by Mia Terry
For a split second, Ollie took his eyes off the road, and looked over to where Rhys was sitting not looking the slightest bit offended.
In fact, Rhys smiled and reached over and brushed his hand lightly over where Ollie had been changing gears. “No dramas,” Rhys said, in a tone that was relaxed enough that Ollie actually believed him. “I’m glad you let me know about your friends earlier. A few of my friends from the tour days were on the wagon and a hell of a lot more should have been, so a night with no drinking to respect your friends’ sobriety isn’t something I’m going to pout about.”
Ollie kept his eyes on the road and tried not to think about how much he liked Rhys’s response. He’d been friends with Kris for long enough to know not everyone was as open to someone being sober as Rhys obviously was. More than one of Ollie’s friends—who had quickly been demoted out of his inner circle—had seen showing some restraint around Kris as a weird insult to their sense of Australian masculinity or some negative commentary on their own drinking. During one awfully memorable night with the combined rowing club, a group of men had even spent an ugly few minutes trying to convince Kris to drink. Ollie had almost had to restrain Billy from kicking their ass, hard to do when his own instinct was to do the same.
So, Rhys’s smiling understanding was definitely not something Ollie took for granted.
Chapter 4
Coming into Bangalow was both super familiar and a little jarring for Rhys. It was familiar, in that this place had always been part of his and his family’s life, but the jarring element came in with Bangalow transitioning from a cute village that was a rest stop off the highway, to a now ultra-expensive enclave of housewares shops and upscale restaurants. Only last month his father complained it was impossible to get a burger under $25 in any of the multitudes of cafes. Rhys might be a local, but when Ollie had told him what restaurant they were going to, even he was impressed. Town had a reputation which had it regularly getting reviews in glossy magazines and national newspapers.
“You managed to get your reservation extended?” Rhys asked, suddenly a bit worried as they got out of the car. “I’ve heard reservations can take months to get.”
“We got Jai onto it. He is the most charming of us.”
Rhys heard a sound come out of his own mouth which he embarrassingly realized was something approximately close to a snort. “What kind of group is it where you’re not the charming one?”
“If you look over there you’ll see,” Ollie replied.
Rhys looked over the street to where Ollie was pointing and saw four men waving in their direction. Okay, there really wasn’t an ugly dude in that group.
Ollie himself had arrived smartly dressed and effortlessly attractive tonight. When he’d turned up, Rhys had had to give himself that same very boring lecture about friendship again. He’d never seen himself as someone who wanted to bed a Ralph Lauren model type. However, it turned out that man was exactly who he wanted to rip the clothes off. But the group of men he pointed to weren’t bad either.
“Jai is the one with the braid,” Ollie supplied, as they crossed the road.
“Okay,” Rhys conceded. “I can see the charm there.”
“I’ve even seen straight guys forget their orientation when agreeing to give him things,” Ollie said quietly, before they reached his friends.
Hey, straight boys aren’t so straight sometimes,” Rhys retorted before they got within earshot of the group.
“Their straightness is usually questionable when they are trying to get your mouth on their dick,” Ollie replied.
They had obviously gotten close enough to be overheard, if the “amen” from the well-dressed almost pretty blond man was any sign.
Ollie laughed. The sound was so free and easy that Rhys joined him.
“Blowjob talk before introductions. Mr. Manners really is on holiday.” The comment came from the youngest-looking member of the group.
“Hey, give me a minute,” Ollie defended himself. “We were having a discussion about the nuanced scale of sexual identity.”
“Sounded like bragging about how many guys, straight or gay, want to fuck you.” The man turned to Rhys. “I’m Billy, and for the record I’ve never felt any attraction to Ollie.”
Ollie looked more amused than offended as he replied, “Probably only because you were in love with Kris by the time you met me.”
Rhys felt he should have disapproved of this arrogance, but there was a large part of him that had to restrain a verbal agreement. Ollie’s tall handsomeness was the type to launch movie careers. Realistically, unless you had some unusual phobia about handsome men; who wouldn’t want to get into Ollie’s pants?
Ollie had slipped back into the persona of a man used to hosting guests and was introducing the rest of the group. Rhys was grateful there were only four names to remember. The aforementioned Jai and his solidly attractive partner Luke, and Kris and Billy who had already made themselves known.
Each man offered him a strong handshake, and, even though they had presumably only seen Ollie less than an hour before, Ollie got an affectionate kiss on the cheek from both Jai and Kris, who were easily identifiable as the more tactile in the group.
“Less talking, more moving. Lunch feels forever ago.” Luke announced, herding them through the entrance to the restaurant.
“Babe. You know we aren’t perps who you have to use your crowd control skills on,” Jai said, even as he affectionately wrapped his arm around his partner.
The restaurant itself was particularly small and Rhys remembered why he’d never made it here before. There was at least a month wait for reservations and no wonder why when so few tables could fit into this building. They made their way up the wooden staircase and sat down at a table that could be only generously described as suitable for six. Rhys slotted in next to Ollie, and as much as he’d been reluctant to call this a date, he couldn’t pretend he wasn’t enjoying the contact of Ollie’s strong thigh pressed against his own.
The rest of the tables seemed to be well-heeled couples, quite a few of them with tiny women. Maybe that was their main problem; these tables weren’t designed for six large men. The designer must have assumed that their tables would be populated by heterosexual couples. And Bangalow probably didn’t have to worry about business meetings frequenting it’s five-star restaurants, though Rhys suspected that assumption was probably becoming less true, what with Byron Bay’s booming conference and entrepreneur market.
Anyway, contrary to whatever the original designer's assumptions were, it was nice to look around their space and realize they weren’t the only table hosting same-sex couples. Two older gay men had definitely smiled in their direction and a lesbian couple who were more their age were gazing into each other’s eyes as they sat near the back wall of the restaurant.
“Now everyone is envying me for my short-legged boyfriend,” Billy remarked, as everyone wriggled just a bit to get comfortable.
As the next sound out of his mouth was a whimper, there was no one at the table who could doubt that the foot of one of those short legs had made an indelible impression on Billy’s shoe.
“Shorter legs, but perfectly formed,” Billy said, attempting to wind his earlier remarks back.
The rest of the table tried to choke down their laughter, Rhys included. He wouldn’t have described Kris himself as being short-legged—the man was a little shorter than the others in the group but beautiful enough that it certainly wouldn’t have been the first thing you would remark on about him. His well-put-together look certainly indicated a pride in that beauty which would not take well to his boyfriend’s verbal fumbling.
So, it surprised Rhys when the burst of laughter came from Kris’s lips after a long glare towards his very apologetic-looking boyfriend. “Babe you really have to work on your compliments. You bet your ass that all of me is perfectly formed though.”
“So perfect,” said his boyfriend, with absolutely no hesitation in his voice. There was a clear affecti
on and admiration there.
“Now we have avoided actual murder taking place,” Jai chimed in. “What are we eating tonight?”
Kris poked out his tongue in Jai’s direction, before launching into a good-natured debate about the merits of their preordered degustation menu. The good-natured teasing reminded Rhys of how much he had missed in not having a tribe of likeminded gay men in his life. His tribe had always been fellow surfers and while not all of them were straight, and most were inclusive to a degree, he was the only gay man at most tables he sat at. Here he watched as affection was doled out, as easily as humor, and he felt a bit of loss that he hadn’t experienced this type of community in his life. Maybe since coming back to Byron he had become too isolated?
Rhys was so lost in his own thoughts that he absentmindedly agreed to Ollie’s suggestion that he go with the rest of the table in ordering degustation. It was only when he was handing his menu back to the waiter, he noticed the price of that menu option and inwardly winced. It was far too expensive a restaurant to take out someone for a casual dinner, so he would have to insist on paying for himself. Ollie didn’t look like the kind of man who would give up on an argument easily, which was bound to cause a bit of an uncomfortable scene. Rhys inwardly shrugged. That would have to be a problem for later because he was here now and if he was going to fork out that much money for food, he would enjoy it.
The company was easy to enjoy. Everyone was relaxed, friendly, and the couples were casually affectionate with each other. Rhys had thought the police officer partner of Jai to be staid at first, but sitting down the opposite end of the table he could see the man luxuriate under the sensual attentions of his partner. Jai was an obvious social butterfly, charming and easy with everyone, but never once did he stop the gentle way he was tracing a pattern on Luke’s neck or fail to look his partner in the eye when directing a question or comment to him.
“So, you’re going for the good life,” Ollie commented to Luke. “We heard you’re moving to a bigger acreage to do the whole sustainable thing.”
“I don’t know about the whole sustainable thing, but we’re finally moving out of the police accommodation to have a bit of extra space around us,” Luke replied.
“You’ll have to come and see us finally when we’re in,” Jai chimed in. “The new place might even be up to your high standards.” Rhys might be more worried about that statement if the look Jai had sent Ollie hadn’t been quite so full of amused teasing.
“I love Dungoon,” Jai continued. “The work Luke does in the community is so important and my own stuff is really fulfilling. I can’t imagine being anywhere else.”
The look of pride and love Luke gave Jai, as he spoke, was so intimate that Rhys almost felt he should look away.
“Not that we aren’t glad to be on holiday and get away with a little bit more in public.” Jai added, even as he placed a careful kiss on the spot on Luke’s neck he had been playing with all night.
“I thought you said that Dungoon was tolerant,” Ollie questioned.
Jai shrugged with a short not entirely carefree laugh. “We’re not quite the only gays in the village, but we are the most visible, and tolerance isn’t the same as complete acceptance. We have great friends and most other people really acknowledge us as a couple, but we’re not exactly pushing the boundaries by making out at the local pub, and sometimes all that discretion can wear a little thin. But that’s what holidays are for.”
Rhys wasn’t sure why Kris suddenly leaned over and tightly gripped his partner Billy’s hand, there was obviously a story there and he made a note in his mind to ask Ollie about it another time.
There was an odd look on Ollie’s face, which intrigued Rhys, but before he could think too deeply about it, Ollie was raising a glass of sparkling water in Jai and Luke’s direction. “Well, to all your sexy affection, long may it adorn our Byron Bay getaway.”
There was enough country boy in Luke that he still checked around to see if anyone was looking, but the mixed crowd in the restaurant seemed oblivious, and Luke was quickly distracted by what appeared to be a pleasurably thorough kiss from his partner.
“Sexy indeed,” Rhys murmured to Ollie, before blushing slightly at making such a comment to a man who was little more than an acquaintance.
“Definitely,” Ollie replied in the tone of a man who didn’t seem to find their brief association any kind of problem.
The moment of awareness of each other hovered between them, and Rhys enjoyed just letting his body hum with attraction. Here in the busy restaurant, at a table with Ollie’s friends, there wasn’t the pressure or opportunity to act on that attraction, so Rhys just let himself feel the heavy muscle and warmth of Ollie’s thigh next to his own, and let himself appreciate his presence in a way he so rarely allowed himself. This was neither purely sexual nor purely companionable, but this moment so drew him in that he had to take a deep breath just to steady himself.
The arrival of the first course brought him back into the conversation around the table. Billy—who he’d now picked up from the conversation used to be from Dungoon—looked a little unsure about the small shot glass of rich but delicious mushroom soup.
“Okay, this place isn’t just trendy, they can make food,” said Ollie, from beside him. Something about the absolute comfort he showed in his surrounds had Rhys sure that fine dining was no stranger to him.
“It is delicious,” Rhys agreed.
Upon seeing the next course come out, Rhys had to reach for his iPhone.
“I’d never have taken you for a food porn devotee,” commented Ollie, the note of amusement in his voice obvious.
“Nah, I usually like my porn the normal way,” Rhys replied. “But I have to take a photo for mum. The greens with the salmon are from her garden. One of her specialties is growing the exotic greens for some local high-end restaurants. She’ll get a kick out of seeing it plated.”
“What else does she grow?” Jai leaned across the table, his animation obvious.
“These are Warrigal Greens, but she plants and harvests about thirty other types of salads, and other varieties of beans, herbs, and ginger. We’ll probably get more than a few ingredients tonight grown by her.”
Kris and Ollie couldn’t hide their amusement at Jai’s enthusiasm. “Put him in the country for a couple of years and suddenly he is Joe the Farmer on us.”
“Shut up idiots,” Jai replied. “I’m having a kitchen garden at the new house and it will make my cooking amazing. Even Luke can get out there on the weekend and help me.”
From the adoring look his partner was giving him, Rhys doubted Jai would have much trouble getting Luke to agree to any activity.
Jai turned his beguiling look upon Rhys. “Could you ask your mum if I could come out and have a look at her garden and maybe pick up a few hints?”
Rhys easily agreed. “Sure. Though fair warning, she’ll probably make you come up the day before market day and turn you into her picking assistant, so be careful what you wish for.” His mother would love the beautiful Jai, with his tattoos and braided hair, and if she could make him work for his tour, she’d like him even better.
“I’m up for that,” came Jai’s easy answer. “I’m loving the pool, but there is only so much swimming and lazing I can do on holiday.”
“Yeah, I’m not sure if I can agree with that,” Billy chimed in. “I’m going to give maximum lazing a red-hot go. But,” he turned his attention on Rhys; “I need to find out before anything else just how embarrassing was Ollie in the surf. Because anything less than perfect and we might have to come and watch.”
Before Rhys had time to reply diplomatically—and in a way that hid his sudden pull of panic at the time he had with Ollie being intruded upon—Ollie replied for him. “Don’t give up your place at the pool in the hope of any comedy. I’m only pedestrianly crappy. I can’t surf at all well yet, but I’m not tripping over my own feet either.”
Well there was no denying the man next to him was comf
ortable in his own skin. That assessment was only confirmed through the meal, as they enjoyed each tasty morsel that came out of the kitchen, and Ollie traded teasing blows with his friends. However, he also helped Rhys take careful photos of the food when Rhys recognized his mother’s ingredients and kept Rhys in the loop of conversation.
Interestingly, despite all the gentle digs flying around, the only time Rhys felt Ollie’s body tighten with any stress was when Kris was asking about Ollie’s new boss and the planned restructure ahead.
“They’re still deciding on a final plan and final staffing arrangements,” Ollie equivocated. This was the only time Rhys had sensed anything but absolute straightforwardness from Ollie, and he couldn’t help but be intrigued. Looking over at Kris, he could tell he felt the same curiosity. However, Kris must have decided it wasn’t worth pursuing and risk changing the general good feeling that permeated the evening.
Eight courses, each one more delicious than the one before, and Rhys ate full to bursting. Just as Rhys was finishing the last morsel, which had been pineapple pieces glazed in Miso accompanied by an ice-cream which tasted of both Vanilla and salt, Ollie excused himself from the table.
“He is totally getting the bill,” said Kris with an eye roll at Jai.
“Tomorrow I’ll be faster on the credit card hit,” Jai promised, but didn’t seem perturbed by the way Ollie had snuck off.
That was confirmed as Ollie received just gentle eye rolls on his return. Rhys, however, leaned over and said in a low voice, “I was planning on contributing for my meal.”
“Hey, wanker banker, remember?” Ollie replied, with amusement. “We agreed that I would get your meal tonight as you’re my guest.”
“That was before I realized you were taking me to the most expensive restaurant in town.”
Ollie’s easy shrug look genuine. “Seriously, there were no circumstances under which I was ever going to take your money. But it's good to know I can hit you up for an egg and bacon sandwich after we go for our next surfing lesson.”
