by Nico Jaye
“Is that it? What you were looking for?”
“It is,” Trick confirmed. He flipped through the first section of preliminary declarations, his eyes skipping to the section labeled Distribution of Residue of Estate.
There, in plain English, or as plain English as possible in a legal document, was proof that everything his father had owned—his possessions, the balance of his bank accounts, and most importantly, his half of the firm Grigsby, Redden, and Associates—was to be bequeathed to Trick following his father’s death.
“What does it say?”
Trick turned toward Edwin. The whole situation seemed surreal, like he was watching the whole thing unfold in someone else’s life.
“It’s just like you said. He left me his half of the company. Redden lied.”
Trick felt like he was going to pass out, but then Edwin was there, pulling Trick into his arms and holding him close. Trick let Edwin bear his weight as he leaned into him, accepting the comforting touches and burying his face against Edwin’s shoulder.
Emotions swirled through him—regret, elation, fear, confusion—the whole gamut. A large part of him was so grateful his dad had wanted him to have the company, but all the years he answered phones and redirected e-mails had been squandered.
“What do I do, Edwin?”
Edwin’s grip on him tightened. “I don’t know. I’m unfamiliar with the process of bequeathing. Do you have any ideas?”
Trick shrugged despite Edwin’s grip. “I don’t know. My head is swimming. The company should have been mine, at least partly. Redden knew that and he forged another copy of the will. That’s fraud. I think he can go to prison for that.”
“Is that what you want?”
All the energy seeped from Trick’s body and he slumped forward. “I don’t know. Right now, all I want is to crawl into bed with you and hide under the covers forever.”
Trick felt Edwin press a kiss against his temple. It soothed him in a way that shouldn’t have been possible. He wondered if everything about Edwin was magical, or if it was just his wand. Trick giggled to himself at the double entendre.
“What’s so funny?” Edwin asked.
Trick shook his head, not wanting to say it out loud, and pulled back far enough to be able to see Edwin before he leaned in again and brushed their lips together. Edwin kissed him back, the warmth of his mouth soothing.
Edwin walked Trick backward toward his bed and when the backs of his knees hit the mattress, lowered him carefully. Edwin climbed on top of him, letting Trick feel the weight of his body as he pinned him to the bed. He seemed to know instinctively what Trick needed, and being wrapped up in Edwin, shutting the world out, forgetting about everything that had happened, and shelving his worries for later felt pretty much perfect.
Trick nuzzled his face against Edwin’s neck, happy when he felt Edwin’s hands on him. Despite the slight difference in height, everything about Edwin seemed to line up perfectly with everything on Trick, and the feeling of Edwin’s body weighing him down against the mattress melted away some of the anxiety from the day.
Wondering if it were possible to stay like this forever, Trick hummed when he felt Edwin’s erection lengthening against his hip. He angled his hips and pressed against him, making Edwin moan softly.
“I’m sorry,” Edwin gasped, Trick steadily increasing the pressure of his movements.
“What for?” Trick slicked his tongue along the curve of Edwin’s throat and tightened his fingers in Edwin’s hair, holding Edwin to him.
“I can’t seem to help my body’s reaction to you. You need comfort and I’m—”
Trick cut him off with a quick kiss. “This is exactly what I need.”
Trick released Edwin’s hair and slid his hands down to Edwin’s ass. Palms full, he pulled Edwin harder against him, grinding their rigid cocks together. He was rewarded with a rush of heat and a groan from Edwin that made the rest of his blood surge south.
When Trick met Edwin, he’d thought of him as innocent and naïve, but there was something about him, an intrinsic sort of sexiness that Trick couldn’t seem to get enough of. Guys like Preston Ward who were handsome and sophisticated knew they were handsome and sophisticated—they reveled in it, and for Trick, it tarnished the attraction.
But Edwin was the same way with everyone. He was so incredibly genuine and honestly good. Trick thought that maybe it was his kindness that amplified the already good looks and charmingly quirky personality.
The perfection of his ass didn’t hurt either.
Edwin kissed Trick harder, arching into him, rocking their bodies together, and Trick thought maybe he could lose himself in Edwin forever. He’d be okay with that.
So much had happened over the previous few days—there’d been emotional ups and downs—and while Trick was beyond elated to never work for Redden again, being with Edwin like this topped his list of best things ever.
He’d never felt like this before, like he couldn’t be close enough to Edwin, like there wasn’t enough of him to last forever. Trick wanted to breathe him in and stay wrapped up in him always.
Edwin’s breathing sped and Trick could feel the pleasure blooming in his body. He had only seen Edwin come three times before, but he was already beginning to learn his body and his responses. A slight glow in his eyes was just one of the signs that let Trick know he was getting close.
Their rhythm sped and Trick scrambled for purchase, his fingertips digging into the flesh of Edwin’s back, and then that rhythm faltered and Edwin was coming. Trick kissed him through his orgasm, swallowing the needy sounds that flowed from him. It was too much, and the knowledge of what Edwin was feeling, that Trick had caused it, pushed him right over the edge, his orgasm barreling into him.
Heat spread between them as Trick came, muscles spasming through the pleasure. He waited for their breathing to even out before rolling out from underneath Edwin. Trick undressed them both, then crawled onto the bed, pulling back the covers and sliding over to make room for Edwin next to him.
Rewarded by Edwin enveloping him in his arms, Trick rested his head in the curve of Edwin’s arm and closed his eyes. He was asleep almost instantly.
TRICK OPENED his eyes to the sun-soaked room and wished he hadn’t. The moment he did, everything from the days before flooded back. He concentrated instead on the weight of Edwin’s leg, thrown over Trick’s hip as he slept. Limbs tangled was the best way to wake up, and for a moment, Trick just basked in it.
It was so much nicer than wandering through the emotional wreckage left over from the day before. All in all, it had been a good day, but the highs and lows had taken a toll. Getting out from under Redden’s thumb had been freeing, and ultimately he knew it was the right decision.
That didn’t mean he hadn’t been scared shitless, though.
It had taken every ounce of courage not to flinch when Redden hurled animosity in his direction, and when he’d walked out, he thought that had been the last time he’d ever see him.
When Edwin said there was something they needed to talk about, Trick had been momentarily petrified that Edwin had changed his mind about the whole thing. Trick couldn’t handle the thought of losing Edwin, not when he’d just realized how important Edwin was to him.
Venturing into L-word territory was something entirely foreign to Trick. Other than his father, he’d never said those words out loud to anyone. Come to think of it, no one but his father had ever said those words to him either.
“Morning.” Edwin’s groggy voice pulled him from his thoughts. Trick rolled over to look at him, biting back the smile at the sleep lines carved into Edwin’s cheeks and the haphazard angles of his hair.
“Morning.”
Edwin’s slow blinks told Trick he hadn’t fully woken up yet. Trick didn’t mind. There was something incredibly comforting about seeing Edwin all soft from sleep.
“How are you feeling?”
Trick paused a moment to consider it. “Better, I think. I’m not sure why I freaked out as
much as I did. I guess I’m not so good with change, and since you stumbled into my life, everything has pretty much been turned upside down.”
Edwin frowned.
“In a good way,” Trick added quickly. “It’s not anything I expected. In the course of a few months, I’ve been pushed out of my comfort zone of stale pizza and social avoidance. I’ve moved. I quit my job. And last but certainly not least, I discovered that everything I believed to be true about my career for the past decade was built on a carefully constructed lie.”
“Do you know what you want to do now?”
“I think I should talk to a lawyer. I don’t know shit about any of this stuff, and I wouldn’t know where to begin.”
“I think that’s prudent.”
Even just saying the words out loud, Trick felt better. His whole world had been shitty for so long. Maybe there really was such a thing as karma, and maybe it had finally gotten around to noticing him. In any case, it would be a relief just to have the whole thing sorted out, and if there was someone out there who could help him with that, Trick was more than happy to ask for their assistance.
In a while.
“Can we just hang out here for a bit longer?” Trick pulled the comforter over them a little higher and nuzzled into Edwin. It was still early. There was lots of time to sort out his entire life later.
JACOBS & Wilhelm was a law firm in Midtown that Trick and Edwin had chosen based on Edwin’s “pleasant feelings” on their Google listing. The offices were modest, and Trick had his own pleasant feelings about the place when they walked in. Trick was pleased they had been able to see Marcus Wilhelm without an appointment.
By the time they left, every one of Trick’s worries about Redden had been allayed. Mr. Wilhelm was ninety-five years old if he was a day, but apparently he hadn’t lost an ounce of gumption in all those years. He explained exactly what Trick’s options were and how to go about accomplishing each of the different outcomes.
They stood out on the street, taxis whizzing past, a little after two in the afternoon.
“I want to go see Redden,” Trick said, turning his face toward the sun. Considering it was December in New York, the temperature was slightly above freezing, but it might as well have been a beach in Maui as far as Trick was concerned.
He was happy. Everything in his life had somehow clicked into place, and he felt like he could do anything.
“Should we not wait for Mr. Wilhelm to draft the letter he mentioned?”
“He can still send it, but I kind of want to see the look on Redden’s face when he knows he’s been caught. I feel like I need to tell him myself. It’s a closure thing, maybe. I don’t know.”
“If that’s what you feel you need to do, then let’s do it. I’ll accompany you.”
Trick grinned. Whatever had aligned in the universe to bring Edwin into his life, it deserved serious thanks.
“Thank you.”
They turned in the direction of Redden’s office and walked the handful of blocks to the place where Trick had spent so much time over the last several years. A tightness clutched at his chest the closer they got, but it wasn’t unpleasant. This time, it didn’t feel like anxiety or fear. This time, it was anticipation. Trick was ready to close this chapter of his life, and confronting Redden was the way to do it.
The lobby was deserted, save for Doug sitting behind the security desk. When he saw Trick, he nodded toward him, then returned his gaze to the screen in front of him where he was probably deeply involved in a game of FreeCell, if history was anything to go by. It was slightly surprising there hadn’t been more of a reaction, but maybe news hadn’t reached everyone yet that Trick had quit.
Edwin and Trick made their way to the elevator, and Edwin pressed the button. The doors slid open a minute later to reveal Preston, who made a move to exit but stopped in his tracks when he saw Trick.
“Oh, hey,” Preston said, the awkwardness suddenly thick between them.
“Hey,” Trick replied. Seeing Preston once more only served to solidify in his mind that he’d made the right call in choosing Edwin. Looking at him now, Trick wasn’t sure what had ever attracted him. Sure, Preston was good-looking, but he was handsome in a generic way, and he didn’t possess half the charm Edwin did.
“Have a good day,” Trick said, striding past him into the elevator.
“Uh, yeah. You too.” Preston disappeared around the corner, and Edwin strode into the elevator with Trick.
The doors slid shut, and Edwin intertwined his fingers with Trick’s, squeezing tight. Trick turned toward him and wrapped his arms around Edwin’s broad shoulders before leaning in to brush a kiss across his mouth.
“Thank you for coming with me, and for helping me with all this, and supporting me through it all, and well, just for being with me. I don’t think I’ve ever been happier.”
Edwin smiled back at him, and for a moment, Trick thought he saw a flash of melancholy. Before he could question it, it disappeared and Edwin’s eyes mirrored his own—wide and filled with happiness. “I’m happy that you’re happy. It’s all I’ve wanted for you since we met.”
“It’s all because of you. None of this would have happened without you. I owe you everything.”
Edwin opened his mouth to respond, but before he could, the elevator glided to a stop and the doors slid open. He stepped back. “Ready?”
Trick took his hand again. “Definitely.”
The reception desk was noticeably vacant. Trick regarded his desk and there was not a single moment of longing as he did. When he’d walked away from the firm, he’d expected to miss it—it was the company his father had built, after all—but he didn’t. That business was long gone.
He led Edwin up the curved steps to the second floor, marching determinedly. Redden’s office door was closed, but Trick didn’t bother knocking. He pushed it open and felt a little twinge of glee at the surprised look on Redden’s face when he strode in, hands on his hips.
“What the hell do you think you’re doing, Patrick?” Redden spat, his eyes darting between Trick and Edwin and the client seated in the chair across from his desk.
“I want to talk to you.” Trick wasn’t going to back down. Redden still did something to him—something to make his insides feel like jelly. He’d spent so long terrified of Redden firing him, and conquering those feelings of anxiety that were so deeply buried in his psyche would not happen overnight.
“I am with a client. Go wait outside.”
Trick planted his feet in place and tried not to let Redden see his hands shaking.
“No.”
“Excuse me?” His voice was getting louder, and Trick knew his anger was escalating. He tried not to care.
“I said no. I want to talk to you. Now.”
“If you’re not out of here in the next thirty seconds, I will call security and have you forcibly—”
“I know about what you did with my father’s will.”
The color drained from Redden’s face. The room was completely silent for a moment before he turned to his client. “I’ll have to reschedule our meeting. My apologies.”
The client nodded and stood, gathering the drawings that were on Redden’s desk before showing himself out of the office. The door clicked behind him, and Trick stared at Redden. The adrenaline surging through him made it difficult to stand still. It was incredible how the atmosphere in the room had changed in such a short time, the difference palpable.
Trick stalked toward Redden, a twisted part of him enjoying how Redden’s eyes widened as he approached.
“I know everything,” Trick continued. “I know you forged a new version of the will. I know half of the company should have been mine.”
It took a minute, but Redden composed himself, his face morphing into a mask of angry indifference. “I’ll pay you out. Half of what the company was assessed at when your father died.”
Trick laughed. “I don’t think so. I’ve hired an attorney. You’ll be hearing from him short
ly.”
“Fine. Half the assessed value plus one million.”
Trick didn’t bother responding to the offer.
“You’ll be hearing from my lawyer.” And with that, he turned and walked out of the office. The whole thing was far from resolved. Mr. Wilhelm had warned him that if Redden fought him on it, it could take quite a while to have the whole situation ironed out, but Trick felt a thousand pounds lighter. He’d won and Redden knew it.
It felt amazing.
Chapter Twenty
WITH REDDEN’S tyranny perilously close to an end, Trick’s manner was noticeably more optimistic. He met with the lawyers and made plans for the firm as though he had just been waiting to channel his father’s leadership at the company—the company he planned to rename as Grigsby and Associates, as was only correct and just.
Edwin was happy for Trick. This was, after all, Trick’s heart’s desire, and Trick had achieved it, however unorthodox the method. And Edwin? He had helped. He had been the catalyst to the discovery of the will that had led to this bevy of newfound responsibilities and good fortune.
Edwin should have been happy.
And he was.
Just… not entirely.
He couldn’t help but think of the ticking clock that, with each passing day, suggested his stay in New York City was soon to end. Trick was on the way to reaching his goal. He would be the owner of this magnificent architectural firm, and it was only a matter of time before his talents received the recognition they deserved.
No matter how much they enjoyed each other’s company or Edwin craved Trick’s touch, Edwin knew Trick wouldn’t need him much longer. Edwin knew there were responsibilities he would be expected to fulfill once he returned to Paravale.
As a result, Edwin tried to live each day with Trick to the fullest. He loved the unique experiences New York had to offer, and, above all, he loved having Trick by his side as they explored the city.
When Trick wasn’t doing what needed to be done in his new position at the firm, he and Edwin went ice-skating and saw Broadway shows. Edwin found such joy in musicals, and Trick was kind enough to indulge him. On other days, they’d eat pizza or various other culinary offerings, then hold hands as they walked through some of the nearby parks with their snow-dotted greenery.
