Something Like Rain (Something Like... Book 8) (43 page)

Christie’s words remained on his mind as he entered the bachelor barracks. They weren’t so different from what many people his age experienced in college. A three-story building with public recreational areas, communal restrooms, laundry machines, and other essential facilities located within. William had a room to himself on the third floor, which he went to immediately. He only had a few hours to pack before his flight. After entering, he closed the door behind him and surveyed his living quarters.

Empty, tidy, and efficient. He had a bed to sleep in, a dresser to stow his belongings, a small refrigerator for food, and a desk and chair to work at. From the doorway, it was difficult to tell that anyone lived here. All part of the rules. Their rooms weren’t supposed to be messy with personal belongings. William took this to an unnecessary extreme, keeping flat surfaces clear except for a laptop and a small collection of books. He allowed himself to imagine the room cluttered with toys, Jason Grant sitting up in bed, placing a finger to his lips so William wouldn’t wake the sleeping child next to him. Wouldn’t that be something?

Of course a small room like this was no place to raise a family. Nobody was expected to. Married couples in the Coast Guard were provided with larger housing. Heterosexual couples, at least. Even though two men could get married in Massachusetts, this didn’t mean the military recognized such relationships. That wouldn’t change even if DADT was repealed. Still, it was a nice fantasy.

William dropped the duffel bag he was carrying, grabbed a carton of juice from the fridge, and sat on the edge of the bed while drinking from it. Then he considered the lifeless room again and sighed. Maybe Christie was right. The hardest part was behind him now. While the future still held challenges, he had made it this far. He had become a rescue swimmer. Dream achieved. What about the next one? William wasn’t selfless. He felt honored to serve, but he also wanted more for himself. A husband. A family. He read the news whenever DADT appeared in headlines and knew the hateful policy might be on the way out. If so, that meant an end to two years of secrecy. He could be with Jason again and would actually have time for him during his days off.

In a different world, maybe.

William stood, tossed the empty juice carton in the trash, and turned to the dressers to begin packing. The first drawer he opened gave him pause. There, next to his socks and underwear, was a red helicopter. He took the Transformer out, spinning the propeller and thinking of Kelly. To his surprise, he felt an ache of sorrow, missing what they once had. Jesus, that showed how lonely he was feeling! William never imagined Kelly as being part of this world. They had never planned on it, at first because Kelly had his own goals and later… On some level they both knew it wouldn’t last. Jason was different. They had only gotten started before they were forced to part again, but now that William had more or less settled down, they could at least discuss the possibility. Jason couldn’t live on the base with him, and they definitely couldn’t be open, but behind closed doors was the potential for love. Setting down the helicopter, William started packing, mind still whirling with possibility long after the toy propeller had stopped spinning.

* * * * *

“How do I look?” William said. He stood in the living room, arms spread wide. His mother scrutinized the tight jeans and even tighter navy blue T-shirt before she stood up from the couch and moved toward him with a concerned expression. Errol remained on the couch, peering at a laptop. He was living at home again, having left his most recent girlfriend and the apartment they shared. Funny that William intended to do the opposite. By the end of the night, he hoped he and Jason could—

“Blech!” he said, leaping backward, but too late. His mother’s saliva was smeared on his cheek, her thumb reaching toward him again. “Just tell me what I have on my face, and I’ll get it off myself!”

“Looks like shaving cream,” she said, still reaching for him.

He held up a hand to ward her off. “Mom! Please!”

“Oh fine,” she said with a resigned sigh. “You look very nice. Do you always wear cologne these days?”

“No,” he admitted.

“So you’re wearing it for Jason?”

He shrugged sheepishly. “Yeah.”

“Are you back together? I thought you broke it off before shipping out.”

“We did.”

“Then why do you keep spending the night at his house? I’m not asking for details but… Are you sexually active?”

“Sexually active?” William repeated incredulously.

“She wants to know if you and Jason are doing it,” Errol supplied helpfully. “Hey, we need to discuss more important issues. It says here that the Coast Guard confiscated over a hundred thousand pounds of marijuana last year. What’s up with that?”

William ignored him, addressing his mother instead. “I might not be home tonight. Does that answer your question?”

“No, because you often spend the night over there and claim to be single.” Kate put her hands on her hips. “I like Jason. If you
are
together, you could at least invite him over so I can see him. Stay here instead! Or are you ashamed of your mother?”

William shook his head. “We’re not together. We can’t be. But when we hang out, all the feelings and uh—everything else—is still there.”

She narrowed her eyes suspiciously. “So it’s an open relationship?”

“No! It’s not anything. But I’m working on it.”

“What I’d like to know,” Errol said, raising his voice, “is what happens to all that weed? People need it! For medicinal reasons!”

“He lost his stash,” Kate explained. “And if I have to hear about it one more time, I’ll be the one getting stoned!”

“Best of luck with that,” William said. He hugged his mother, promised to have the car back in the morning, and went outside. Only once in the driver’s seat did he use the rearview mirror to wipe off the remnants of shaving cream.

He gripped the wheel while on the road, still preferring not to drive. He would rather be on his bike, but he didn’t want to show up sweaty for their date. Reunion! That’s what it was, not a date.

After he arrived at Jason’s house and parked, he wiped his palms on his jeans, pulse picking up in anticipation when he rang the bell. The guy who opened the door was cute, but definitely taken. That didn’t stop him from flirting a little.

“William!” Ben declared, opening his arms wide. “It’s so good to see you!”

“And seeing you has me feeling good,” William said, accepting a hug. “Ready to go?”

Ben disengaged and batted his eyelashes. “Tempting offer, but I think that would break a certain someone’s heart.”

“Jason? Or Tim?”

“Both.” Ben gestured behind him. “Come on in! Jason will be down soon. He’s dealing with something.”

“The pimple of doom?” Tim said, showing up in the entryway and offering his hand.

“He’s getting ready,” Ben said a little tersely. “That’s all.”

“He bought makeup,” Tim countered, checking William out as they shook hands. “Wow! The Coast Guard looks good on you. Maybe I should enlist myself.” He flexed casually. “See what boot camp can do for me.”

“There’s still time,” William said. “You’ve just got to make it through before you’re forty. That leaves you what? A year? Maybe less?”

Tim pretended to be offended, even swiping at William, but only to get him in a hug. “You should go upstairs,” he advised. “It’s pretty bad up there. He’s not coming down unless you make him.”

“Tim!” Ben said in protest.

“It’s fine,” William said. “I can’t wait any longer anyway.”

He hustled through the living room and up the stairs. Jason was in the bathroom, face close to the mirror. When he saw William, he gasped and tried to shut the door. William put a hand on it to stop him. Then he laughed, because Jason’s face was covered in a thick layer of powder and base. Through it he could still see the small bump to one side of his chin.

“It’s not funny,” Jason complained.

“It is,” William said, “but only because you think a pimple could make me love you less.”

Jason stared for a second. Then he looked back at the mirror and sighed. “I look ridiculous.”

“Wash that stuff off so I can kiss you,” William said.

Jason’s eyes met his again, intense as always, like they could see straight through to his soul. “I’ll be out in a second.”

William nodded and went to Jason’s room, which would definitely not pass inspection. He walked around, breathing in familiar scents and entertaining treasured memories. William didn’t blame his mother for being confused. The truth was, he and Jason often tried to distance themselves. They didn’t text much, since it wasn’t as satisfying as being in person. On the rare occasions spent together, they would start out platonically, asking casual questions to see if the other person was still available. It wasn’t an open relationship. William would have backed off immediately if he learned that Jason had found someone else. He never seemed to, and William didn’t have time to look. That paved the way for all the old feelings and urges to return, if only for a few days. And nights. God, how he loved their nights together!

“Try not to stare at it,” Jason said, reappearing. His face was still damp. He looked a lot better with the makeup gone. As for the small pink bump, William couldn’t care less. There were plenty of other attributes worth staring at, such as the hint of skin revealed by the torn jeans that contrasted with the black dress shirt. He moved forward, stroking his fingers across Jason’s cheek to his ear. Then he pulled away. “Sorry, are you—”

“Hopelessly single,” Jason said, taking the initiative and kissing him.

William’s body responded instantly. He had changed so much, inside and out, but these feelings were eternal, forever a part of him.

“That was a fantastic evening,” Jason said, pulling William toward the bed. “Let’s call it a night.”

“Not so fast,” William said with a chuckle. “I plan on enjoying our time together.”

“That’s what I had in mind,” Jason said, but he stopped tugging and was smiling. “Where are we going?”

“Dart Bowl.”

“Is that a soup place?”

William snorted, then put on a southern drawl. “You’re not from around these parts, are you?”

“I guess not!”

“Dart Bowl is the most magical place in the world. Let’s go.”

They had made it to the front door when Jason stopped him. “I need to grab the car keys. Ben and I are still sharing.”

“Not a problem,” William said. “I’ll drive.”

“
You’ll
drive?”

“Yup! I’ve got my mom’s car.”

Jason looked him over. “That explains why you’re not sweaty. Are you sure you’re okay with this?”

William thought back to three days earlier, when he had been dangling from a helicopter over the coastline cliffs, rescuing a teenager who had gotten stranded while trying to climb down them. “I think I can handle it.”

On the drive to Dart Bowl, they chatted, mostly about other people. William always loved hearing about Ben and Tim’s relationship, and Jason was polite enough to ask how his parents and brothers were doing. They didn’t discuss their own lives, maybe waiting until they could focus on each other better. Besides, what William had to say was too important to take place in a car.

“Here we are!” he declared as they pulled into the parking lot.

Jason stared out the windshield, not looking too impressed by the long squat building. “Is this a bowling alley?”

“Yeah!”

“You spoil me,” Jason deadpanned.

“Do you know how?”

“To bowl? Not really. I’ve only been once or twice, and that’s when I was a kid.”

William grinned. “Then you’re in for a treat!”

Once they put on their rented bowling shoes and went to the lane William had reserved, he spent the next ten minutes choking down laughter as Jason landed gutterball after gutterball. His face grew redder with each failure, but that didn’t make him any less handsome. William sat after taking each turn and reveled in simply being able to watch him. Back on the base he often fantasized about Jason showing up as a surprise. Or Jason being the person who needed rescuing, which in their current situation, wasn’t far from the truth. William rose, hugging Jason to chase away the grumpy expression, and then taught him a few techniques. When Jason managed to wing the pins, knocking down three, he leapt around in excitement like he’d gotten his first strike.

“Good job,” William said. “Now watch the master in action.”

He made sure to “accidentally” get two gutterballs in a row, which thrilled Jason to no end. Totally worth it.

By the time the first round was over, William was tired of them being apart. “Are you hungry? We’re only really here for dinner.”

Jason scrunched up his nose. “Really? The food here is good?”

“More of a guilty pleasure,” William said. “Hey, grab that table over there. I’ll be right back.”

The dining area, like the rest of the bowling alley, looked like a throwback from the seventies. The chairs were plastic with metal poles for legs, the carpet patterned with squiggles and swirls to hide any stains—resulting in ALL of it appearing stained—and against one wall was a bar with neon lights shaped like pins and other bowling paraphernalia. William found the waitress and placed an order with her.