The Fortune Hunter by Bonnie Dee

Author:Bonnie Dee
Language: eng
Format: epub
Tags: gay historical, second chances, rags to riches, opposites attract, 20th century, hidden identity, cinderella story, secret agenda, con artist hero, post wwi historical
Publisher: Bonnie Dee

Chapter Seventeen

Julian didn’t know what had prompted him to start such a personal conversation with Hal. He’d gone searching for him partly out of curiosity about Margaret, but mostly because he wanted to see him and have exactly the sort of deep conversation they were having. On this gloomy afternoon in this abandoned part of the house, the atmosphere was intimate and ripe for the sharing of secrets with a man who understood the darkest part of him.

Only now that Julian was the one being questioned, he found himself reluctant to talk. “I wasn’t quite telling the truth when I said I’ve only had inconsequential flings. There was a boy I used to admire above all others, but he and I never did anything, and he never knew of my feelings, so I suppose that doesn’t count.”

“It does.” Hal moved his book to the windowsill and rested his arms on his crossed legs. “Whether desires are acted on or not, a man can’t deny having them.”

Julian looked back across the years and tried to pinpoint the moment he’d realized his admiration had turned into something much more.

“Our neighbor, Abner Barry,” he confided. “I admired his athleticism, his cleverness in devising projects like that ill-advised dam that got us into so much trouble, and, of course, his handsome looks. Only as I grew older did I realize I wanted to touch him in ways that weren’t appropriate. I wanted to push my fingers through his hair, to feel the shape of his lips, and when he and I and James swam naked in the pond, I would purposely swim into Abner. We’d wrestle and duck one another. I’d have to wait for my excitement to abate before emerging from the water.”

Hal smiled. “I can imagine.”

Reminiscing about those summer days had Julian’s cock swelling. He crossed his legs the other direction and moved farther away from Hal and temptation, for he was tempted, almost beyond his ability to resist.

Hal fixed his bright, inquisitive gaze on Julian. “What did you do when you understood your feelings went beyond admiration or friendship?”

Julian gave a mirthless chuckle. “Shoved those feelings deep down as far as I could and never admitted them even to myself. Summer ended. I returned to school. And on future holidays, I avoided Abner. By that time, he was working his father’s land and had no more time to play. Also, we’d all grown too old to play at soldier forts and dam building any longer.”

“At least you have some wonderful childhood memories,” Hal said softly.

“Haven’t you?” Julian alerted to his wistful tone. This wasn’t the first time he’d said something to suggest an unhappy childhood. Julian wished he could have known him then. He felt certain somehow that they would have been friends.

Hal frowned. “After my father lost everything, we lived in straightened circumstances, so my family wasn’t treated the same in our community. Boys who used to be my friends dropped me.”

A plausible answer, so why did it feel like

Download

Copyright Disclaimer:
This site does not store any files on its server. We only index and link to content provided by other sites. Please contact the content providers to delete copyright contents if any and email us, we'll remove relevant links or contents immediately.