Page 42 of Edge

Jory

I never knewsurfer guys were so horny. Talk about voracious in bed. Brad T-D issome sort of animal. And I love the long hair, he’s such astereotype. Hot bod, blond hair in a ponytail, and a championworld-class surfer. One of these days his husband is going tofigure out exactly why he checks in at this hotel. He fancies thetrampy little bar manager. Aka me, of course. 10 September2020

Cornwall in October was astudy in contrast. Bright sunshine, blue skies, waves that went onforever, and warmed air. The temperatures weren’t newsworthy, butthey were certainly high enough so all Jory needed was a pulloveror a thin jersey at night. During the day, plenty of people stillwore beach shorts and t-shirts, the hardiest of them, probablylocals, wearing tank tops.

Jory loved sitting on thebeach watching the subtle shift of crystalline waters and the ebband flow of the waves. It wasn’t too busy this time of year, and hewondered where the heck everyone was if they had a whole threenights of almost-sold-out shows.

He looked at the open-airarena where the techies were busy setting up the equipment fortomorrow night’s show. The band, together with Sooty and Dumont,had arrived earlier, booked into their rooms at a quaint B and B,taken a shower then gone to inspect the site at which they’d beperforming. Each one of them liked to see the layout before theyplayed, familiarising themselves with the steps and thestage.

They’d map out areas ofaction on the stage, places where Jory could stride around, dip hismicrophone, and scream into it until the crowd cheered for more.Dumont had done his usual gimlet-eyed activity of assessing thearea for any threats and ensuring he knew every entry and exitpoint. He’d scared one particular techie into selective mutenessbecause he hadn’t been able to speak after Dumont had blasted himfor allowing a member of the public into the back area.

So, yeah, things werehappening and Jory and his friends had a couple of hours of freetime. Hannah and Alice had gone into the nearby town to check outthe bars, while Bernard had tootled off to explore the localsecond-hand and antiques shops. He loved looking for old guitarsand music sheets.

Damian had remained inthe B and B, unpacking his stuff—Jory preferred living out of hissuitcase, a trait developed from doing a lot of travelling—and hadgone down to check out the hot tub and sauna. He’d had aparticularly rough week at the gym doing jujitsu and he’dcomplained his muscles needed some love.

Jory had offered to givehis boyfriend’s muscles all the love they could get, but Damian hadlaughed and told him not to be a pervert, and they’d pick up thethought later.

Jory fully intendedmaking good on the promise.

The wind picked up,throwing small grains of sand in Jory’s face. He brushed it awayidly, picked up a couple of seashells and rubbed them clean, thenpitched them back into the sea.

“So this iswhere you got to. I’ve been looking everywhere for you.” At first,Jory thought he was hearing things. There was no way Roger washere, in Jory’s idyllic piece of paradise.

His hope was shatteredwhen he turned to see Roger standing behind him, aviator glasseson, and a twisted smile on his face.

“What the hellare you doing here?” Jory jumped to his feet and glared at the manstanding before him. “I didn’t know you were coming.”

Roger smirked. “I don’ttell you everything, Edge. The same way you don’t tell meeverything.” He brushed his hand against his untidy beard, so outof place for him. He was usually meticulously groomed. Jory thoughthe looked unwell, the pallor of his face standing out. “I thought Ideserved a little bit of a respite so thought I’d come down andwatch you play here in sunny Cornwall.”

Jory’s lip curled indisdain. “You needed a break so you decided to come down hereinstead of your usual villa in Greece, or Tenerife? Why do I notbelieve you?”

Roger’s face darkened. “Idon’t give a fuck whether you believe me or not.” His bodyshuddered, the corner of his mouth twitched, and he raised a handto cover it. “I had to find out from a mutual—” He seemed tostruggle to find the right word, “acquisition you were coming downhere.”

Jory frowned. “You meanacquaintance?”

“That’s what Isaid.” Roger moved closer and took hold of Jory’s arm. “I alsowanted to come down and talk to you about the problem you have. Youwanted to talk to me about it, well, now’s the time. I’m tired ofyou nagging me about those bloody…those things. It’s time to sortit out for the last time.”

Jory’s heart beat faster.Could this be the turning point he’d been hoping for? He moved awayfrom Roger’s grip, which had become uncomfortable.

“You know Iwant that more than anything. When do you want to talk aboutit?”

Roger turned to observethe sea and the waves crashing against the shore. “I have businessin town tomorrow. A few things to sort out. Let’s get the firstconcert out of the way and say, meet at Hadleigh’s Bluff at nine amon Saturday? Hopefully, it’ll give you time to recover from anyparty you have with your buddies and your boyfriend.” His lipscurled in a sneer. “Only one condition. You come alone, or else Iwalk. This is between only you and me.”

Jory thought it was alittle strange, but what the hell. If it meant getting a resolutionto the problem, he’d dance naked on a table with tinsel around hisdick.

“Fine, I’llmeet you there at nine.” He reached out a hand and touched Roger’sshoulder. He may not like the man, but he wasn’t ice cold. “Are yousure you’re okay? You seem a little out of it.”

Roger pushed his hand offwith a snarl. “I’m fine. Why are you concerned? You’ve never givena shit about me before.” The nerves in the corner of his eye tickedcrazily. “It’s too late to start caring now.”

Jory stepped back. “Whatdo you mean?”

“Never mind.”Roger turned away. “Make sure you’re there on time, nice andearly.”

He strode away, anoticeable limp where there hadn’t been one before. Once or twice,he stumbled. Jory watched him go, assailed by a slight sense ofunease. While this was everything he’d hoped for, something simplydidn’t seem right.

Perhaps itseems too good to be true so I’m doubting. What else could itbe?

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