Page 13 of Love in Unexpected Places

getting it right

chapter one

HUDSON

Ijust sit down to get started on work for my first project when a knock sounds at my door. “Hey, Hud!” Rachel, my only friend here, exclaims when she steps into my office. She’s the only one to ever call me Hud, but I like it. She said she enjoys giving people nicknames and if she doesn’t, that means she doesn’t really like you. She’s a riot.

Three months ago, I moved from California after a messy breakup and the need for a fresh start. That means no friends. But since my first day, Rachel has sought to change that. I’m thankful for her friendship.

“Rach. Good morning. How are you?” I ask when she steps inside.

She slides into the chair in front of my desk, crossing her legs and getting comfortable. When I got hired as a senior architect, I thought the people here would give me shit for “taking their position,” but it seems like everyone is fine with it. I’m not sure if I beat anyone out of a job, but I haven’t heard any gossip, so that’s a good thing. Everyone has been warm and welcoming.

She sips her coffee and nods. “That’s the good stuff.”

I make a show of glancing around, picking up my pencil holder, my keyboard and opening my drawers. When she gives me a quizzical look, I ask, “Where’s mine? You know I can’t function without a cup of joe.”

“In the breakroom where you left it, you lazy so and so.” Rachel said she’s trying to lay off cursing, as she and her fiancé are trying for kids. I don’t think it’s working, but I give her an A for effort. “How are things? Getting settled in okay?”

Nodding, I move my mouse to wake up my computer. Things here are good. The city is rich in history and nightlife. The food isn’t half bad either. “I am. It’s a nice area. Quiet, with a vibrant queer community.” I clamp my mouth shut. With an inward wince, I realize I kinda, sorta came out to her. I’m not ashamed to be gay, but I don’t usually tell people unless I can trust them. My personal life is mine and not fodder for everyone around me.

But Rachel takes it in stride and nods. “Yeah, I know. My best friend takes me out to some of the clubs and mixers. It’s always a great time and people are so friendly.” She gasps and leans forward. “You should meet him!”

Shaking my head, I pull up the latest design for a bridge renovation. The one we have a contract for should have been replaced over five years ago. My team and I are trying to get it done urgently. It’s a safety hazard, but the city won’t shut down access across it until we have a solid building plan with an estimated finish date and budget. “Not all gay men want to hook up, Rach.”

“Who said anything about hooking up?” she asks with a grin and a raised eyebrow. “I just said you should meet him. Be friends. He can show you around and help you integrate into the queer community.”

That is a good idea. While I do like to find things on my own, I am shit at making friends. I bonded with most of my college friends because we were on the soccer team and some identified as queer. Those friends would bring people around and we all eventually got to know each other without trying.

But I’m in a new city. I need to get out there and make new connections. It’s sad that the only person here that I talk to after hours is Rachel and even that’s not very often. We’ve only had dinner once in three months. Her fiancé was there and he’s a really nice man, but neither of them are queer. It would be nice to have friends that can identify with me on that level.

Sighing, I swivel my chair around to her. “Yeah, okay. That sounds good.” There’s a glint in her eye, but I don’t know her well enough to decipher it without help. “What is it?”

“Well.” She takes the last sip of her coffee and sits the mug on my desk. I glare at the offending dish, mad that I didn’t have a cup of coffee of my own. “He’s a nice guy. And he’s single. He’s smart, has a good career, he’s funny and handsome.”

I smirk and put my hands behind my head. “Are you trying to set me up with your best friend?”

“Yes?” she says. “I think the two of you would get along. He’s like the man version of me.” That would be a fun time. Rachel is great and if her best friend is like her, he has to be too.

But I’m newly single. Three months isn’t that long to find myself after being in a three year relationship. “I don’t know, Rachel. Let me think about it? I just got out of something before I came here. I’m not sure I would be good for anybody.”

“I get that. Sorry for being pushy.”

“You weren’t. You’ve been great to me since I got here. I know you’re coming from a good place.”

Her shoulders visibly sag, like I’ve relieved her of a great weight. “I am. I like people being in love. Ever since Cal introduced me to Vic, I’ve been trying to return the favor. He gave me the love of my life and I want that for him too.” She stands and heads for the door. “Hey,” she says. “What about going to dinner with a few of us from the office this weekend? I’ll invite Cal and you two can meet. Or maybe it’ll be me and Vic, if that’ll make it better?”

It couldn’t hurt. Even if this Cal and I didn’t get into a relationship or something—not my goal—we could still be friends. We can go out to mixers, he can show me around and maybe we can hang out a few times outside of work. “No, if he’s willing, I can meet him alone. Gotta put myself out there more.”

“Yeah, that sounds good,” she says. “He’s a good person. You two will hit it off, I’m sure.” She puts a hand on my shoulder and squeezes before she leaves my office.

Turning back to my computer, I find that I’m not concentrating on the design. I’m thinking about Rachel’s Cal. I rarely get distracted, but I can’t pull my mind from him. I know nothing about him, other than what Rach just said. But a smile stretches my face, nonetheless. I may have a new friend.

Grabbing Rachel’s mug, I head to the breakroom to get a cup of coffee, making sure to rinse her cup and place it on the rack for her to get later. She owes me for my dish service.

The rest of the day passes in a blur of meetings and paperwork. The meeting with the city lasted way longer than it should have. The officials refused to shut down the bridge and open an emergency access road, claiming it would be too expensive to have contractors urgently getting it prepared and opened in two weeks or less. Luckily, one of my team members did a mockup of the potential cost to the city if the bridge were to collapse with no one driving on it at the time, which totaled in the tens of millions. Adding in if there are victims? Well over a hundred million. After that bit of news, they saw things our way and agreed to shut the bridge down in two weeks. Enough time to clear the old access nearby and divert traffic. It wouldn’t be a small undertaking, but it’s necessary.

By the time I get back to the office building, it’s almost time to go home, but I still have a lot of work to do. Guess I’ll be burning the midnight oil.

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