Page 39 of Love in Unexpected Places

Me: Evan is here. You can still come over, though. We can wait until he leaves to unpack.

I get a text back immediately.

Derek: No, hang out with him. If he doesn’t stay the night, let me know when he leaves and I’ll help with the last few boxes.

A smile leaps to my face, even though I try to wipe it off. Evan catches it, though. “New woman in your life?” he asks, a genuine smile aimed at me. I want to tell him sobadly that it’s a new man, and that he knows him, but that would be unwise for two reasons. One, I can’t tell my son I want to fuck—and possibly more—his friend. Two, Evan doesn’t know I’m bi.

Besides, Derek and I are just getting to know each other. It’s almost like the bathroom blowjob didn’t happen. I know what I want from him, but I’m sure he doesn’t want that now, since we have such a good connection.

I can, however, remedy one reason I can’t tell Evan about Derek.

Pulling in a deep, fortifying breath, I say, “New guy. Kind of? I’m not sure where it’s going, but I like him.”

Evan’s eyebrows shoot up, then they furrow. “Guy? Are you… Dad, are you gay? Were you married to mom to cover it up? Is that why you guys are divorced?”

“No,” I rush to say, sitting beside him. “No. I’m bi. Your mom has always known that. I loved your mother; still do, in fact, but we fell out of romantic love. She’s my best friend. I was deeply in love with her and her with me when we got married, I promise. We got divorced to give each other freedom to find someone that wasinlove with us.”

He lets out a long breath. “Okay, that’s great. I was afraid… after twenty years, ya know?”

I nod. “I understand. But it was never a secret from your mom. I was always loyal to her. We had no secrets.”

Evan bumps my shoulder. “A new guy, huh? Tell me about him.”

What feels like a boulder drops into my stomach. I’m not sure what I can say that will suffice without saying a name. I don’t want to lie, but I don’t want to keep it all a secret.

Leaning back, I tell him about Derek in a roundabout way. “He’s nice. Sweet. Younger than me, but still an adult.”Evan laughs and waves for me to continue. “We haven’t really said we’re taking things further than friendship, but I like him. It’s been a week, but he gives me butterflies.”

I didn’t mean to say that last part aloud, but it’s true. Every time I see Derek, I get a fluttering in my belly that I didn’t get, even when I was with Sheila. It’s a foreign feeling, but I like it.

My son slaps my leg, another big smile on his face. “That’s great, Dad. I’m glad to hear that you’re moving on and you’ve found someone.”

I hold my hand up. “I didn’t say all that. I saidIlikehim. I’m pretty sure he just wants to be friends.”

Evan scoffs. “He’s an idiot if he doesn’t see what a catch you are. When will I meet him?”

I squirm in the seat. “There’s nothing going on yet. If things get serious, I’ll let you know.”

We sit and visit for another hour or so, talking and building on our relationship. Evan and I never had a bad relationship, but I wasn’t there as much as I should have been, and I know I need to remedy that. If I want to take things further with Derek, will that stop?

I have to have hope that it won’t. I don’t want to lose my son, but I want to explore what could be with Derek.

That’s a dilemma I’ll get to when it comes. No need to borrow trouble.

Evan doesn’t stay the night. He says he has an early morning of tutoring and goes about his day, promising to come back in a few days when he’s free.

Almost as soon as he steps out of the front door, I havemy phone in my hand, asking Derek if he’d like to come over to help with the last few boxes.

Five minutes later, there’s a soft knock at my door. I hurry to it and throw it open, smiling when I see the pretty face of Derek staring back at me. He has on a pair of sweatpants that do nothing to hide the outline of his cock, a tank top that hugs his lean muscles, and his hair is pushed back from his face. He’s a vision.

He grins at me. “Gonna let me in, or do I need a password?”

Rolling my eyes with a chuckle, I step aside and let him in. “Sorry about that.”

“You’re forgiven. Just don’t let it happen again.” He sends me a wink and the fluttering in my belly gets stronger. He takes his shoes off and looks at me with bright, innocent eyes.

He surprises me by walking over and wrapping his arms around me, giving me a tight hug. I return it, bending to smell the skin of his neck. Normally, Derek will give me a quick, one shoulder hug—this is new and not at all unwelcome.

“I’m glad you asked me to come over,” he mutters in my chest. “I’ve gotten used to our unpacking dates.”

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