Chapter 13

Drake sighed when he couldn’t hear any movement on the other side of the door and he turned and went back to his own apartment. It wasn’t like Jay to just disappear on him. He didn’t like it one damn bit.

Plopping down on his sofa, he pulled his cell phone from his pocket and located Jay’s number. When he went to voice mail again, Drake hung up. There was little point to leaving yet another message Jay wouldn’t return.

He began to wonder if Jay was avoiding him on purpose. He couldn’t imagine why, but what else could it be? He didn’t want to think something bad had happened to Jay. The young man wasn’t really a high risk victim other than being gay. And there was that. But he hadn’t heard of any recent gay bashing incidents in the area.

Drake’s next plan to look for Jay would be the store where he worked, he guessed.

And then he heard footsteps in the hall. It could be another neighbor though so he waited. Then he heard a knock on Jay’s door.

“Pizza Palace,” a guy yelled.

Drake was up off the couch and to his door. He opened it just in time to see Jay paying the pizza guy.

“Thanks, man,” the pizza guy said, handing over the pizza box and turned to continue back down the hall.

For a second Drake thought Jay was going to close his apartment door and pretend Drake hadn’t been standing there gawking at him. His hand was on the door, ready to close it, pretty much in Drake’s face.

“Uh, hi, Drake,” Jay said, his voice low. His blond hair was damp, as though maybe he’d been in the shower. Drake decided to tell himself that’s why Jay hadn’t opened the door when he’d knocked before the pizza guy.

“Jay, are you all right?”

“Sure. I’m good. Why?”

Drake glanced back into his own apartment. “Hang on, I’ve got that order for you.”

“Order?”

“For your nephew. And something else, too.” Drake entered his apartment, grabbed the brochure and the small gift box that contained the watercolor scarf he’d bought several days ago.

He almost ran back out to the hall, half expecting Jay to have gone back inside, his door closed firmly. But it wasn’t. Jay stood in the doorway, though no longer holding the pizza box, and he looked like he intended to bar Drake from entry.

“Can I come inside?” he asked.

Jay bit his lip, but held the door open wide enough for Drake to enter. He closed the door, but leaned against it, his arms wrapped around him, hugging himself. Jay wore a long sleeved red T-shirt and dark blue jeans slung low on his hips. Drake had trouble admitting it, but really Jay looked unbelievably sexy.

Now that he was here, facing a guy who’d obviously been avoiding him, or well, most likely anyway, Drake wasn’t sure what to say.

“You have an order for my nephew?” Jay asked, breaking the awkward, prolonged silence between them.

Drake looked down at the brochure. “Yeah, yeah.”

Jay nodded. “You can leave it on the table there.” He pointed to the coffee table. “Thanks by the way. You didn’t have to order anything.” He moved away from the front door at once and walked into his kitchen, barefoot, Drake noticed for some reason.

He also noticed something else as he set down the brochure and the gift box. “You’re smoking again.”

Jay shrugged, filling a teakettle from the kitchen faucet. “Yeah. A little.”

“Jay, I thought you quit.”

“I did mostly. Anyway, why do you care?”

Drake blinked a little at the hostility in the young blond’s voice. “You know why I care. My mother died of lung cancer. She smoked like a madwoman.”

Jay winced. “Yeah, sorry. It’s just…I mean. Never mind. Why are you here, Drake?”

“Well, because, to be honest, I’ve been concerned about you.”

“Concerned?”

“I’ve been coming by here for the last few days and you haven’t seemed to be around, so I just wanted to make sure you were okay.”

“Oh.” Jay poured boiling water into a mug. “I’m fine. You don’t have to bother checking on me.”

“Bother?” Drake frowned. “It’s not a bother, Jay. We’re friends.”

“No, we’re not,” Jay said softly.

He couldn’t have been more surprised. And he was speechless. He must be missing something. Had he gotten hit on the head and forgotten about it?

“Excuse me?”

“I know you’re just being nice to me.”

“Being nice to you? Jay, what the fuck are you talking about?” Frustrated, Drake grabbed the gift box he’d brought with him and thrust it at Jay. “Open that.”

Watching him warily, Jay shook the box. “It’s from my store. What is it?”

“Open it.”

Jay lifted the lid to the box and then moved the white tissue paper. His eyes widened as he stared at the beautiful, colorful scarf. “It’s my scarf,” he whispered.