Push

by BLMorticia

  Seth shook his head and ran his arms over Malakei’s shoulders. “I don’t know. I’m thinking that singer died when Johnno did. I can still do it on me own. I’m thinkin’ of writing some love songs and sellin’ ’em to earn my keep. I can’t have you spending all your money on me.”

  Malakei made a face. “I’m your man. Why wouldn’t I spend it on you? And for God sakes, Seth. High Stakes needs you.”

  “No they don’t. Please, Kei, let’s not chat about this now. Don’t ruin my high today with that, all right? You should be happy I want to sing love songs to you.”

  “Oh, I am, but you can do those hard-rocking, kick-ass tunes, too. Please, just give it some thought, okay?”

  Seth sighed and his shoulders dropped. “I will, in like six months to a year. I’ll never get over Johnno’s death, but maybe after some time has passed, I’ll feel differently. How’s that?”

  Malakei nodded. “I suppose I’ll take what I can get.”

  “Good.” Seth kissed him. “And I have plenty of rockin’ tunes. When we get to New York, I’m gonna run ’em past Barry. Do you think I could use the studio at your place to record a few songs?”

  “Of course, baby. You can do whatever you want. That place is yours too.”

  Seth’s smile returned, and he hugged Malakei tight. “Thanks, Kei. I love you.”

  Malakei hugged him back. “I love you, too, Re-Re.”

  Seth pulled back a moment, looking shocked. “No, no… don’t call me that.”

  “Why?”

  Seth let go. “It’s too soon. I don’t want to be called Reaper after all that’s happened. You’re gonna have to find a new nickname.”

  Malakei folded his arms. “Wow. I actually love the name, but okay.”

  “Considering recent happenings, I… I can’t deal with that, right? You can come up with something cute, but not too cheesy, I’m sure.”

  “I’ll work on that.”

  “Good.” Seth leaned in and kissed him again.

  Malakei unfolded his arms and wrapped them around Seth instead. With the passionate embrace, Malakei’s arousal increased. Seth left him breathless.

  “Ahem, Malakei, Seth, the limo has arrived with your guests.”

  Seth pulled back and grinned. He licked his lips. “Fucking awesome. Thanks, Jen.”

  “You’re welcome.”

  Malakei glanced at Jensen. “We’ll meet them in the foyer in a couple of minutes.

  “Yes, sir.” Jensen closed the door.

  “I want to finish the kiss,” Seth said.

  “Can’t. Our people are here.”

  “I love hearing you say ours.”

  “Well, they are ours. C’mon, let’s go before I take you over that desk.”

  “You can do it later.” Seth winked at him.

  “I will. Maybe we can avoid giving Lauren an eyeful this time.”

  ONCE SETH and Malakei untangled from each other, they met the family in the foyer.

  “Well, well, family! What d’ya think, hmm?” Seth said, holding his arms out.

  “Fucking brill, man!” Gio ran up to Seth and hugged him.

  “Hey, mate!” Seth hugged him back, as he did for Morty.

  “Hello, sweetheart.”

  Seth ambled over to his mother and hugged her. He kissed her cheek, then did the same for Myrna.

  “Hello, Ethel, Myrna. How are you doing today?”

  “Wonderful, Malakei. Thanks so much for inviting me.” Seth’s mother pecked him on the cheek.

  “And for letting me tag along,” Myrna said, hugging him. “This place is gorgeous!”

  “I’ll be happy to give you all a tour, unless you’re hungry. Lauren has prepared a meal, so we could eat first.”

  “I’m starving,” Morty said.

  “Me too. I didn’t eat any breakfast,” Gio added.

  “Of course, you wankers are. Mum, Myrna?”

  “I am kind of hungry. I had a cup of tea and a bagel this morning,” Myrna said.

  “I ate more, but I can wait for the tour until everyone has eaten,” Seth’s mother said.

  “All right. We’ll eat. Seth and I had breakfast already, but I’ll probably munch some more when Lauren brings brunch to the table. Shall we?” Malakei waved the ladies ahead, and everyone walked through the foyer to the large dining room.

  Seth lagged back so he could watch the interaction between his mother and Malakei. He was happy they got along so well. Hopefully, that would mean his mom wouldn’t be averse to moving to New York with him. It would be different for the both of them, but he wouldn’t leave her behind, even for Malakei.

  After everyone had eaten, Malakei led the tour of the castle as he’d promised. Just as Seth thought, she was intrigued with the paintings on the walls and ceilings. During the whole tour, she looked gobsmacked by the furniture as well as the décor. Myrna was impressed too and mentioned how much Johnno loved things old and classic. That comment brought a tear to Seth’s eye, but he wouldn’t allow it to spoil the day.

  “Wow, Malakei, your house is magnificent,” Seth’s mother said as they re-entered the study.

  “It is. Now the question is, when are you throwing a party here so we can crash?” Morty asked, making everyone laugh.

  Malakei waved everyone to the various seats. He took the spot on the sofa, next to Seth.

  “The invitation is open here, as it is for New York, Morty.”

  “Excellent, man. This place could hold all our friends and then some.” He chuckled.

  “Dude, it could hold two or three parties, and as you can see, the staff would cook some great food for the occasion,” Seth added.

  “Maybe we could throw a bash here when we get back?” Malakei asked him.

  Seth smiled at him and squeezed his thigh. “Yeah. And um….” Seth cleared his throat. “This would be a good time to talk with Mom about our news, aye, Kei?”

  “Sure. You want us to stay, or…?”

  “Of course. This ain’t no secret. Mom. You know me and Malakei are together, and well, we made it official the other night since we decided to be exclusive.”

  “That’s wonderful, dears. I’m so bloody excited for you.”

  Morty and Gio gasped as did Myrna.

  “You guys work fast.” Gio chuckled.

  “Well, congrats!” Myrna smiled at Seth.

  “Thanks. Anyway, Mom, Kei has to go back home and, um… I wanna go with him.”

  “As you should, dear. I didn’t think you’d stay here in Britain.”

  “And I want you to come too. I can’t leave you behind.”

  She smiled and shook her head. “Yes you can, Seth. You’re in love. The last thing you need is Mommy on your coattails.”

  “But, I want me mom there. I mean, I know we could just jump on a plane to visit, but I don’t want to leave you here. Soon people are gonna find out about me, and they’ll be doing the digging. I don’t want ’em to harass you or Myrna, really. If someone else takes over that house, then they won’t bother my quiet neighborhood.”

  She waved her hand. “Ah, I can lock ’em out. Seth, I can’t leave Britain. I love it too much. I’m too old and set in my ways. You can always call and text. I’ll even learn how to use the computer so we’ll have another way to stay in touch.”

  Seth shook his head. “Then I’m gonna move you away from there. No offense, Myrna, but I don’t want them buggers bothering my mom.”

  “I understand, Seth. I haven’t told a soul, and I promise I’ll continue to keep it all a secret.”

  “No. That won’t be necessary. I want to boast about my son being M. Prophet’s new man. I’m having trouble holding it all in, really. All the ladies at the market are gossiping because they saw you in town, Malakei. Everyone wants to know who Malakei’s British beau is.”

  Malakei laughed. “Well, they’ll know soon enough, but I’m with Seth on this. They can be ruthless. If you’re not moving to New York with us, I have another suggestion. Why don’t you move in here?”r />
  Seth inhaled sharply and gawked at Malakei as if he had three heads.

  “Malakei, I couldn’t.”

  “Yeah, you can. If you didn’t notice, I’m in love with your son. If everything goes according to plan, you will someday be my mother-in-law.”

  “Oh, Malakei.” She laughed and blushed.

  Myrna chuckled, along with Gio and Morty as well.

  Seth hugged Malakei around the neck and kissed his cheek. “If you mean me as being the reason it might not work, then you’re wrong, love. We will be married whenever you’re ready.”

  “Okay, then I suppose that’s settled. Now, Ethel, I’d love to have you live here. It will still be in Britain. You move all your things here, not worrying about a job or money. You’ll be a house sitter, enjoying all the comforts of this place. And we’ll come back whenever we like. That way, Seth and I won’t be worried about you being harassed by reporters. As you saw, this place is secluded, so I’ve never worried about anyone finding me. You stay here, and it solves all of our problems. What do you think?”

  “Oh my God, Ethel, I would do that in a heartbeat!” Myrna said.

  “Does that include visits from your man’s friends?” Morty asked.

  “Sure, but don’t annoy Ethel or my staff. That’s all I ask,” Malakei answered.

  Seth watched in amazement as Malakei made that offer. He could tell his mother was shocked by it. To tell the truth, he was too. They hadn’t discussed it, but he was totally on board with the idea.

  “I…. Gods, Malakei. I….” She shrugged, then sighed. “I would love to.”

  “Yes!” Morty pumped his fist and slapped hands with Gio.

  Seth kissed Malakei, then went to hug his mother tight. He kissed her head. “I’m so happy, Mom. It’s the next best thing to having you in New York with me.”

  “I think it is too, babby. I can’t thank Malakei enough.”

  “Me neither, Mom. Gods, this is like a dream come true. Thanks, love. You’ve made me the happiest guy on earth, y’know?”

  Malakei grinned. “I’m glad everyone’s happy. We can get you moved in right away, Ethel. Seth and I can help you move things in here before we leave for New York. And, Myrna, you are welcome to come by anytime you like.”

  “Thanks, Malakei. I appreciate that.” Myrna smiled and nodded at him.

  “Actually, I would be a lot happier if my babby would go on with this band. Seth, I know what you said about not wanting to think about it because of Johnno, but he’d want you to. He’d want you to do High Stakes in his honor.”

  “Yes, he would, Seth. Please don’t give up on your dreams because of what happened,” Myrna added.

  Seth exhaled and ambled back to sit by Malakei. “Mom, Myrna, I just had this talk with Kei. I’m not ready to think about this now. The boys are all right with waiting awhile. Why aren’t you?”

  Seth’s mother drew her mouth into a thin line. “Boys? What do you think?”

  Morty shrugged. “Seth told me he didn’t want to think about it. I told him we all needed time to heal.”

  “Yeah, and we’re okay with that. As long as you aren’t thinking of giving it up entirely,” Gio added.

  Hearing his bandmates speak, Seth suddenly felt as if he was under a microscope.

  “Seth? You are still gonna do this, right? A couple of months, three, six, not forever, I hope,” Morty asked him.

  With all eyes on him, Seth leaned into Malakei and took his hand. He squeezed it and brought it to his lips. “I don’t wish to do it anymore, guys, but like I told Kei, give me six months and I’ll see if I feel differently.”

  “I s’pose that’s fair, but, dude, we can’t do this band without you,” Morty said.

  “Yeah, you can. If you don’t want to wait, then go find another singer.”

  “Pssh. Seth, High Stakes ain’t nothin’ without you,” Gio added. “We got tats and all because we’re a band. Morty and I talked about adding something to it for Johnno’s memory, but you can’t just walk away, man. We need you.”

  Seth ran his free hand through his hair. “Gents, just give me a little time, right? A few months to think and process it all, okay?”

  “What’cha gonna do in the meantime?” Morty asked him.

  “I want to learn things from Barry and Kei about producing. Thinkin’ about writing love songs to my sweetie.”

  Morty and Gio groaned.

  Seth’s mother sighed aloud. “That’s all well and good, but I want to hear ‘Finders Keepers’ on the radio soon, okay? Don’t leave the boys hanging because of that stupid idea you have that you’re at fault.”

  Seth nodded at her, then looked away from them. He knew she was right, but he just couldn’t do this now.

  “Finders” was what brought him and Malakei together. However, Seth couldn’t get over the guilt that the same song was what had killed Johnno in the first place.

  Chapter Thirty-Six

  IN THE days that followed, Malakei and Seth made the trip to town to move Seth’s and his mother’s things. With Ethel moving into the castle, Malakei suggested that Ethel rent her place out to Myrna so she could get her own income, though she wouldn’t need it as much. That way, Myrna could have a bigger place, and it would throw the information-hungry paparazzi off the trail.

  Though they’d been pretty careful, the British press finally caught Malakei and Seth together. They were shopping at Harrod’s in London, and someone tipped them off that Malakei was in the store. Now that word was out about Seth, Malakei was sure the timing to leave Britain was perfect. When they arrived in New York, there would be an even bigger circus, and Malakei wanted to prepare Seth for it. Seth told him not to worry because he was fully ready to take them on if they harassed him.

  With the news of his coming out still being a hot topic in gossip circles, Malakei received many words of encouragement from other celebrity friends. Many of his peers were happy while a couple said they couldn’t support him any longer.

  As expected, his rival Darryl called him out, saying that he’d known Malakei was gay all along. He even tried to start things on Malakei’s social media, saying people should boycott 315East because Malakei Oakley was gay. Malakei shut that down immediately, banning the idiot from his page and reporting it. He wouldn’t be subjected to the abuse because someone didn’t agree with his sexual identity. Darryl would learn the hard way that Malakei wouldn’t be backing down no matter what. He was proud of his decision to come out and would stand by it. Whoever had an issue, it was theirs, not his or Seth’s.

  Despite some unpleasantness that would await him in New York, Malakei missed the Big Apple and couldn’t wait to take his new man back home. He also missed his folks, Sheena, Barry, and the rest of his friends, along with the staff at 315East who made him what he was. Now, he had all that along with Seth, which was the icing on the cake.

  Not only had he missed working with bands and thinking of the six acts he had lined up over the next couple of weeks, Malakei also got the itch to record some music of his own. It had been over two years since his last album, and suddenly, he’d gotten the urge to rhyme again.

  As he sat at his desk in his study, Malakei’s phone ringing disturbed his concentration. He plucked it from his pocket and eyed the screen.

  Peter.

  He’d actually expected him to call sooner when the news circulated, but perhaps he wanted to wait.

  “Hey, Pete.”

  “Don’t ‘hey Pete’ me. I can’t believe you made that post without telling me you’d do it.”

  “I’m not understanding what you mean.”

  “You should’ve said something.”

  “Why?”

  “Dammit, M! I mean, God, I’m happy for you, but I wanted to know before everyone else. And then you lied to me about where you’d be going. You’re in England.”

  “So I am.”

  “Why did you tell me you were going to Vancouver?”

  “Because I was paranoid. And now that I know you
weren’t the one doing all those horrible things, I should apologize. I’m sorry.”

  “Seriously, M? Did you really think I was behind that? I’m your friend. I love you with all my heart. I’d never do anything to cause you stress or hurt you.”

  “I know that. I just….”

  “Let your man’s accusations get into your head.”

  “Look, I apologize for being paranoid, okay? Your dad claimed he did it in retaliation or because we’re friends. Something screwy like that.”

  “Yeah, I know, and I ripped him a new one for it too. The charges won’t stick, though, because he’s friends with every judge in town. Anyway, I’m still disappointed that you didn’t tell me. I’m proud of you though, even if you are still with the crazy guy.”

  “Hey, hey, now, don’t start. He isn’t crazy, all right? As a matter of fact, he told me he owes you an apology for accusing you. We’ll have dinner together, and you guys can hash it out then.”

  “Nah, just a phone call will suffice. I’m jealous as all hell you came out for him and not me. I still have feelings for you, M. I always will.”

  “I still care for you too. I’d still like us to be friends.”

  “Of course we can. And we can be business partners too because I officially quit Mustang Records yesterday. I’m buying a small hard-rock label and taking all my acts with me. If you have any decent up-and-comers kind of like High Stakes, send them my way.”

  Malakei gasped. “What? Pete, you left Mustang?”

  “Yeah. After he confessed to being the one that hurt you, I ripped him a new one, then resigned. He’ll never accept that I’m gay, and I’m tired of working under his shadow and outdated rules. Now, I’ll be the competitor. Someday I hope to take him down!”

  Malakei shook his head and leaned back in his chair. “Well, damn. Congrats, Pete. I’ll definitely keep that in mind.”

  “Good. Anyway, I need to let you go. I’ve got a meeting with my new company board members in about an hour. Just know that I’m proud of you, man. I just wish you would’ve done it for me when we were together.”

  “C’mon, Peter. Can’t you just be happy that I’m out?”