Page 83 of Grounding the Baker
“We talk about her all the time. He knew her when he was a kid himself, and his mum was friends with mine.”
“I mean, have you talked to him about what it’s like to lose a parent?”
“No. We’ve talked about his wife, though.”
“That must have been a cheery date.”
“Piss off,” he laughed. “She’s Maisie’s mum. Of course we’re going to talk about her.”
“Have you said to Austin, ‘I miss my mum. Can I have a hug?’”
He shook his head, getting choked up again. If he said that to Austin, the man wouldn’t hesitate to pull Liam into his arms and let him cry on his shoulder, just like he had on the night of the funeral. So why hadn’t he leaned on his boyfriend in that way? That was a question he wasn’t sure he could answer.
TWENTY-ONE
AUSTIN
It was May, and the weather was holding out, which was promising for a good season. Given their location, many of his clients needed work on their grounds regardless of the weather, but when you had a hot summer, people spent more time in their gardens and wanted them to look excellent. This was primarily driven by snobbery and one-upmanship, but business was business. His Heartwood clients weren’t like that, but then, this little village was unique in its community and the people who lived here.
Liam had joined him and Maisie for dinner every night the past few weeks, and Austin had woken up with his arms wrapped around the man who had his heart almost every morning. It was worth the early wake-up calls just to have Liam close to him, but Sundays were special as neither of them had to be up for anything, and Maisie was one of those kids who loved her sleep. She was never grouchy about getting up for school, but she’d happily lie in all day if she could.
The past two months with Liam had been amazing, but something kept niggling at Austin. Since his weekendin London with his old flatmates, there’d been a shadow in Liam’s eyes. It was only because Austin could never take his eyes off the man that he’d noticed, as Liam was usually nothing but smiles when they were together. It had been a while since they’d had time together, just the two of them, and Austin had planned for them to have a night out in Roseville at the weekend. Maisie was staying with Giselle and Henrietta, who appeared to have scaled back on their meddling, although whenever they snuck a kiss in public, one of them would be there with a knowing smile. Austin was convinced the two of them had to be witches with the way they seemed to appear out of thin air.
Before their weekend alone, it was trivia night, and the first one Liam was attending. Austin had high hopes for their team. Liam was a clever guy– not that the rest of them were thick. Nathan had aced every test he’d ever done, and could probably earn a fortune if he wanted to, but he hated being in an office environment and had a job working at home, which he loved.
“Who’s that?” asked Tony.
Austin could practically hear his friend vibrating, so he looked up.
“That’s Rodrigo. He owns the gym.”
“I can see that,” said Tony, with a purr.
Austin couldn’t help chuckling. To be fair, given Rodrigo was wearing a slutty vest top and showing off many a bronzed muscle, he could see why Tony was practically wagging his tail. But he also knew his friend’s fuck-and-chuck attitude to sex, and from what he knew of his personal trainer, that wasn’t his MO. He’d had his heart broken a couple of years ago, and moved out of London to get away from that approach to relationships. He’d set uphis own business here, and everyone was grateful for it, especially many of his female clients.
“Is he on our bus?” asked Tony.
“Which bus?” asked Austin. “TheI love dickbus, or thebisexualbus?”
“He’s bi,” said Liam.
“How do you know that?” asked Austin.
“He’s my PT. We talk during our sessions.”
“Fantastic,” said Tony, rubbing his hands together. “Is he a bottom or vers? I can work with both.”
“How would I know?” asked Austin.
“Total top,” said Liam.
“What?” said Austin, unable to stop the growl which came out of him.
“Down, boy,” said Liam, gripping his thigh with a smile. “Just girl talk in the gym. Nothing for you to go all caveman about. Well, not until we get home.”
Austin couldn’t stop himself leaning forward for a kiss and pushing his tongue into Liam’s mouth possessively. He responded with a moan, and his tongue tangled with Austin’s.
“Get a room!” snapped Gerard, making them both jump.
