Page 12 of A Shared Mind

“So, what’s it like living in a small rural town? Any hot girls—I mean guys—live near you for hookups?” Justin asked, which seemed rather odd.

“I didn’t really look. I mean, Hunter and I were a thing before...” Something seemed off, but I couldn’t put my finger on it.

His eyebrows shot up before he nodded. “Yeah, that makes sense. You gotta get back right now?”

“I’m not in a hurry, but I do need to get home today. Why?” I studied his expression, which wasn’t anything I’d noticed before.

Justin smirked. “Well, I don’t live too far from here. We could go have a quick fuck before you head home.”

Justin’s fork met his plate as he observed me with newfound confidence. I hadn’t seen it from him the previous day, or even earlier that morning. His demeanor had been nervous and jittery yesterday before we began formulating my financial plan. He’d stuttered a bit at first and his gaze didn’t match mine at first. I was convinced he’d roped Eve into sitting with us for the meeting because she said nothing the whole time, as if she hadn’t planned to be included.

Even earlier, when I approached Justin where he sat on the bench, he was nervous and stuttered a little after I asked him to come for breakfast. Where was this sudden bravado coming from that he could proposition me without blinking an eye? Did I seem like a guy who could leave a cemetery where I’d lost someone I loved deeply to hook up with a relative stranger?

And now, he’d just propositioned me, which I thought was completely out of character from what I’d witnessed when we first met. “I, uh. Well, now, that’s a surprising request. It’s not that I don’t find you—”

Justin’s body snapped like he’d been hit by something, and his face turned bright red in an instant. “Oh, dear god. I’m so sorry, Clay. I have no idea what came over me. If you’ll excuse me, please.”

He quickly tossed some cash on the table and shot out of there like he was running from the law. He peeled out of the parking lot, spraying gravel on a few cars before he sped into the street in front of a dump truck. The driver mashed the horn, swerving to miss the back of Justin’s SUV, but Justin just floored it and kept going.

I had no idea why he left so damn fast, but as I later drove back to Sterling City, I mulled over his suggestion of hooking up. I couldn’t say I completely hated the idea of it. It had been five years since I’d even entertained the idea of being with anyone. The fact that Justin’s flippant suggestion had me thinking about it was pretty damn remarkable.

I’d dated girls in high school because that was what I thought I was supposed to do, not unlike all the other guys I knew. During my senior year at Sterling City High, we got a new shop teacher, Mr. Pappas—a Greek god if I’d ever seen one. He became my obsession and my gay awakening.

After I figured out who I was, I had my fair share of boyfriends—maybe for a night or maybe for a few months. Everything changed when I sat down next to Hunter Korr in chemistry and biology during our freshman year in college.

Hunter and I became best friends before we were lovers, but Hunter owned my heart from the first time I had to borrow a pen from him in class because I was a bit of a spaz back then and lost the only one I could find in my dorm.

Hunter was a brainiac and, as I’d called him throughout our college career, Mr. Prepared. The guy was always early for every class, finished assignments ahead of time, and he’d kept my head above water more than once, whether it was helping me study for an exam or feeding and hydrating me when I had to write papers—the bane of my existence.

He was a one-of-a-kind guy who taught me a lot. Why that wonderful man was taken when he had so much potential would be one of life’s greatest mysteries in my world.

The fact that I’d even noticed how good-looking Justin was had surprised me. I was still a little dazed at what had happened over the last two days or what any of it meant in the grand scheme of things. At this point, I wasn’t sure if I wanted to know.

Chapter Six

Justin

Oh, god! What the hell just happened? Why had I said anything about fucking to Steve Korr’s client? God, if Clay Fines called Steve to complain about my unprofessional stupidity, I was going to lose my fucking job, and then what? Homelessness? Scavenging in trash cans for food?

Kid, you gotta loosen up. You’re never gonna get laid, I swear. You have no fucking game whatsoever. Come on. We’re going to St. Louis. I’ve got someone in mind to help show you how it’s done.

“Who are you?” I asked out loud as I sat in the parking garage of my office building.

Close your eyes, kid.

This was the part where I was losing my mind, I was sure. I complied, but all I saw was darkness. I tried to open my eyes again, but I couldn’t.

“Where ya goin’?”

I turned in my mind to see a handsome man in a black leather jacket, a white T-shirt, and jeans. He was wearing black boots, but not the kind of cowboy boots that Clay wore. The stranger wore work boots of some sort. His hair was dark, maybe jet black, but the space we were in was dark, so his hair could have been any color.

“Who are you? Where are we?” I was surprised I got those two questions out. I was starting to feel lightheaded, which wasn’t good. I’d fainted a couple of times in my life. Now would be a very inconvenient time to pass out.

“I’m Ramon Blanco. We’re in your mind.”

Huh? Ramon who? How the fuck did the two of us get into my mind? What kind of nightmare is this?

The guy chuckled. “It’s called possession, kid. Remember New Orleans?”