Okay, so that was probably something Raj shouldn’t be thinking about right then. If by some miracle he were to win and had to leave his seat, he didn’t want to embarrass himself in front of millions of people who would be watching the ceremony both in the crowded theatre and at home on television.
He was already a curiosity—he didn’t want to make himself a laughing stock.
Raj turned his attention back to the stage just in time to catch the announcement for Best Actress. Amrita, an actress Raj had worked with several times in the past, climbed the stairs and walked forward to accept her award. The audience went wild, shattering the silence as loud clapping and cheering started all around them.
“I think I’m going to be sick,” Raj whispered in an aside.
Brent squeezed Raj’s hand and the slight pressure and reassuring gesture gave Raj added confidence. He felt as if he could do anything as long as Brent was at his side. No mountain was too high or too difficult to climb.
Raj still couldn’t believe he’d brought a male date to the IIFAs.
Just a few short months ago he wouldn’t have dreamed of doing such a thing, wouldn’t have thought it possible. He’d expected to be completely ostracized when his fans found out about his orientation, but he couldn’t have been further from the truth. Yes, some people had stopped taking his calls since the news had broken—people he had considered friends, too—but he’d been surprised by the amount of support he’d received.
It surpassed his wildest imaginings.
Raj listened to Amrita’s speech in its entirety but he barely understood a word. His heartbeat was pounding loudly in his ears and he had to use all of his concentration to keep down his lunch.
All he would remember later was that one minute there was silence, apart from the thud, thud, thud of his heart, and the next was a complete dichotomy as noise and applause filled the space around him.
Someone was patting his back…no, several people all at once, and when he turned to face Brent, his lover’s joyous smile was so wide his face had to have been hurting.
There had been adoration in his eyes…and love.
To Raj’s shock—and, if he were honest, delight—Brent leant forward and crushed their mouths together fiercely, and the noise around them grew in magnitude until Raj’s ears rang and he thought his heart would burst free of his chest.
Brent pulled back from the kiss and pressed their foreheads together.
“Congratulations, love,” Brent whispered. “Now get up there and collect what’s yours.”
Epilogue
Raj ended the call and placed his cell phone on the coffee table in front of him. He leant back against the sofa and smiled when Brent’s arm wrapped around his shoulder and pulled him close.
He snuggled into the embrace, trying to get comfortable.
“Everything okay at home?” Brent asked.
Raj nodded. “Yeah, everything is great. Maa called to tell me my brother’s wife is pregnant again,”
“Again?”
Raj nodded. “Rather him than me. What is he going to do with four little monsters causing havoc around the house?”
Brent chuckled and tightened his hold, placing a light kiss on the top of Raj’s head. “I’ve seen you with those kids. You love them…admit it.”
Raj grinned. “Never. I’ll take the secret to my grave.”
“How is your mother doing?”
“Good. She’s going to the theatre again tonight with Peter.”
“Wow. She’s been spending a lot of time with him recently… A hell of a lot of time. You think things between them are more serious than she’s letting on?”
“I’m sure of it. Not that I mind. He seems like a nice man.”
Brent nodded. “He does. I’m so happy your relationship with your mother is finally back on track.”
“Me too. It took her a while, but I think she finally accepts me for who I am. I think Peter has a lot to do with that, actually.
“I’m so happy my mother met someone as liberal and open-minded as my dad was. I don’t know for sure but I suspect it was him that helped to change her mind about me.”
“Whatever the reason, let’s be thankful that she did change her mind.”
Raj nodded and leaned even closer into Brent’s embrace. “Have you heard from your parents yet?”
Brent nodded. “Yep, their plane touched down safely. Mum said they’re already planning their next trip here.”
Raj laughed. “They didn’t want to leave.”
Brent shook his head. “And you, Mr. Khan, made quite the impression on them. They’re already calling you their son-in-law.”
Raj felt the heat of a blush spread across his cheeks. “I liked them, too. Did you manage to get hold of Jessie?”
“Yeah, finally.” Brent sighed. “She’s not doing so well since she split with Jack. I know it’s not easy on her. I can’t begin to imagine what it must feel like to find out a person you loved is not the person you thought they were.
“I tried to persuade her to come back to Mumbai but she’s going to stay in England for a while longer. I guess she wants to be close to her family right now, but I can understand that.”
“Maybe she’ll come back when she’s had some time to heal.”
“I hope so. I miss having her around.”
“I know. She’ll get over what happened eventually and then I’m sure she’ll come back here. Did she have any news about Jack?”
Brent shook his head. “She hasn’t heard from him in weeks, not that she’s complaining about that. She said the last letter her solicitor got from him came from Los Angeles.
“He’s probably out there trying to scam more people out of their money, if I know Jack. You know, I’m beginning to think it was a mistake to not press charges against him. I hate to think that he could be doing the same thing to someone else.”
“I know, I feel bad about it, too, but I wanted the whole ordeal over with. Those few months were stressful.
“It was difficult enough worrying and preparing for the IIFAs and the cinema releases with all the press attention over my coming out.
“The last thing I wanted was a drawn-out court battle.”
“I can understand that. Your new houseboy seems to be working out well. You know, I think I finally got Pranesh to stop calling me Mr. Hawthorne. I don’t think he likes it, though.”
“I can’t imagine he does. He still refuses to call me anything other than Mr. Khan,” Raj sighed. “I still feel bad for firing Aakash.”
“You did the right thing. You couldn’t have had him working here anymore after what he did to you.”
“I know. The thing is, I might not like what Aakash did but I understand his reasons. He was trying to support his family and the money Jack gave him was a lot to someone in his position.
“He’ll have trouble finding another job like this again.”
“No doubt, but hopefully he’s learned a lesson from it. You thought anymore about what you’re going to do with your time now that you’re finally free from Bollywood? There’s always a place for you at Hawthorne Security.”
Brent winked and Raj threw his head back and laughed.
“Can you honestly see me as a bodyguard?”
Brent pursed his lips. “I don’t know. I think you’d look sexy as hell in the dark suit.”
“You know, I’m still amazed that Jack didn’t kick up a fuss when you ended All-Star Security.”
“There was nothing he could have said about it. He was convinced that, if he pushed, I’d make good on my threat to blacken his name around Bollywood. I think in the end he was glad to get away.”
“I think you made the right decision to start your own company. You’re good at what you do and there is so much you can teach the new bodyguards.”
Brent nodded. “I love the work, but I’m a bit long in the tooth to be a bodyguard now. By managing the company and teaching the new bodyguards, I get to still be involved in something I enjoy.�
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Raj snorted. “Long in the tooth? You’re thirty-five! Wow, decrepit.”
Brent chuckled. “All right, all right… I know I’m not that old. So, what are you going to do with your free time? Do you fancy being a kept man for a while?”
Raj’s eyes danced with mirth. “Actually, I’m going to go ahead with my plan of setting up an acting school for underprivileged kids, here in the city.
“I’ve been thinking about it a lot recently.
“Naturally, I’ve got a lot of contacts in the industry. I’m still amazed how many people supported me when news of my sexuality came out. I was thinking of holding a few charity auctions to get funding for the project.
“I’m sure people would come.”
“I think that’s a wonderful idea. I’m proud of you. I knew things would work out for you when you came out. You’re not only a great actor, you’re a great man.
“People love you and it was inevitable they’d stick by you.”
Raj glanced at the mantel above the fire on the far side of the room and warmth spread over his body as he looked at the gleaming gold IIFA trophy that held pride of place there.
“Thank you for having faith in me.”
“Always.” Brent followed Raj’s gaze to the trophy in the corner. “It was a wonderful night. I felt so proud to sit at your side and watch you get up on stage to accept that award.”
Raj smiled fondly when he remembered the night. “I never thought I’d see the day when I took a man to the IIFAs as my date. I never even thought it would be allowed… Crazy, I know.”
Brent shook his head. “Not crazy at all. It was natural to be so unsure of what would happen when people found out about you. Fortunately, people are more tolerant now than they used to be.
“Times are definitely changing for the better.”
Raj nodded. “Amen to that.”
“So…no regrets about quitting the business now that you’ve had time to digest it all?”
“Not one. I’m looking forward to the change in pace and the new challenge. I can’t wait to start working with kids.”
Brent grinned and tilted Raj’s head up so that he met his gaze. “I can’t think of anything better suited to you. You’re wonderful with children and they can learn a lot from you.
“I have to say though, I’d still like to see you in that bodyguard suit. Or out of it.”
Raj’s breathing sped.
Brent looked at him as if he were the sexiest thing he’d ever laid eyes upon.
The expression still caused butterflies to flutter in his stomach every time he saw it.
“You have a one-track mind, Mr. Hawthorne.” Raj leaned up and placed a gentle kiss against Brent’s lips.
Well, it started out gently, until Brent grabbed hold of his face and slid his tongue into Raj’s mouth, deepening the kiss. By the time they pulled apart Raj was breathing heavily, his dick as hard as granite.
“Isn’t that one of the things you love about me?” Brent asked innocently.
“It’s one of the things, I’ll admit. But honestly? There are too many to name.”
Brent’s smile lit up his whole face and Raj felt his heart skip a beat. The last four months had been the best of his life. Since Brent had finally moved in with him three weeks ago, their relationship had gone from strength to strength.
Raj couldn’t imagine his life now without Brent in it—they were a perfect fit.
Brent leant down until his breath was tickling Raj’s ear.
“I love you too,” he whispered.
And then Raj forgot everything else, including his own name, when Brent resumed their kiss.
The End
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Want to read more of Lavinia’s books?
Too Many Chances is a poignant and, at times, amusing story about childhood friends rekindling their friendship after years apart. Friendship soon grows into something deeper, but if they want a future together, they’ll first have to come to terms with what happened in the past.
Find Too Many Chances on Amazon.com here - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07NYFFRF7
About the Author
Lavinia Lewis is the M/M pen name of British romance author Tammy Thomas.
She also writes contemporary romance as Ava Grace and paranormal romance as Amy Armstrong.
She is a full-time writer and lives in Wales, UK.
She discovered reading at an early age and could always be found with her nose in a book. She loved getting lost in a fantasy world even then. When her parents bought her a typewriter for Christmas at age eleven, her fate was sealed. She spent hours dreaming up characters and creating stories. Not a lot has changed. Now, when she is not writing you can find her with her kindle in hand, reading a romance novel, or binge watching her favorite shows on Netflix.
She has lived all over the UK but currently resides back home in the little village in Wales where she grew up. She has travelled extensively to places as far and wide Africa, Asia, Australia, America and most of Europe. Although some of her books are set in Texas she has never visited the state but plans to spend time there in the near future.
Tammy welcomes emails from her readers so feel free to get in touch at the following email address.
[email protected]
Bollywood Bodyguard Page 17