“Well, I might be able to help you. The apparent suicide? I think it was a shotgun incident.” Jonathon told him about the notes.
Graham’s eyes gleamed. “Now that is helpful. Yeah, that might help me narrow the field a bit.” He gave Jonathon a broad smile. “Thanks, mate.”
“If we turn up anything else, we’ll let you know.”
Graham grinned. “It’s a good thing you’re not like that Teresa’s amateur detective. She ended every book the same way—making the local police look like bumbling idiots.” He bit his lip. “Mind you, if you were to make the DI look like a bumbling idiot….”
Jonathon laughed. “I’ll pretend I didn’t hear that.” He shook Graham’s hand and left him in the churchyard to finish his notes. As far as loose ends went, it hadn’t been a totally satisfactory meeting.
Phil, Melody, and Meredith were definitely staying on the list.
Chapter Twenty-Two
“YOUR FATHER has arrived, sir,” Janet said in her quiet voice. “Shall I bring him here?”
“Yes, please.” Jonathon gave the cozy living room a last glance, scanning it for anything they might have missed. He could still recall the look on Janet’s face when she retrieved a bottle of lube from between the seat cushions. Jonathon hadn’t known where to look. He wanted no such similar accidents while his father was around.
Mike entered the room. “I saw his car. You ready for this?”
“As ready as I’ll ever be.”
Mike came over and kissed him. “Just remember, I’ve got your back.” When the door opened, he didn’t move, but remained at Jonathon’s side.
His father walked into the room with a cautious air that was quite unlike him.
Jonathon gestured to the couch. “Good evening. Please, sit. Would you like a drink before dinner? Mike is playing bartender for us.”
Father smirked. “How apt. A Scotch and soda would be good.” He sat, his arm draped elegantly over the end of the couch. “I must admit, I’m curious to hear about this decision of yours. I half expected to see Ruth here.”
“She left yesterday.”
His father blinked. “Then she was here? This does involve her?”
“Most definitely.” Jonathon noted his father’s satisfied expression. It was the look of a man used to getting his own way in all things.
Not this time, Father.
Mike brought over the glass of Scotch and a vodka and Diet Coke for Jonathon. “Pleased to see you again, sir.” He left them to pour himself a drink.
Jonathon sat in the armchair next to the fireplace. “Dinner won’t be long. We thought we’d have a talk before eating.”
Mike joined him, perching on the arm of the chair, his arm around Jonathon’s shoulders.
His father settled back against the cushions. “Now, supposing you tell me your news. You do have news for me?”
“Indeed I do. Father, allow me to introduce Mr. Mike Tattersall.” When his father’s brows knitted, Jonathon smiled. “My fiancé.”
“Your—” That frown hadn’t budged. “I don’t understand.”
Jonathon’s smiled widened. “You know, fiancé? I proposed, he accepted?”
Mike held up his left hand, the ring glinting around his finger.
“But Ruth… you and Ruth….”
“Ah, yes. Ruth. Actually, I must thank you for your part in this.”
His father’s eyes bulged. “My part?”
Jonathon nodded. “When you suggested Ruth would be a good match, you were thinking about future children, weren’t you?”
“Well, yes, but—”
“Mike and I decided you were right. So we approached Ruth to ascertain if she’d be willing to be our surrogate, and she agreed.” Jonathon beamed. “Hopefully it won’t be long before there’s the pitter patter of tiny feet, and you’ll be holding your first grandchild.”
His father stared at them before taking a long drink from his glass. “I had assumed you and she would marry.”
“Ah. Yes. Well. There’s a slight problem with that. She’s already in love with someone else. Fortunately, her future partner is more than happy for her to carry our child. Not to mention the tiny but extremely significant detail that I am gay, as you very well know, so marrying Ruth is out of the question, however much you may want that. Nor am I single.” He didn’t need to know the rest. Two shocks were more than enough for now.
When his father gaped at them, speechless, Jonathon softened his voice.
“Father, you’re getting everything you wanted, just without the wife part. The family line will continue. We’re hoping for a couple of children, but if things don’t work out the way we’ve planned, then we’ll adopt. Rest assured, a de Mountford will occupy this house for many years to come.”
His father cleared his throat. “Can I ask… who else knows about this… engagement?”
“Seeing as he got down on one knee in the middle of the pub, virtually the whole of Merrychurch,” Mike informed him cheerily.
“You proposed… in the pub?” His father’s pained expression was almost comical.
Mike nodded happily. “And I believe I have you to thank for that. He proposed immediately following his phone conversation with you.”
“And how did the villagers react to this proposal?”
“Why don’t you come to the wedding, and you’ll see for yourself?” Jonathon said with a smile.
Father took another drink. “This is one battle I’m not going to win, isn’t it?”
Jonathon had played nice long enough. “It shouldn’t be a battle. Not if you want me to be happy. Let me ask you something. How would you have felt if you’d been in love with Mother, but Grandfather demanded you marry someone else? And don’t tell me you’d have gone along with it for the sake of the family.” He sighed. “Father, I know. What irks you is not that I’m not marrying Ruth, but that I am going to marry a man. Isn’t it about time you accepted the fact that you have a gay son?”
“You make it sound so simple,” his father said, his eyes wide. He gazed at Mike. “Can you honestly tell me your parents are happy that you’re gay?”
“My parents have known I’m gay since I was a teenager. They’re happy I’ve found someone who completes me. And they can’t wait to have him as their son-in-law.” Mike tilted his head to one side. “Did you ever stop to think that publicly acknowledging you have a gay son might do wonders for your street cred?”
Father blinked. “My… street cred?”
Mike nodded slowly. “You’re a high court judge with an impressive record. I’m not suggesting for a moment that you hang a rainbow flag in your courtroom or walk in the Pride parade, but having a positive attitude toward the LGBTQ community would do you no harm.”
His father gave Mike a look of frank amusement. “Why should anyone care about that?”
“Because we’re living in the twenty-first century. Because LGBTQ rights are big news. Because LGBTQ rights are human rights. And because people are watching what you do. Who wants to be portrayed in the media as a homophobic asshole?”