Ellison sported a satisfied grin. “I love that story. I want you to come talk to the students at the academy about working hard and taking risks. Succeeding without connections.”
“Well, I wouldn’t have gotten into Yale without the connections I made working as a caddy at Crosbie,” I admitted. “One of the members wrote me a personal recommendation, and another nominated me for one of the scholarships I needed.”
He frowned, but I could tell he was getting sleepy. “Turn on your front,” I murmured. “I’ll rub your back while I tell you about more of the companies I invested in early on.”
It didn’t take long before he was asleep. I lay there a little while longer, enjoying the feel of his skin and the newfound realization that we had a lot in common.
Ellison York was a good man.
And it was time to admit the truth.
I was falling for him. Hard.
20
Ellison
“Conform to the enemy’s tactics until a favorable opportunity offers; then come forth and engage in a battle that shall prove decisive.”
~ Sun Tzu, The Art of War
I woke up in a mental bed of hearts and flowers and in a physical bed of six-plus feet of hot, muscular male octopus. Grey was all over me with his hands and mouth, and I wanted to scream cheesy epithets like “I win!” or “Fuck yeah!” Instead, I ended up in a sloppy, sleepy sixty-nine, which I decided was just about the best way to start a day off on the right foot.
“You’re getting better at that,” Grey said, idly stroking patterns on my thigh with a fingertip after we’d both come. “Little more practice and you’ll just about have it.”
I yanked his leg hair until he yelped. “I need to talk to my dad after breakfast,” I said, killing the mood entirely. I was both nervous and excited to move the ball forward on this real estate deal. I wanted to get York settled back with my dad, have Grey able to move ahead with his project, and be able to return to Vermont to get to work on fundraising at the academy. I had a feeling I’d accidentally landed a new donor last night during my conversation with Grey.
Grey sighed and moved off the bed. “Count me out for that conversation,” he grumbled. “I tried talking to him again last night, and he walked away. I don’t blame him, and honestly, I was happy not to have to fake it. But it doesn’t bode well for…”
He was so predictable. Grey’s entire body tensed up as he realized what he was about to say.
“Doesn’t bode well for what?” I asked as innocently as possible.
He cleared his throat as he disappeared into the bathroom. “Running into him in the future.”
I grinned. The only way he’d run into my dad in the future and be forced to talk to him was if he was with me at a family event. Which meant he expected to be with me at a family event.
I floated through showering and dressing alongside Grey. Once we changed the subject away from my parents, he seemed to relax. I asked him more questions about the Blackwood Giving Program and saw him light up as he described some of the programs it supported.
We made our way down to breakfast, still talking happily about the common interests we’d discovered the night before. I had a million questions I wanted to ask Grey about whether or not he’d be interested in pursuing an actual relationship when we got back to town, even though I’d be returning to Vermont while he stayed in the city. Would he want me to stay and work at York next week before returning, or would he let me out of our “deal” now that things weren’t antagonistic between us?
Was he feeling the same way I was, or was there a chance he saw this as a temporary physical thing rather than the start of something more?
I pushed down the nerves that tried to sneak into my gut. Why did I even need to settle these issues so soon? I didn’t. I simply needed to enjoy what I had in the moment and stop worrying so much about putting a label on it.
Once we were settled at a breakfast table with full plates of food, Cate came up with a couple of the women she’d introduced me to yesterday at lunch. “Can we join you?”
Grey stood and pulled out a couple of chairs for them with pristine manners that had obviously escaped me. I murmured an embarrassed apology and hid behind my coffee mug. Grey let out a soft laugh and leaned over to press a kiss to my cheek.
The ladies were wide-awake already, trading stories and jokes. I didn’t pay much attention until one of the women seemed to be addressing me with a goofy smile on her face. “Y’all are just so sweet. My cousin is gay, so I get it.”
Grey’s hand tightened where it had been resting on my thigh.
“I don’t understand. You get what?” I asked, truly not following. I still blamed being under-caffeinated.
“Your struggle. You’re so brave. I love seeing two men not afraid to show their affection in public.”
I tried to determine if I was mildly offended or majorly offended. I looked at Grey as if he might hold the answers. His expression was ice-cold. Ah. We’re majorly offended. Good to know.
I smiled benignly back at the lady. “If you think this is brave, you should have seen me giving him head on the beach yesterday in broad daylight.”
Cate and Grey both choked on their coffee. I couldn’t hold back a laugh. “Just kidding. But we did have sex in the tennis house after the tournament, and I’m pretty sure Mrs. Gilbert was spying on us through the windows.”
I could tell everyone thought I was joking again. Only Grey knew the truth, and his face was dangerously red. I leaned over and whispered, “Sorry I never told you about Mrs. Gilbert, but at least now you know why she’s been flirting with you ever since.”
“I’m going to murder you in your sleep,” he promised in a low voice.
“Are people always this rude about the gay thing?” I knew the answer to the question, of course, but I wanted to acknowledge, at least between the two of us, how sorry I was about it.
“Pretty much.”
After that, Cate’s friends didn’t really know how to respond to us. One of them seemed to suddenly take an interest and began flirting with Grey. The other looked everywhere but at either one of us. It was fine by me. All I wanted was to talk to my dad and get past the remaining challenges.
Cate and her friends eventually drifted off to get ready for the croquet tournament Binnie had organized for this morning’s activity. It was probably the promise of mimosas that drove the ladies’ excitement more than the promise of mallets and wickets. I told Grey he should join them on the lawn and get started without me.
“Not for a trillion dollars,” he promised. “Besides, I need to hop on a video call in about twenty minutes, and Binnie offered to show me a quiet study I can use. Do you mind if I leave you for a bit? This is a company I’m working with in Paris. They’re making a big announcement first thing in the morning tomorrow, and I wanted to review the messaging first.”
“That’s fine. But…” I tried to figure out the best way to approach the subject. “Are we good with the York Capital thing? Our deal? I mean… if Ian agrees to sell you the building, you’ll really give my family back the York Capital name?”