Jacob Evans pushed back his plate and leaned back against his chair as he extended Blue a compliment for the fine meal. It never ceased to amaze him how wonderful a cook his brother was. His talents surpassed their mother's, who had taught Blue when he was younger and unable to work on the farm. Blue invited him over at least once a month for a home cooked meal, although work had kept Jacob from accepting the past few months.
His reputation in the law firm was growing and the partners assigned him more cases, important cases. They kept him busy with interviews and depositions, but he loved every minute. Rumour had it that he might get to work as co-counsel on the Baxter murder case, if the motion for dismissal due to a possible illegal search fell through.
Pushing thoughts of work away for the moment, Jacob noticed once again that Blue seemed distracted. "What's up, baby bro? Missing your man?" Harley was working late tonight and wouldn't be home until nine.
"Harley and I had a fight last night that continued this morning," Blue sighed, looking more dejected than ever. "We've had fights before, but not like this one."
"Everyone has fights, even bad ones. Tell me what it was about and I'll see if I can help."
"We fought about Riley. We ran into him yesterday after we left the restaurant."
They moved to the couch while Jacob listened as Blue related the encounter. It was the first time in nearly a year they saw Riley and his appearance was rough and ragged. Riley wore torn up clothes and looked like he'd been drinking. The smell coming from the younger man seemed to confirm that suspicion.
When Blue invited Riley to come home with them for the night, Riley refused and told them to leave him alone. He tried to walk away and got angry at the hand that grabbed hold of his arm to hold him back. Riley hissed that he could take care of himself and that he didn't need their interference in his life. Blue, getting angry by then, argued back that apparently Riley needed someone to take care of him if he'd taken to drinking so much.
"Well, Riley really got mad then. He yelled that he didn't need me to take care of him, because all I would do was pimp him out. I lost my temper and said nobody would want him the way he looked. Harley tried to get us to calm down but in doing so, Riley ran off. I didn't think and started yelling at Harley about not caring about what happened to Riley. I didn't mean it, but we kept arguing until bedtime.
"Our arguing wasn't even about Riley anymore, but about silly things that don't matter. Like how I don't fold the laundry the right way or he doesn't help with the dishes. Stupid things like that. He slept in the living room and was gone when I got up this morning. I don't even know if he's going to come home."
It came automatically to hug his sobbing brother close to his chest. Jacob remembered this from when they were children. Whenever Blue hurt himself or broke something due to his clumsiness, Jacob always did his best to console him. All the siblings cared for Blue, aware that he never did things on purpose, but Jacob and Lily, their younger sister, were the closest to him.
Harley came in unnoticed by his partner, and took in the sight. Jacob gestured him over and relinquished the care of his brother. Blue lifted his red-rimmed eyes and clutched at his partner tightly, crying and saying he was so sorry and didn't mean any of it. Knowing his presence was no longer required, Jacob took his leave.
He walked slowly to his car and thought about Riley. Even now, a year later, he clearly remembered what the young man looked like. Clear green eyes, light brown hair that held strands of gold and red, visible if the light hit them right, and one dimple on the left side of his mouth. The mouth in question was made to be kissed, not overly plump but beautifully curved.
If things had worked out differently, Jacob wouldn't have considered it a hardship to take Riley out on a date or two. He'd learned since that night almost a year ago that he did enjoy the company of men and he would have enjoyed Riley very much.
It was too early for him to think about going home to his apartment. Jacob turned down a road that would take him to the restaurant he knew Blue and Harley preferred. Even though it was unlikely that Riley would still be hanging around, Jacob felt like he had to look. He felt partly responsible for the events of that disastrous evening and hoped to talk to the young man and try to put things right.
Parking up the street, Jacob told himself he would walk around for a while before heading home. It was an enjoyable half hour, watching the people who passed him and looking into the store windows. The antique store, tucked between a gym and a coffee shop, showed promise. He spotted a clock that looked identical to one Blue broke years ago. That clock had belonged to their great-grandfather, and losing it had upset their mother terribly.
"Well, if it isn't the man who would be bi." The voice startled him, coming from the shadows next to the antique shop. He wasn't surprised to discover the voice belonged to Riley, even though he'd given up finding the man. "Is it all an amazing coincidence that the day after I run into Blue you show up too?"
Jacob shrugged and moved closer. Unlike Blue's description, the man in front of him was dressed in clean, if extremely tight, black jeans and a green sweater. His hair was brushed back neatly, although one long piece slid down to cover the forehead and one eye. There was nothing to indicate Riley might be down on his luck at all. As Jacob moved even closer, he couldn't detect any hint of alcohol.
"If you're asking whether Blue sent me, the answer is no. I decided to come and see if you needed help all on my own."
After a long moment, Riley seemed to sag against the building as he exhaled long and loud. "I wasn't very nice to him yesterday. I didn't mean to be so rude, but I was following someone and he was getting away from me. Please apologize for me."
"Blue would probably appreciate it more if you called him yourself. When you took off last year, he was down for a couple of months. He really didn't mean anything bad. He wanted you happy, and didn't stop to think what would happen if I wasn't bi, let alone that you were already seeing someone."
Something dark blazed in the depths of those green eyes, there and gone as quickly as it came. Riley waved at someone and Jacob turned to see a young woman waiting to cross the street.
"After Hunter, I made some decisions about my life," Riley told Jacob, voice low as though afraid someone would overhear. "I decided to do something about the way people see me. I changed my job and moved to a new apartment. Then I decided that..."
The words were lost as the pretty brunette wrapped her arms around Riley and kissed him soundly. She giggled and turned to Jacob. "Hi! You both look very mysterious, skulking in the shadows like this."
