Initiative (Suncoast Society #31)(6)

Even though it was summer, Darryl still worked for the church as its music director and head pianist, and for its school, helping run its summer program and music camps. His work load would amp up come the start of school year, but at least then their backup pianist would handle some of the Sunday services, giving Darryl much-needed time off on the weekends.

Eliza crossed her arms. “Remind me again how an atheist ends up playing piano and teaching music for a church school?”

“Because I was broke and getting divorced and needed the steady money,” he said. “Teaching piano privately only goes so far toward paying the bills and the child support. Believe me, I wish I could have gotten a job with the county school system. I’m still keeping a watchful eye for any positions that open up, but they keep slashing their budgets for the arts.”

Grant pulled Darryl closer, sliding an arm around his waist. “You’re a good dad. Don’t let Chelsey ever tell you otherwise.”

“Yeah, well, as much as I love Kyle, I’m beginning to wish I’d never met his mother.”

Grant hugged him a little more tightly. “Seems like I tried to warn you at the time.”

“Yeah, I know.” He rested his head on Grant’s shoulder. “I just didn’t know then what I know now.”

Eliza snapped her fingers. “Oh! We could send Tilly and June over to talk to her!”

“No,” Darryl, Grant, Rusty, and Mike all said together.

Eliza pouted. “Why not?”

“I want Chelsey to play fair,” Darryl said, “not get chopped into bait and disposed of. She’s my son’s mother. A little over five years, and then I’m free of her.”

“Maybe sooner,” Grant muttered.

Darryl sighed. “He’s just mad at his mom right now. It’s still over a year before he can petition the court to change custodial parents.” He looked at Grant. “He could change his mind a thousand times between now and then. And you don’t think that would be a logistics nightmare if he did move in with us?”

“We’d tell him the truth, that we’re partners.”

“And then he’d tell his mom, who’d tell my job out of spite, who’d fire me, which would then mean that I couldn’t pay the bills, which would mean she’d drag me back into court to get full custody, and then I’d have to pay more child support. We can’t live on your income alone and me paying child support, too. Hell, I can barely make ends meet now as it is with what I owe. If it wasn’t for living with you and you supporting my ass…” He stared at the floor and didn’t continue.

Eliza hugged both of them. “Hey, we love you guys. Look, you have fun this weekend, okay? Forget bullshit life problems. Try to enjoy yourselves. Reconnect with old friends.”

Once they were back in Grant’s car and heading home, Grant glanced over at Darryl. The man stared out the passenger window, a pensive look on his face.

Grant knew that look all too well. “Please, stop worrying about this weekend.”

“It’s not fair that you had to pay for everything.”

“It’s what people do when they’re in a relationship.”

“I feel like I’m not contributing my fair share.”

At the next light, Grant reached over and cupped the back of Darryl’s neck again. “If I was worried about it, don’t you think I’d say something? I’m not. So stop it. I make more money than you. The house is nearly paid off. If this was a burden on me, I would have used my big-boy words and said so. I love you, and I’m taking care of you because I love you and I want to take care of you. End of subject.”

The light turned green and he put both hands on the wheel again.

This wasn’t their first go-round on the subject. If it hadn’t been for Grant paying for the hotel room and for both their tickets, and outright ordering Darryl to take the time off to go, he knew it wouldn’t have happened.

Dammit, he wanted to go. He’d missed the ten-year reunion, and probably a good thing he did. He was at a point in his life now where even if Darryl had to be super-careful because of his job, and he had to be moderately careful because of his, at least Grant felt good about going. He had nothing to be ashamed of, and neither did Darryl.

They were happy and had a decent life, which was more than a lot of people could say. They had their health, they had friends.

And they had a hot as f*ck sex life when Kyle wasn’t staying over and the men had to sleep in separate bedrooms to keep up the charade of being nothing more than “just roommates.”





Darryl stared out the window as Grant drove them home. Hell, even something as innocuous as playing Dungeons and Dragons wasn’t something he could admit to his coworkers.

Grant, who managed the IT department at a research lab, wasn’t much better off. Because of his security clearance, he also had a morality clause in his employment contract. They wouldn’t ding him for D and D, and probably wouldn’t fire him for them being more than just roommates, but they might bounce him for their BDSM activities should that ever be made public. He made good money, but they had to protect their privacy.

At the time, when Chelsey slapped Darryl with the divorce, he’d been a stay-at-home dad teaching piano lessons and raising their son. She’d wanted to work, so it had seemed the perfect answer. He’d been trying to get signed on as a county school teacher, but drastic budget cuts had pretty much skewered his plans there. He sometimes played paying gigs with friends of his, but that never paid much, was more for fun than profit.