“No problem, thanks for that, Leo. Was he happy with the rough plans?”
“Yes, but he needs the full architect design by the end of the month, and so do we. There’s only so much of the initial prep work left. We can’t crack on with the main build until we have those plans to work from. I’d say we’ve got no more than seven days of work left before we come to a halt.”
“Did you just say you’re fucking giving it away?”
Leo and I both turn our heads towards Rex. My friend’s face is slack and incredulous, his shocked stare locked on me.
“Leo, this is my friend and business partner, Rex Fuller. Rex, this is Leo Martin, my builder.”
“Nice to meet you, Mr Fuller.” Leo holds out one of his large, work-roughened hands, and Rex shakes it briefly out of politeness, but his attention remains firmly on me.
“Well then,” Leo says awkwardly, sensing the tension radiating from Rex. “I’d best be off. I’ll catch you tomorrow, Mr Evans.”
“Macsen,” I correct for possibly the millionth time.
The bigger man chuckles and walks away, telling me without words that I’ll never get him to use my first name. Even when I was clearing away piles of rubble and debris with his team yesterday, he still referred to me as mister.
Rex doesn’t pay any attention to Leo’s departure, so it’s no surprise he doesn’t bother to wait and make sure the other man is fully out of earshot before he lets rip. He can’t because his initial shock has now morphed into pure rage.
“What the fuck is going on here, Macs? And don’t fill me full of bullshit this time. Have you lost your fucking mind?” Rex takes a step towards me, arms flinging angrily at the air all around him. “Are you doing some kind of benevolent bucket list, is that what this is?” He stills. Blanches. His face turning white. “Are you dying?”
“We’re all dying, Rex.” I hastily laugh off his question, my eyes furtively surveying our surroundings. Leo is thankfully far enough away not to hear Rex’s words. He’s also standing next to a truck with its engine running, and I give silent thanks for that. The last thing I want is details of this conversation making their way around Lily Bay before nightfall.
When my gaze returns to Rex, he’s staring at me, and I force myself to remain relaxed despite the urge to search through my pockets or shift on my feet.
“Don’t be flippant, Macs. And don’t talk to me like I’m an idiot.”
“You’re being melodramatic, Rex. Only you could put two and two together and make forty-four.”
“And only you could deflect without shame when your best friend, your only friend, asks you a serious question. And let’s not pretend it comes out of left field, Macs. You got a serious diagnosis a few months back. It’s not impossible for me to think that you—”
I can’t let him continue. It’s too much.
“I’m not dying, Rex. At least not today. Give it a rest. Okay?”
The look he gives me could freeze the Sahara, and I struggle not to wilt under his icy glare.
“Then you need to tell me what’s going on here, Macs. Starting with who you’re planning to give this place to when you’re done, and why the hell you’re here in the first place.”
“I can do that.”
We stroll through the grounds and wander through the many rooms, and I answer all his questions—well, the ones I can, anyway.
Rex goes quiet on more than one occasion and loses his temper on a few more, but at least he listens. I know it’s hard for him to comprehend. I can see he’s finding it difficult not to judge my choices, but by the time we’ve come full circle and end up back where we started, both of us looking up at the old house before us, I think he finally understands a little better.
“And I’ll get to meet this Ellis tonight?”
I squint. The downing sun is low on the horizon as I look out over the sea, and my hand lifts to shield my eyes.
“Yes, he’s working, but he’ll have drinks with us after dinner. Until then, we can discuss what needs to happen for you to fully take control of EF Recruitment. Once we’ve come to an agreement, the solicitors can run up the contracts, and I’ll have them signed before you go back.”
“I can’t believe you’re giving it all up for this. I can’t get my head around it.”
I tear my gaze away from the striking view in front of us and stare at the profile of a man who is more like a brother than a business partner or friend.
“One day, you will.”
He doesn’t respond or look at me. His analytical mind is still crunching numbers and working out variables, unable to process why I’d give up the life I had for this crumbling building in this small seaside town.
Or that there’s a man who already means more to me than all of it.
“Why him, Macs?” Rex turns his head, his grey eyes finding mine. “You’ve never, not in all the years I’ve known you, shown interest in a man or woman. Why him. Why this man?”
I smile. “Are you worried I’ve had a late epiphany and finally realised I’m gay after all these years, or do you think this place has charmed the straightness out of me?”
His voice is soft but direct when he responds, “I couldn’t care who you fell for as long as it was consensual and legal. I’m not asking why you’re gay or how long you’ve known or why you didn’t tell me your sexual preferences. All that is none of anyone’s business.” He turns and looks across at the small woodland that runs alongside the house. “I guess I don’t understand how one person, in such a short space of time, can have this monumental effect on another.”
When he turns to face me once more, his grin is wry. “Especially not Macsen Evans, proud old maid, and workaholic.”
The bark of laughter I give in response surprises even me.
“Hey, less of the old.”
The smile slowly slides from his face.
“I know there are things you aren’t telling me, and that’s fine. I don’t even claim to understand half of your reasoning, and that’s fine, too. But when I meet this guy tonight, if I have even the tiniest inkling that he’s playing you, I won’t hold my tongue, Macs.”
“He’s not.”
His eyes narrow.
“Says the man infatuated for the first time in his life.” He throws his hands up in the air as if asking some benevolent God to shake some sense into me. “You’ve never sought love, Macsen. You’ve always been single-minded, committed to study and then to work. Surely you can see my confusion. And I’m sorry if this sounds harsh, but just because you’ve found the joy of a quick fuck doesn’t mean you should sacrifice everything for it. Normal people don’t do that, Macs. Can’t you see that?”
“First off.” My tone is unnecessarily hard. “Ellis isn’t just a quick fuck, and I won’t let you or anyone else talk about him that way. Let’s get that straight right fucking now.”
He doesn’t look even a little chastised.
“And secondly, I get how this looks, but life is never black and white, Rex. Trust that I’m not, and have never been, a stupid man and that I know my own damn mind.”