Hide and Seek by Josh Lanyon

Author:Josh Lanyon [Lanyon, Josh]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: JustJoshin Publishing, Inc.
Published: 2022-10-19T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Seventeen

Andy woke to an empty bed and the smell of coffee.

For a moment or two he lay blinking up at the dark ceiling beams, trying to decide how he felt about the night before.

And… He felt fine about it. All of it. No regrets. The sexual release had been welcome. Even…essential. The questions that had haunted him for sixteen years were answered, the old ghosts dispelled, and his heart felt lighter than it had in a very long time.

Not that there weren’t plenty of other things to worry about, but for these few minutes he felt at peace, bundled in this warm, comfortable bed in a room full of dazzling light, the brightness that came with sunshine after snowfall.

He could hear Quinn moving around downstairs. Heard the kick of the old plumbing, heard the kitchen back door squeak open and a few seconds later bang shut.

It occurred to him that it was Monday morning and the world would keep turning with or without his participation. He threw back the blankets and quilt, found his phone in his jeans pocket. He was startled to see it was nearly nine o’clock. He checked for messages. To his relief, there were none.

In fairness, he had Marcus blocked, so it was possible Marcus was still autoredialing 1-800-I-HATE-U. But there were no phone messages from Clark and Fleur or the hospital or Safehaven PD, and no news was good news.

He shaved and then took a quick shower in the pleasantly humid stone cavern within the master bathroom. His bruises had faded into a psychedelic swirl of lavender and ocher, but the swelling was pretty much gone, so he would no longer frighten away prospective customers if he reopened Time in a Bottle, which he was considering. Missing out on the holiday season trade was not going to help Uncle C.’s financial situation any.

He donned jeans and a flannel shirt and went downstairs.

Quinn was in the kitchen, flipping pancakes with the practice of a short-order cook—or possibly the practice of a spy who had worked undercover as a short-order cook? In another skillet on the Monogram Dual Fuel Range, sausage links sizzled enticingly, their aroma mingling with the percolating coffee.

Quinn glanced over at the nearly soundless squeak of floorboards. “I was just about to call you.” He wore jeans and a brown pullover sweater with a zip collar, and looked like he’d also had a shave and shower. If so, it must have been downstairs. Or maybe stealth grooming was also in his bag of tricks.

“I can’t believe I slept so late.” Andy joined Quinn at the stove. He put his arm around Quinn’s waist, gave him a quick hug. “Thank you for last night.”

Quinn smiled into his eyes, kissed him lightly. “Thank you for hearing me out.”

Just that little brush of Quinn’s lips on Andy’s sent a zing down his spine, which he firmly ignored. He let go of Quinn and moved away. “Anything I can do to help?”

It didn’t look like it. Quinn already had the table set, right down to the butter dish and jug of maple syrup.

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