was just a one-night stand. He guessed it was lucky things worked out the way they did otherwise they might not have ended up with each other now.
“Hello?” Rafe waved a hand in front of his face. “I lost you there for a minute.”
“Sorry, I was miles away.”
“Obviously.” Rafe chuckled. “Ugh, here comes Nigel.”
“Thanks for meeting me, guys,” Nigel said joining them at the table. “I figured it was more fun to do this over a drink and that means your morning is free tomorrow and you can enjoy a sleep in before we leave. I want to run over the schedule with you and fill you in on the protocols for the festival. Rocktoberfest is massive but runs like a well-oiled machine. I’ve got some checklists for you, and information about access and security, but let’s order another round before we start.”
Rafe nudged him. “Hey, there’s Bo now,” Rafe said, inclining his head to the open double doors where Bo peered into the room.
Harvey met his gaze and Bo beckoned. “I’ll be back in a minute, guys.” He headed over to Bo. “What’s going on?” he asked, as something was clearly the matter given the concern on his face.
“It’s Rav.”
“What about him?”
“He’s packing. He wants to leave.”
“For Rocktoberfest? We leave in the morning.”
Bo shook his head. “Not the festival. He’s leaving, leaving. He’s trying to get an earlier flight back to Sydney.”
“What the hell for?” Harvey asked.
“He was really upset. He hates that I’m hurting and he thinks he’s the cause of it, plus he thinks he’s holding you back. He was saying something about being different people and having different lives and timing and…” Bo sighed, “To be honest I couldn’t follow half of what he was saying.”
Harvey took Bo’s hands and squeezed them. “You’ve got to keep him here, okay? I’ll come up as soon as I get the info from Nigel. Can you do that?”
Bo nodded. “Yeah, but hurry.” He turned to go.
Harvey didn’t let go of his hand, so Bo turned back to face him. “Are you all right? I know this is a lot.”
Bo’s smile was resigned. “I’m not going to lie and say it’s all fine but I’m hanging in there. The timing sucks and it’s horrible that this stuff in the press is pushing Rav to make some decisions before he’s ready.”
“I know. But it’s you I’m asking about. It’s not just Rav who’s affected by this. You have every right to be pissed too.”
“Oh, I’m pissed all right, but I know we’ll get through it. I’ll go up and talk to Rav now, see if I can get him to see that too.”
“Okay. I’ll be up as soon as I can.”
