Title: One Plus One
Series: Maths, Book Two
Author: P.A. Friday
Publisher: NineStar
Press
Release Date: 7/31/17
Heat Level: 4 - Lots of Sex
Pairing: Male/Male
Length: 40400
Genre: Contemporary, gay, bi, age
gap, friends to lovers, grief, slow burn
Synopsis
James Cape has been in love
with his mother’s best friend Laurie since James was sixteen and Laurie an
inaccessible twenty-six. When he’s turned down flat by the older man just after
his nineteenth birthday, James’s best friend Al encourages him to forget Laurie
and find someone else. And James tries, he really does. But can he cope with
his feelings for Laurie, his best friend’s home-life problems, and the
deteriorating health of his father, all at the same time? And will Laurie ever
notice the young man who’s right in front of him?
Excerpt
One
Plus One
P.A.
Friday © 2017
All
Rights Reserved
Chapter
One
James
Cape was fourteen years old when he realised he was gay, fifteen when he came
out to his best friend, and sixteen when he realised how he’d recognised he was
gay in the first place. He’d thought he’d ‘just known’ until his mother’s
friend Laurie came over one day with his new boyfriend, Kieran—the first
boyfriend he’d ever bothered bringing round—and James had felt his heart
explode with jealousy and rage. Kieran couldn’t have Laurie. Laurie belonged
with him.
The
longed-for relationship wasn’t—quite—as inappropriate as it might have sounded.
Laurie was his mother’s friend, yes, but he wasn’t his mother’s age. Gillie,
James’s mum, was thirty-nine; Laurie, twenty-six. They’d met online when James
was about nine and had made friends over the next year, despite the age gap.
When Gillie had discovered that Laurie was a student at the university she
herself taught at, she’d invited him over, and he’d become a regular visitor.
To start with, James hadn’t been much interested—the gap between ten years old
and twenty was a big one, and James had been more interested in playing with
Al, his best friend both then and now. Between them, the pair had teased and
hassled and joked around with Laurie, treating him as something between a
friend and an older brother; but as the years had passed, James’s feelings
towards Laurie had changed. He just hadn’t realised quite how much they had
changed until Laurie turned up with Kieran by his side.
It
wasn’t as if Laurie had never had boyfriends in the past. He had. But he’d
never brought them over to James’s house before, and that made all the
difference. When Laurie had been at James’s house, he hadn’t belonged to anyone
else. He’d been theirs. With Kieran there, the dynamic was different—spoilt.
Al, also over for the weekend—as usual—cocked a knowing eyebrow at James’s
moodiness and dragged him out for a long walk.
“You
don’t like the boyfriend,” Al said when they were in the woods and miles from
anywhere. Trust Al to get straight to the point.
James
shrugged. “Bit of a wanker, that’s all. Laurie could do better.”
“Mm.”
Al didn’t sound convinced. “D’you remember telling me that you weren’t
interested in Laura Fielding because Mary MacDonald had bigger tits?”
“What?”
James looked at his best mate in bewilderment. “That was nearly two years ago.
Why are you bringing that up again?”
“You
weren’t interested in Laura Fielding because she was a girl, and you weren’t
interested in girls,” Al said bluntly. “By the way, I’m still pissed off it
took you nearly a year to tell me you were gay. You can’t have thought I’d give
a toss.”
“You’re
still the only person who knows,” James pointed out.
James
and Al’s school was not the sort of place where it was safe to be ‘out’. James
had no intention of telling anyone else about his sexuality until he’d left.
Telling Al was different—Al was Al. And he was quite right; James knew he could
tell Al anything and Al wouldn’t care. You could say what you liked about
Al—and most people did—but he was intensely loyal. To James, at any rate. When
it came to relationships, it was a different matter. Unlike James, Al liked
girls and had a steady stream of girlfriends, but none of them lasted longer
than a month before he got itchy. Usually it was considerably shorter.
“They
get so clingy,” Al had complained. “They want stuff.”
“That’s
called dating,” James had told him unsympathetically.
He
was amazed anyone still agreed to go out with Al, but there was something about
his best friend. He had a strange sort of manic charm, and his very
unpredictability seemed to draw people in. However, that was a different
matter. Why Al had gone back to harping about old news, James couldn’t imagine.
“Thing
is,” Al said, scuffing the last of the autumn leaves with his shoe—the woods
didn’t seem to have cottoned on to the fact that it was March, “it didn’t have
anything to do with Mary MacDonald.”
“Al,
you’ve lost me.”
Al—so
very like James to look at in some ways: dark-haired, regular features, similar
body shape, albeit several inches shorter—looked seriously at his friend.
“It’s
not Kieran you don’t like,” he said. “It’s Laurie having a boyfriend.”
“He’s
had boyfriends before,” James said defensively.
“Ah.
Hasn’t brought them home, though, has he? Different thing altogether.”
James
shrugged petulantly. “I just think Kieran’s an idiot, that’s all.”
Al
knew when to stop—usually. “Whatever you say, mate. Just…don’t piss Laurie off
by being too rude to his guy, you know? Probably a bad plan.”
Which,
as James admitted and worked by, was a sensible idea. But when Laurie turned up
a fortnight later alone, James couldn’t help his heart lifting.
“No
Kieran?” he asked, hoping Laurie would say that they’d broken up.
Laurie
gave him a lazy smile. “No, not this time. I wanted you lot to myself. Any
objections?”
“Nope.”
The
weather was nice, and they were all sitting out in the garden, drinking beer.
James and Al—who spent considerably more weekends at James’s house than at his
own, to the point that Gillie and Terry, James’s dad, had assigned the spare
bedroom as belonging to him—had been told that one was their limit, to Al’s
laughing protest. James had his guitar out and was strumming it from time to
time. He had a passion for music and already knew that he wanted to study it at
university; it was just a case of getting through GCSEs (now only a few months
away) and A levels first. Al was more interested in drama and films, which gave
him something in common with Laurie, who was currently working on a PhD in Film
Studies, focusing on bringing books to life as films, with particular emphasis
on the Lord of the Rings trilogy. The trilogy was special in another way—Gillie
and Laurie had met via an online discussion board about the films and had found
they got on well, moving from there to talking about everything under the sun.
“And some things not under it,” Gillie usually added at this point, as science
fiction and astrophysics had also been discussed. James joked that his mum was
a science geek on the quiet.
“Just
surprised you could bear to be parted from him,” Al added cheekily.
Laurie
took a gulp of beer and shook his head sadly at Al. “We’re twenty-six, not
sixteen, Al. We can manage to be parted for an entire afternoon without dying
of angst. You might be like that, but we’re not.”
James
snorted. “Al? Seriously? God knows why he has girlfriends because he seems to
spend all his time hiding from them once he’s dating them.”
“An
interesting approach.”
“I
like snogging them and suchlike,” Al said cheerfully. “It’s just the rest of it
which is a bother. Is it like that with you, Laurie, then? You’ve only got your
bloke for the snogging? And the suchlike,” he added thoughtfully.
James
tried not to blush at the thought of Laurie doing ‘the suchlike’ with Kieran.
It seemed Laurie was having a similar problem as he choked back a laugh.
“I
can’t say I object to that side of things, but no, there’s a little more to it
than that, thanks.”
“Al,
are you teasing Laurie again?” Gillie called from where she was chatting
animatedly with James’s dad. Terry was having a good day today; the wheelchair
was at the side of the garden, and he was managing to potter round to check on
his vegetables with just the aid of a stick. James was pleased—his dad had had
too few good days recently. Multiple Sclerosis was a bugger. “I’ll have to get
you a muzzle.”
“Just
showing a friendly interest,” Al said, blinking would-be innocent green eyes at
his friend’s mother, who unfortunately for him knew quite how much to trust
that particular look.
“That’s
what they’re calling it nowadays, is it?” Laurie riposted, and James and Gillie
both laughed. Laurie smiled at James. “So, what are you up to, James? Apart
from studying for GCSEs, that is.”
James
rolled his eyes dramatically, though he was secretly pleased that Laurie cared
enough to ask. “Nothing, really. Study, study, study.”
“Liar,”
Al said mildly. “You spend all your time with that guitar. I reckon I’m losing
my place as your best mate to that thing.” He looked across at Laurie. “I think
he goes to bed with it, you know. A love affair like no other.”
“Oh,
shut it, you,” James said, taking one hand off the precious guitar to give his
friend a shove. “Anyway, I’m working on my composition, so it’s not like it’s
not work.”
“The
best sort of work is work you actually enjoy,” Laurie commented. “Al’s clearly
just jealous. But you’re still loving the guitar as much as ever then.”
“God,
yeah,” James said fervently. “It’s like… I dunno. It feels right, somehow—do
you know what I mean? When I’m playing, it’s like my fingers know what they
should be doing. Bit like Dad and the garden, I guess. He just seems to know
what to plant where and what to do to make things grow, and I’m hopeless. But
my teacher shows me things on the guitar, and it makes sense.” He flushed,
embarrassed. Trying to explain how he felt about his instrument made him
self-conscious. Al hadn’t laughed at him, as he’d feared, when he’d said a bit
about it to him—but then Al was his best mate. Laurie was…well, something
different. And if Laurie laughed or teased, James didn’t think he’d cope.
“That’s
brilliant,” Laurie said, though, his expression genuinely delighted. “It sounds
like you’ve found what’s right for you, and there’s nothing like that feeling.
Trust me, I know.”
Al
ruffled James’s hair. “See, it turns out you’re not a weirdo. You’re talented.
Bastard,” he added, laughing.
James
was grateful for Al’s interjection. It stopped the conversation getting too
heavy. Talking with Laurie like this, after realising just how he felt about
him…it was almost too much, in some ways.
“I
wish,” he said instead. “Just obsessed.”
“Obsession
got me a long way,” Laurie assured him, looking around the garden with an
expression of affection on his face. “My obsession with Lord of the Rings, for
example, found me my best friend—and her family,” he added, smiling at James,
“and now my PhD. Don’t knock obsession.”
“I’ll
bear it in mind,” James said, smiling back. “Speaking of which, how’s the
thesis going?”
Laurie
sighed. “Well, it’s going. I just had my last chapter ripped to shreds by my
supervisor, but that’s pretty much always the way. Apparently, this time, I’ve
put in too many examples. Last chapter, it wasn’t enough.”
“Still
searching for the pleased psychic?” James teased.
It
was a long-time joke between them: at twelve, hearing the phrase “happy medium”
for the first time, James had been merely bewildered, his mind quite seriously
running on the idea of the paranormal. Laurie had patiently explained and had
the courtesy not even to crack a smile as he did so, though they’d all laughed
about it since—and the alternative term had become a standing gag.
Laurie
laughed. “Apparently so. The annoying thing is my supervisor is always right. I
went away and looked back through what I’d written, and every third line was an
example. But still. On the plus side, I’ve had an article accepted by a journal
this week.”
“Really?”
Gillie, who had wandered back to the table whilst James and Laurie chatted,
settled herself comfortably in a chair and leaned across. “Which one? That’s
fabulous!”
Gillie
was an academic herself, lecturing in English Literature, with a special
interest in fantasy and science fiction, hence the shared love of the Lord of
the Rings in both book and film version. The conversation got a bit technical
for a while; James tuned out as phrases such as ‘peer reviewed’ and ‘on the
e-library catalogue’ got thrown about. He concentrated instead on his guitar.
He was writing a piece for his GCSE composition, and there were a few bars he
wasn’t happy about.
Once
he settled down to music, he was lost to the world and barely noticed as Al
wandered off, only registering when Al shouted, “Oh, hey, there’s a bird stuck
in the netting here.”
“What?”
demanded Terry, fired to interest as James put down his guitar to look over
towards where Al was standing. “Are they after my brassicas again? I knew I was
right to put those nets up.”
“Its
wing’s all caught up, poor thing,” Al said, trying to get closer to it and
making the bird flap more wildly.
“Serve
it right,” said Terry firmly. Easy-going about most things, James’s dad was
undeniably overprotective when it came to his vegetables.
Laurie
got to his feet and cast a laughing glance at Terry. “Probably so, but we can’t
just leave it there. Here, Al, move back a bit. I’ll have a go.”
“You?”
Al looked at him doubtfully. “Aren’t you a bit…big?”
Laurie
stood a couple of inches over six feet and was broad-shouldered with it.
Compared to Al, who was a skinny five foot six and impatiently hoping for a
growth spurt which showed no sign of coming, he was definitely sizeable. And,
James thought wistfully, bloody gorgeous, with his muscular physique and lazy,
lopsided smile.
“Oh
ye of little faith,” Laurie said genially.
James
watched as Laurie went carefully and quietly over to the bird, murmuring to it
in an undertone. It still flapped and tried to escape, but not as manically as
it had done for Al. Laurie caught it up in big gentle hands, stilling its
movements with ease with one hand as he untangled the netting with the other
one. It was less than a minute until he had freed the bird, which looked dazed
and scurried into the undergrowth, leaving a couple of fawn-coloured feathers
behind it.
“Collared
dove,” Terry said. “They’re the worst. Still, I suppose you’re right. Couldn’t
have left the little bugger there. Thanks, Laurie.”
Gillie
went over and gave Laurie a kiss. “My hero,” she said. “Well done.”
Laurie
turned to Al. “Too big?” he asked, raising an eyebrow.
Al
threw his arms up in a dramatic display of defeat. “I admit it. I was wrong.
Apparently not too big at all. Having enormous hands is a great thing for
rescuing small fragile creatures. Who’d have thought?”
Only
James said nothing. He hated the way it had made him feel, watching Laurie
concentrate so carefully on the bird. All fluttery inside, like a girl or
something. Wondering what it might feel like if Laurie put those hands against
him. He blinked and looked away, back at his guitar, back at anything else, and
the moment passed. It didn’t help him get over his crush on Laurie,
though—anything but.
Still,
in retrospect, that had been the best afternoon of the entire year when it came
to Laurie. Most of the other occasions on which he visited, he did indeed bring
Kieran. James reluctantly had to admit to himself that there was nothing
intrinsically wrong with the other man except the sin that he was Laurie’s
boyfriend, and James was insanely jealous.
Purchase
Links
NineStar Press: https://ninestarpress.com/product/one-plus-one/
Smashwords: https://www.smashwords.com/books/view/735388
Meet the Author
P.A. Friday fails dismally to write one sort of thing and, when not
writing erotica and erotic romance of all sexualities, may be found writing
articles on the Regency period, pagan poetry, or science fiction. She loves
wine and red peppers, and loathes coffee and mushrooms.
Author
Links
Website: http://penelopefriday.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/penelopefriday/
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