The Drum Major’s Passion

by Charlie Richards

  Drew paused and jogged back to his truck. He opened the back door and grabbed the case of beer with one hand while sliding his other through the strap of the plastic bag. Then Drew hip-bumped the door to close it again.

  “Can I carry anything?” Will asked, eyeing the items Drew carried as he returned. “Should I have brought anything else?” Then Will grimaced. “Guess I shoulda thought about that before. A food item to pass.”

  “Naw, don’t worry about it,” Drew assured. When Will remained looking dubious, he explained, “A couple only brings one dish for them both.” He held up the bag a little. “Fruit salad from the store.” Dipping his chin to indicate the paper-wrapped bottle of wine in Will’s hand, Drew reminded, “And that wasn’t really necessary. We’re not pretentious around here, but I know Jake and Devon will appreciate it. They love trying new wines.”

  While Will didn’t appear convinced, he still accompanied Drew to the door. He even opened the door when Drew instructed him to. In the foyer, Drew placed the box of beer and the bag on a bench, then toed off his sneakers.

  Will followed suit with his nice shoes.

  “Jake? Devon?” Drew called as he took off his coat and hung it on a wall hook. He did the same with Will’s as he continued to call to his friends. “Where you at?” Having noticed Rory’s car parked on the other side of the street, he added, “Ror? You here with Lester?”

  They normally carpooled.

  “Hey, Drew!” Lester’s voice came from deeper in the house. “They just stepped out to take Jake the steaks.”

  “Thanks!” Drew picked up the beer. “Come on.”

  To Drew’s pleasure, Will nodded and grabbed the plastic bag before he could. That kept his other hand free, allowing him to place it on the small of his date’s back. He heard the sound of the sliding glass door moving before he made it to the kitchen.

  Lester was standing in the dining room, leaning against the bar. Considering the tortilla chip that he’d just shoved into his mouth, Drew figured the man had been more interested in the pre-dinner snacks spread over the bar than going outside. Of course, since Lester avoided cold weather like the plague, that made sense.

  “Hey, Drew,” Lester greeted around his mouthful.

  “Hey, man,” Drew responded, smirking at his friend. He set his beer on the table while indicating his companion. “This is Will Hanson.” Unable to help puffing up his chest, Drew added, “My boyfriend.”

  When Lester’s gaze fell on Will, his eyes widened. He quickly grabbed a napkin and wiped his fingers. His Adam’s apple bobbed as he swiftly swallowed. Finally, he held out his freshly cleaned hand.

  “Hi, Will,” Lester greeted as they shook. “Great to meet you. Drew told us a little about you”—his gaze cut to Drew for a second before refocusing on Will—”just last week.” After releasing Will’s hand, Lester smirked as he waggled his eyebrows. “Boyfriend already, huh? You guys must work fast.”

  Drew growled softly while seeing Will’s cheeks take on a light pinkish hue. “Don’t make me knock the shit out of you, Lester,” he growled.

  Lester laughed as he brought his bottle of beer to his lips. “I—”

  “Have a bad sense of humor,” Rory cut in, slapping Lester upside the head as he passed him, causing him to swallow beer the wrong way and begin hacking. Then he stuck out his hand. “I’m Rory Meantz. This idiot’s ride for the night.”

  Will took Rory’s hand. “Nice to meet you.”

  “Hey, I’m Jake,” the man greeted, waving from the kitchen where he was cleaning up the tray that must have held the marinating steaks. “Glad to have you here.” He pointed at the bar. “Help yourself to whatever. We just put the steaks on, so it’ll be about fifteen. Oh, how do you like yours cooked?”

  “Uh, medium-rare, if that’s okay,” Will replied.

  Jake gave him a thumbs up, then returned to cleaning.

  “And I’m Devon, Jake’s husband,” Devon stated, stepping forward with his hand out. “Welcome to our home. It’s nice to meet you.”

  Will shook once more, then held out the bottle of wine. “Thank you for having me.”

  Devon took it, and his black eyebrows lifted as he read the label. “Oh, this is a good one.” He grinned at Will. “Excellent taste. Shall I open it for you?”

  “Uh, I actually brought it for you,” Will told him.

  Nodding and heading toward the kitchen, Devon stated, “Then I’ll join you for a glass.” He showed the bottle to Jake. “What do you think?”

  Jake turned and pinned Will with a wide grin. “You are very, very welcome here.” Then he laughed and winked.

  Drew grinned upon hearing Will’s answering chuckle, knowing his boyfriend would fit right in.

  Chapter Seven

  Will found he was having a fantastic time. He’d never considered himself very confident or comfortable in new groups, but he had to admit, Drew’s friends were a great bunch of guys. They did their best to make him feel welcome, from asking about him to teasing him just like they did everyone else.

  While eating dinner, Will was surprised to discover that he recognized Jake. “Hey, you went to college with us, right?” Watching Jake chew while nodding, Will had another epiphany. “You were roommates.” The memory of that long-ago kiss flashed through his mind as well as the words the jocks had exchanged. “And you were on the football team.”

  Jake grinned after he swallowed. “My freshmen year, yeah,” he confirmed. “Decided it wasn’t my thing, so I quit before my second year.”

  After that, the standard conversations ensued. He learned who did what for a living as well as their hobbies and interests. When Will shared that he knew how to play half a dozen instruments, Lester’s jaw sagged open.

  “Wowee!” Lester cried, putting down his knife and leaning closer. “I can’t imagine how long that must have taken. Your dedication must be impressive!”

  Will shrugged, uncomfortable with the praise. “It just sort of happened,” he admitted. “I learned drums first. I played a snare drum for a couple of years in high school and was in the marching band,” Will revealed, trying to explain. “I can’t do a thing with stringed instruments, but wind instruments, flutes, trumpets, and trombone styles, things you have to blow into, after the first couple, I picked up the rest easy.”

  Drew reached over and gripped his wrist, squeezing lightly. “That’s amazing, babe.”

  Chuckling, Will met his gaze. “There’s that babe again. Is that what you’re going with?” he teased. In truth, Will liked it. He’d never had a boyfriend give him a pet name before.

  Before a slightly blushing Drew could respond, the sound of a door opening echoed from the front of the house. A second later, a deep voice called, “Sorry we’re late, Jake! Tyler’s meeting ran later than expected.”

  “It’s okay, Carmen,” Jake called back, leaning away from the table and peering toward the hallway that led to the front door. “I put your steaks in the oven to keep warm. Everything else is spread out on the counters. Grab plates and join us.”

  Devon frowned. “Funny how my brother apologizes to you and not me,” he grumbled.

  Jake snickered as he winked at his husband. “That’s because I cook him an epic steak just the way he likes it.”

  Will had to admit as he took another bite of his meat, Jake was indeed a grill master.

  A man similar in size and build to Devon’s thick African American frame appeared. On his arm was a slender, geeky-looking redhead with glasses and freckles. They were introduced as Devon’s younger brother, Carmen, and the man’s significant other, Tyler. After greeting Will, they made up their plates and joined them.

  They’d just finished the meal and were heading toward the front living room with fresh drinks when Drew’s phone rang. He pulled it out. When he read the screen, he frowned but accepted the call.

  “Hey, Dad,” Drew greeted. “Is everything okay?” Under his breath, he whispered to Will, “He hasn’t called me on a Friday night in years.”


  Will nodded. When he glanced around, he saw everyone was currently focused on Drew. Evidently, a phone call from Dad got everyone’s attention.

  “Yeah, Dad. I’m on a date,” Drew said into the phone. At the same time, he wrapped the arm holding his beer around Will’s waist, pulling him closer. “It’s our second one, although we’ve talked and texted on the phone for a while now. I’m hopeful.”

  While they had talked every evening on the phone and shared numerous texts throughout the week, Will thought calling it a while might be stretching it. Still, he knew he seemed to be clicking with Drew super fast. He’d never meshed with any boyfriend so swiftly.

  And isn’t calling us boyfriends a little quick, too?

  Huh. Oh, well.

  Will liked it.

  “Her name?” Drew asked, his words refocusing Will’s attention to the fact that the man was talking to his father.

  Will watched Drew close his eyes, reopen them, then glance around at his friends. Following his gaze, he saw a mixture of expressions varying from encouraging to pensive to understanding. Then Drew focused on Will, meeting his gaze.

  Drew licked his lips before smiling at Will. “Not a her, Dad. His name is Will Hanson, and I knew him in college. We recently ran across each other again, and the spark never died.” He said all that while staring at him. Whatever his father said caused Drew to narrow his eyes. “Dad, you know that’s bullshit. Being gay isn’t something that rubs off on you. I just told you there was a spark in college.” Drew growled softly into the line, then stated, “No, Dad. I’m sorry I never told you I was gay, but it’s the reason I didn’t want to pursue professional ball. I didn’t want to spend my life hiding. I like the life I’ve built.”

  Listening to Drew’s one-sided conversation caused Will’s gut to churn. While the man had said he would tell his father the truth, he sure hadn’t thought it would be after one week. He hoped meeting him again wouldn’t ruin Drew’s relationship with his father.

  Shit. Is this my fault?

  Will attempted to pull away, but Drew furrowed his brows and shook his head. He even tried to tighten his hold on him, although the beer in his hand made it difficult. Will stilled anyway, not wanting to upset his already frustrated... boyfriend.

  “Look, Dad. I’m sorry this came as a shock, and I know I shouldn’t have done this over the phone,” Drew began, his tone taking on a placating note. “But you always told me that all you ever wanted for me in life was for me to be happy. How about I come over on Sunday? It’s Christmas Eve, so I wanted to see you anyway, and we can talk about how happy Will makes me.” After another second, Drew sighed and nodded. “Yeah. Thanks, Dad. I’ll see you then.”

  When Drew hung up his phone and slid the device onto the holder attached to his belt, he grinned broadly as he swept his gaze over his friends. “Well, that went better than I expected, actually.”

  Lester stared at him wide-eyed. “You just came out to your dad... over the phone.”

  Drew nodded. “I did. I didn’t want Will to think I was embarrassed about being with him.” He guided Will the rest of the way into the living room. When Drew urged him onto a sofa and sat next to him, he sighed deeply. “After all, nothing could be further from the truth.”

  “Um, so what did he actually say?” Rory asked curiously from where he perched on the other end of the sofa.

  Devon had settled on a large chair and had pulled Jake onto his lap. Carmen and Tyler had sprawled on a second sofa, and Lester relaxed in another chair. Good thing the living space was so large.

  “You know the age-old drivel,” Drew replied with a roll of his eyes. “I’m confused because I hang out with you guys so much. But I’ve always been so athletic and played football so well. Are you sure you just haven’t met the right woman?”

  Will felt a little bad, since he’d heard some of his own friends’ parents say such things. Women had asked him stuff like that, too. It seemed to take so long to convince some people that being gay wasn’t a choice. As the song said, we’re born this way.

  “So, you’re going to visit with him on Sunday?” Devon commented. “Do you need back-up?”

  Drew shook his head. “Naw. My dad will understand eventually.” While grimacing, he added, “Although it’ll probably be awkward for a while. You know how it is.”

  Devon chuckled. “Yeah, I do, although when I came out, it was easy because my brothers had done it first.”

  Carmen scoffed. “I’m the one who took the edge off our pops. I think Brendan damn near gave him a heart attack.” When Will glanced between the brothers uncertainly, Carmen grinned. “Brendan is our eldest brother, almost like a second father, really, after our mom left us.” He smiled fondly though, so probably thinking of his brother, not his mom. “I had lunch with my dad and had just come out to him because I didn’t want Tyler to be a dirty little secret anymore.” Turning his head, Carmen pecked Tyler’s temple. “You didn’t deserve that.”

  “I wasn’t really a secret, per se,” Tyler murmured back softly. “But I sure appreciated it.”

  After another kiss between the clearly loving couple, this one on their lips, Carmen returned his attention to Will. “Anyway, after lunch, we tried to reach Brendan, but it kept going to voicemail. We figured he was doing something for his coaching job, so we, uh, drove to his condo. We planned to let ourselves in, since we knew where he hid a key, and wait for him.” For some reason, perhaps from the tone of his voice, Will guessed that if Carmen didn’t have dark-chocolate skin, he would have been blushing. “Anyway, we walked in and, uh... Brendan was home with his boyfriend, and they were... kissing.”

  “Kissing?” Will didn’t think that sounded so bad.

  While Carmen nodded and grimaced, Tyler snickered. “I wasn’t there, but I was told about the definite tongue-action, passion, and clothes that needed to be adjusted before they were presentable.” He blinked innocently as he added, “Carmen says it scarred him for life.”

  “I did not say that,” Carmen countered, scowling at his man.

  Tyler lifted one shoulder in a half-shrug. “Not in so many words, maybe.”

  Devon chuckled. “Hence, our father and the near heart attack.”

  “Is your father okay? Did he handle it eventually? Did he yell or something?” The questions tumbled from Will’s mouth, and he couldn’t seem to stop them. “He didn’t disown all of you, did he?”

  “Our father is fine,” Devon assured with a smile. “He asked the traditional, was there something I did wrong question, the are your sure question, and there was the maybe you just haven’t met the right woman comment, but after a couple glasses of alcohol and some time, he accepted it just fine.”

  Carmen butted in with, “It helps that Brendan gave him the grandson he’s been dying for, giving Nick an out for a while.”

  Devon nodded sagely. “True. True.”

  “Oh, did your brother adopt?” Will asked curiously. “Since I’ve always known I was gay, I’ve looked into it.”

  “You’ve looked into it?” Drew questioned. “When? Why?” He shook his head sharply. “Okay, not why. I can answer that. Hell, you’re a role model to foster kids in the Big Brother program. Of course you’d want to raise kids of your own.”

  Seeing the tension lines around Drew’s eyes, Will realized they might have just discovered something they didn’t agree on. “Uh. Do you not want kids?”

  Drew took in a long, slow breath, his wide torso expanding. “I’m not saying that,” he replied slowly, clearly choosing his words carefully. Holding his gaze steady, Drew admitted, “Just that, I’ve never taken a partner before, so it never even ended up a blip on my radar.” He used the neck of his beer bottle to point around the group. “None of us have kids, so I’ve never been around them. I guess I never really thought about it.”

  “Oh. Okay.” Will figured he should be honest. “I’m looking into adopting Pete.”

  Drew stared at him in shock, and his lips parted in surprise. “O-Okay,”
he whispered, blinking quickly. “I-I’ll need time to process this, but please know I’m not averse to, um, raising a kid.”

  Will couldn’t help but chuckle at Drew’s flabbergasted expression. “Drew, Pete wouldn’t be thinking of me as a parent,” he assured, patting his leg. “We’d think of ourselves more as brothers. He’s already fourteen, remember?”

  As Will watched, Drew blew out a clearly relieved breath.

  “Right.” He grinned. “Okay. A brother I could handle.”

  As everyone in the room laughed, joshing Drew about his responses, Will realized he was fixated on something else Drew had said.

  Partner? Is Drew really thinking that long-term already?

  Chapter Eight

  With how quiet Will was when Drew drove him home, he figured the events at the barbeque were both good and bad. Good—his buddies had made his man feel more than welcome. Bad—his dad had ended up calling at the most inopportune time.

  Drew had kept his promise, to be honest with his father, and Will had seemed beyond surprised.

  “So, do you mind if I ask a question?” Drew decided to address that.

  Will stopped humming along with Sleigh Ride which was playing on the radio and turned his head to focus on him. “Ask anything, but I reserve the right to not answer.”

  Nodding, Drew accepted that. “Okay. A request then. If you don’t want to answer, tell me that.” He reached over and squeezed Will’s thigh. “I want only honesty between us in our relationship.”

  “You know, we’ve only known each other a week,” Will pointed out. “Yet, you use terms like boyfriend, relationship, and partner. Isn’t that moving too fast?”

  Sure, it felt like warp speed, but he didn’t mind.

  Drew shrugged. “I guess I’m just trying to be honest and straightforward about where I see us going,” he admitted with another squeeze to Will’s hand. “Anyway.”

  “Right.” Will nodded. “Your question.”

  “Why were you surprised that I told my father the truth on the phone?” Drew glanced Will’s way before returning his focus to the dark, wet road. When he didn’t get an answer right away, he flicked his gaze to Will again while saying, “I told you I intended to share the truth with him. That the only reason I hadn’t was because I’d never found someone worth coming out to him for. I never intended to lie to my father should I find someone I wanted to spend the rest of my life with.”