Something New

by Sean Ashcroft

  “Aww,” Marcus cooed. “Cute. I’m Marcus. I own the bakery a couple of doors down, and my boyfriend runs the florist next door. You’ll see a lot of him, he’s a nerd.”

  “You’re wearing a Firefly t-shirt under your apron,” Ash pointed out. “So you don’t get to talk.”

  “I like you,” Marcus said grinning. “We’ve gotta go on a double date sometime.”

  “Oh, uh…” Declan blinked, unsure how to respond to that. It would have been rude to say no, but…

  “We’d love that,” Ash said before Declan had a chance to finish. “It feels like we haven’t been on a date in forever.”

  Declan considered objecting, but it was too late now. He’d missed his chance to come up with an excuse.

  He could go on a date with Ash. They already did plenty of stuff together that would have been dates to a romantic couple.

  This was only slightly different.

  “Next Friday night? I’d say this Friday, but I figure you could use some time to settle in.”

  “Next Friday sounds awesome,” Ash said, beaming at Marcus.

  “Cool. I’ll work out details with Lexi and get back to you. Can I make you a coffee?” Marcus asked.

  Declan’s heart sank. That was his job, and while it wasn’t really a big deal…

  It kind of was? To him, anyway. He liked making Ash coffee. It was one of the things he’d been most excited about when the machine came.

  “I appreciate the offer, but that’s Declan’s job,” Ash said. “Absolutely no offence to you, but I’m a man of routine.”

  “I get it,” Marcus said. “That’s adorable.”

  Ash grinned at him. “I will definitely eat those doughnuts, though, if they’re on offer.”

  “Figured you guys wouldn’t have time to make breakfast. I also open early and I can definitely give you a discount if you wanna save yourselves the trouble some mornings.”

  “I am so weak when it comes to offers of pastries, and I already know yours are great,” Ash said, picking out the cream-filled doughnut as expected. “I may need a moment alone with this.”

  Marcus chuckled. “Don’t worry, I’m used to it. You’re gonna love Lexi. I can’t wait for you to meet him.”

  “It’s so kind of you to welcome us like this,” Ash said, pausing to take a bite of his doughnut, his eyes falling closed as he did so.

  Declan knew he’d be preoccupied with it for a few minutes, so he turned to Marcus instead. “Yeah, seriously. It’s really nice to make a friend.”

  “Hey, same here. Us new guys have to stick together, right?”

  “You still feel new after a couple of years?” Declan asked.

  “Nah, not really. People accepted me into the fold pretty quickly. But my boyfriend’s lived here since he was born, so… compared to that, I’m new.”

  “I get it,” Declan said. “I guess I’m glad I brought my own.”

  Marcus smiled at that. “He seems okay. You’re a lucky man.”

  “He has no idea how lucky,” Ash said around a mouthful of doughnut.

  Declan did know how lucky he was. He was so damned happy with Ash standing next to him. They were finally getting the chance to change each other’s lives, a chance Declan had wished for a hundred times.

  He knew Ash wanted that, too. They’d had a dozen after-midnight conversations about how much Ash wanted to take Declan away from everything and just let him breathe after he’d had a particularly stressful week at work.

  Ash had always been there for him. He couldn’t have done this with anyone else, and he wouldn’t have wanted to, either.

  “I have some idea,” Declan said.

  “Well, I gotta get going,” Marcus backed away from the coffee machine, giving it one last stroke. “Goodbye, sweetheart.”

  Declan chuckled. “Come by and see her anytime.”

  “Oh, trust me, I will,” Marcus called back as he left, the bell above the door chiming as it swung closed.

  Declan turned back to Ash, who’d finished demolishing his first doughnut and was starting in on his second one.

  “He seems nice,” Ash said around a mouthful of chocolate-glazed doughnut. “I’m glad you’re making friends, too.”

  “Yeah, well…” Declan shrugged. “I want this to work. And if that means going on a double date with a guy I just met and his boyfriend who I haven’t even seen yet… that’s okay.”

  “I’m not sorry for volunteering you into it,” Ash said. “But obviously, I can’t make you go.”

  “No, I want to,” Declan said. “I wanna embrace the small town life, and I guess that involves stuff like this. Besides, Marcus just set up my cover for me. I’m bi now.”

  Ash raised an eyebrow.

  “You know what I mean. In case one of us meets someone,” Declan said, looking away.

  That was a scary thought all of a sudden. He liked what he had with Ash right now, even if it was all a lie. He didn’t want Ash to meet someone. Not right now, anyway.

  He’d been thinking about the possibility since he’d met Charlie yesterday. What if Charlie had been single?

  “I know what you mean,” Ash said. “And I guess that makes sense. I guess it’s the only thing that’d make sense, really.”

  Declan hummed, reaching for the milk jug. He could worry about whether or not he was going to lose Ash if they ever met a single gay man in this town.

  In the meantime, he owed Ash a cup of coffee.

  Chapter Twelve

  Ash jumped as he rang Charlie and Scott’s doorbell and a dog barked on the other side. His grip on the bottle of wine he was holding tightened to the point where he was half-afraid of breaking the neck off.

  He knew Charlie had a dog.

  He’d just, for some reason, imagined a small dog. He hadn’t even thought to ask.

  Declan laid a hand on the small of his back, taking a breath as though he was about to say something. Before he could, the door opened and Charlie lunged forward, wrapping his arms around Ash eagerly.

  “Hello!” he enthused, pushing back from Ash and going to hug Declan. “Your timing couldn’t have been better.”

  Ash looked down at the Golden Retriever standing by his leg, floppy pink tongue hanging out, huge puppy eyes staring up at him.

  He knew he was supposed to have an aww, cute reaction to dogs, but he couldn’t help that they made him nervous.

  When he was growing up, his uncle had owned a huge German Shepherd which, in hindsight, had been a very friendly dog. It had just been too big and too heavy for his four-year-old self, and he’d never gotten over the automatic fear of being close to a dog bigger than a terrier. He always expected them to knock him to the ground, deep in the back of his mind.

  “That’s Chewie,” Charlie said, apparently noticing that Ash was staring at him. “He already loves you, trust me.”

  Ash appreciated the sentiment, but it wasn’t as comforting as Charlie clearly intended it to be.

  All Ash could do was nod, words failing him.

  “Uh, Ash gets a little nervous around big dogs,” Declan said, his voice calm and even.

  Ash breathed a sigh of relief. He was much happier with Declan explaining for him, since he wasn’t sure he could have spoken up for himself.

  “Oh.” Charlie’s eyes widened. “He can totally go outside,” he said, curling his fingers around the back of Chewie’s collar to hold him still.

  Not that he needed to. Chewie was just staring up at Ash, panting and wagging his tail.

  Maybe now was a good time to confront that particular fear? Chewie seemed like the world’s safest big dog, and Ash trusted Charlie. And by extension, Scott, despite not having met him yet.

  “No,” Ash said, his voice shakier than he would have liked. He cleared his throat to try again. “No, it’s fine. I mean, Declan’s right, I am nervous, but… he seems… fine?”

  “He’s a good starter dog,” Charlie said. “He doesn’t jump. The worst he’ll do is put his head in your lap in the
hopes that you have food.”

  Ash hesitated, but he knew he was safe. Between Declan and Charlie, he knew that he could opt out of this at any moment.

  “Can I, uh… pet him?”

  Charlie nodded, smiling encouragingly. “Maybe offer him your hand to sniff, first? Fair warning, his nose is wet.”

  Ash took a deep breath, reaching out to offer Chewie the back of his hand. As expected, Chewie pressed his cold, wet nose to Ash’s skin, sniffing enthusiastically, but barely putting enough force on his hand to nudge it.

  He was a good starter dog.

  Maybe Ash could become a dog person. Or at least, someone who could be near dogs that came past his mid-calf without tensing up.

  “His nose is wet,” Ash confirmed. “But I guess he’s okay. I can handle one well-behaved dog.”

  “If he gets too much for you at any point, just let me know, okay?” Charlie said. “Letting him out for a few hours won’t upset him at all, so your comfort is the only thing we’re worried about here.”

  Ash hadn’t realized he could feel this relieved and safe around another person, aside from Declan. He intended to hang onto Charlie’s friendship with both hands. He was clearly a good man.

  “Okay. Thank you.”

  Charlie grinned at him, nudging Chewie back into the house to give Ash and Declan space to get inside. “Now come in before you freeze to death. Did you guys walk?”

  “It’s a nice walk,” Declan said, even as he unwound his borrowed scarf from his neck. “You guys don’t live all that far away, seemed like a waste to start the car.”

  Ash handed over the bottle of wine he was still holding, feeling safe enough now to let go of it.

  “Thank you,” Charlie said. “I hope you’re helping me drink this, because I doubt Scott will.”

  “Not a wine drinker?” Ash asked.

  “No. I wasn’t until a while back, either, so I get it. I’m developing an appreciation, though. Anyway, hang up your coats and come through, dinner’s got to be just about ready by now.”

  Ash beamed, shrugging his coat off and finding a hook for it next to Declan’s.

  He paused for a moment to take that in, their two coats hung up beside each other. Like a real couple, really visiting their friends.

  It was surreal, but he liked the way it felt.

  Ash followed Declan into the kitchen, aware that Chewie was also following him, specifically. Despite his nervousness, though, that was kind of nice. Maybe he could get used to dogs.

  He already kind of liked Chewie. He just needed a little time to get used to the idea.

  “This is Scott,” Charlie said, interrupting Ash’s train of thought.

  Ash looked up to see a tall, broad-shouldered man with bright eyes and a warm smile standing in the kitchen, wooden spoon in hand.

  He could see why Charlie had married him.

  “You’re staring,” Declan murmured, leaning in close enough that Ash could feel his breath brushing against the sensitive skin behind his ear.

  The feeling was enough to snap him out of it. Scott was pretty, but Declan…

  Well, Declan was Declan. And they were supposed to be pretending to be married, anyway.

  Ash turned to face Declan. “I still like you better,” he said, grinning at him.

  It was partly a show, but it was also true. If he had to pick between Scott and Declan, even if picking Scott wouldn’t hurt Charlie, he still would have picked Declan a hundred times over.

  Now he just had to ride the thin line between pretending to be married to him and actually having him figure out how Ash really felt.

  He had no doubt it would ruin everything if Declan ever realized that Ash was in love with him.

  “Wow. You two really are like newlyweds.” Charlie beamed at them.

  “Sorry,” Declan said, smiling the warmest, softest smile at Ash. “Moving here’s been good for us.”

  “This place has that effect on people,” Scott said from the kitchen. “Changed my life.”

  “I think it’s gonna change ours, too,” Declan responded, still smiling at Ash.

  Ash knew it was because Declan was faking, too, but it felt nice to be looked at with so much fondness, so much affection. Declan was a really good actor.

  “Cuuuute,” Charlie enthused. “You guys are disgustingly cute together.”

  Ash chuckled, looking over at Declan to see him blush.

  He still loved it when people assumed they were together, and this was like the upgraded version of that. Charlie thought they were cute.

  “Come, sit,” Charlie said, pulling chairs away from the table for them. “Make yourselves at home.”

  Ash waited for Declan to pick a chair, sitting down beside him once he had.

  Chewie sat on his other side, still looking up at him like he was the most fascinating thing in the world.

  Ash hesitated, then reached out to pet the top of his head, smiling as his fingers made contact with the soft fur there. Chewie wasn’t so bad, and he seemed to like being petted just fine.

  As Charlie had warned, Chewie put his head in Ash’s lap, his tail sweeping across the floor eagerly. Right as Scott brought over a fantastic-smelling dish with cheese bubbling on the top.

  “Lasagna,” he explained. “I figure you can’t go wrong with pasta, right?”

  “I like you already,” Declan said, pulling his chair closer to the table.

  Charlie set something down in front of Ash, just off to the side of his plate. Ash looked away from Chewie to see that it was a pack of baby wipes.

  “For your hands,” Charlie explained. “You can wash up in the bathroom or the kitchen if you prefer, but we usually use the wipes because it’s hard not to pet him on the way back from the sink.”

  Ash chuckled, taking a wipe from the pack. He could imagine. Both Charlie and Scott seemed like they had a lot of love to give, and resisting Chewie was hard even for him. “You’re a good host.”

  Charlie shrugged. “Runs in the family. Wait until you meet my mom.”

  Ash liked the sound of that. Meeting Charlie’s mom, settling into this strange, wonderful little community they’d stumbled across and having a quiet, happy life.

  It was a nice dream. Ash knew it couldn’t last forever, but he was enjoying it while it lasted.

  “Give me time. I’ll know everyone in this town eventually,” Ash said, sitting back comfortably.

  He was looking forward to that. To having a life that was about more than just working, eating whatever came to hand, and occasionally sleeping.

  The difference it had made in Declan was huge, and he could feel it making a difference in himself, too.

  “So you’re Marv’s great nephew?” Charlie asked as Scott started serving generous portions of lasagna.

  Declan nodded. “Yeah, that’s me.”

  “I remember him mentioning you once. I didn’t think much about it until I saw you in person.”

  “Really?” Declan asked.

  Ash knew he was eager to learn things about his great uncle, since Marv had kind of dropped him in the deep end with a cryptic letter and nothing much else.

  “I remember him telling me he had a nephew about my age. This was… probably ten or twelve years ago, before he retired,” Charlie explained.

  “Then you know him a helluva lot better than I did,” Declan said. “He was always… I dunno. I don’t think mom liked him all that much. I’m thinking now that it would have been nice to know him better.”

  “He was a good man,” Charlie said. “Weird, but good. I always liked that. And he was so proud of me when I told him I was going to study to be a librarian.”

  “Were you two close?” Declan asked.

  “Not exactly? He was like that with everyone, honestly. He knew everyone’s story. Knew their interests, and their hopes and dreams. I can see why, now. The books people read say a lot about them.”

  “What does it say about me that I don’t read much?”

  “It says you’ve
been working too hard for a long time,” Ash responded before Charlie could. “And that you deserve a break.”

  “Listen to your husband,” Charlie said. “This is a great place to slow down, and you look like you could use it. What did you do before this?”

  “Will you stop interrogating the poor man?” Scott spoke up. It wasn’t unkind. More fondly exasperated.

  Ash got the impression that Charlie’s curiosity tended to get the better of him.

  “I don’t mind,” Declan said softly, though Ash could see him starting to shrink back into himself. It’d been a long time since he’d been in a social situation like this. He’d need some time to build up his stamina for dealing with other people.

  People often made the mistake that Ash would be the introvert of the two of them, since he worked in a bookstore and got through his own weight in books every year, but Declan had always been the shy one. Or not shy, exactly but fond of his own company.

  Over the years, Ash had come to count as part of his own company. Ash could tell he didn’t drain Declan’s energy.

  Other people, on the other hand…

  It wasn’t that Declan didn’t like people. He liked them just fine, when they weren’t assholes.

  He just had a limited amount of energy to spend on them.

  Ash couldn’t exactly relate, but he did understand. Or at least, he grasped the concept.

  Personally, he could have chatted to people all day and never gotten tired, as long as they weren’t being dicks. Especially if the conversations were about books.

  Declan wasn’t like that, and that was okay.

  “Charlie tells me you’re a vet,” Ash said to Scott, taking the opportunity to get some of the focus off Declan. He knew Charlie didn’t mean any harm, but Declan needed the break.

  “Did he offer you a dog yet?” Scott asked, smiling wryly. “Because it’s kind of a tradition.”

  “I’m not much of a dog person, and we’ve only got a little paved courtyard. I think it’d be nice for the store to have a cat someday, though,” Ash responded.

  “Plenty of cats need homes,” Scott said. “Most people are good about getting them neutered, because there’s so much wildlife around here, but we still get strays and unexpected kittens. Anytime you wanna talk about adoption, I’m happy to bring them to you. You guys are on my way home, anyway. You’re living at the store, right?”