It was a truth that couldn’t be avoided. Phil was feeling a little lonely, and it only got worse when the disco arrived. The DJ was Betty’s son, Jamie, with some ancient equipment he’d found in his uncle’s shed. It didn’t matter though. He played what everyone requested, and as the evening went on, tables and chairs were cleared away in the main saloon to let people dance.
During a slow number, Diana and Will were in the middle of the dance floor, her head against his chest.
Couples slowly joined them. Phil could see Mark and Jack itching to dance but not daring in case it upset some of the locals.
Charlie had slipped away to be with his wife and son, leaving Phil alone to prop up the bar. He watched the oh-so-subtle touching and glances of the two gay couples and grinned. Walking up to the newlyweds, he tapped on Will’s shoulder.
“May I?” he asked, holding out his arms.
Confused and maybe a little pissed off, Will nodded, but instead of leading his sister into a dance, Phil took Will into his arms and led him into an exaggerated waltz. Diana was left gaping after them for a minute, then she burst out laughing and pulled one of the bridesmaids up for a dance. In a moment, the floor was filled with same-sex couples dancing, as well as husbands and wives. Phil looked over Will’s shoulder to see Mark and Jack in a loose embrace on the floor. To Phil’s surprise, Daniel was pulling Sean to his feet and leading him onto the dance floor. As Will and Phil passed them, Sean mouthed a thank you to Phil. He smiled back. Lonely he might be, but he could still spread a little fun for his friends.
Chapter 2
It was still on his mind when he went to his normal Tuesday night date with the climbing wall. Phil loved extreme sports, but with the Fitzwarren luck, he might as well have thrown himself out of an aeroplane with no parachute. The climbing wall, with its rules and safety guidelines, was his compromise and a way for him to channel his anger and frustration. Being able to stare legitimately at men’s arses was always an added bonus in Phil’s book.
This Tuesday, however, Brad Pitt could have climbed in front of him in hot pants and Phil wouldn’t have noticed. Which was why he was two-thirds of the way up the wall and stuck. Phil shouldn’t have been stuck, having climbed this wall for months, but normally he was focusing on where to move. Now Phil was splayed against the wall, unsure of which limb to move next. Fortunately, or unfortunately, there was no one near him to be delayed by his mistake. He didn’t need to panic. A few deep breaths to get some oxygen to the brain and he could get going again.
“Having problems?”
Phil looked up to see one of the staff next to him, giving him an appraising once-over.
“No. Yes. Not really.”
The young man grinned. He had a nice smile, Phil was quick to notice. “Which is it? Taking a breather or momentary lapse?”
“The latter,” Phil admitted reluctantly. “I was too busy thinking of other things.”
“Not really a good idea when you’re twenty feet up,” the man chided gently, and Phil flushed guiltily.
“Hmmm, shift your weight onto your left leg and reach out with your right arm.”
Obediently, Phil did as he was told and found that he was able to shift upwards a fraction, the rhythm back in sway. “That’s it. Thank you.”
“Great. See you at the bottom. I’m Lee by the way.”
Another blinding grin and Lee was away down to the bottom before Phil could say any more.
Phil set off for the top, his mind just as distracted as before, but this time he was thinking of bright green eyes atop a gorgeous grin. As he reached the bottom, there was a strong arm reaching out to support him, and there was leaning, definite leaning, as Phil got his breath back.
“Thank you for your help,” Phil said eventually when Lee didn’t seem in any rush to step back. The brief flash of disappointment across Lee’s face didn’t escape his notice.
“All part of the job,” Lee said, moving away to give Phil some space. “Are you going up again?”
Shaking his head, Phil started to unbuckle his harness. “I’m not focused enough. I need some caffeine to drive home and then an early night.”
“Here let me give you a hand.”
Phil found himself standing like a child while Lee removed his harness, feeling each brush of Lee’s fingers burning through his T-shirt.
“I’ve not had this service before,” Phil quipped, rather self-conscious of the intimate attention.
“I save it for the hot ones. Only the hot ones!” Lee smirked, his gaze firm and direct on Phil as he did so. Phil kept telling himself his legs were wobbly because of the exercise.
Aware they were still just looking at each other, Phil was about to ask Lee if he’d like to go out on a date—he never believed in passing up opportunities to get laid—when Lee spoke. “My shift ends in fifteen minutes. Could I interest you in a coffee with me?”
Hell yes. “Sure. I need to get showered anyway,” There was no mistaking the flash of lust in Lee’s eyes at those words. “I’m Phil. See you out front?” Phil fidgeted, praying it wasn’t obvious just how interested he really was.
It was coffee. That was all. Coffee.
“I’ll be waiting… Phil.” Lee’s voice was husky, and Phil really needed that shower—cold preferably. He walked towards the men’s changing rooms, aware of eyes on him all the way.
Lee was true to his word, and when Phil left the changing rooms, he was in the reception area waiting for him, a hoodie over his white uniform polo shirt. He was talking to a couple of young girls, teenagers judging by the scraped-back hair and thick make-up, and they were giggling as Phil walked up to him.
The look of relief on Lee’s face when he saw Phil nearly made him laugh out loud.
“Are you ready?” Phil asked, giving the girls a polite smile.
“All set,” Lee agreed and draped an arm around Phil’s shoulders. “Excuse me, ladies, my boyfriend and I have a date. See you later.”
Phil should have told him to get lost instead of snuggling in closer and dropping a kiss on his cheek. Eyes widening slightly, Lee looked at Phil, and for a moment, Phil thought Lee was going to kiss him, properly, but obviously he decided this wasn’t the place and just waved at the girls.
Focused on Lee, Phil hadn’t been paying attention to the looks on the girls’ faces. They were looking at each other like all their Christmases had come at once.
“You didn’t tell us you were gay,” one of them squealed.
The other one rolled her eyes. “That’s so hot.”
Phil blushed, his colour deepening when he caught Lee’s smug smirk out of the corner of his eye. Before he could say anything, the younger man slid his arm around Phil’s shoulders. “You’re right, he’s totally gorgeous.”
Phil couldn’t suppress a shiver at the feel of Lee pressed up against his side, and he knew it hadn’t gone unnoticed by Lee, because he tightened his arm around Phil, saying, “Glad you approve of my choice. Bye.”
Guiding Phil away before they could respond, Lee headed towards the exit. “If we stay near here, they’ll probably join us. There’s a pub down the road, the Frog and Nightgown? Do you mind if we go there? We can probably still get a coffee.” His arm was still around Phil, despite the fact they were away from the teenagers.
“I was worried they were going to want to join us,” Phil muttered as they walked down the steps to the car park. “Do you know the girls?”
“They come in with the school. They’re about fifteen.”
Shocked, Phil looked up at Lee. Fifteen? From the way they were dressed and the amount of makeup, he would have put them at eighteen at least. Suddenly Phil felt very old and said as much.
“Nonsense, you’re what? Twenty-five?”
“Twenty-eight,” Phil said. “And you’re… twenty-one?”
“Twenty-two,” Lee said, cheerfully.
Six years. It could have been worse, but still, it was a larger gap than Phil liked.
“So, shall we have th
at drink? I haven’t got my car today because it’s in the garage, but if you don’t mind giving me a lift to the train station afterwards…” Lee trailed off hopefully.
Phil nodded. “Sure. Where do you live?”
“Eastbridge. On the new housing estate. I live with my parents.” Now Phil felt even older, even though he still lived in the family home.
“I can drive you all the way home if you want,” Phil offered. “I live in Steeple Westford.”
This was escalating quicker than he had expected. One minute it was a cup of coffee. Now it was hugs, kisses, drinks and a lift home. He put the brakes on where making out was concerned. Phil had no objection to hooking up, but with a man, not a kid.
“Cool,” Lee agreed and took his arm away. To Phil’s amazement, he slipped his fingers into Phil’s and waited for Phil to lead him to his Range Rover. Phil was getting the distinct impression that Lee didn’t let anyone lead him very often. He could foresee trouble ahead, because Phil was a toppy bastard, and definitely no one’s bottom.
It was chilly outside, and after being in the shower and then walking out into the cool air, Phil was cold. He was pleased to get into the 4x4 and put the heating on. Lee didn’t seem fazed about getting into a battered, old vehicle.
“Where am I going?” he asked.
“Left out of the car park and take the next right,” Lee instructed, settling back against the passenger seat.
There was little traffic so late in the evening, and within a couple of minutes, Phil was pulling into the half-full car park of the Frog and Nightgown. Phil hadn’t been here before. He usually drank at the Red Lion in Steeple Westford.
As they walked into the pub, Lee was greeted by a couple of men. It only took Phil a couple of seconds to realise Lee had brought him to a gay pub. The lack of male/female couples was one giveaway. That, and the snog Lee was receiving from a bloke in the tightest jeans Phil had seen outside a night club.
Lee cast him an apologetic look as he disentangled himself and wiped his mouth. “Too much tongue, Chas, I’ve told you that before. Sorry, Phil, sometimes my friends can be a bit over enthusiastic.”
“You love it,” protested the other man and grinned at Phil.
“Not a problem,” Phil reassured them both, shaking Chas’s hand. He introduced himself because, as he put it, Lee couldn’t be bothered to remember his own name most of the time.
“What do you want to drink, Phil?”
“6X please,” Phil said, sitting on one of the bar stools.
Lee paid for two pints and nodded over to a free table in the far corner of the pub. Phil followed him, and they sat down, pushing empty glasses to one side to make room.
“Is this your local?” Phil asked as he looked around.
It wasn’t a tourists’ pub. The seats were ripped and whole place had a shabby air, but the atmosphere was okay and no one seemed to be paying any attention to them now that Chas had wandered off in search of new prey.
“Hardly,” Lee snorted. “But it’s close to work, and I can bring my boyfriends here without upsetting the locals.”
“I didn’t even know this place existed, and I’ve been coming to the leisure centre for years.”
Lee grinned at him. He had a really nice smile. “It’s not a queer pub but John and James who run the place—” He waved a hand over to where the two barmen were chatting to a couple of men. “—made it clear that gays were welcome. My ex brought me here about five years ago. Where do you drink?”
“The Red Lion in Steeple Westford. It has decent beer, and I don’t get bothered too much. I’ve got a few mates there, but we’re not involved.”
He received a speculative look from Lee.
“No boyfriend then?”
“Not until this evening when I acquired one I didn’t know I had,” Phil told him.
“Sorry about that,” Lee said, although he didn’t look that apologetic. “It was just a quick way to get rid of the girls. They can be a bit persistent.” He pulled a face.
“You shouldn’t be so good looking,” Phil teased. “But I don’t mind. It’s not like I’m in the closet or anything.”
“Nor me. Another?” Lee held up his empty glass.
Shaking his head, Phil said, “Not for me as I’ve got to drive. I could really do with that coffee you promised.”
“Coming right up. James makes a decent cup of coffee. John’s tastes like industrial cleaner.”
Phil watched as Lee made his way to the bar, admiring his neat arse and long legs as he leaned over to talk to James, presumably. Lee was shorter than Phil, so just a shade under six feet, but he was all lean muscle and tanned skin. Maybe he went rock climbing outdoors rather than just the indoor wall. Combined with almost black hair and eyes the colour of the sea, it was a heady combination.
As if aware of Phil’s scrutiny, Lee looked over his shoulder. Phil didn’t look away, letting Lee know exactly what he was thinking with his frank admiring gaze. He was pleased to see Lee was just as frank, not breaking their eye contact until James spoke to him. Almost reluctantly, Lee looked away.
A mug of coffee in one hand and another pint in the other, Lee came back to the table. The caffeine was exactly what Phil needed, and he let out a grunt of contentment.
Lee grinned at him. “Are you always so easily satisfied?”
Scowling at him over the rim of the mug, Phil said, “Coffee, yes. Anything else, it depends.”
“I see the same look on your face when you’ve had a successful climb,” Lee commented, not meeting his eyes.
“You’ve seen me before?” Phil was surprised. He couldn’t remember seeing Lee there, and he was sure he would have noticed.
Nodding, Lee said, “Every week for the past four months. I know you haven’t seen me. You always seem so preoccupied.”
Phil sighed. “Yeah, well, it’s been a difficult few months. I wish I’d known you were watching me though,” he said honestly. It must have been bad for him not to notice a hottie like Lee.
“Want to talk about it?” Lee sat back in his chair, obviously settling back for Phil’s tale of woe.
Phil exhaled sharply. “I seem to have done nothing but talk about it recently.”
“Start by telling me name, rank, and serial number,” Lee suggested.
“Phil Fitzwarren.” He didn’t go any further as Lee’s eyes widened.
“Fitzwarren. From Steeple Westford? Jesus Christ, you’re one of them?”
“You’ve heard of us then?” Phil said dryly.
“Who hasn’t? I heard one of you ended up in hospital recently. Your sister, wasn’t it?”
“My sister-in-law,” Phil corrected. “Carol. She fell and went into labour prematurely.”
Lee winced. “I’m sorry. Is she all right… and the baby?”
“Carol’s doing well. The baby—it’s a little boy, Edward—he’s hanging on. The boy’s a fighter.” Phil found himself repeating the words well-meaning villagers spouted at him every day. He didn’t realise he’d stopped until Lee spoke again.
“And it must be your sister that got married recently?”
Phil nodded. He took a sip of coffee before continuing. “Diana. She married a local lad, Will, last Saturday.”
Picking up his pint, Lee took a long swallow before asking, “So what’s been going on in here?” He leant forward and tapped Phil’s forehead.
“Aside from worrying about an estate crippled by debt, a nephew fighting for his life and an ancient curse trying to kill us all off?”
“Well, if you put it like that…” Lee grinned. It faded when Phil didn’t smile back.
Phil scrubbed a hand through his light brown hair. It was still damp from his shower and probably sticking up all over the place. “Recently the curse… Well, it was always just us, the Fitzes, the Cursed, waiting for it to strike. My parents and then my brothers, now Carol’s miscarriages and their baby in NICU…” He trailed off, lost in the pain of the family, only to be brought back to the present by a
burst of laughter from the bar. “Now there’s a psychic claiming to be a descendent of our enemy, and a mad soldier muscling in as well. It’s all getting a bit…” He paused, struggling to think of a word that didn’t start with an expletive.
“Crowded?” Lee supplied.
“Exactly what I said,” Phil agreed.
“And out of your control?”
“Damn right,” Phil said, emphatically.
“And you wish everyone would just bog off and leave you and your family to sink peacefully?”
“Yes… you’re teasing me, aren’t you?” Phil saw the smirk on Lee’s face.
“Just a bit,” Lee agreed, patting Phil’s hand to let him know it wasn’t malicious.
Phil groaned and banged his forehead against the tabletop. It was sticky, and he really didn’t want to stay there in case he got stuck. “You sound just like my brother. He thinks I’m being an idiot as well.”
Leaning over the table, Lee dropped a light kiss on his lips. “Not an idiot. Just a bit overwhelmed with everything going on. What you need is a night out with lots of dancing, and—” His voice dropped. “—you need to take me back to your place so that I can fuck you senseless.”
Lee sat back in his chair. “That’s my suggestion. What do you think?”
This was unfair. Phil was being out-topped by a kid, and he really liked that idea. At least his dick did. His mind may have been protesting, but his dick certainly wasn’t. Opening his mouth to respond, Lee, the sneaky bastard, took the opportunity to kiss him again. A warm, beer-tasting press of lips and tongue that left Phil speechless, which was apparently just as Lee liked it best.
Chapter 3
The next morning Phil was sitting alone at the table in the kitchen of the gatehouse, praying the pot of coffee on the kitchen table would propel him from Neanderthal to Homo sapiens. He was just relieved he didn’t have to go into the office. Acting as the estate’s accountant meant he could work from home two days a week. The downside, of course, was that he knew exactly what a financial mire the Fitzwarrens were in.
The Fitzwarren Inheritance Page 16