The Lost Boy by Anna Martin

Author:Anna Martin [Martin, Anna]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2020-01-19T00:00:00+00:00

Chapter Sixteen

For a few days, Ben floated along in a haze of good sex hormones that were almost certainly driving Tone crazy. He didn’t have sex with Stan again—even though he wanted to. He knew this was part of Stan’s directive to not rush anything, and he respected that; he totally did. But being with Stan was like someone turning on a dusty old switch in his heart, reminding him what it felt like to love someone. It felt like running a marathon after not exercising for a year. Everything ached.

Instead of all the incredible sex they could have been having, Ben spent hours researching dates. He booked after-hours events at museums, dinner at chef’s tables in restaurant kitchens, private boxes at the theatre to watch plays. He was going overboard and he knew it, but Stan seemed alternately charmed and bemused by the whole thing, so Ben kept going.

He was sticking to Stan’s vaguely defined rules and figuring out if they could make this relationship work today. The more time they spent together, the surer he was that it was going to be good. Not just now, but for a long time to come.

That Stan liked to dress up when Ben took him out was a very appreciated side benefit.

“You look great,” Ben murmured, smoothing his hand down Stan’s arm. He was wearing a dress again, this one loose and voluminous in some kind of textured chiffon material. Stan didn’t often wear a lot of yellow, but this looked amazing on him.

“Thanks,” Stan said. He leaned over and gave Ben a kiss. “Where are we going today?”

“Just walking, I think. We might find something interesting on the way.”

“That sounds nice.” Stan reached for Ben’s hand. That was a new thing, holding hands in public again.

When they got outside, Stan tipped his sunglasses down from where they’d been perched on his head onto his nose. Ben copied the gesture, even though it wasn’t that bright outside.

They headed north, farther out of the city, taking the scenic route towards Primrose Hill. For a while they just walked in silence. Ben basked in it. He’d always appreciated being able to be quiet with someone, and Stan was good at it.

Then Stan said something that upset everything.

“I need to go back to New York.”

Ben panicked. “Forever?”

“No, not forever.” Stan smiled at him, his expression fond. “I need to bring back the rest of my stuff and have a few handover meetings at work. Say goodbye to my roommates. Things like that.”

“Oh.” Ben was still panicking. “How long will you be?”

Stan fidgeted for a moment. “Maybe a week? Or less than that. A week at most.”

“Okay.” Ben nodded. “Okay.”

“I’m moving back to London,” Stan said. “It’s going to take time to figure that out logistically. I have EU citizenship, so that’s not a problem, but I still have to register my business and sort out what happens with my US work visa and all of that stuff.”

“No, I understand,” Ben said, even though he wanted to be selfish and beg Stan not to go.

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