Partners

by Kira Chase

  “In the first place, I don't want sympathy,” he snapped. “In the second place, change will be good for Bobby, and in case you haven't noticed, jobs are tight everywhere. Especially in my field. When Will and I reconnected, he told me how well he’s doing and offered me a position.” His eyes darkened. “That's the least Will can do for me. Isn't that right, Will? You owed me one.”

  Johanna studied Will's face. He was flushed and looked uncomfortable as he sat and looked down at his plate of food in an attempt to avoid Johanna's eyes. He didn't offer a response to Kyle, but Kyle didn't seem to expect one either. She turned her attention back to Kyle. “Have you found a suitable place yet for you and your family?”

  He rolled his eyes. “Again, not that it's any of your business, but yes I have.” He looked at Will and squared his jaw. “Here.”

  “I know. You already said you plan to move to Charlestown,” Johanna reminded him.

  “No, I mean here,” Kyle emphasized.

  “Here?” Frankie frowned. Suddenly she stiffened. “You mean in this house?”

  He nodded. “Why not?”

  Trey who had been silent up to this point jumped up out of his chair, startling everyone around the table. “Oh, no you won't! This is my house and I've put up with all I intend to.” He turned trembling with rage to Will. “You invited him here and now you can kick his obnoxious ass out!”

  Trey's face was so red that Johanna feared he would pass out. He shoved his chair out of the way and stomped off toward the kitchen.

  “I'll go talk to him,” Johanna said laying a hand on Frankie's arm. “What's the deal, Will?” she asked angrily as she walked out of the room not waiting for an answer.

  * * * *

  “Who the hell do you think you are?” Frankie demanded as she turned her attention to Kyle.

  “And you!” She wagged a finger at Will. “What's the matter with you?”

  “Are you going to tell her, Will?” Kyle taunted with an amused smile on his lips.

  Will's forehead creased. “It's complicated,” he said feebly. “I'm still trying to process it.” He ran a shaky hand through his hair. “You wouldn't understand.”

  Frankie's eyes narrowed. “Are you two having an affair? Is that it?”

  Kyle threw his head back and laughed. “That's a good one.” His eyes swept over Will. “I never knew for sure he was gay until we reconnected. He kept it well hidden.”

  “That doesn't answer my question.”

  “I'm not gay.” Kyle shook his head. “That has nothing to do with it.”

  “What is your deal then, Kyle? What are you holding over Will?”

  “Ask him.” He nodded in Will's direction. “Tell her, Will.”

  “Nothing,” Will mumbled.

  She disgustedly shook her head back and forth. “If I didn't witness this with my own eyes, Will, I'd never believe you would ever let anyone treat Trey so cruelly, and in his own home. There has to be a reason. Why are you letting this happen? What are you hiding?”

  Will was quiet for a few minutes, opened his mouth, and then quickly clammed up before uttering a word.

  “I guess I never knew you at all,” Frankie said with a touch of contempt in her voice.

  Will looked at her. “No, Frankie. It's killing me.” His lips quivered and his eyes filled with tears. “I'm going to come clean with Trey.” He rose. “I'm telling him everything, Kyle. I can't do this.”

  Kyle shrugged nonchalantly. “Suit yourself, but it won't change anything now, will it? You'd better think long and hard about the consequences, Will.” He leaned back in his chair. He flashed a smug smile at Frankie. “Why don't you go get your girlfriend and Trey? Will and I will meet all of you in the living room. We'll be much more comfortable there.”

  Chapter 5

  Frankie and Johanna settled themselves on the sofa, while Will and Trey took seats in easy chairs across from each other, and Kyle sat on the love seat. The tension in the room was almost unbearable and Frankie sipped her third glass of wine while Johanna took a swallow of coffee. Frankie was relieved that Johanna was driving tonight. If she hadn't been Frankie's wine would have been substituted for coffee as Johanna's was.

  The assembled group looked expectantly at Will who sat with his eyes focused on his shoes as he twisted his hands together. All color had drained from his face and a thin line of perspiration was visible on his brow.

  Kyle set his bottle of beer on the coffee table and then glanced around at the others and sighed deeply. “Come on, Will. Everyone's here. Tell them everything,” he taunted. “You said you wanted to. Now's your chance.”

  Will opened his mouth and then quickly closed it as he looked uncomfortably at Trey.

  “What's the matter, Will?” He followed Will's gaze to Trey, then looked back at Will. “Lost your nerve? I told you there's no need to worry. You've done very well for yourself, haven't you?” His eyes swept around the room. “Just look at this house and the prosperous business. And to think you own half of everything.”

  “No, not half of my business,” Trey spat out. “If Will's told you that then he's lying to you.”

  “Now Will wouldn't lie, would he?” he sneered. “I'm going to love living in Charlestown. I have a cushy job and a beautiful house to live in.” He spread his hands wide. “What more could a guy ask for? I have it all.”

  “It's my home and my business!” Trey shouted. “My name is on all of it, not Will's.”

  Kyle laughed. “Think again. I believe you've left out a minor detail.”

  Frankie had had enough. “I don't know what you think you're trying to pull, Kyle, but it's not going to work. Get to the point of why you're here and what your goal is.”

  “You'll find out soon enough.” Kyle picked his beer back up and took a long pull from it.

  Frankie gritted her teeth as she looked at Will. “You'd better have a good explanation,” she said. “What the hell is going on, Will?” she asked in a less than friendly tone. “Dammit, start talking.”

  Will exhaled loudly as he clasped and then unclasped his large hands. “It's complicated.”

  “What's complicated?” she persisted. “Come on, Will. Do you want to throw away everything you have for this piece of garbage? What's he got on you? Whatever it is, we can help you.”

  Kyle's eyes turned into slits. “Better watch out who you're calling names,” he warned.

  “Or what?” Frankie asked matching his intense gaze.

  “You don't want to find out,” he answered evenly. “Believe me,” he advised.

  “Is that a threat?”

  He laughed. “Of course not.” He paused. “It's a promise.”

  “Well, I'm not afraid, Kyle. Maybe you get off pushing everyone around, but you don't scare me.”

  Kyle chuckled softly, but made no further comment.

  Frankie turned her attention once again to Will. “We're waiting for an explanation.” Her lips drew into a taut line. “And we're not leaving until we get one.”

  Will swallowed hard and then looked apologetically at Trey. “There's something from my past that you don't know about.” He swiped at his brow. “I didn't even know until I reconnected with Kyle.” He rapidly blinked.

  Trey's face went white and he looked like he'd just been punched in the stomach. “Before you tell me, Will, let's get one thing straight. You know that you do not own half of my business.”

  “Doesn't matter,” Kyle cut in. “You owe him.”

  “It does matter,” Trey insisted turning his head to look at Kyle. “And I owe him nothing. I want you out of my company and my house. And, Will, until I find out what is going on, you're finished, too. You can pack up and leave, too.”

  “No, Trey!” Will cried. “You don't understand. Please just listen.” His body shook.

  “I've run out of patience. You've betrayed me and destroyed everything I thought we were building together. No more. We're finished!”

  Kyle threw his head back and laughed sadistically whi
le slowly clapping his hands. “Good show, Trey. How about an encore?”

  “I don't see what's so funny,” Frankie said. “You seem to get off on another's pain. That's a very sick trait.”

  “Really? I think you're missing the point. Will's not going anywhere since, as I stated, he owns half of this lovely house.”

  Johanna lifted an eyebrow in surprise. “Is that true, Trey?” she asked softly. “Did you put Will's name on the deed? If it’s just survivorship you can have it removed.”

  Trey blinked hard, fighting to hold back tears. “It's not survivorship. Since we'd been together for quite some time, I wanted Will to know how committed I was to him and we signed papers at my lawyer's office where I gave him half ownership for the house.” He stared at Will through tear-blurred eyes. “I thought we were building a life together,” he said hoarsely. “I was going to eventually make you official co-owner of the business, too. How could you do this to me, Will?” He covered his face with his large hands.

  Frankie glanced at Johanna and witnessed the pain in her eyes as they both focused on Trey's heaving shoulders. Will jumped up and ran to Trey. He tried to put his arm around him, but Trey shrugged him off.

  “I want you out of this house!” Trey shouted. “Please just go, Will.”

  “No, Trey, let me explain,” Will pleaded as he dropped to his knees in front of him.

  Frankie's patience was gone. “Enough stalling, Will! What the hell is going on? You're hiding something. What is it? We're all here, Will, as requested. You promised to come clean to Trey.”

  Will rose and slowly walked to the large fireplace and stood in front of it, then turned and faced the group. He rammed his hands into the pockets of his jeans. All eyes focused on him.

  “Let me help you out, Will,” Kyle said.

  Will tilted his head and his eyes burned. Suddenly, with raised fists, he lunged toward Kyle who instinctively jumped to his feet. “You son of a bitch!” he screamed.

  Johanna and Frankie were instantly on their feet. They grabbed his arms. He struggled against them, but they held him back.

  “Wow! You two are tougher than you look,” Kyle sneered.

  “Shut up!” Frankie said.

  Kyle sat back on the love seat. “I thought you two would have found out everything there is to know about me. Every little detail of my life. Isn't running a background check one of the first things a good PI does?” He crossed one leg over the other. “Tell me. Did you find anything juicy?”

  Johanna's eyes narrowed. “We're sick and tired of your sadistic games, Kyle.” Frankie helped her move Will back to his chair. He tried to resist, but they shoved him into it.

  “Start talking, Will. Now!” Johanna demanded. “Prove to us that you haven't been setting Trey up since the day you first met him. Because right now you're treading on very thin ice.”

  Will emphatically shook his head back and forth. “No! I don't know what you're talking about. I love Trey and I always will. I'd never deceive him.” Tears streamed down his cheeks. “You have to believe me, Trey. I'd never hurt you,” he pleaded.

  Frankie lifted a suspicious eyebrow. The two people she assumed had it all were now breaking apart, but why? Will certainly didn't act like he wanted to end the relationship so where did Kyle Martin fit into all of this? Trey looked like a wounded animal and she wondered if he'd ever recover from whatever Will had done. She looked at her two friends and then at Kyle Martin. He sat with a wide grin thoroughly enjoying himself. She couldn't figure out how breaking up the men would benefit him. Something didn't fit and she couldn't figure out what it was. She was determined, as she knew Johanna was, to get to the bottom of it, though, no matter what it took.

  “Start talking now,” Frankie said repeating what Johanna had said.

  “It's you or me, buddy,” Kyle said. “But if you leave anything out, I'll be sure to fill in the blanks. Go ahead, Will. I certainly have nothing to lose,” he paused. “But everything to gain.”

  “I wish I'd never invited you here,” Will spat out.

  “It wouldn't have mattered. I would have come anyway. With your little secret from the past,” he added.

  “Talk, Will!” Frankie insisted. “We've run out of patience.”

  Will ran a hand through his hair and took a deep breath. “It started back in high school,” he began. “Kyle and I played together on the football team. Actually, that's how we met. My family moved around a lot when I was a kid because my father was in the military so I never put down roots or formed lasting friendships. When my father said we were moving once again, I was upset because I really liked the school and was beginning to make some good friends. But at the same time a part of me was looking forward to the move.” He frowned. “It was hard to find someone who—” He broke off and looked in desperation at the women. “You know.”

  “We know,” Johanna said.

  He drew another deep breath. “Anyway, I'd formed a close friendship with Kyle's younger sister, Carrie.” He bit his bottom lip. “Everyone assumed we were a couple, but we weren't. But we let them think that because Carrie was going through some things and it was a good cover for me.” He blew his breath out. “I wish now that I could have been a better friend to her. She began avoiding me and everyone close to her. I couldn't get her to open up.”

  “Why?” Frankie asked. “Did she want more than friendship?”

  He shrugged. “No. I couldn't give her what she wanted…what she needed. I could only give her friendship.”

  “And she wanted intimacy?” Frankie asked.

  “No. Well, yes, but not from me.”

  “I get it,” Frankie said. “You also became a cover for her.”

  “Yes.” He swallowed hard again. “I couldn't get her to open up about what was troubling her, but I knew it was ripping her apart.”

  “Do you know if she confided in anyone beside you?” Frankie asked.

  “No. Contrary to what Kyle says, she was never close to him.”

  “Not true,” Kyle interrupted.

  “Did you know Will was gay back in high school?” Johanna asked.

  “No one did, and Will, you're a liar. You were dating Carrie.”

  He drew a deep breath. “I wasn't. I loved her like a sister and that was all.” His face contorted. “We spent a lot of time together and most of it was good. Except when she became withdrawn and moody.”

  Trey was listening intently, but didn't say anything.

  Frankie watched Trey carefully. His body language spoke volumes of his love for Will. Her heart broke for him. Her heart broke for the both of them.

  “One day at school she said something that caused me concern.” He held a hand up. “No, it wasn't a suicide threat or anything like that. She was depressed and had talked about running away. I'd been wanting to tell her that my family was moving, but it never seemed like the right time, but we were moving very soon so I knew I had to tell her. I went over to her house that night to try to talk her out of running away and also to let her know I was leaving. I was torn.” He drew a shaky breath. “The timing wasn't good, but my hands were tied.” He paused. “Most of that night is a blank. I remember having a beer, maybe two, but I just can't remember anything about that night or of even talking to Carrie.” He frowned. “I must have drunk more than I realized and passed out before I even got to talk to her. I just don't know. I remember going to her house having a beer with Kyle and then my mind is a complete blank after that.”

  “So, you never saw Carrie that night, is that what you're saying?” Frankie asked. “How did you get home?”

  He nodded in Kyle's direction. “He told me a couple of days later. He said Carrie was upset with our conversation so he drove me home because I was drunk.”

  Frankie pursed her lips. “Okay, there are way too many holes here. Would you care to fill in those blanks, Kyle, since Will can't seem to remember? Enlighten us about that night. Because so far none of this makes sense or seems to connect to why the hell you’re here
.”

  Kyle looked at Frankie. “I'd be happy to oblige,” he replied with a wide grin. “Drinking can get you kicked off the team, but hey, we all did it. No one ever snitched and I don't think the coach would have given a damn anyway…just so we kept winning. And we did.” He smiled smugly. “Anyway, Carrie had confided to me her suspicions about Will…that he was gay. Of course, I didn't believe her. I figured she was just pissed at him for some reason since I'd assumed they'd been intimate by the way they couldn't seem to keep their hands off one another when they were together.”

  “That's a lie,” Will retorted. “We were only friends. Carrie and I didn't feel that way about each other. You know that, Kyle.”

  “Keep telling yourself that, Will, but I know what my sister told me.”

  “Just get to the point,” Frankie said.

  “Okay, okay. I bought some beer and I asked Will to come over to my house. My parents were out of town for the weekend, so I figured I could settle things between Will and Carrie.”

  “And?” Johanna asked.

  “Will came over and we had a few beers and talked. Later I convinced Carrie to clear the air with him. She finally agreed, so I left them alone because I had a date. Later, after I drove Will home, Carrie and I talked. She told me that she and Will had worked things out and she admitted that she'd been wrong about him.” He broke off and turned an eye to Will, “Which it turns out she was right after all. Anyway, she'd decided to give him another chance.”

  Frankie waited for him to continue, but he sat looking skeptically at Will. Her brow puckered. “Very nice story, but what the hell does it have to do with you being here now?” She trained her eyes on Kyle Martin. He sat smugly seeming to enjoy the discomfort he was causing Will.

  “I'm getting to that.” He leaned forward and placed his hands on his knees. “I needed a job and he owed me.” He glared at Will who was visibly shaking as beads of perspiration formed on his forehead.