“Still. He did a good thing.”
“He did. He’s…well, he’s pretty great, actually.” He was certain his feelings were written all over his face. He cleared his throat. “So, you coming?”
Darius had a contemplative look on his face when he turned back to Jackson. “Yeah, sure.”
“Great! Now, have you seen my accreditation anywhere?”
“You left it in the loo,” Darius replied with an exasperated tone. Jackson pointedly ignored it as he crossed the room to the bathroom and grabbed the card from the counter.
“Let’s go, then!” he said cheerily, striding out the door to where Elliot was waiting in the corridor.
Despite his personal feelings about short-distance running, which amounted to ‘ick, please don’t make me do that,’ Jackson had to admit that watching the sprinters race around the track at unimaginable speed was inspiring. Every race seemed to end in what looked like a photo finish from where he sat between Darius and Elliot in the seating area reserved for athletes. It was just so different from the type of race he was used to. Jackson didn’t think he’d done a run shorter than five kilometres since primary school.
He grinned as he saw some familiar faces file in. Alice and Ilaria, the cyclists they’d met in St Moritz in April, were looking for seats. He waved at them, turning to Elliot. “I’m going to go say hello. Want to join?”
Elliot cast a glance over at the women, returning their enthusiastic waves with a nod. “I…I need to speak with Hewitt for a minute. I’ll come in a bit.”
Jackson arched a brow at Elliot. “You won’t tell him without me, right?” he whispered.
“Of course not. This is something else.”
Jackson looked at him imploringly, waiting for a real explanation.
“Go see the girls, I’ll only be a minute. I want… Look, he’s your best friend, right? So, I want to…I guess clear the air or whatever.”
Jackson nodded, squeezing his boyfriend’s hand subtly between the seats as he rose. It meant more than he could express that Elliot kept putting himself out there, that he was willing to try. Jackson reluctantly pulled away and made his way through the crowd to where the two Italians had found an excellent spot, right near the front.
“Jackson!” Ilaria exclaimed. “Is Elliot not coming to say hello?”
Relaxing into the hard plastic chair next to her, Jackson replied. “He’ll be down in a minute.” He chanced a glance back up at Elliot, and his heart fluttered happily as he watched him gesturing in that understated manner he always did. He knew Darius had been a bit of a sore spot where Elliot was concerned, jealousy on both a professional and personal level widening the gulf between them, but seeing him try like this, well, it reminded him of how much his boyfriend cared. Elliot Owens deserved the whole damn world, and Jackson was going to spend forever helping him realise it.
“Stefan! Mars! Siamo qui! We’re here!” Alice shouted, breaking Jackson out of his Elliot-focused reverie. She waved Stefan and his group, which now included Chris Green, over.
Stefan nodded timidly at Jackson, who glared back at him. He wasn’t going to absolve him that easily, though it was hard to stay angry at someone who so closely resembled a sad puppy. Stefan shifted his weight and then seemed to regain his confidence as he began introducing the others. The group was mostly made up of other triathletes, except for one friend whointroduced himself with a self-deprecating shrug. “I’m Mars. Just a photographer, not an athlete,” he said.
“Don’t be so modest!” Ilaria interjected from where she’d now perched herself in Stefan’s lap. “Mars is one of the best ultra runners in Italy. He’s unbeatable.”
“I’d hardly say that,” he replied, though the wry grin on his face hinted that she couldn’t have been far off.
“That’s crazy, mate,” Jackson replied. “I’ve always kind of fancied giving ultras a go.”
As the others chatted, Elliot approached, subtly letting a hand slide over Jackson’s hip as he leaned in to greet everyone. Though the hand disappeared when he spotted the press badge hanging around Mars’s neck, and Jackson couldn’t help but be disappointed. Now that he’d experienced the freedom of people knowing about them, it hurt to have that rescinded. To shove their relationship back into the darkness again and again when he wanted to bask in the glow of it.
“Good chat?” Jackson asked.
“Yep,” Elliot replied, offering nothing further.
Ilaria interrupted. “Elliot! I’ve missed you! Is everything good for you now?”
Elliot met Jackson’s eyes over Alice’s shoulder as he replied. “Yeah, it really is.”
Chapter 31
Elliot
The Olympic Marathon
By the morning of the marathon, everything felt stretched thin. The village was buzzing with last chances and final shots at glory. Chris had disappeared in the evening and hadn't returned. His bed hadn’t been slept in—something Elliot wasn’t surprised by, but which made his stomach feel like it was full of lead if he thought on it too long.
