The Magic In Your Touch

Chapter 9

Any other time, Nathan would have said an automatic “no.” Amy was the only person who knew the truth about what happened that night. Now, though, sitting in the moonlight with this amazing man, wrapped up in his jacket and bathed in his scent, Nate heard the words come spilling out.

“My dad and I have always had our share of disagreements. Ever heard of the Mor-co Pharmacy chain?”

“Sure. They’re one of the largest franchises in the country.” Nate watched as recognition dawned on Brandon’s face. “Holy sh*t! Your family owns Mor-co?”

“Yep. At least, my dad does. He inherited it from his dad, who started out as a pharmacist in a one-horse Georgia town. When my dad graduated from college with a degree in pharmacy, Grandpa set him up with his own store. Pretty soon, they bought another store, and then another. Before grandpa knew it, he had a chain. When my dad took over, he consolidated and took the company national. He expected me to get a business degree, or at the very least become a pharmacist, so I could take over the family business. Needless to say, he wasn’t too thrilled when I decided to become a doctor. He said, “Why would you want to

be a doctor? Don’t you know we make our money off of sick people? Cure enough of them and we’ll be out of business.”

“Damn. No offense, man, but your dad sounds like a real prick.”

“None taken. And he is definitely a prick. He was unhappy enough about my choice to become a doctor, but I think he might have eventually gotten over that. Having a queer son was something else entirely.”

“What happened, babe?”

The quiet strength in Brandon’s voice gave Nate the will to continue the story. “Not unlike you, I met a guy while I was away at school. Not my freshman year, though. I was a senior. Rick Landon was my student advisor. We got to know each other while I was trying to decide which medical school to apply for. I thought he was perfect. Handsome, smart, funny: the whole package. He asked me out and I, of course, said yes. He was the first guy I’d ever dated and I fell head over heels in love with him. He wanted us to move in together, but. . .”

“But?”

“Promise you won’t laugh?”

Brandon looked over to where Sasha lay sleeping on the edge of the blanket. “I won’t, but I can’t speak for Sasha.”

Nate smiled. “You and that dog. O.K. The reason I didn’t want us to move in together is because I wanted us to wait about having s*x. I wanted it to be special.”

“You mean, you never—”

“No. Oh, we fooled around a little, touching and grouping, but nothing any more intimate. Rick wasn’t real happy about it, but he agreed to wait. We dated for almost eight months. Then, on Rick’s twenty-second birthday, I did something really stupid. I asked him to marry me.”

“Wow.”

“Wait. It gets worse. He said yes. Then he insisted we invite both sets of parents to dinner and tell them the good news, never mind the fact that neither of our families even knew we were gay.”

“He doesn’t sound all that bright.”

“Yeah, well neither was I. We invited our families out to dinner and told them all of it, right in the middle of the prime rib. My dad threw one of his tantrums, to which my mother replied, ‘Now see there, you’ve upset your father again.’ My brother, who was sixteen at the time, just looked at me like I was a slug that had somehow crawled through the door of the restaurant. Rick’s parents never said a word; they just got up and left, demanding that Rick go with them. The next day, I got a restraining order from my parents and a phone call from Rick informing me that his folks were going to cut him off financially if he didn’t stop ‘acting gay.’ He transferred to another school, and that was the end of it. Three months later, I read in the society section of the paper about his engagement to the daughter of his father’s business partner.”

Brandon reached over and took Nate’s hand. “For what it’s worth, I think they’re all idiots.”

“Thanks. And thanks for sharing this place with me. And for listening.”

“My pleasure.” He glanced down at his watch. “Damn, It’s after one o’clock. Let’s head back to the house.” He stood up and helped Nate to his feet.

The walk back to the house was silent, but it was a comfortable silence. Sasha walked between them again, watchful as ever. When they got back to the house, Sasha went to her massive pillow-bed near the fireplace in the living room, while Brandon and Nathan went upstairs.

Bran dropped Nate off at the door to the guest room. “If you don’t want Sasha to end up in bed with you, make sure the door is closed up tight. She might have gone quietly to her pillow like a good little doggie, but that doesn’t mean she’ll stay there.”

Then, before Nate had a chance to protest, Brandon leaned forward and planted a soft kiss on Nate’s cheek. “Good night, Baby. Sleep well.” Without another word, he went to his room, leaving Nate standing and staring behind him.

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