“I just wish this town didn’t pretend they cared what we do.” Asher sighed, offering his sister his arm. “Let’s go greet my guests—you know, all the people we don’t know bringing all the gifts we can’t keep.” As the president’s son, any gifts he received tonight were considered gifts of State and would go to the National Archives. He could purchase his own gifts from the archives if he really wanted them, but he’d likely never even see most of them. He’d asked his parents to request donations to his LGBTQ charity in lieu of gifts, but most visiting dignitaries would donate and bring a gift—not to be outdone by the other partygoers.
“Wait, we can’t just walk into the hall with the other guests.” Caroline pulled him back. “This is your birthday bash, we have to make an entrance.” She dragged him up the back stairs to the second floor, down the long hall to the grand staircase. “You ready?”
“As ready as I’m going to get.” Asher plastered on his fake smile, and they made their way down the red-carpeted steps to the entrance hall where their parents waited to greet their guests. Asher and Caroline would have to wait with their parents in the receiving line, the most tedious part of State affairs.
“Don’t you two look dashing.” Their mother turned her smile on her children. Dressed in a strapless, blue-and-white ball gown, she was as beautiful as ever. “Happy birthday, sweetheart.” She pulled Asher into her arms and whispered, “Just get through the night, and your real birthday present will come in the morning.”
“Thanks, Mom.” He took his place beside his father, waiting to greet the Speaker of the House.
“Happy birthday, Asher, you’re looking handsome this evening.” The Speaker’s wife shook his hand, moving along to make way for the Chief of Staff and her family. Everyone made a point to introduce their children—the same kids he’d met a hundred times before.
“Happy birthday, Asher,” the National Security director said. “You remember my son, Nate?”
“Of course, Nate, how’s it going?” Asher forced another smile.
“Could be a lot better, Ash,” Nate said when his father turned his attention on the president. “Thanks for throwing yourself a birthday party on the same night my girlfriend’s parents are out of town.” Nate clapped him on the shoulder and moved on.
Asher turned back to the receiving line, hoping to see the end in sight. No such luck, but he did catch a glimpse of some outrageous hand waving that could only belong Beckett Anderson. He and Nicky stood behind a few other celebrities the White House invited. Asher waited patiently to greet each person, but he was anxious to spend some time with his friends. Harper was already inside dancing.
“Stop fidgeting.” His dad elbowed him. “You can leave with Becks and Nicky.”
“Thanks, Dad.” Asher breathed a sigh of relief, but a pair of dark eyes caught his attention. Preston Montgomery stood just behind Becks and Nicky, a disgusted look on his face. But Asher’s eyes went right to his son, Kenny. Kenny looked like everyone else their age—wishing he were anywhere else but here. He hadn’t seen Kenny in a couple of years and those years had been kind to him. Nearly a foot taller and toned from his dedication to hockey, Kenny Montgomery was all grown up and looking hot.
“Lovely to see you again, Madam President.” Becks bowed his head and kissed her hand like she was the queen of England.
“You too, Becks.” Asher rolled his eyes when his mom blushed at Becks’ attention. The guy could charm anyone. Except, apparently, the Ohio senator behind him.
“There’s our guy,” Becks roared. “The birthday boy.” He swept Asher up in a big bear hug, kissing both his cheeks.
“I missed you guys.” Asher turned to greet Nicky, the more subdued of the couple.
“You two are just the cutest couple in the world,” Asher’s mom gushed after hugging Nicky. “I’m so glad you could make it. Asher doesn’t have enough gay friends,” she whispered.
“I’m not gay, but my boyfriend is.” Becks took Nicky’s hand, grinning from ear to ear at his favorite joke.
“What does he mean?” Asher’s dad leaned in to ask.
“Dad, Becks is pan.” Asher begged him to be cool.
“As in Peter Pan? That makes perfect sense.” A smile tugged at his lips.
“Pansexual, Dad.” Asher shook his head. “Becks is attracted to the person, not their gender. But Nicky is gay and is only attracted to men.”
“Okay, I’m down with that.” The former president nodded.
“Ugh, can I please go now?” Asher begged. Kenny and his parents were next, and he didn’t want to deal with any of them.
“Can we move this pride festival along?” Senator Montgomery said in an unconvincing teasing tone.
“Preston.” Asher’s father reached for the senator’s hand, gripping it harder than necessary. “Glad you could make it.”
“Asher.” Kenny nodded, refusing to take his hand.
“Good to see you,” Asher said, looping his arms through Becks’ and Nicky’s arms.
Asher glanced at his father and gave another nod before escorting his guests to the dance floor.
He could still feel Kenny’s eyes on him. “Guess some things never change.”
5
Kenny
If Kenny could have been anywhere else, he would have disappeared. Instead, he found himself standing next to his father in front of the President of the United States. He watched Asher walk away with Beckett Anderson and Nicky, surprising envy snaking through his gut.
They weren’t supposed to be Asher’s friends. He wasn’t quite sure how they’d met, but he’d known Nicky for years, though not nearly as long as he’d known Asher.
And he wasn’t the only one watching them. Kenny’s father smoothed out the hatred on his face before turning to the president and clasping her hand. “Thank you for having us.”
As they chatted, Asher’s father—the former president—smiled at Kenny. “It’s been a while, kid.” He extended a hand.
Kenny took it stiffly. “Yes, thanks for inviting me.”
“You’re always welcome in our home, Kenneth. There was a time we couldn’t get you to leave.”
Kenny dropped his hand and glanced at the long line behind him. “I should probably let more important people talk to you.” Really, he just wanted to get away from the man who’d always treated him with more kindness than his own father.
The current and former presidents both smiled at him once more in that easy way of theirs. Kenny followed his father as he cut his way through the crowded ballroom, caring little for the people having to skitter out of his way.
Behind him, his mother held her head high, offering tight smiles to those they passed.
Senator Johnson stepped in front of them. “Preston,” his voice boomed. “You’ve been avoiding my calls.”
“Eric.” Kenny’s father put a hand on the Alabama senator’s arm. “Not tonight. Come to my office tomorrow if you’d like to talk.”
“I’ve been trying to talk to you for months.”
Preston ignored the words. “Have you met my son? Kenneth is a politician in the making.”
Kenny hid his wince as he used the bored expression he’d perfected over the years. One of his father’s first lessons about politics was to never let a politician feel that you cared too much about what they were saying. That was how they gained leverage over you.
Senator Johnson offered him a wary smile. “Oh, yes, I’m sorry for what your boy has been through, Preston. Terrible business.”
“What I’ve been through?” Kenny glanced from his father to Senator Johnson.
Anger sparked in the senator’s eyes. “They have no respect for normal Americans.”
As soon as the word normal left his mouth, Kenny knew exactly what they were talking about—the kiss with Nicky, the picture in the media.
“Attacking you like that.” The Alabama senator shook his head.
Kenny suddenly couldn’t breathe. Nicky attack him? He flicked his eyes to his fathe
r. He knew the ridiculous story his parents concocted to explain the kiss, but he couldn’t believe they were actually using it. That anyone would believe sweet, kind Nicky would try to force himself on Kenny.
An arm slid through his. “Senators, I’m sorry, but there’s an emergency, and I need Kenny’s help.” He met his savior’s eye, and Caroline winked.
The senators barely spared them another glance as Caroline pulled Kenny away.
“Thank you.” He pushed out a breath.
She laughed. “You looked like they were pulling your fingernails off one by one.”
“Graphic much?” She wasn’t wrong. Few friends of Kenny’s ever got to experience the full assholishness of Preston and Victoria Montgomery. But Kenny, Caroline, and Asher had grown up in the same circle of politics most of their lives. When they were kids, the three of them would sneak away from events like this and spend time together any chance they got.
Before they grew up and everything became so complicated.
“Was I wrong?” She peered up at him with wide amber eyes.
“No.” He pulled her tighter against his side. “Thank you.”
“Come on. I want to dance.”
He let her pull him toward the dance floor. A string quartet played a dull song Kenny knew Asher would never have chosen.
Dancing was one of the lessons insisted upon in the Montgomery household. Their lives were designed so they never looked out of place. Kenny wanted to laugh. If the guys on the hockey team could see him now.
As they danced, Caroline studied him. “When was the last time I saw you?”
“It’s been a while.”
“Years.”
He shrugged.
She pursed her lips. “You stopped coming around.”
The moment Kenny started at Defiance Academy his freshman year, he’d set his sights on hockey and little else. His parents all but wrote him off, only calling on him for the occasional event where they needed to look like the perfect parents. It had its benefits. He’d been able to forget about all things Washington, but he’d also lost contact with good friends like Caroline.
We don’t want you associating with the Brooks children. Those were his mother’s words in the days following Asher’s epic closet burning. We have our beliefs, son, and we expect you to fight for them.
“I didn’t have a choice,” he finally admitted.
“I figured. How have you been?”
Her question was more loaded than she knew. How had he been? Well, his closet had become a black hole he couldn’t escape from. His parents were dicks. And oh yeah, the entire world saw the image of him kissing Nicky—and now, people were accusing Nicky of taking advantage of him?
“I’ve been good.” The lie tasted sour on his tongue.
Caroline laughed, softly at first. It grew in volume until she couldn’t contain it any longer. “That is such a Kenny Montgomery thing to say. You are not good. I know your parents, remember? And I’ve seen the tabloids. If you were going to kiss someone, wouldn’t it have been smarter to choose someone who didn’t have paparazzi constantly following him around?”
Kenny sighed. “Probably.”
Her laughter died away, but her eyes didn’t leave his face. “Nicky wasn’t random, was he? Not just some experiment?”
“How the hell can you tell that?”
“I may not know you lately, Kenny, but I can still read you.”
He hadn’t admitted what was behind the kiss to anyone. Only Nicky and his friends knew the truth. But the Brooks siblings had always elicited an insane amount of trust. Asher wouldn’t even look at him, but Caroline was there, and it had been so long since Kenny had anyone to confide in.
Leaning in, he spoke low enough so only she could hear. “I sort of dated him for two years.”
She let out a squeal. “You dated Beckett Anderson’s boyfriend?”
Not the reaction he was expecting from telling one of his oldest friends he’d dated a guy. As if on cue, the string music cut off, and Becks stepped onto the stage, a microphone in one hand. “I promised Asher I’d perform a few songs to provide some entertainment.” His cheeks reddened as he glanced at the quartet. “Not that you guys aren’t entertaining. Just kind of boring, yeah?”
A grin spread across Caroline’s face. “I may be a bit in love with Becks.”
“You and the rest of the world.”
Becks started singing, which only reminded Kenny why everyone loved him.
“Is that jealousy I detect?”
“What? No.”
She squeezed his arm. “I’m glad you told me.” Her arms slid around his waist, and she pulled him closer for a hug.
He wrapped his arms around her. “You don’t think I’m a terrible person?”
“For what?”
“I’ve spent years supporting my parent’s anti-gay stance.”
“Terrible person? No. Confused? Definitely.”
He’d spent most of his life in a constant state of confusion, wanting things he knew he shouldn’t. Hated himself for things he couldn’t control.
“People are staring at us,” Caroline whispered.
“It’s because of me. I’ve felt their eyes on me since the moment I arrived.”
“Well, for once, it’s nice not to be on the receiving end of their judgments.” She went quiet for a moment. “Want to mess with them?”
“What do you have in mind?”
“Well, I’ll have quite a bit of explaining to do to my boyfriend, but he’d be the first person wanting me to give them something else to talk about.”
“I don’t understand.”
She rose up on her toes, fitting her mouth over his. The kiss wasn’t heated. There was no tongue. Just two friends who were in this together. She pulled away and smiled. “The first daughter and the maybe-gay senator’s son sharing a lip lock? Scandalous.”
“Not gay. I’m bi, so I still enjoyed that.” He grinned.
“Okay, well, we won’t tell my boyfriend that part.” Her laughter cut off when a figure walked toward them.
Preston Montgomery’s imposing frame towered over Caroline, matching Kenny in height. “Son,” he growled. “You’re making a scene.”
He didn’t know what got into him, but defiance took hold. “Actually, Father, you’re the one currently making the scene.” He gestured to the politicians and dignitaries who’d stopped talking to stare at them.
Preston gripped Kenny’s arm. Kenny winced in pain but acted otherwise unaffected, schooling his features.
His father leaned in and dropped his voice. “You are not to associate with the Brooks children. They will corrupt you, Kenneth.”
A laugh burst out of Caroline, and she clapped a hand over her mouth. Kenny’s father didn’t even spare her a glance as he kept his hard eyes trained on his son.
“I expect more out of you, son. You have a big future ahead if you don’t associate with the wrong people.”
All defiance drained out of him at that, replaced with pure exhaustion. He didn’t see the same future his father did. One of politics and scheming. All Kenny ever wanted was to play hockey and to live on his own terms.
Turning to Caroline, he offered her a sad smile. “My father has some people he’d like me to talk to.”
He didn’t say I’ll talk to you later or see you soon because he didn’t know if that would be true. Once upon a time, all the kids surrounding the power in Washington could exist in the same place together. Now, as they grew up, sides had to be chosen. A line was drawn down the middle of the aisle based on beliefs, political views, and policies. And children followed in the footsteps of their parents—at least until they found their own voice.
Kenny trailed his father through a long line of greetings. Senators on the “right side” of the issues smiled and shook hands. Some offered false sympathy for what Kenny went through. Their teenage children stood alongside their parents like the drone Kenny never wanted to become.
Did it ever change?
> Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Nicky standing off to the side trying to get Kenny’s attention. Even after everything that happened between them, they were still sort of friends. Nicky was the only person who truly knew Kenny.
Kenny waved him away as he eyed the conservative men and women standing with his father, the same men and women who considered Kenny’s kiss with Nicky an assault.
But Nicky didn’t get the hint. He walked toward them, toward his own doom without realizing it. And all Kenny could do was stand frozen, seeing the truck that was about to hit Nicky but unable to stop it.
Kenny’s mother joined them, and it took her a moment to realize Nicky was there. A tense beat of silence stretched between them as Victoria Montgomery lifted her head.
“Hey, Ken.” Nicky stuck his hands in the pockets of his slacks and lifted his shoulders in an ”aw shucks” gesture Kenny had always loved. Nicky was the ultimate boy next door. Handsome in an unassuming way and too good for the likes of Kenny Montgomery.
“Nicky,” Kenny choked out. “You shouldn’t—” A heavy hand landed on his shoulder.
“You have a lot of nerve, kid.” Kenny’s father took a step toward Nicky. “Coming to the White House like this.”
Nicky narrowed his eyes. “I was invited.”
Kenny’s mom stepped in, her voice going up a notch. “Ah yes, by the First Son. You gays have to stick together, huh?”
What little hope Kenny had that his parents would ever understand shriveled inside him. He searched frantically for a way out, wanting to be anywhere else. Partygoers in the vicinity stared at the Ohio senator and his wife, who were supposedly defending their son’s honor.
But Kenny had no honor. If he did, he’d stop this before it went any further. Instead, he became a kid again, punished for the slightest disobedience. Since then, he’d learned it was best to excel at his parents’ lessons. One of which was to never let anything affect you emotionally.
If only that worked.
Nicky grit his teeth. “Yes, us gays do stick together so bigoted assholes like you can’t tear us down.”
“You don’t know me, young man. But I know you. I know your kind. You take whatever you think belongs to you as if your desires are something we should all celebrate.”
Dating Washington (Discovering Me #2) Page 4
