Barging In (12 page)

“I thought you’d never offer. You’d better be quick, though. Don’t want to keep Aranya waiting. You’ll love his boat, but that guy’s the most uptight hippie I’ve ever met. Think his dad’s an investment banker, and it shows.”

“Are you saying he’s a proper trustafarian?”

“I don’t know if he has a trust fund, sweetie, but he’s certainly come from money. No need to look so surprised. There’s all sorts along here. Robin’s much posher than he looks. Not that I’ve ever met his family.” She gave a rueful smile. “I get the impression they’re not all that keen on us boating folk.”

Dan held out a hand to help Mel up onto the deck, which she looked at with amusement but took anyway. “I can be a gentleman,” he said.

“I don’t doubt it, darling. Now let’s get into the warm, and while you get ready, you can give me all the juicy details about last night.”

Dan gave a theatrical sigh. “You don’t give up easily, do you?”

Mel grinned. “They call me the Terrier.”

Someone who was used to getting what she was after? Yeah, Dan could recognise that. After all, didn’t he usually end up getting exactly what he was after? He smiled to himself as he pushed back the hatch and unlatched the doors. Yep, he knew what he wanted out of Robin this week, and he was determined to use all his charm to get it.
 

Chapter Twelve

The water tank ran dry while Robin was in the shower. It always seemed to do that. Good thing Dan hadn’t taken him up on his offer after all. He stepped out of the stall and rubbed the remaining soap off him with the towel. Christ, it was all crusty from when they’d cleaned up last night. He’d need to pay a visit to the launderette. Those sheets on his bed wouldn’t be much better, and he didn’t have any storage space for spare linen.

He stuck his head out of the boat, whistled, and after a few minutes, Morris appeared from out of the hedgerow. His head still looked a little tufty, but when Robin reached out to stroke him, he realised the cat was just wet. The clever creature must have gone and given himself a dew bath. Morris circled around Robin’s legs, purring loudly, before trotting inside the boat and looking around.

“Oh, you’re missing Dan too? He’s not here, but he’ll be back later. He promised. Said he’d bring you some fish, mister.” Robin left Morris curled up by the fire and shut the hatches to keep him inside while they cruised. It probably wasn’t necessary, but after losing him the last time, he really didn’t want to take any chances.

Robin started the engine with the hand crank he’d installed, grinning in satisfaction at the loud chugging and belch of black smoke from the exhaust. There was nothing more irritating than a flat battery, and he’d modified his engine accordingly. He pulled in the plank and made a flying leap over to the bank to untie the lines, using them to hold
Serendipity
steady before jumping back.

Remembering Dan’s face as he walked over the plank brought a smile to his face. It’d been good to see the oh-so-worldly Dan drop the act for a moment and ask for help. Good to feel the rapid beating of Dan’s heart as he pulled him close afterwards.

Robin tried to clear his mind of Dan and observe his surroundings as the boat puttered along. This was a great spot, being deserted most of the time. Although they were only five miles from the city, it felt like deep countryside. The local villages were small and quiet, the majority of the canal passing through sleepy farmland and woods. Most of the other boaters preferred to moor up near the villages where there were concrete banks allowing them to pull their boats in tight. This might stop the boats rocking so much when others passed, but Robin avoided those kinds of moorings as it brought him too close to the towpath and the nosy passersby—not to mention the other boaters, who all seemed to know one another’s business. Would they have seen his boat rocking last night? Or heard Dan’s uninhibited noises? Robin felt the flush spread over his face and frowned. It was ridiculous; he’d lived with Jamie for years and been out and proud, so why had he spent the last few years hiding away?

A kingfisher darted across in front of the boat, a flash of iridescent blue cutting through his unsettling thoughts. Robin steered his mind from dangerous memories and focused on
Serendipity
, noting the way the shimmering blue of the solar panels echoed the kingfisher’s feathers. The sun might be shining, but at this time of year the photovoltaic panels were next to useless. Still, the cruise would help to recharge his battery bank, meaning there would be no need to run the generator this evening. There was something about its incessant drone that annoyed Robin at the best of times, and he certainly didn’t want a passion killer like that spoiling his plans for the night…

And he did have plans. So many things he wanted to do to and with Dan. It was an unfamiliar feeling, this rush of lust, and he found himself wondering just what Dan’s eyes would look like when Robin went down on him for the first time. He frowned again. Bugger those pretty eyes. He wasn’t going to fall for them, no matter how brightly they sparkled. He spent the rest of the journey lost in memories of Dan’s body instead—much safer that way, even if it did give him a stiffie. It took a good few minutes of mental cold showering to sort himself out when he neared the water point.

But first things first, there was a swing bridge in the way. They were a pain in the arse without a hapless passerby to charm into helping, but his last couple of years cruising alone had given him plenty of practice at operating them by himself. Robin steered into the mini-marina and left the engine chugging away as he stepped onto the next boat—a wooden-hulled, steam-powered monster that was a hobby craft for one of the well-to-do weekend boaters living in the village. He hitched
Serendipity
’s line around a cleat on the
Mayflower
, then hopped from boat to boat until he reached the bank. This particular bridge took a good bit of elbow grease to get moving—Robin stripped off his shirt before starting to push, knowing he’d be uncomfortably hot otherwise. His head dropped as he put the weight of his body into pushing the beam, and it wasn’t until the bridge started swinging round that he realised he had observers on the towpath side.

Dan and Mel were standing there, Dan’s bike laden with his camera bags, both grinning like morons. Dan gave a wolf whistle, and Robin flushed, getting even more flustered as he saw Dan get his camera out. Once the bridge was fully open, he went to put his T-shirt back on.

“Don’t you dare cover up that gorgeous body,” Dan shouted across the canal. “I need a photo of you driving your boat like that.” Mel said something Robin couldn’t hear. “Sorry,
steering
your boat. And don’t worry, you can sign the release form later.”

Release form? What the fuck? But the heat in Dan’s gaze stirred something inside him, and Robin had the sudden urge to flaunt himself.

“Watch this,” he said, grinning at Dan before running and leaping onto the first of the boats. He landed on the deck with a
thunk
, sprang up onto the gunwales and launched himself onto the small cruiser that was next in line. A couple more jumps, a momentary pause to whip undone his hitch, and he was back on
Serendipity
. He ran down the roof, vaulted over the woodpile and landed with a twist on the tiny back deck. He could hear the clapping from the other side of the canal and looked up to meet Dan’s admiring gaze…and a decidedly knowing smile from Mel.

“Better get your camera ready,” he called to Dan over the noise of the engine before putting
Serendipity
in gear. He steadfastly refused to look Dan’s way as he steered through the narrow passage, keeping his face set in a serious expression, but it was hard to resist the smile that twitched at his lips as Dan called out instructions like an uber-camp fashion photographer. At one point he had to turn away and hide his face.

“That’s beautiful, darling. We’ll have a pout next time, okay? That’s it, oooh, sexy. Now, imagine you’re a tiger.”

“Piss off!” Robin’s laughter broke the surface, and he turned to see Dan still watching him through the camera’s lens with a mischievous grin. He turned away again, concentrating on steering
Serendipity
into the short stretch of bank on this side of the bridge. This time there were no boats to leap over, but Dan continued snapping away as Robin swung the bridge back across the canal. It was hard to know where to look. He’d never been particularly at ease with having his picture taken—every year growing up, his mother had complained about yet another scowl in their annual family portrait shot.

The bridge was still moving as Dan stepped onto it and strode over with an expression that did funny things to Robin’s insides. He leant on the other side of the beam as Robin wiped the sweat from his brow with his T-shirt before pulling it on over his head.

“That was quite a performance. I had no idea you were so athletic.” Robin could hear the lust roughening Dan’s voice, and he swallowed hard. He looked down at Dan’s chest, displayed provocatively in a tight red T-shirt with “flirt” written across the front in bold script.

“There’s a lot of things you don’t know about me.”

“I look forward to finding them all out. Later…” Dan ran a finger along Robin’s forearm, and Robin wanted to pull him closer. But he couldn’t. Not here. Not in public. He looked across to where Mel was tapping her foot, hands on her hips.

“So where are you off to?” Dan asked. “Not trying to escape me, I hope. I’m pretty persistent, you know.”

“We’re already late,” Mel called, “so if you could stop chatting up the locals for five minutes, we need to get to Smiler’s before he changes his mind about this.”

“Smiler? I thought you were only interested in boaters?” Robin said.

“Oh, I am, don’t you worry,” Dan purred, his finger tracing a line over Robin’s jaw. “But as he’s a splash of local colour, I figured I should go and investigate. I do love those crazy, rustic types, even when they threaten me.”

“Not sure what he’ll say.” Robin apprised Dan’s figure-hugging outfit, which screamed GAY at the same time as making his mouth water. “Probably tell you to ‘get orf’ his land.”

“Well, I’m hoping he’ll let me take a little break. I’m not finding my bike seat too comfortable today.” Robin flushed, and Dan took advantage of his mortification by planting a quick kiss on his lips. “See you later, sexy.”

Robin closed his eyes and deliberately calmed his breathing. When he finally opened them, Dan and Mel were both mounted on their bikes, watching him. He raised his hand in a feeble wave, and they blew him kisses before setting off, the mock grimace on Dan’s face as he lowered himself onto his seat no doubt all for Robin’s benefit. Bastard.

But Robin couldn’t tear his eyes away. He kept watching until the red of Dan’s T-shirt disappeared into the distance.

“Robin, darling, have you been avoiding my calls? You know how I worry about you all alone on that awful boat.”

Robin held the phone away from his ear and could still hear his mother’s strident tones blaring out at him. He walked back to the boat to check the level of water in the tank before interrupting her torrent of words.

“Don’t worry, I’ve just been moored up where there’s no reception. I called you as soon as I got your messages. There was no need to leave so many.” He hadn’t bothered listening to the last six, deleting them straight away.

“Well, don’t you think you should be moored up somewhere with the basics of civilisation? What if there was an emergency? You know I’m only saying it because I care, darling. Why not get yourself a place in a marina? I’ve been looking into it, and there’s one down by the Aqueduct that looks lovely. Your father and I would pay for you.”

For crying out loud! “It’s not about the money. I don’t like living so close to everyone else. What’s the point in living on a boat if you don’t keep moving around, seeing new places?”

He heard a loud sniff. “Well, I’ve never been able to understand the appeal of living on one of those death traps anyway. Honestly, Robin, wouldn’t you prefer a proper house somewhere? I don’t like the idea of you living like some kind of gypsy. It was bad enough when you got all those tattoos and decided you were part-time gay. Do you plan on spending your whole life doing things that make me worry about you?”

Robin ground his teeth and bit back all the things he really wanted to say. “This isn’t about you, Mum. It’s about what I want. Now, do you have something to tell me about Miri or not?”

Fortunately, the chance to speak about the impending grandchild was irresistible to his mum, and Robin’s mind drifted as she chattered on about the designer nursery décor and developmental toys that Miranda’s lawyer husband had been able to provide for the baby. Poor little Patrick Oswald, not even born yet and already his whole life was mapped out for him. They’d probably hothouse the kid so he could turn into one of those freaky child prodigies and make up for Robin’s fucked-up life. He shoved the phone between his ear and shoulder as he turned off the water tap and reeled in his hosepipe, barely paying attention to the aural onslaught.

“I said, will you be around on Saturday? Your father has a ticket for the rugby, and Miranda and I are going to hit the shops in Bath for baby things. They have some of the cutest little outfits. Then I thought we could all go for lunch together.”

Saturday? Robin realised he had no idea if Dan would still be around on Saturday. “Umm, I’m not sure, I might have plans.”

“You might have plans? You either do or you don’t. Why not check your diary?”

“You know I don’t keep a diary.”

“Yes, well, I give you one for Christmas every year, so I don’t know why you don’t use the bloody things. Honestly, Robin, your handwriting isn’t that bad. I remember your tutors saying that you just needed to put in more regular practise rather than spending all your time fooling around with that hooligan boyfriend of yours.”

He really didn’t want to have this conversation right now. “Fine! Look, I’ll be there. Just leave a message to remind me. I might be out of reception for a while, but I’ll cycle somewhere with a signal every day.”