“Maybe…,” Cal said, too cryptic to read, like even he wasn’t sure if he meant that. Turning to lean against the cabinets, he faced Owen like another familiar picture from their past, yet everything was different tonight, paved in uneven ground neither knew how to tread. “I should head home too. Unless….”
“Unless?” Owen perked up.
“Unless….” Cal gestured at Owen like he was the summed-up answer.
Because Owen was the client. Because Owen set the rules. Being handed back the reins didn’t make him feel very in control right now. “Oh. You don’t have to stay and snuggle or anything. We can say it was just between friends tonight. Unless you want to be paid!” Oh God, now Owen felt like a complete goon.
Cal didn’t look upset, though. He laughed lightly like Owen had surprised him. “This can be unpaid, Owen. It was a night off for me.”
His night off? “But I still made you work.”
“It didn’t feel like work.” Cal took a breath as if more words waited on his tongue, as if he wanted to say, you never feel like work.
The blush filling Owen’s cheeks made him certain his hair was about to catch fire. He was reading into things. Cal was just being nice. Cal had… come here on his night off. “Oh! I forgot to ask! Why did you come over if you weren’t scheduled? Did you need to talk to me about something?”
For the first time since Owen had known Cal, the other man looked unsure how to answer. Then the apprehension melted from his expression and he just looked at Owen, content and unguarded—not an act, not a role, just…. Cal.
“You know, I can’t remember. Guess I just wanted to see you.”
Not knowing how to compute that, Owen erupted in surprised laughter. Cal wanted to see him. Cal didn’t care about the business side. He just wanted to see him. “Cool! Good. You can always come see me if you want to. Tonight was really fun.”
What came next, however, was shrouded in mystery. Owen didn’t want to ruin the magic by speaking again. He hoped Cal would take the initiative, and as it turned out, he did—by heading for the door. Which was fine, definitely the right call, but Owen felt like he was flailing following at his heels.
It was the first time they hadn’t ended an evening in their underwear, creating such a unique dynamic that was somehow more intimate with clothes on. All Owen could think about as he accompanied Cal to the door was that he wished he could kiss him goodbye, but then he’d be taking advantage of the offer of just a night between friends.
Still, there was hope now like a buzz of electricity between them that was better than any brush of skin.
“Good night.” Owen gripped the edge of his door for balance, not ready to shut it behind Cal just yet.
Cal hesitated, nodded like he’d convinced himself to complete some insurmountable act, then leaned forward to press a soft kiss to Owen’s cheek. “Good night, Owen.”
OWEN hummed when he was happy. He’d been told it was highly annoying.
But he couldn’t help it! He’d slept great last night and had carried a skip in his step since the moment he walked out the door. Today, he was at Walker Tech again, head down working on data sets that would eventually need reviewing from multiple departments as well as Nye Industries. It was the perfect sort of workday for him, because he could live in his own world for a while and just get things done. He needed days like that.
Especially when his head was wrapped in a fluffy cloud of Cal. And that kiss. And their perfect night.
Owen still had Cal scheduled for several events and evenings coming up, but everything was different now, and even knowing that the conversation of “what do we do next?” still lay ahead, Owen felt confident in the outcome. He felt giddy.
He’d been listening to DragonForce and Lordi on his headphones all day—not Lorde, which had confused Alyssa the first time he mentioned the band and played her one of their songs. “Let’s Go Slaughter He-Man” was not the same genre as “Royals.” But with metal blaring in his ears, he was in the zone, even when just refilling his coffee or grabbing a snack. He’d have his work done in half the time at this rate.
Sure, a few people in the break room or hallways snickered at him or seemed to be whispering about something with glances his direction—probably because he was still an antisocial dork most of the time; what else could they be whispering about—but he didn’t care. He was on top of the world right now.
“Hey, Owen, can I steal you for a minute?”
Until Adam waved a hand in front of his face and Owen had to tug out his earbuds. “Hi! Sorry. And yeah, of course, what’s up?”
“Good news. Always good news. Come on.” Adam pulled Owen along with him and kept a firm hold for the first few steps toward the conference rooms. He was one of those overly physical people, but Owen didn’t mind so much now that he knew Adam.
“I like good news,” Owen said. “About the project?”
“Yep! We have another interested partner that could really help this blow up.”
“Really? Who?”
“Orion Labs in Middleton.”
Owen stumbled over his feet, which he wished he could blame on keeping up with Adam’s pace. “That’s… great. They’re a good company. Lots of resources.”
“Exactly. Some of their people contacted us after that press release about the new venture. They’d like to get in on things too, maybe offer some support and additional scientists to help see this through. Apparently one of their top brass worked with you before and really knows your models?”
“Uhh… well….”
“I figured it was the least I could do to hear out his proposal in person.”
“What?” Owen’s heart pounded in his ears louder than the drums had been pulsing over his headphones. “You…. H-he’s….”
Adam led Owen into the main conference room with a flourish where a tall, trim, striking man in his early forties stood waiting with the most satisfied, snakelike grin.
Harrison.
“Hello, Owen.”
Chapter Seven
OWEN’S vision tunneled, zeroing in on the face, the figure, the man he hadn’t laid eyes on in months. Rooted to the spot just inside the conference room door, he couldn’t move until Adam snapped him back to consciousness with a pat on the back.
“Owen, Harrison tells me you two know each other pretty well.”
How dare he? He wasn’t merely grinning like a snake, he was one—a viper waiting to strike.
“We worked parallel to each other for years,” Harrison said, crossing the room to approach them with measured steps. “So we didn’t often cross paths, but I know his work well. Owen was always exceptional.”
Snake.
“No surprise there. I’m just lucky to get some of his divided attention.” Adam laughed, and Owen knew he should react, speak, scream, but he couldn’t move. He’d been thrown back in time almost half a year, and he had no idea how to respond.
Even Harrison’s glasses were the same—black on top but clear along the bottom. Owen remembered when he got them. Today he wore a blue patterned suit, one of Owen’s favorites because of how it complemented his eyes, with a crisp shirt and tie.
The one difference was his hair, cut shorter on the sides to look more modern, more fitting for Atlas City, like he planned to stick around.
“You’re staying for the presentation, right?” Owen turned to Adam without acknowledging Harrison directly.
“Of course. You can’t do all the heavy lifting.” Adam patted his back again, hovering close like Owen usually found intrusive, but today he was grateful. “Just one second, I want to grab a few of the gang from R&D. Plus, I figured you’d want a couple minutes to catch up. I’ll be right back.”
Owen tried, he really did, to say something—no, wait, stop—but the air crystalized in his lungs and seared him with every breath he choked on until Adam was out the door, abandoning him in a secluded room with his—
Not ex. Harrison didn’t deserve to be called just an “ex” when Lo
relei had worked so hard to get him to admit what the man really was.
A user. An abuser. A snake, a rotten snake, he was a—
“Owen?”
Breath catching just as fiercely when his eyes landed on Harrison again, Owen saw that confident façade drop away, leaving the older man looking… scared. And sorrowful. And like every other time he’d convinced Owen to stay with him.
Channel it, Owen thought as he remembered the lies that followed. Use it. Be angry—you have a right to be angry.
“Hear me out.” Harrison raised his hands.
“No,” Owen spat with more bite than he expected. Focusing on that small win, he clenched his fists tighter. “What are you doing here, Harry? Are you out of your mind? Adam doesn’t know our history, but if you think I won’t tell him the truth—”
“I’m not here to cause trouble.”
“Even worse if you think you can win me back—”
“I’m not here for that either.” He came closer, too close, keeping the large table and the rest of the conference room behind him since Owen hadn’t moved from the door. “I understand if you can never forgive me for that night. I took you for granted, for years. I know that now. I’m here because I honestly believe this business decision is a sound one, but I could have sent someone else to make the proposal. The truth is, I wanted the chance to tell you how sorry I am.”
Lies. It was a lie. It was always a lie. “I didn’t answer your emails because I don’t want to talk to you. How did you even get—”
“If you want to tell Walker our history and that it’s unprofessional for me to be here, I’ll bow out.”
“It is unprofessional,” Owen barked back. “It was unprofessional for you to get your boyfriend a job so you could watch me all day and steal my work.”
“Steal?” Harrison reared back like he had no idea what Owen was talking about.
No. No. He did not get to do this again. “You stole every idea I ever had. You won’t steal this.”
“Owen.” Harrison raised his hands once more as if to appease him, as if Owen was the unreasonable one. “I asked if it was okay every time I presented your ideas. You just needed one more promotion to get on the radar of the other execs, then they would have listened without me. I told you that.”
“You could have let me present my ideas myself and backed me instead.”
“For them to find out we were sleeping together, living together, and assume that was the only reason I was vouching for you?” His words came out so sincere, so rational, that Owen floundered for how to counter him. “Yes, I used your research, but I always asked. I never demanded. I never stole anything.”
That… wasn’t true, was it?
He had asked, if Owen thought about it, and Owen always agreed… but only because he felt like he had no other choice! Harrison had manipulated him. This was all part of the game. This was how he’d controlled Owen for years.
“I’m not having this argument.” Owen shut him down; he had to shut him down.
But Harrison reached for him—
“Owen—”
—for his arm, and Owen couldn’t, he couldn’t. He staggered back, knocking into the door in his haste to get away and hating how he trembled at the mere thought of Harrison’s hands on him.
Harrison didn’t pursue him but stopped midstep, arm outstretched, expression distressed and so mournful again. “Please. Don’t flinch like that. You know I’d never hurt you.”
“Never—” Rage boiled inside of Owen where fear had just bubbled. How could he say that? How could he say that? “You broke my arm.”
“I… what?” His own arm dropped as he leaned away from Owen and the color drained from his face. “It was broken? You never told me that. I had no idea. You wouldn’t even talk to me.”
“Why should I have?” Owen stayed on the defensive, though he had to wonder if Harrison hadn’t known. Not that it mattered. He’d still done it. Wasn’t it worse if he hadn’t noticed how rough he was being? “Why should I listen to you now? The only thing that’s different is I’m happy and doing better without you.”
It was everything Owen had rehearsed in his head, everything he’d longed to say but assumed he’d never get the chance. It didn’t feel as vindicating as he’d envisioned, because Harrison was supposed to sneer at him and put him down, not shrink in on himself like he cared, like he was sorry.
“Were you never happy with me?” he asked in a small voice. “Never?”
Getting his trembling under control, Owen moved from the door, not closer to Harrison but parallel around him so he no longer felt trapped. “For a while I was,” he said, because he had been, hadn’t he? There were reasons he’d fallen for Harrison, valid reasons he’d wanted to be with him—once. “But not for a long time.”
“Then I’m sorry for that too,” Harrison said, eyes closing briefly before they opened, clouded and damp—which wasn’t fair. It wasn’t fair. He had no right to make this harder. “I’m not asking for a second chance. I’m asking for you to let me prove I can still be the man you once trusted and cared for so that maybe we can walk away from this without hating each other. That’s all I’m after. Your forgiveness, only if you believe I deserve it, not your love. I know I lost that a long time ago.
“Walker will listen to whatever you want.” He gestured at the door. “You’re the one in demand here. You’re the one everyone wants to please. So, if there is a second that passes where you want me or even all of Orion Labs out of the picture, just say the word and I’m gone. Your call. I won’t fight what you want, even if that includes me leaving.”
The bastard was taking the high road when all Owen wanted was to hate him. He’d finally gotten to a place where he felt justified in hating him, where he recognized what had been done to him all those years, how much he’d been used, how… awful….
But looking at Harry now, he saw some of the man he remembered from when they first met, and that made everything worse.
The door opened with a whoosh as Adam returned, followed by three members of the R&D team. “Okay!” He clapped. “Shall we get started? What are you doing back there, Owen?” He turned to peer at where Owen stood half-hidden behind the door.
“Nothing.” Owen pulled on a smile and moved to grab a water bottle from the conference room minifridge. “Just getting a drink. Anyone else need something?”
He couldn’t make a scene, wouldn’t make a big deal of this. He just had to sit through the proposal and take his time deciding the best course of action. It would have been so much easier if Harrison had given him a reason to have him dragged out by security.
Throughout the presentation, Owen thought he’d be lost in a daze, unable to listen, but Harrison was good at pitching, a good storyteller, quick with a joke and warm smile, and always intuitive to when it was time to get serious. Orion Labs had more overseas contacts than Walker Tech or Nye Industries, more access to certain technologies that would keep production costs down. Anyone could tell that the proposal was mutually beneficial.
It was almost nice a few minutes here and there when Harry would have the room laughing along with him—Owen included—reminding him of the passionate, fiercely intelligent man Owen once found so enthralling. He wasn’t an innovator. He didn’t come up with new models or technologies the way Owen did, but he was good at implementation and bringing a project together.
“Well, if everyone’s in agreement,” Adam said, “I’ll send the proposal to Ms. Nye for her take, maybe set something up for later this week, make sure our partner doesn’t bite my head off for talking to you first.” He chuckled, but Owen knew how scary Keri could be when given a reason. Adam turned to him last for his approval, for his say, and there was nothing Owen could do but nod.
When the others left, he stayed in the conference room with Harrison, even though part of him wanted to flee.
“You didn’t say anything,” Harrison said, quietly despite it only being the two of them.
“I wasn’t
going to tell a room full of my peers that you’re an asshole and look like an asshole myself,” Owen said. “It makes sense to collaborate with Orion Labs. It’s a good proposal. You were always good at that sort of thing.”
“I can ask for a representative to replace me, have someone else—”
“You’re CTO,” Owen cut him off, because this was hard enough without Harrison’s sympathy. “It should be you. It’s fine. I’m not going to be petty. But my decision doesn’t mean anything else.” Forcing himself to meet Harrison’s eyes, he fought the instinctive shiver they stirred in him. “I don’t want to see you. I don’t want to talk to you. This is just professional.”
“Of course.” Harrison nodded without a single word of argument.
Moving swiftly to leave the room before anything else could be said, Owen hated more than anything else that this version of Harry… reminded him of the man he’d fallen in love with.
“WHY are you buying me a drink in the middle of the day?” Cal eyed Lara with suspicion.
Lara didn’t take days off any more than he did, but there she was, treating him to a late lunch and a drink at their favorite dive bar. She looked different with her hair down, in a casual outfit and leather jacket, like she could bench press a bouncer and then slam a few shots. She ordered some too, along with a couple beers as if to prove the point.
“I have news,” she said, “and trust me, after you hear it, you’re gonna need a drink.”
They clinked glasses and downed their shots, then took their beers from the bar to a corner table before she elaborated.
“The Godfather will no longer be using your services.”
“That’s it?” Cal hadn’t been expecting the news, but he wasn’t devastated by it. “Don’t tell me she had an ex to go back to? I’ll get a complex.”
“Nope.” Lara’s blonde waves bounced as she shook her head. “Her father? Godfather Senior? Was just arrested for racketeering.”
Cal gaped at her as she took a liberal drink from her beer. “You’re joking.”
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