“And after all these months of looking for you, no one thought to look out there?” Donnie asked in his way of making the press and media look like a bunch of dumbasses.
“Nope, haven’t had a single incidence.”
“Those paparazzi aren’t nearly as smart as they think they are. Wish they couldn’t find me. So is that the reason you and Cara broke up. She wasn’t into becoming a farm girl?”
“No, I think she took to the farm really well. Seth hasn’t at all, but Cara enjoys her time there.” Austin nodded, understanding he was being purposefully vague.
“Okay. Since this is only an hour long show maybe after this break you could fill us in,” Donnie said and waggled his eyebrows, turning to the cameras. He made another comment, something Austin didn’t pay attention to, and they went to commercial break. He was off the spotlight, both figuratively and literally, for only two minutes. Austin took a long drink of the vodka, not water, sitting behind his chair. Donnie leaned in whispering to him as the cameras panned out.
“I don’t know how far you want me to take it.” They were both smiling, giving the audience a visual they were sharing something personal as they spoke.
“Just lead me into how my life’s goin’, and I’ll tell you. You won’t need to fish around for it.” The camera crew counted off again and Donnie sat back to take his position and to reintroduce Austin to the show. After a moment he turned back to Austin. “So, have I asked, whatcha been up to on that farm of yours? Raising chickens?”
“Mainly horses and cattle. It’s a cattle farm, but dabbling in some purebred horses.”
“And you’re just on the farm playing old McDonald?” Donnie asked and the audience laughed, even Austin laughed. He supposed he’d done everything Julie told him to do. He’d drawn out the speculation, come off as relaxed and as in control as he possibly could. Now he needed to get to the point.
“A little more than that…Donnie, I came out here tonight—”
“It’s about damn time you got to the point!”
“—I’ve decided on putting something out in the world on my terms for a change. Not let the media spin it out of control. I’m just gonna be truthful. I’ve met someone—”
The audience cut him off as they stood and gave him applause. Austin grinned, waved his hand and bowed again, but Donnie got a hold of them quick.
“Sit down! I don’t think he’s finished. Sit. Down!” Donnie stood using his hands to lower everyone back in their seats. “Now go on. You’ve what?”
“Like I said, I’ve met someone who I want to spend the rest of my life with.” Austin grinned at the more sedate, yet still very sincere clapping.
“Well that’s great, Austin.” Donnie said it more as a joke, rolling his eyes as if that wasn’t really a big bomb to drop, certainly not big enough to rework his entire show around. Again, the audience laughed, and finally, Austin lifted a finger silencing everyone.
“Well, I think your scoop comes in the fact that I’m gay. My forever love is with a man. A man I’ve known most of my life, but just recently reconnected with. It’s him that drives me here now. He’s an honorable, good, hard working man who wants his privacy just as badly as I want mine.”
Donnie stared at him in silence. Austin had no idea if the audience clapped, if they made any noise. His whole focus centered in keeping his features passive as his heart hammered violently in his chest.
“Well, good for you! I’ve known you for many, many years, and I couldn’t be happier for you, Austin.” Donnie seemed genuinely sincere in his words and actions, and Austin let out the pent up breath he was holding. “Is he here?”
“No, and he doesn’t know I’m here. He’s a real farmer, working with the school this week. It’s gonna be a surprise to him I’m here.” Austin finally came back into himself and had no way to judge the audience except they were quieter now.
“Well, we all know how much people like surprises...” Donnie leaned back in his chair, tucking his hands behind his head. “How’s he gonna feel about all this?”
“Not too happy, I suspect.” Austin grinned, looking a little sheepish at the laughing his response evoked.
“Then why’re you here? Probably not the best relationship move to go against your partner.”
“I’ve been ready to shout it from the highest mountain for so long. I’m so in love, but he’s kept me quiet. I had my private email hacked last night. I wanted to get my side of the story out before they can make it something ugly and sinister, because it’s not that at all. I love this man with my whole heart. He’s everything to me, and I believe he feels the same way about me.”
A small grin spread across Austin’s lips, and he looked down for a second thinking about Kitt. All the worry and negativity left him as thoughts of Kitt filled his soul. His smile grew bigger as peace settled in. A moment of silence followed. The entire studio audience sat quietly. This was the freest moment of Austin’s life, and it felt great. The only thing that might have made it better would be for Kitt to be here with him. He wanted to share this moment with him.
Looking up, Austin realized he’d even silenced the seasoned pro Donnie Cliff. “I’ve lived for years with the paparazzi and tabloids trying to twist and turn everything in my life. There’s nothing to manipulate here. I love this man with all my heart. He loves me. That’s it. There’s nothing more to say.”
“I’m glad to hear it, Austin. We need to take another break. Will you be able to stick around, answer some questions?” Donnie asked. “We might even be able to take it out to the audience.”
“Sure, I’m always ready to talk about my Kitt.”
With that, Austin said Kitt’s name to the world. Relief was strong as he realized he’d taken the story away from the tabloids. He’d come out, done it on his own terms, and he refused to let the worry about what Kitt might think concern him right now. He’d worry about that after he left this stage. For now, it needed to be game on. Happy go lucky, man in love wanting to tell the world. But, he did say a little prayer as he took another long swallow of vodka.
Chapter 27
A driver took Austin from the studio to the Ritz Carlton in downtown New York City. Apparently, the buzz of his announcement had already made it through the gossip mill. It didn’t seem to matter the Late Show was in overdrive, trying to get the editing done before the ten thirty broadcast. It still leaked, but that was fine. It just meant more people would watch the show tonight to see if what they heard really was true.
Austin pulled to the back of the property to the side entrance secluded from the general public. He palmed his phone, checking his messages to see if anyone had heard from Kitt. After he’d landed in New York, he’d sent Sam and his guys out to try and find the cattle drive. It was a shot in the dark, but he felt he had to try.
Kitt’s reaction was his only concern, and now the worry set in. It stayed foremost in his mind. His phone rang and Austin gripped it tightly, looking down at the screen. He answered on the second ring.
“How do you feel?’ Cara asked.
“Good. Nervous. I don’t know. I wish I could’ve talked to Kitt before I did it,” Austin said as he came through the door to his suite loosening the knot of his tie. The little panic in his heart was growing. He could hear Seth talking in the background, and Cara recited what he said. “Good Morning America’s booked you at 7:30. They don’t know why, except you want to be on the show.”
“Good, then back to Texas, right?” Austin asked tugging the tie over his head. “Did you stop them from booking more? I have to get back to Kitt. I don’t know when he’ll be home, but it’ll be tomorrow and I need to be there.” He’d shrugged off his jacket, the tie now gone, and he rolled up his sleeves. He put Cara on speaker as he stalked across the room to the mini bar. Austin pulled open the cabinets, found a bottle of vodka and opened it. He did little more than pour it in a glass before he took a big swallow. His brow furrowed as the liquid burned its way down his throat. He could feel some of that lo
ng standing old anger at this world filter in, but he pushed it out. He only had himself to blame for how this happened.
“Austin, do you want me to go there tonight? I can wait for him. Either at his house or yours… And someone has to tell Lily and the girls,” Cara said.
“Shit, I forgot about that. Kylie’s away at college. If she can come home for a little bit, that would be best. Get her a ride home. If she can’t, get security on her. Shit, Cara, can you go there until I can get back home?”
“Yes, I’ll leave right away.”
“I’ll call Lily myself right now. I’ll tell her you’re coming there. I’ve got security tight around them, but let me see if I can get Kylie home tonight. Cara, handle anything that comes your way. Use anything you need, but get them all taken care of.” Austin abruptly stopped speaking as room service entered, carrying a tray of food. “Let me know when you get there.”
Austin disconnected the call and stood silently watching the waiter set his dinner on the table. He’d been a part of too many situations where room service wasn’t really who they said they were, and left with photos of him or some story of what they saw in his room. Austin wasn’t taking any chances tonight. He signed the ticket and walked the waiter out, handing over a twenty as he closed the door behind them.
Lily was a speed dial away.
“Lily, it’s Austin. I need to talk to you.”
“Is Kitt okay?” she asked, sounding a little panicked.
“Yes, I think so. Look Lily, I need to tell you some things, and I need to ask you to please keep them to yourself. Well, at least for the next few hours.” He actually gave a harsh laugh at what he just said. He thought the bubble of laughter might sound a little hysterical and grabbed the vodka before strolling across the living room to sit on the sofa and kick his feet up on the coffee table. This was going to be the first of many conversations just like it, and he needed the practice.
“Lily, let me start from the beginning...”
~~~~~~
The cattle ran easily through the back fence of Micah’s pasture. It seemed like they were just as tired of this little exercise as the rest of them. The excitement of the trip was drained, leaving a bunch of exhausted, irritable teenagers and even more irritable adults. Over all, it turned out to be a good exercise for the kids. It let each and every one of them know how hard life used to be for a cowboy, and in Kitt’s opinion, it taught the importance of an education. He’d spouted that thought over and over during the trip, hoping it would sink in.
Kitt got every head inside the fence. Micah’s boys stayed back there with him, helping to guide the herd in. The others scattered, trying to find their parents who were scheduled to pick their offspring up.
Micah’s land sat off the road. This gate was several miles from the main road, and Kitt weighed his options. He could easily sneak out the back, loop around, and be home in about fifteen minutes, or he could go tell everyone bye and help get the kids off. As he made the decision to sneak off, something caught his attention. He saw Austin’s security guys close by. There were four or five of them on horseback riding straight toward him. Mike was leading their way. They were all in full gallop, driving their horses with a hell bent purpose. It took a second for him to realize they were riding to him.
“Rusty, get the gate!” Kitt yelled. He would have dismounted, but the concern of seeing them all headed his way had him riding Bullet around the cattle, causing a bit of a stir. That’s when Kitt saw Micah. He was on horseback, a few hundred feet behind Mike and the security team. The look on Micah’s face said it all. Kitt instinctively knew, they’d been outted.
“Kitt, go out the back way! Lily and the kids are at the house and safe! Austin’s outted, you’re outted, and the press’s swarming the place!” Mike yelled out, barely slowing down as he rounded the herd to the back gate. Micah came from the other side and Kitt did little more than follow as Austin’s security did their best to surround him. Micah was off his horse and unlatching the gate, opening it wide. As Kitt got closer Micah held a tabloid up for him. Kitt grabbed it as he rode by. The front cover was a full body shot of him in the nude, his privates blurred out, his robe billowing around him. Kitt’s heart fell from his chest. His eyes looked directly into Micah’s who stared straight back at him.
“Go!” Micah reached out, slapped Bullet on the flank, kicking Kitt into gear. He urged Bullet on, driving him forward in a burst of power. The exhaustion from just a few minutes ago was gone, and adrenaline fueled both man and horse. They rode hard, circling back around several miles until Mike finally motioned for them to stop, hidden in the dense forestry surrounding Micah’s property. Sam, the security guard Austin talked to the most, stayed right beside Kitt the entire ride.
“He left you a message on your voice mail and this on his table. I brought it with me because I’m not sure it’s safe to go back to his place right now. Austin has all of us on your place,” Sam said. Mike just sat quietly staring back at him. No one else said a word.
Kitt pulled his phone from his pocked. The battery was low, but there was a weak signal. He dialed his voice mail. There were so many messages from reporters it took a minute to get through them. Kitt was in shock, he felt numb, a little disjointed, and his thought process faltered as his eyes focused back on the tabloid picture. When had this picture been taken?
Finally he got to Austin’s voice mail. He listened to the whole thing, and then restarted it, listening to it again. Austin’s voice was desolate. His words were sad, and Kitt’s heart hammered too badly to hear everything clearly.
“Where’s Lily and my sisters?”
“They’re at the house, protected. We’ve kept everyone off your land. The horses are secure, Jose’s with them. We’ve put all our energy into your place, per Austin.”
“Where’s he?” Kitt looked around at the men as heat scorched his face. They were all on horseback, riding like pros, and every one of them knew about their relationship. But, the evidence in his hand had him blushing like a school girl.
“In flight back here.”
“What happened?” Kitt asked.
“It’s in the note he left for you, sir.”
Okay, the sir was new, and it somehow made Kitt more anxious than he already was. He looked up at Mike who quietly stared at him, quiet. Kitt tore open the envelope and pulled the letter out to see Austin’s handwriting.
It’s completely my fault. I should have deleted those pictures. I thought the email account was secure and have no idea how anyone found out it was mine. I’m doing the only thing I know to do, and that’s to get it out in the world before the tabloids throw you under the bus. And they would do just that, Kitt.
I’m so sorry. I wish I could speak to you before I do this. Please do what my security tells you to do. They’re trained in this. I’m so sorry.
All my love,
A
It still didn’t provide any answers except Austin knew about the photo of him on the front of the magazine. Kitt looked down at the magazine again. He didn’t know exactly when it had been taken, but the entire right side of his body was bare and he was standing at the front door of his cabin. If it was possible, even more heat rushed to his cheeks and he looked up again at Sam.
“When was this taken?” The caption on the tabloid was clear: Austin Grainger’s Cowboy Lover Cheating, Up Close and Personal.
“When we first moved in. There’s more inside. It was the night the guy driving the sports car came. Austin had us delete the photos. I don’t know how they got them.”
“Austin’s email,” Kitt simply said. He thumbed the magazine like it was a noose he was slipping around his neck. A nude picture was humiliating enough, but if Sean was in there, Kitt was completely outted. It took a second, and his hands started to shake as shame hit him hard. It was right there for everyone to see, Kitt bent down to kiss Sean who sat inside his car. Dread filled his soul as his now numb heart allowed him to toss the magazine to the ground.
“Wh
ere did Austin go?” Fear set in, making him grow cold inside. Kitt was completely shamed for the entire world to see.
“He wants you to call him to explain.” The guard handed Kitt a cell phone to use.
“No, you explain it to me.” The famous Kelly anger spoke for Kitt. The anger he’d tried most of his life to hide now became the most dominant emotion pouring through him. It would make Kitt unreasonable and unstable, but would definitely replace the hurt coursing through every vein in his body.
“I don’t know all the details, sir.”
“Cara’s at the house with Lily and the girls. She’s been there since Austin asked her to come out last night. I’m gatherin’ Austin thought if he spoke first it would take the focus off you. He’s gone to New York, I think,” Mike said it quickly and efficiently. He’d been Kitt’s friend too long, he knew how Kitt worked.
“There was no clear evidence the email account was Austin’s. They were trying to flush him out through you. He wasn’t going to let you go like his PR team wanted him to do. I was on the call, Mr. Kelly. He drew the attention off you. This isn’t the big news of the day, as bad as this looks.” Sam pointed to the tabloid now lying on the ground. “It’s all about Austin Grainger being gay. He made the announcement last night before this was printed. We have a man waiting at the bend, making sure we’re clear. We need to get you home, sir.”
Kitt didn’t hesitate. He kicked his mount into action and moved quickly toward home. The anger never left, nor did the firm set of his jaw. This was the very worst thing that could have happened to him. Nothing compared to this, and to top it off, Austin planned to leave. He was giving Kitt everything. Kitt had allowed his heart to become involved while it was always just as he’d thought, he was a kept man. Austin was giving him the land, the horses, everything. They weren’t partners. Kitt was a kept toy, and yet, he’d fallen in love with Austin. Kitt loved him so completely that at this moment it wasn’t the fear of what was to come, but the fact that Austin planned to leave that made him drive his mount harder, barreling toward home. Fuck whoever was there. Fuck everything. Kitt had lost it all.
Texas Pride Page 30