Down near the edge of the water, Jake saw two figures sitting in the sand. His friends. He’d missed them, and he’d been envious of them, too. They had found what he’d been searching for, all while he was left sleeping with strangers he’d slept with before, his soul feeling as empty as his cock the morning after. But if anything could give life a jolt, a taste that hope lived in the future, it was this lovely enclave, their own part of the world. With no one else around but the six of them, Jake felt he’d uncovered a bit of paradise. Now it just needed to be regained.
As the men approached, Jake continued to wonder why all of them had been summoned. Surely this issue was between Jake, Matt, and Anton, but he supposed it was a good idea to have some impartial parties present. Freddie could be a good mediator; he might have a reputation as a jokester, but he’d always been the steadying force within their friendship. Matt was often a wilting flower, Jake the impulsive dreamer.
“Hey guys,” Freddie said, “thanks for coming.”
“Everything okay here?” Jake asked. The last thing he wanted was for the wedding to be in jeopardy, and for him to have been the reason why.
“It’s good, Matt’s good,” Freddie said.
Despite his assurances, Jake wasn’t convinced. Matt sat with his tanned arms wrapped in a protective cocoon around his legs while staring out at the shimmering sea. He’d yet to speak a word. But still, Freddie invited everyone to gather around, and they did so, Anton sliding in beside his love, rubbing his hands on Matt’s shoulders. Jake took comfort in the fact that Matt didn’t push Anton away, rather he placed a hand over his, their bond tight, deep and evident. Santo, who had tossed on a shirt but left it unbuttoned, took up beside Freddie, where they shared a quick, heartfelt kiss. Jake tossed a Hunter a helpless look and the man just grinned back at him. Hunter knew from drama, especially since in his world he was the one usually responsible for it.
“It is my fault,” Anton said, “for springing this surprise on you…and on this day.”
Matt turned to him. “It’s not true, though, right? You’re mistaken?”
“No, he’s not.”
It was Jake who said this. He’d been thinking about Anton’s pronouncement the moment he’d heard it. And while he may not remember the night specifically, it was not unlikely that Anton spoke the truth. Back in his twenties, Jake hadn’t exactly been interested in any kind of romantic relationships. He liked sex, and he wanted to experiment, and that’s what he did. Was he proud of it? Not exactly. But hadn’t his empty romances led him to this point, made him the man he was today? Yes. And while Jake didn’t believe in regrets, he supposed some of his life’s choices could have gone a different way. He could have thought things out a bit more.
Before Jake could continue, though, Anton spoke again.
“I had moved to New York from the Midwest, wishing to put my stamp the art scene—a naïve boy in a man’s world, and to top it off I was struggling with my identity. My sexuality. It was after I’d lived in the city for about six months that I felt I needed to see who I was—what I wanted. Fighting my attraction to men, I one night went to a bar, and I met a guy…he chatted me up, bought me drinks, and I suppose it was partly the booze’s fault that led me down a path I wasn’t ready for…”
“Sorry to interrupt, but speaking of…” Hunter said, holding up a bottle of Silver Patron tequila. “Someone said bring a bottle? Maybe what we all need before we really dig into this is a good belt. Unfortunately, no one thought to bring shot glasses…”
“That’s okay,” Matt said, ““I’ll get us started.”
Hunter broke the seal, and he passed the bottle to Matt. Jake found the exchange between the two men strangely comforting; his best friend and the man of impulsive actions, never having met before but suddenly bonding. Jake expressed a silent thank you, Hunter again with that devilish grin on his face. Matt, though, took a swig from the bottle and quickly wiped at his lips. He passed the bottle, and Anton drank, followed by Freddie, then Santo, and at last the bottle came to Jake. It was ritual now, the six of them forming a friendship today with the promise of many tomorrows. So he drank down a swig of the potent liquor before handing it back to who started off the passing of the bottle. Hunter at last took his shot, and then he did a surprising thing: he leaned forward and kissed Jake. Jake could feel the taste of tequila on his tongue.
Matt, staring at them intently, said, “So, you two…you are back together?”
“It’s a long story,” Jake said. “Why don’t we let Anton finish his story?”
“Thank you, Jake. You are humbler today than…”
“I was in my twenties, I was a jerk sometimes. Selfish,” he said to Anton. “So, we picked each other up in a bar, went back to my place and after some probably drunken sex, I gave you an out by telling you it was okay to leave. I sort of remember that you were really innocent, and that you’d…oh, shit…”
“That is true. I’d never been with a man before that night,” Anton said, following through with what Jake didn’t want to verbalize.
“Oh wow,” Freddie said. “Jake, you popped Matt’s husband’s cherry?”
“Really, Freddie? Do you have a porn title for that one you want to share?”
“Sorry…wow, guess that shot of tequila loosened me up too much.”
“A barbaric beverage,” Santo said. “Wine is fruit from the gods.”
“I think he’s had a bit too much, also,” Hunter said.
Anton allowed the distraction, though not without a hint of red glowing beneath his cheeks. He told of how empty he felt that next morning, how confused he was. It wasn’t Jake’s fault. That much he acknowledged. He had to assume some of the responsibility, even though back then he was too inexperienced to understand his feelings, much less his actions. “I decided New York was a cruel place, not one that would unleash my creative juices. So I packed up, and I arrived in Paris on a whim a week later. I never left. I pushed aside all of my feelings about men, and I even dated several women, and then I married Gilly. We had Henri, the greatest gift ever. My son is my life, and with him now, Matthew, you are my life as well.”
All during the telling of his story, Matt was holding his hand. He squeezed it tight now.
“Everything happens for a reason,” he said, “our choices shape our life’s direction.”
“If you think about it, Jake’s the real reason you two met,” Freddie said. “First, by pushing Anton out of New York and onto your life in Paris. And then he came up with that crazy idea where we all went to a different city for the summer. So, first he sent Anton there, then Matt. Fate took over from there, or maybe it had been working behind the scenes the whole time. And now look at them, getting married today.”
“That is still happening, is it not?” Anton said, staring deep into Matt’s eyes.
“Yes, yes, of course. You just…surprised me. But yes, we are okay. It was a long time ago. I cannot be mad at you for trying to follow your heart, even when you didn’t know what it wanted. As for Jake…I have known him far too long, known that he’s also been looking for something he can never find. He didn’t always go about it responsibly, but we all tend to live in glass houses, don’t we? No one should throw any stones.” Matt then paused, and then he kissed Anton, held it, as though the two of them whispered a secret exchange.
“Well, this all seems to have worked itself out great,” Hunter said. “How about we share another shot before we go back and assure the other guests that there’s still a wedding?”
It was agreed, and the six men passed the bottle around again.
“To love,” Matt said.”
“To the future,” Freddie added.
“To unknown surprises,” Jake finished with.
As the six men got up from the beach, dusting off sandy entrails, Jake watched as his two friends walked with the loves of their lives, Matt and Anton leading the way. Their hands locked, fingers entwined, he felt a pang of jealousy at what they had found. Love was tricky, it s
tole your rational self. But he was also happy for Matt, and pleased he would be there to stand up for him. As for Freddie and Santo, they seemed even happier; he could see the way Freddie’s eyes danced when they gazed at each other. Yet he detected a nervous energy around his friend.
They all approached the crest of the land where the beach ended and the rocky cliffs started. It was there that they stopped—or rather, where Santo stopped.
“My new friends, if you would indulge me a moment?” he asked, looking around.
“Santo, what’s wrong…what are you doing?” Freddie asked.
“You have all had your say, today while I sat quietly by. Matt and Anton, they have put to rest a piece of the past, shown their devotion to each other, and to the life they wish to share. Now, it is Santo’s turn. I find myself feeling envious of the bond you three friends share—how you have each supported the other, even when you could not be in the same city together. You made what you call a foolish, impulsive decision nearly two years ago to go out into the world and find love. Though, if the truth were to be known, I think of all of you, Freddie was the least interested in finding something long-lasting. He…he is a funny one, always with a quip, ones I confess I do not always understand. But I would like to spend a lifetime trying to…”
Jake was watching Freddie’s expression, and what he saw was wonder brighten his face.
“Santo, what are you saying…”
That was when Santo dropped down to one knee, and he took Freddie’s hand in his.
“Marry me, Freddie Markson,” he said. “I have known what you wished to ask of me, and I have known about the rings you carry with you. I waited for you, but I know finding the moment for us would be difficult for you. Tenderness lives inside you, yes, but it does not often know when to surface. So I am letting you know, yes I want to be with you, forever, and I want you to be with me.”
No one spoke a word. Jake wasn’t even sure anyone took a breath.
Freddie dropped to one knee also, taking his hand in Santo’s. “Forever is all I ever wanted with you. So yes, Santo Mancusi, not only will I marry you, but I will follow you to the ends of earth and back again, stopping for every adventure our lives toss at us and loving every minute of it, because every minute I know I will be loving you.”
They fell into each other’s arms, hugging, exchanging a tender kiss that promised so much more later, when the night hid them and when their newly confirmed passions could be explored and would explode. Like lights in the sky, fireworks only two could see.
“Well, that makes two happy, engaged couples,” Matt said. “Jake, Hunter, got anything to add?”
Both men looked at the other, eyes wide with surprise at the turn of events, and perhaps carrying a hint of amusement, pasted on their glowing faces. Then, as the sun started to dip below the horizon and turn the sky a radiant shade of orange and a the time for a wedding loomed before them, as the blue sea that was the Mediterranean shimmered like glass, and as romanticism swept all around them, Jake and Hunter locked hands.
Jake took a deep breath, not unlike he’d done last night.
Then he spoke, and what Jake said surprised them all, even himself, the words strange on his tongue, but lovely all the same. “Don’t be mad…but, this is a day we’re all going to remember. It’s Matt and Anton’s wedding day, and it’s the day that Freddie and Santo got engaged. It’s also the first day of our…” Jake paused, watching the curious, expectant expression on his best friends’ faces. “Our honeymoon.”
No one said anything, no one could. It was like the entire world had gone silent.
Jake was smiling, grinning really, one of triumph and delight. A glint of adventure alighted his eyes as he grabbed Hunter’s hand, squeezed it, locked it in his like he’d promised to do for forever. “Hunter and I got married last night.”
About the Author
ADAM CARPENTER is the #1 best-selling author of many M/M romance titles. His Passport to a Fling series begins with the short story Passport to a Fling, followed by the full-length novels French Men, Italian Guys, and English Lads. American Hunks is the fourth novel in the series.
Adam’s sexy, soapy new trilogy begins with Eden’s Past, followed by Eden’s Present and the finale, Eden’s Future.
His “White Pine” firefighter novels include Secret Flames, Heat of the Moment, A Raging Fire, and Burning Truth.
His “Wonderland” trilogy, co-written with Curtis C. Comer and Jeff Wilcox, are, in order: Desperate Husbands, Desperate Lovers, and Desperate Enemies.
Among his other novels are Dude Ranch, the White Pine-spin-off That Passionate Season, Summer’s Choice, its spin-off, Island Desires, and Hidden Identity, the first in a new detective series featuring Jimmy McSwain.
Visit him at www.adamcarpenterbooks.com for more information.
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American Hunks Page 18