The Boys of Banana Court: Box Set

by Alex Carreras

  “Text me your address,” Josh said, “and I’ll pick you up.”

  Darius gave him a thumbs-up and tugged King out the door.

  Celeste did a little dance of joy, the same dance she did when her apple pies bubbled to a sugary perfection. She clapped her hands as Josh laughed at his aunt’s childish yet endearing antics.

  “I have a wonderful feeling about this. And I have the perfect dress for your wedding.”

  “Speaking of that,” Josh grumbled. “I think you’ve been baking too many wedding cakes lately.”

  “You can’t fault me for dreaming.” Celeste shimmied up and pinched Josh’s ever- reddening cheeks. “I just want to see my favorite nephew happy.”

  “I’m your only nephew.”

  She fluttered a hand. “Details, details.”

  “Thanks for making me approach Darius. Without you, I doubt that I would have.”

  “Sometimes, sweetie, you just need a little push, some encouragement. You’ve always been like that. You cried like a banshee the entire week before first grade, until your mother and I bribed you the first day with an ice-cream cone. You changed your mind quickly about school after that.”

  “I don’t believe that was a good example of encouragement.”

  “Bribery. Encouragement.” Celeste shrugged her shoulders, long silver earrings swayed. “They’re about the same thing in my book.”

  “Do you have any restaurant recommendations that an unemployed guy who sometimes works in a bakery can afford?”

  “That little place out on the key that has the perfect baked sole and perfect view of the water.” She sighed, her eyes going dreamy. “That was the last meal I had with Ronan before he left.”

  Josh groaned. “No more about Ronan, please. May I make a suggestion? Maybe it’s your turn to find a new friend. I can ask Darius if he knows any eligible men around your age?”

  Celeste screwed up her face. “My age? Why would I want to date a man my age? I like men who want to do something besides watching the History Channel from the comfort of his recliner.”

  He only half believed her. “You’re too much, you know that?”

  “God I hope so. Gives our family a little color.”

  * * * *

  Darius knew it was a mistake to ask Josh to pick him up at his place, but his check engine light had come on over a week ago, and he was afraid to take it to be repaired, fearing a big bill—a bill he could not pay. Toweling off after a warm shower, Darius looked at his reflection in his mirror, which hung behind his bedroom door. He flexed his arms this way and that, coming to the conclusion that he wasn’t half bad looking. Selecting his favorite dark-colored jeans, brown dress shoes, and a slim-fitting long-sleeved white shirt that showed off his chest, he dressed with care, paying attention to every minor detail of his appearance. Normally, he wasn’t a guy who primped, but that night, he wanted to make a lasting impression. He had liked Josh from the second he’d met him, and deep down he hoped that this date led to another and another.

  “Don’t get ahead of yourself,” he muttered at his reflection. Taking one last look in the mirror and running his hand over his cropped hair, Darius figured that was as good as he was ever going to look.

  He collected his cell phone, wallet, and house keys off his dresser and walked to the living room, hoping that his mother was either engrossed in a television program or napping. His plan was to wait for Josh on the porch, slipping away unnoticed.

  A high-pitched whistle stopped him dead in his tracks.

  “Look how nice my boy looks.” Estelle inhaled deeply through her nose. “And you smell mighty nice. Very masculine.” Her speech was slurred, but Darius didn’t see any glasses around.

  “Thanks, Mom,” he said. “I’m going out. Would you care for me to throw together some dinner before I leave?”

  “You can be such a nice kid when you’re not arguing with me.” Estelle’s smile was lazy. “Handsome, too.”

  “You not going out tonight?”

  “I’m still recuperating from last night’s date.”

  “Nice to know that you had a good time.”

  “Samuel is a nice man,” said Estelle. “Treats me right. Like a lady should be treated.”

  “Will you be seeing more of him?”

  “That depends on his wife.”

  Darius’s stomach dropped to his knees.

  “Don’t you look at me with that face. You were not placed on God’s Earth to judge your mother.”

  “I didn’t say a word.”

  “You didn’t have to. That grimace said it all.”

  Darius ran a hand over his face, feeling weary. “I don’t want to fight.”

  “That makes two of us.”

  “Can I make you dinner before I leave?”

  “When are you leaving?”

  “Soon.”

  “Where are you going?”

  “Out, Mom. Just out.”

  “Is it with that white guy from the park?” She didn’t wait for a response. “What did I tell you?”

  “Like I’d take advice from a woman who’s dating a married man.”

  “I should take you to the kitchen sink and wash your mouth out. I’m your mother, not some random woman from off the street, a stranger to be scoffed at. I demand that you treat me with respect.”

  “Then start acting respectful.”

  “Watch it.” Estelle pointed to a TV remote sitting on a nearby coffee table. “Please hand that to me. I need to catch up on my shows. Hate to get too far behind.”

  If it wasn’t alcohol she lived for, it was television. Dutifully he retrieved the remote and handed it to Estelle. “I’ll be outside on the porch for a few minutes if you change your mind and need anything,” Darius said. “You can always call me too. I’ll have my phone.”

  “I can make myself dinner. I’ve done it many times before, and I suspect I’ll be doing many more times.” Estelle aimed the remote at the TV but didn’t engage it, her hand suspended in midair. “Why are you waiting out on the porch? Is that stranger coming to my house? You don’t know that man, Darius. Why would you agree to getting picked up here? That’s just careless. He can come in here and kill us both. Slice our necks wide open and leave us for dead.”

  “My gut instincts tell me that won’t be happening.”

  “He could stab you right in the middle of that gut. I asked you never to invite him here. Why don’t you ever listen to me? Even when you were a boy, you had your own ideas. Drove me crazy. It appears that you still do.”

  “Mom, chill. Imagine, you might even like him.”

  She made a derisive noise in her throat that put Darius on edge. “I highly doubt that. Some man you picked up while walking that mutt. He can’t be a discerning person.”

  “I saw him today at a bakery,” Darius said, hoping to silence his mother, or at the very least change her thinking. “He was working there. His aunt owns it. The one on Central with the green façade and the café in the front.”

  “Yeah, I know it. I went to school with the woman who owns it. Kind of whacky but still a nice woman.” She looked off into the middle distance as if remembering. “Cherise or Kathy or something.”

  “Celeste,” he corrected. “I wouldn’t consider her to be wacky, though. I’d say she was more colorful. But you’re correct when you call her nice.”

  “I went there last month. Fancied a stroll.”

  “I didn’t know that.”

  “I don’t have to tell you everything. Sometimes a person needs alone time, to think, to forget about stuff.”

  “I understand,” Darius answered honestly. “That’s what I do while walking King. Tune out and enjoy the breeze. Sarasota is a beautiful place to forget about everything. I could never go for a walk over ten seconds in Detroit this time of year.”

  Estelle chuckled. “When your father dragged me to that godforsaken place, I thought I’d gone to hell, a bitterly cold version of it. Horrible thing to do to a Florida girl.” She shook he
r head. “I should’ve known our relationship was doomed just by that.”

  “It’s in the past now,” Darius said. “No reason to drag it back up. Dad’s happy. You’re happy.” Happy enough.

  “That’s right. I am happy.” Her tone sounded as if she intended Darius to challenge her. That was the last thing he wanted to do, the first thing was getting out the front door and into the car with Josh.

  He cocked his head toward the porch. “I’ll be going now. Shouldn’t be too long out there.” Darius extracted his cell phone from his pocket to see if he had missed any texts, but he hadn’t. He leaned in and gave his mother a kiss as Estelle pressed her cheek against his lips.

  “You be good,” she said. “And honey, I know you think I nag you to death, but it’s what a mother does. It’s my job. I just don’t want to see you hurt.”

  “I know that, Mom, but that’s how we learn, from our mistakes. Please don’t worry, something tells me that Josh isn’t the heartbreaker type.”

  “Josh,” Estelle scoffed. “That is a white boy name. You’ll never meet a black man with that name.”

  “You’re sounding racist, Mother. Not a nice thing to be.”

  “I take great offense to that. I married a white man, remember?”

  “My light color reminds me every time I look in the mirror.”

  “And it’s a beautiful color.” Estelle smiled up at Darius. “Never let anyone ever tell you different.”

  “I won’t,” Darius returned. “Make sure you eat. Enjoy your shows.” Sadness tugged at his chest as he walked away from his mother.

  * * * *

  Waiting on the porch and looking out onto the street, Darius contemplated his parents’ marriage, something he did more frequently than he cared to admit. How much did his mother’s drinking contribute to the failed relationship? Although he didn’t remember her doing too much of that when they were together. And although a good father, Peter Moore was selfish and Darius imagined he was even more so when he was younger and working his way up the corporate ladder and away from Estelle. That’s when the fighting began to escalate and her depression set in. Darius still heard the fights in his head, Estelle pleading for them to return to Florida and Peter shouting over every one of her words. It was a living hell for them all, and one Darius could never forget no matter how hard he tried.

  Chapter Six

  Josh watched Darius jog down the front walk of the bungalow style house that was in need of a good handyman. His stomach fluttered with butterflies, the excitement and anticipation of the date getting to him.

  “Hey,” Darius greeted through Josh’s open driver’s side window.

  He continued around the sport ute and slid into the passenger seat, closing the door. “Thanks for getting me,” Darius said.

  “No worries.” He turned to Darius, the handsome man’s freshly showered scent filling the space between them. “Now I know where you live. Did I mention that my favorite pastime is stalking?”

  “Please tell me you’re joking.”

  “My favorite pastime is jogging, as you may have already guessed, and playing video games, not stalking.”

  “Mine’s eating your aunt’s bear claws. Thank God she was out today. It’s the only way I fit into these jeans.”

  Josh had to steal a look at the denim that stretched tightly over Darius’s muscular thighs. “You look great.” Every inch of you. He swallowed the passion lumped in his throat and shifted uncomfortably in his seat. “Food?”

  “I eat everything,” Darius assured. “No allergies. No preferences.”

  “Mongolian?”

  Darius twisted his lips. “Maybe I do have a preference.”

  “I was just giving you a hard time.” Josh veered his vehicle out onto the street. “My favorite is Mexican, and I know this authentic place that does incredible chalupas and chimichangas not far from here. You game?”

  “Sounds like my kind of place.”

  Out of the corner of his eye, Josh detected movement in a street-facing window. “Is this your mother’s house?”

  Darius nodded and lowered his window halfway. “Yeah. She bought it after my parents separated. She grew up in this neighborhood.” Darius pointed out a house that resembled Estelle’s. “Her uncle lived there, and the street behind it a couple of cousins. Her family’s been here for generations.”

  “Must be nice to be surrounded by so much family.”

  “You would think.”

  “I take it you’re not close?”

  “You can say that,” Darius responded. “I don’t remember my grandmother, not really. The smell of her perfume, sometimes.” A subtle smile crossed his lips. “I have a picture of us together. Her arms wrapped around me. She died at sixty-two.”

  “I’m sorry. My grandparents live in Ohio,” Josh said. “That’s where I was born, but we moved here when I was a few months, so I consider myself to be a Floridian. I’m bending the rules a bit, but no one’s checking.”

  “It’s a great place to be a kid, the beach, the waves, just everything, really.”

  “I agree, but sometimes I wonder if I shouldn’t go somewhere else.”

  “Do you have any place in mind?” Darius asked.

  “New York or Los Angeles, possibly?” Josh shrugged, turning on the indicator and taking a right-hand turn. “But I have no burning desire to live in those places. I like it here. My friends are here, and I just got a great apartment with Mitch so moving away is stupid.”

  “Mitch?”

  “Best friend since grade school. We’ve been through everything together. We came out to each other the exact same time.”

  “Who admitted to being a gay first?”

  “Mitch, of course,” Josh said. “He does everything first. Smoked first, got his driver’s license first, lost his virginity first.”

  “Sounds a little like you have a crush on him.”

  Josh released an uncomfortable chuckle. “I guess it does, but I assure you, I don’t. He’s more like the brother I never had. We share so much history. Mitch is a good guy, and I love him.”

  “He’s lucky to have you as a friend,” Darius said. “Hope he knows that.”

  “We’re both lucky to have each other.”

  Accelerating the vehicle, Josh asked, “How about you? Any childhood friends left in the area. I probably know a few. Sarasota isn’t as big as it looks.”

  “I’d say acquaintances more than friends. Kids who grew up in the neighborhood, but most of them have moved or are in college. This might sound pathetic, but my dog is my best friend.”

  “It doesn’t sound pathetic in the least,” Josh assured. “And in fact, I believe that very thing has been suggested before, man’s best friend.”

  “Do you have any pets?”

  Josh laughed. “Mitch,” he joked. “He’s not exactly the cleanest of roommates. Hopefully, his current boyfriend will shove a paper towel in one hand and Lysol in the other.”

  “I feel for you. My mom tends to overlook a few too many things for my liking. I don’t mind cleaning and picking up. I actually think it’s therapeutic on some levels.”

  “Whoever ends up with you will be a lucky guy. Attractive, articulate, neat, and an animal lover, you’re a virtual catch.”

  Darius’s laughter was intoxicating. “Never thought about it before, but you do paint a nice picture. I’d date me.”

  “Speaking of dates, this is the place.” Josh veered his vehicle into a gravel parking lot. Selecting a space, he parked, rolled up the windows, and shut off the engine. When Josh went to grab the door handle to step out, Darius stopped him by placing his hand on Josh’s thigh, the intimate act catching him off guard. Josh turned to face Darius.

  “Before we go inside,” Darius said, “I want to do one thing.”

  The warmth of Darius’s touch seeped through the fabric of his pants into his skin. “What’s that?” Josh managed to say, his throat going instantly tight.

  In a heated rush, Darius closed his li
ps over Josh’s, stealing his breath. Darius’s lips were soft and moist, and when he pushed his tongue in, Josh thought that he was going to lose his load right there in the cabin of the SUV. Josh inhaled the man’s scent, and he found himself running his hands over Darius’s wide shoulders and down his lean back as if they had a mind of their own. Josh felt as if he was flying and falling at the same time.

  “Damn you’re hot, boy,” Darius said, chewing on Josh’s lip. He pulled away, and Darius’s intense gaze fueled Josh’s inferno even more. “Tasty, too.”

  “I am hot,” Josh said, continuing, “and if you do that again, we might not be eating Mexican tonight.”

  “We can always eat later.”

  “Every cell in my body wants to say yes, but instead of thinking with my dick, I’m going to go with my brain—something that doesn’t happen too often.”

  Darius cocked his head to the side. “Hopefully I wasn’t forward, but I wanted to get that out of the way. I’ve been thinking about doing that since meeting you in the park yesterday. At the risk of sounding like a borderline psycho, I want you to know that I was instantly attracted to you. I felt sparks.” He smiled, and that dimple appeared again. “Scared yet?”

  “Just the opposite,” Josh said. “I appreciate your honesty, so I’m going to be the same with you. I like you, a lot. Sometimes I get this feeling here, a fluttering sensation.” Josh pointed to the center of his chest. “It tells me that you’re a good person, one worth getting to know.”

  “I get a similar feeling, but mine’s located farther south.”

  Josh chuckled and leaned in for another kiss. He had to have more of Darius, and he wasn’t shy in taking it. After a string of dates that went nowhere recently, the little voice in Josh’s head told him that this date was definitely going somewhere.

  * * * *

  They shared chips and salsa, split a pitcher of margaritas on the rocks. And after they were satiated, eating their weight in sour cream and cheese-covered Mexican delicacies, the two paid the bill, dragged themselves into the sport ute, and Josh headed toward Darius’s. It was only when Darius suggested a walk on the beach, the moon full in the cloudless night sky, did Josh get his second wind. Windows down and radio on, they headed for Siesta Beach as they sang along to a John Legend song, massacring the lyrics and singing off-key. Josh didn’t care because he wasn’t thinking about school, or the job he did not have, or the bills that might not get paid this month. Instead, he was thinking of the here and now and the man who made him sing at the top of his lungs with liberating abandon.