I nodded and followed him through the office.
“Jason Simmons from AW emailed me today. He’s planning to come to your presentation to conduct the interview with us and Mr. James, then he’ll write the article. It should get you a lot of offers for your internship.”
Michael put the food down on one end of the table and took a seat. My stomach sank at the thought of what I hadn’t had the balls to tell Preston. I dropped my stuff at the other end and went to sit with him.
“Have you thought about where you want to apply?” he asked as he unpacked our food.
“I’ve been thinking about it ever since I graduated from college.”
He slid one of the sandwiches over to me, then went to grab two bottles of water. When he came back, he sat down and unwrapped his sandwich.
“How was Miami?”
He smiled. “It was wonderful. Clear blue skies, warm temperatures, and crystal clear water. And it doesn’t hurt that I got engaged.”
My eyes flew open mid-bite. I chewed and swallowed quickly. “That’s great! Congratulations, man.”
“Thanks. Kristin wasn’t expecting it, so that made it even more special. We’d talked about what we wanted out of life, and when I thought about it, I realized no matter what I did in this field, it would mean nothing without her.”
He continued to eat as I just looked at my sandwich. My stomach roiled as anxiety overtook me. Michael must have noticed. “Are you okay?”
“Uh, um,” I nodded. “Yeah.” I wasn’t. I’d completely fucked up.
Michael put his sandwich down and frowned at me. “Are you sure, Nick? You’ve gone pale.”
I opened the bottle of water and took a drink, willing myself to get a grip. I’d tell him, soon.
“You can talk to me, Nick. I’m in your corner. Did I say something to upset you?”
I shook my head emphatically. “No, you didn’t. I’ve just, uh…” I didn’t even know how to word it.
“My boyfriend doesn’t know the internships I’m seeking aren’t in Portland. Everyone else around me knows except for him. I haven’t had the guts to tell him. Didn’t want to ruin Christmas.”
Michael got up and closed the door, then came back to sit in front of me. “Are you in love with him?”
I closed my eyes and nodded. “So much.”
“Can he go with you?”
Clasping my hands, I stared into my lap. “No. He’s older than me and has commitments here that he can’t walk away from.”Fuck, I just wanted to tell him.
When he said nothing, I looked up at him. “I don’t want to leave him behind. But it may not matter when he finds out. He’s going to lose his shit and dump me.”
My eyes welled and goddamn, I was gonna cry. Why the hell had I let all that out? I’d been pushing this down for months now, and now the dam had broken.
“How much older is he?”
My eyes were pleading with him not to ask me that. He’d know it was Preston as soon as I answered that question. “I can’t…”
He held his hands up. “It’s okay, Nick. You don’t have to say anything more. I thought that might be the case all along. But why hide it?”
“Protection,” I said. “I didn’t want any conflict that might keep me from graduating.”
Michael nodded. “Did he buy a five million dollar building in the heart of downtown Portland just so you could complete your degree requirements?”
“No, he honest to god plans to build this. That was his plan all along.”
I was saying too much. I knew I was, but I really needed someone to talk to.
