An Unlocked Mind (Secrets #2)(12)

Oh, hell. Rob didn’t deserve any kindness at all. Vic should put him out and forget he ever saw him.

Except Rob hoped he wouldn’t.

He clutched at Vic’s shirt and sobbed into his chest. Fuck it if Vic didn’t like it.

Strong arms wrapped around him, and a deep yet unexpectedly gentle voice close to his ear whispered, “It’s okay, boy. Let it out. I have you.” Vic stroked the back of Rob’s head while he bawled like a baby.

Rob hated himself. Everything he’d ever done, all the rotten crap he’d pulled. The threats. The blackmail. What kind of bastard was Rob Daniels?

The tears wouldn’t stop pouring from him, no matter how much Rob wanted them to. He’d already offended the man who held him. Called him names, mocked him in front of his friends. And that same man was holding him, whispering that it was okay. How could that be? What kind of person wouldn’t hate him after what Rob had done?

He fought to regain his composure, to put an end to the crying. For God’s sake, pull yourself together! Be a man!

Rob drew back. “I’m sorry.” He sniffled, reaching for the handle of the car, but Vic’s grip on him tightened slightly.

“Where are you going?”

There was that frisson of fear again, but this time interlaced with overwhelming sadness. “You…. I just… I’m sorry, okay? You don’t have to be nice to me. After what I did, I don’t deserve it.”

Vic didn’t loosen his grip. He tugged Rob closer, then said softly, “Sometimes those who feel they don’t deserve something are the ones who need it the most.”

Rob stilled as he thought over Vic’s words. Who the fuck does he think he is? He doesn’t even know me. What the hell gave Vic the right to treat him as though he was one of those simpering femmes at the club? Rob stared at Vic, his fear and sorrow dissipating, to be replaced by irritation. He bristled at Vic’s arrogance and cocky attitude. Then he reconsidered. Vic’s attitude was so different from everyone else’s. They always ranged from cloying to not giving a shit. Vic seemed to simply not care what Rob thought.

It should have pissed him off. The fact that it didn’t was… surprising.

Tonight seems to be a night for that.

“I’m not gay,” Rob blurted out, determined to get that out right away.

Another casual shrug. “So? Do you want a medal?” Vic replied. “It’s not like I’m interested in you anyway.”

His words stung, and it was on the tip of Rob’s tongue to demand to know why. Rob knew he wasn’t that bad. He’d had plenty of girls offer to warm his bed for a night. Most of whom he’d even taken up on it. Who the hell was this queer to say he wasn’t interested in Rob?

To hell with it.

He glared at Vic. “What’s wrong with me?” Somewhere in his head, a voice was yelling, Are you crazy? Do you want him to be interested? Shut. The. Fuck. Up.

Vic quirked his eyebrows as he held up his hand and began to count off on his fingers. “One, you’re disrespectful. Two, you have a chip on your shoulder the size of the London Eye. Three, you need a haircut. Four—”

Fuck, if every one of his comments didn’t tear through Rob. He put a hand up and ran it over his hair. Just above shoulder length, it wasn’t that long. He liked it that way. The girls said they found it sexy when it started to curl at the end as it got longer. But…. A knot in the pit of Rob’s stomach tightened. There hadn’t been a girl in a while. They always wanted cuddles after sex, and once Rob had gotten off, he really didn’t have any interest in doing anything else.

What the hell was it that caused Vic’s words to sting him so badly?

“I’m… I’m sorry,” Rob muttered.

“For what?”

For what indeed? How many things had Rob done in his life that he needed to find forgiveness for? He’d never really felt guilty about anything, but recently the memories of his actions threatened to undo him. And Rob knew this guy probably could see it all over his face. “All of it,” he admitted.

Vic stared at him. “You’re sorry for all of it. Then why do you continue to do what you’re sorry for?”

That raised Rob’s hackles. It was bad enough he pointed out Rob’s flaws, but now he sat here judging him? “You don’t know me!”

Vic chuckled. “Oh, I think I know your kind pretty well. Arrogant little brat? Please. Boys like you are ten a penny. The only difference between them and you is they’re able to learn their place. You? You don’t give a shit about anyone but yourself.”

“You don’t know me!” Rob spat again, only this time with less vehemence, because Vic had struck a nerve. Everything he said was true. But that didn’t mean he was acquainted with the circumstances under which Rob had grown up. How many times he’d—

“Nor do I want to. I offered you a ride to the train. That’s it. Up to you if you want to take it. Otherwise I’ll drop you off here.”

The threat to leave him on the street corner sucked the wind out of Rob’s sails. He peered out into the darkness. The night was bleak as rain continued to soak London. It was a night he’d experienced before. One where he couldn’t very well go out, so all he’d done was sit in his cramped flat and ruminate over how he’d gotten to this point in his life. Tonight he didn’t want to be alone. Better to sit in a warm car than in the train station overnight.