The Platinum Rebound

by T V Hartwell

  “I’m good. Everything’s good. Yeah, yeah,” Jake said, sounding easy and cool, rubbing his chin.

  Kirby knew Jake well and could tell that he was putting on the laid-back, unaffected attitude on purpose, but it was working as Kirby crumbled inside. Kirby just stared at him for a moment, trying to come up with the right words to say without allowing his emotions to turn him into a blubbering mess.

  Appearing to sense the awkwardness of the moment, Jake helped him out. “So how’s the pilot coming along?”

  “Oh, yeah, thanks for asking. Things are good. The pilot script has been signed off on by the network and we have a director. Now we’re just finalizing the cast and then we start shooting by the middle of next month. And then we’ll be in post-production after that.”

  “And when will you know if the network decides to pick it up?”

  “Probably by May, early June and then we’d go into production for a full season or whatever number of episodes they decide to order up front.”

  “Very nice. Congratulations again, and good luck with filming next month.”

  “Yeah, thanks. Appreciate it.”

  “Well, listen, I don’t mean to be short, but I’m actually off to an appointment, and need to run and shower right quick before I leave.”

  “Oh . . . no problem. Sorry, I didn’t mean to keep you. Go right ahead,” Kirby said as he struggled in his head to find the right words to suggest that they keep the conversation going, perhaps at another time over drinks or lunch.

  “Take care and good luck with everything,” Jake said as he lifted his hand to slap-grab with Kirby’s.

  After their hands had connected, Jake moved to pull away, but Kirby held on. “I meant to ask you, did you get the messages I sent you?”

  “Yeah, I did,” Jake said, maintaining his stoic posture.

  “Why haven’t you texted or called me back?” Kirby asked, releasing Jake’s hand.

  Jake looked down and then looked back up at him solemnly. Confused, Kirby couldn’t tell if Jake felt regretful, sad, or if he even cared at all.

  “You know, this isn’t the time or place, and honestly, I need to get going or I’ll be late.”

  “Okay. Well, if you want to talk you know where to find me,” Kirby said letting it go for the moment, not wanting to make a scene.

  After they parted ways, Kirby proceeded to return to his workout, doing a few sets of lateral pull-downs. During a break between sets, Reggie approached him. “Hey, man.”

  “Oh, hey, what’s up, Reggie?” Kirby said as they slapped and grabbed hands. “I saw you chatting up my homey earlier.”

  “Who?”

  “Jake.”

  “Oh yeah, Jake. You know him too, huh?”

  “Yeah, he used to be my workout partner. I thought you knew.”

  “No. I didn’t know.”

  “Yeah, we used to work out here together all the time.”

  “Hmmm, I guess I never noticed, but you know I usually come here in the late morning or by mid-day. If I come this late it’s typically because I had a job scheduled or an audition like I had today. I didn’t even know Jake worked out here, but he told me he didn’t really come here anymore, he just had an appointment nearby and this was closer than his other gym.”

  “Oh, okay. Yeah, Jake and I have been friends for a long time. So if you hadn’t seen him here before, how do you know him?”

  Reggie chuckled. “I’ve hooked up with him a couple of times. I think he has a thing for black guys. But you might already know that.”

  Kirby nearly fainted to the floor from a sudden spike in blood pressure. His heart started beating so fast that he could hear and feel the palpitations in his forehead. However, he did his best to remain calm and conceal his shock, choosing to play along. “Yeah, Jake’s got love for the bruthas. Where did you guys meet?”

  “I met him on New Year’s Eve. He messaged me on that new hookup app, AlphaBeta. You heard of it?”

  “Oh. . . yeah,” Kirby said in utter shock and disbelief, but holding it in well.

  “He said he was specifically looking for a hot black dude and that he was curious about being broken in as a bottom. It was one of his New Year’s resolutions to try it for the first time.”

  Kirby’s eyes widened and his mouth flew open before he quickly closed it back and feigned a laugh. “Oh man, that’s funny.” Not.

  “The guy is super discreet and shit. He didn’t even have a profile picture. I don’t know what made me even reply to him. I usually don’t reply to guys without a profile pic, but when he said he wanted to try out being a bottom for the first time, I was curious. So I said, ‘Show me some ass,’ and he sent a picture of his backside. He was pointing the camera over his shoulder at a mirror, and I was like ‘Damn, this boy is phine.’”

  Kirby stared back at Reggie, feeling as if his heart had just collapsed down into his stomach, but he kept up the front as best he could. “So what happened, did you guys do the deed?”

  “Naw, when he saw how big I was in person he freaked out. The guy gives head like a pro though. You can tell he’s had a lot of experience in that department.”

  Kirby felt sick to his stomach, but he pressed on. “So you said he came back for a second round?”

  “Yeah, but he’s still skittish. I’m workin’ on him. Maybe the third time will be the charm. With a body and bubble ass like that, it’s worth the extra effort. I’ll get it. Yeaaah, boy, I’m gonna get it,” Reggie said, chuckling and licking his lips for effect, so caught up in himself and his quest that it didn’t even dawn on him to question Kirby about the nature of his relationship with Jake.

  Kirby felt so distraught and confused by his conversation with Reggie that he ended up leaving the gym immediately afterward, no longer having the energy or mental stamina to lift any more weights.

  * * *

  Chapter Forty-Five

  Jake quickly showered and dressed and then hopped in his car to make the short trip from the gym in Hollywood to his appointment.

  He parked his car outside on the leafy residential street in front of the parsonage belonging to Holy Trinity Episcopal and then quickly made his way up the long walkway leading to the front door, already five minutes late.

  When he rang the doorbell, Reverend O’Mahoney answered the door himself. “Jake!”

  “Hello, Reverend O,” Jake said, using the affectionate nickname preferred by those who’d been at Holy Trinity since childhood. “Sorry I’m a little late.”

  “Oh, not a problem at all. Please, come in. I’ve been eagerly awaiting your arrival.” Reverend O’Mahoney was a single man who’d never been married and lived in the church parsonage alone. Early on, when he was younger, some of the parishioners at Holy Trinity had tried to set him up a few times. When nothing panned out, people began to suspect that he might be gay, but after thirty years as rector and having never been seen with a mate of any kind, people stopped guessing and nobody seemed to care anymore.

  “I haven’t been here in a long time. I think the last time I came to the rectory was for an Easter egg hunt when I was still a kid.”

  “Is that right? My goodness, you have to come around more often, Jake. Don’t be such a stranger. My door is always open to you, and of course it’s nice to see you in church on those rare non-holiday occasions you stop by,” he deadpanned with a biting tone and then let out a chuckle as he patted Jake on the back and led him into his cozy living room.

  Jake took the ribbing in stride. “Yeah, I know I could do better when it comes to my attendance. Please don’t take my absences to mean that I don’t like your sermons, because I do. Every time I come, I leave inspired and think I’m going to come back the following Sunday for more, but then . . . life happens and things get in the way.”

  “Like temptations?” the reverend said teasingly.

  “Yeah.” Jake grinned. “Lots of temptations. That’s it. Exactly,” he said as the reverend chuckled along with him good-naturedly.

 
“I’ve made a pot of tea. Would you like a cup?”

  “Yes. Please. Thank you.”

  When Reverend O’Mahoney returned to the room with a serving tray and set it down on the coffee table, he asked, “I like to drink my tea the old English way with cream. How about you?”

  “Yeah, sure. I’ll take some cream,” Jake said as the reverend proceeded to pour him a cup.

  “Good. I brought along some honey and sugar too, whichever you prefer. Please, help yourself.”

  “Thanks,” Jake said as he went to add cream to the full cup Reverend O’Mahoney had just poured for him.

  “So how’s work going? Remind me, you’re a lawyer at Duchovany, right?”

  “That’s right. Things there are going very well. I’m into my second year as an associate and I’m learning a lot, but also taking on more and more responsibility.”

  “Really? Like what?”

  “Mainly having more face time with clients and managing or co-managing some key relationships. Under the supervision of a partner, of course, but I’ve been really fortunate in that the partners I primarily work with have allowed me to participate in a lot of high level client interactions, which has helped me to build trust and demonstrate my skills. It normally can take six to seven years to make partner, but I’ve been told that it could happen for me in less time if I continue to take on more responsibility and my client billing grows. Once the clients see that I can do the work and start dealing mostly with me on their projects, then I can gradually start billing at a higher rate, which will help my case when it comes time for partnership consideration.”

  “That’s wonderful. Good for you. You know, I recall that when I wrote one of your letters of recommendation for law school, you wanted a corporate law practice that would also allow you the flexibility to pursue pro bono work helping immigrants seeking asylum from political persecution and other abuses.”

  “That’s right. I volunteered for Amnesty International during college and law school, as you know, and I’m hoping to pick that up again soon now that I’m a licensed attorney. My workload has just been so full it wasn’t possible, but now that I’ve got my first year under my belt and things are sailing along smoothly, I intend to explore the possibility of joining a legal team to work pro bono on some human rights cases on the side.”

  “Excellent. That’s excellent to hear. I’m so proud to see you making such good progress in your career and to see you moving forward with your life.”

  “Well, that’s what I wanted to talk with you about. On the surface things are moving forward, certainly in my professional life. But in my personal life, I’m really struggling, Reverend O. You obviously know that my engagement to my fiancée was called off at the last minute. I called it off, actually. But I’m having second thoughts and feeling terrible regret for doing so. I feel like my life is spiraling out of control in a way and that I’m making the wrong choices and allowing myself to cave in to vices and appetites for things I really don’t need in my life.”

  “But why do you feel regret about Amanda?”

  Jake sighed as he tensed up, folded his arms, and leaned back on the sofa. “First of all, I cheated on her. I kept it hidden from her for a long time and she only found out about it after I’d broken up with her. Although I loved her, I loved the other person too, and got caught in this triangle, so to speak, and it became harder for me to pluck myself out of it as time went on. My intention was to make a clean break from the other person, at least from a physical standpoint, after Amanda and I tied the knot and started living together. But then I got this news about Amanda that came out of nowhere and shook me to my core. I’ve been sworn to secrecy and can’t say exactly what I was told about her but—”

  “I already know, Jake,” the reverend said solemnly.

  “You already know?” Jake said, baffled, unfolding his arms and rising up in his seat.

  “Yes, your mother came and spoke to me about it before you broke off your engagement.”

  Stunned and confused, Jake frowned at the reverend as he continued to speak.

  “You shouldn’t feel regret, Jake. It’s not your fault. Yes, I can understand you feeling remorse and regret about cheating on Amanda while you were in the dark about who she really is, but once the truth came out, you had no other choice. You couldn’t marry your sister.”

  “My sister? My mother told you Amanda’s my sister?”

  With eyes popped wide and mouth agape, the reverend swallowed audibly. “Oh dear. I . . . I . . . I’m sorry, Jake. I thought you knew.”

  ***

  Jake stormed out of his meeting with the reverend who had refused to say anything further, suggesting to Jake that he speak with his parents.

  The second Jake got into his car and closed the door he pulled out his phone to make a call. Nearly hyperventilating, Jake’s heart thumped loud and fast and he began to sweat profusely. But who should he call first? Love child, extramarital affair, out of wedlock dalliance—all scenarios that for some reason Jake associated more with men than women, so he dialed his father.

  “Hey, Jake,” Tom Doyle answered calmly, seeing his son’s name appear on the caller ID.

  Belligerent, with rage in his voice, Jake wasted no time. “I just had a meeting with Reverend O’Mahoney and he tells me that Amanda is my freaking sister. Do you want to explain to me how that’s possible?”

  The End

  Turn the page to read Chapter 1 in The Platinum Reunion, Book 3 in the The Platinum Series.

  * * *

  Chapter One

  “Jake, I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Tom said, sounding perplexed and taken aback by his son’s hysteria.

  Jake was trembling. Filled with rage, confusion, and disbelief, he could barely keep his voice calm and even. “Reverend O said that Mom told him before I called off my wedding that Amanda was my sister. It’s as if he knew the wedding would be canceled. What the fuck, man. What’s going on?”

  There was silence on the other end of the line. Tom didn’t answer back at first.

  “Dad! Are you there? What’s going on?”

  “Jake, calm down. As I said, I don’t know what you’re talking about. Amanda…your sister? Where’d he get this ridiculous story?”

  “Mom! He said Mom came to him and told him right before my wedding. He was surprised that I didn’t know. When he said it, I gave him this look like, ‘What the fuck?’ And then he got all nervous and uncomfortable and said that he thought I knew. When I told him that I didn’t know what he was talking about, he said, ‘You should speak with your parents’ and refused to say anything more.”

  “I don’t know what to tell you, son. I’m as stupefied as you are right now as to why he’d tell you this wacky story. Amanda’s not your sister. What? Did he suggest that she was some love child of mine or something?”

  “He didn’t say.”

  “Well, who does he think is the parent of whom? Amanda’s certainly not related to me or Jamie. You and Harry are the only two kids we had.” Tom chuckled, seeming more amused than disturbed by this story. “I think our well-meaning priest may be growing a little senile,” Tom continued jokingly, trying to make light of the situation. “Seriously, he probably counsels so many people and families from the parish that he’s getting his stories and the people involved crossed. I’m sure this is all a big misunderstanding. Your mother will be amused, no doubt. How bizarre.”

  “But why would he say something like that if he wasn’t sure about it? He’s around the same age as you and Mom, so he hasn’t exactly reached the point in his life when senility is commonplace.”

  Jake, I can assure you, he’s mistaken. Amanda’s not your sister or any other kind of relative of ours. We’re not blood relatives to the Climents in any way whatsoever. If we were, we would’ve found out about it way before now and staked our claim to our share of the family fortune. This is so ridiculous. I can’t believe this, and I can’t believe he accused your mother of telling him this story.
There’s no way in hell she told him that. I mean, can you imagine?”

  “You’re probably right,” Jake slowly conceded, feeling relieved and a little embarrassed by his seeming gullibility. “But he sounded so sure of what he was saying. It was weird. But then, I agree that I can’t imagine Mom going to talk to him…about anything personal. They’re not exactly close friends, are they?”

  “No. Not at all. I mean, we’ve known Tim for years and consider him a dear friend of the family, but he’s not someone your mother or I would naturally turn to or confide in about anything. At least, that’s to the best of my knowledge. I guess I shouldn’t speak for Mom. Maybe she secretly complains to him whenever I drive her nuts about God knows what.”

  “Yeah, for constantly leaving the toilet seat up and leaving your stinky socks on the floor all around the house.”

  “Yeah, exactly right,” Tom said with a chuckle. “Seriously, though, what a bizarre story. Can’t wait to tell Mom about this. You caused my heart to stop there for a minute. Not because of the story but because you sounded like you were having a nervous breakdown. I haven’t heard you sound that upset since you were carjacked in high school.”

  Jake laughed at himself, feeling foolish. “I know. Sorry, Dad. I guess I overreacted.”

  “What made you go and see Tim in the first place?”

  “Oh…it’s a long story. I’ll tell you later,” Jake said, still sitting in his car outside Revered O’Mahoney’s house. Jake became uncomfortable sitting there because he sensed that someone was near his car, watching him. That carjacking he’d experienced years before as a teenager still spooked him. Jake switched on the ignition so that he could pull away. “Anyway, I’m sitting here in my car, Dad. I need to get your advice on a client issue I’m dealing with at the moment, so I’ll call you back later tonight or sometime tomorrow.”