Page 29 of Duty and Desire

“Someone told me about this place. I had to see for myself.” I inclined my head in Claudia’s direction. “Your visitor seems to like the place.”

“Claudia’s waiting for me. I’m taking her out to dinner this evening.”

“I was thinking about you this morning,” I said truthfully. “Well, about what you said last night. Are things that bad between you and your father? Do you think he’ll ever come around to you being gay?” My family was a regular pain in the ass, but I knew they loved me and supported me, even Nonna in her own way.

Nick stiffened, and I had the feeling I’d overstepped a mark. No matter how much he’d shared, Nick’s family life was none of my business.

How wouldyoufeel if someone asked you a whole lotta questions aboutyourpersonal life? Especially if you knew the person doing the asking was a writer.

“I’m sorry. It was just that… well, there was pain in your voice when you spoke.” I huffed. “My mom used to tell me to take off my Mr. Fix-it hat, that I couldn’t solve every problem I encountered. And I don’tfor one minutefeel I can solve yours, but maybe talking about it can help.”

Nick stared at me, a faint crease upon his brow, and I knew he was deciding whether or not he could trust me. Finally, he broke eye contact and shifted his attention to the lagoon. “I doubt my father will ever accept my sexuality. I think he’s too old to change his views now.” The wistful edge to his voice tore at my heart, and I had to fight the urge to put my arm around him and hug him to death.

“You mentioned your brother. He isn’t too old, surely. Maybe there’s a way you can win him over.”

Nick bit his lip. “Did you really come here to talk about my family?”

I couldn’t reveal my true motives, so I went with the first thing that came to mind. “What are you doing tomorrow?”

He smiled. “Why do you ask? Do you have something in mind?”

“I’ve always wanted to try snorkeling.” Well, maybe not always, but watching so many tourists trying it out had piqued my interest.

Nick beamed. “Sure, we can do that.”

I gestured to the steamer chairs. “What about Claudia? Will she mind you disappearing again?”

He chuckled. “I don’t think she’ll mind. Besides, we’ve run out of things to talk about. Can you meet me at Vaitape at ten? We can make a day of it.”

“I’ll bring lunch.”

The server arrived with our drinks, and I paid for them. Once we were alone, Nick raised his glass. “To another day in each other’s company. May it be as enjoyable as the first.”

I was glad I wasn’t the only one who’d enjoyed our first day together.

We spent the next half hour talking about what we’dsee in the lagoon. Nick outlined four main stops, and I nodded and smiled in the right places.

My mind was a whirlwind of writer thoughts, all focused on my main character, Nick, who’d fled his home because of his hateful, repressive family. Although he was far from them, they were still a part of his life. They’d sent a former student friend to watch him and report back, except Nick had no idea she was on their side.

Now all I had to do was remember it until I could get back to my laptop.

The seed of a book had been planted, and I wanted to water it.

“Where are you?”

I jumped. “Sorry. I zoned out there for a moment.”

Nick’s eyes danced with amusement. “Let me guess. You were thinking about a book.”

You havenoidea.

I drank the last of my cocktail and stood. “I should go. You have a dinner date.”

And speaking of Claudia, she was packing up her stuff.

Nick rose, his hand outstretched. “I’ll see you in the morning.”

It wasn’t so much a handshake as a brushing of fingertips, but the crackle of electricity accompanying it startled me. Nick jumped a little too.

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