Page 84 of In at the Deep End

Owen shook his head. “No.”

Matt looked at the younger Owen smiling from the photograph.

They never met the man sitting beside me.

Owen drew a slow breath. “I’m still undecided whether to tell them about my life since university.”

“I got the impression you usually don’t hide it.”

“No. But this feels… different.”

“Because they’ll remember the man you were?”

Owen considered that. “Maybe.” He watched another photograph dissolve into the next. “Or perhaps because they’ll discover the man I became.” He shrugged. “We’ll see how the evening goes.”

For a while, neither of them spoke.

The frame continued its slow procession through more than thirty years of memories. University parties gave way to weddings, birthdays, holidays, Pride marches, Ben, Callum, friends gathered around barbecues, then back again.

Matt found himself wondering how many different lives one man could live, and how none of Owen’s cancelled out the others. They simply belonged together.

Owen drained the last of his beer. “Right. We’d better call it a night. We’ve got a lot to do tomorrow.”

Matt glanced at the frame, still changing photographs. “I’ll leave this running.”

Owen smiled. “I think I’d like that.”

Matt stood, returned to the dining table, and gathered his laptop. As he reached the door, he paused. “Thanks.”

Owen frowned. “For what?”

Matt thought about every conversation they’d shared since he’d walked into Owen’s house.

“For letting me get to know you.”

For a heartbeat, Owen gazed at him. “Goodnight, Matt.”

“Night, Owen.”

Matt headed for the front door and stepped out into the warm evening.

Tomorrow they would travel to London.

He grinned. And maybe we’ll make a few more memories.

Chapter Seventeen

Seeing that look on Matt’s face suddenly made all the wrangling Owen had done to get them this suite worth it.

“Oh wow.” Matt stared at the huge window overlooking the river. “This is amazing.”

“I suppose it’ll do at a pinch,” Owen said with a shrug, trying to keep a straight face.

Matt whirled around and gaped at him. “‘At a pinch’? This is the most fabulous hotel room I’ve ever seen.”

Owen had to admit that while the Grand River View suite had appeared good online, it was even better in reality. The living room comprised a small round table by the window, on either side of which sat a comfortable-looking chair. Parquet flooring glowed warmly, accentuated by a cream rug placed centrally beneath a long, wide sofa. There was even a marble fireplace.

He wandered through the doorway into the bedroom. The king-size bed was a picture in white, with pillows and cushions at one end, a low couch at the other. Black and white square tiles covered the bathroom floor. On one side was a low bath with green marble surround, and on the other were two basins set in black marble. A walk-in shower took up the end of the room, hidden behind frosted glass doors.