Page 63 of Seasons of Love
As I waited for the coffee to brew, I inspected a notice board next to the fridge. There were cards with medical appointments, takeout menus, and some photos. All of them included Slade.
Was Mike holding on to Slade? Had he not moved on?
We spent the rest of the day with Mike. I mostly watched as they remembered Ted as they went through old photos and memories. I could see how Slade and Mike had been so suited to each other.
Mike was, for the lack of a better term, a big teddy bear of a man, with his sparkly eyes and friendly personality. He really didn't match the actions of a man who'd cheated on his husband.
After dinner I offered to wash up the dishes while they put all the photos away.
I was drying them when Mike came in the kitchen.
"Hey," I said. "All okay out there?"
"Yeah, he's just in the bathroom…um, Aiden…I'm…I don't know how to say this, but I hope you love him as much as he loves you."
"What do you mean, he doesn't…"
My heart raced. Okay, I'd hoped that was the case, but that was before my phone call this morning. Before the video. I still hadn't handled that. How would Slade react when he found out?
"I've known that man half my life. I always knew there was something he wasn't telling me about himself. There was something missing in our relationship. My uncle always defended Slade, so I learned to accept that something happened in his past that I couldn't know about. But I can tell he's told you because he looks at you like you're his lifeline. He leans on you more than he ever leaned on me. So if you know his truth, you know how much that means."
I put the dishcloth on the counter and hugged Mike.
"You're a good man, Mike."
"Eh, I have my moments."
"Will you be okay after he leaves?"
"I'll make do."
We ended up checking out of the hotel and staying with Mike for a few days until the funeral.
The ordeal of putting his uncle to rest was too much for Slade, so whenever he wasn't helping Mike with stuff, he was asleep.
I ended up finding Mike and I had more in common than just Slade, and before we left I made him promise to visit Slade in Chester Falls at some point.
He gave me a pointed stare when it sounded as though I might not be around then, but I deflected.
When Slade had been asleep, and with my phone's battery fully charged, I'd finally seen the whole video. I'd had to hide in the bathroom so I wouldn't disturb Slade.
I'd also read the messages from Richard. I want to see you. When will you be back? Don't ignore me, dammit. Aiden, we have a history together. Did you like the video we made, sweetie? You loved being a dirty little whore for me, didn't you?
I stopped being able to read more of the messages through the tears in my eyes.
There was no way out of this. What if he went public with the video? He'd been clever enough so that while I'd been fully exposed, his face wasn't visible. The person on the video could literally be anyone. Which meant he was holding the cards in my life. Again.
The closer we were to Chester Falls, the more anxious I got. I still hadn't decided what I was going to do about Richard. I knew I had to call him, but I was terrified of doing it.
"Hey, you're a million miles away," Slade said, taking my hand and lacing our fingers together over his thigh.
"Just thinking."
"About your book?"
"Um, yeah…"
"Let me know if there's anything else I can help you with for your research. Liam texted me to say the parts that went off to be powder-coated are back."
