Decadent (7 page)

Konnor stood on Cormag's doorstep, his temper rising to boiling point. He held Lachlan's phone in his right hand, continually pressing the redial button with his thumb whenever the call rang off, while using his index finger to press the doorbell. His own mobile was in his left hand, which called the house phone continually with a quick press of redial, while he used his heel to pound on the door. He figured there was no way they could avoid him now.

But there was a nagging feeling in the back of his head that said he'd be a total asshole if Cormag opened the door and he found that Lachlan wasn't there. But he'd rather be an asshole than have to live with himself if he had been taken advantage of by a complete stranger.

When the door finally opened
, Cormag was fully dressed, which surprised him. Albeit it was only loose joggers and a t-shirt, but it was more than he expected. Konnor was about to open his mouth with an onslaught of abuse when a hand grabbed his jacket lapel and dragged him into the house. His mind instantly ran through all the terrible possibilities.

Cormag was a big guy; nearly six feet tall, well built and obviously worked out. He could have been a serial killer, he might try to have sex with him now that he was finished with Lachlan, he might even be one of those slave traders his mother kept warning him about. Why did he never take anyone seriously until it was too late?

“Give me the phones,” he ordered sternly.

He wasn't about to question a serial killer, so Konnor handed over both mobile phones and felt his heart rate speed up as he watched Cormag cancel all calls and switch the phones off. His only line of communication with the outside world was gone.

“About fucking time.”

Konnor found his anger rising again when he heard that complaint. It was Lachlan and his voice was coming from down the hall. He pushed past Cormag and turned into the first room on the right, where he found Lachlan sitting up, in a strange bed, with a duvet bunched around his waist. He was holding a hand to his head and wincing. His anger faded to concern.

“Are you all right?” he asked, ready to commit some homicide of his own if he found out that he'd been drugged or Cormag had got him drunk again to take advantage of him.

“No, I'm not all right. There's a marching band screaming at me in my head and some asshole was making it worse with incessant phone calls a
nd pounding on the fucking door,” he shouted at him. Konnor had never seen him this way before. “I hate you. You, telephones, alcohol, my own damned head. I hate all of you. I want to kill
all
you,” he shouted, grasping his head while making zero amount of sense.

“And you were so
bright and cheery a minute ago,” Cormag commented from behind him.

Konnor ground his teeth as he spotted the cheeky smile Lachlan gave the guy. He threw the covers and back and got out of bed wearing a pair of joggers that weren't his. They were too big for him, riding low on his hips, but at least he was wearing something as he walked to a door in the corner of the room and disappeared inside. The sound of a tap running let him guess at a bathroom. This was so wrong.

Lachlan was his best friend, but he was shy and nervous around other people, so how the hell did he end up in Cormag's bed if he wasn't shocked to find himself there?
He
had never shared a bed with him before, even in a friendly capacity, because his best bud was so stupidly insecure about himself that he refused to allow it. And they were best friends.

“I swear, if you tou
ched him I'll have you arrested,” Konnor threatened Cormag openly as he marched across to the closed door of the bathroom and knocking. Lachlan opened it, while standing brushing his teeth in front of a mirror. “Here. I brought your stuff,” he explained, taking the rucksack off his shoulder and handing it through the gap in the door. Lachlan didn't say anything; he nodded to him and shut the door. He wasn't acting normal at all. It was disturbing. But there wasn't anything he could do.

Konnor watched, unhappily as Cormag disappeared into the bathroom as well. He looked around the bedroom for somewhere to sit and wait, but everywhere was a mess. There was a pile of clothes on the only seat in the room, clothes strewn across the floor and the bed was in a right mess. He didn't even want to think what had gone on in that room before he showed up. So he stood in the middle of the room, waiting.

It irked him, as he waited ten minutes for anyone to show up, that the whole time he could hear talking and laughing behind the bathroom door. Lachlan shouldn't be so happy; he should be hung over, feeling like an idiot, hating himself for being reckless and getting himself into a situation he couldn't explain. He shouldn't be flirting and laughing with the guy who had allowed that to happen.

But when he finally appeared, fully dressed and looking refreshed, Lachlan wandered around the room picking up his clothes and stuffing them into the rucksack he'd brought him.

“Are you going to tell me where you were all night?” Konnor asked, wanting some kind of explanation that said his brain was lying to him and he was exaggerating. Instead Lachlan raised an eyebrow and gestured to the room.

“
Right here,” he said, as if thinking anything else was plain stupid.

“Tell me you d
idn't let him have sex with you,” he begged Lachlan to tell him the truth. He didn't want to have to feel guilty or think that it was his fault that his friend had been taken advantage of when he was vulnerable. But he didn't expect the reaction he got; Lachlan stalled as he began making the bed and turned to glare at him. The look in his eyes was hateful. He had never seen him look that way at anyone before.

“Am I the only one who doesn't think sex is the most
important thing in the world?” he asked, before throwing down the duvet and leaving the room.

Konnor was stunned and actually flinched when he slammed the door behind him. He stood there, staring at the closed door, wondering what the hell was going on. First he started thinking seriously about Orion and thinking about proposing to her. Now he was going out, getting drunk, skiving school and disappearing with strange men, ending up in bed with them. What was he supposed to think? Lachlan wasn't Lachlan anymore…God help him, he was turning into Konnor.

He
was the one who acted reckless and slept around, the one who said 'fuck the world and everyone in it' so that he could do what he wanted without consequences. Lachlan had always been there to straighten him out, to contain him and get him out of trouble. Now that Lachlan needed him to be the one to take on that role, he had no clue what to do with himself. This was uncharted waters…what was he supposed to do?

“He's still a bit hungover.” Cormag's voice interrupted his musings.

Konnor was forced to actually look at the guy. He was standing in the bathroom door with a towel around his waist, looking deadly serious.

“You might as well know that we didn't have sex. Not that it's any of your business, but I like Lachlan a lot and I wouldn't rush him into anything. But you
are
going to have to accept that he likes me and we
will
be seeing each other again,” he said, as if he had no choice in the matter.

But he did. He knew Lachlan and no matter what Cormag thought this wasn't him.

“What? Did you think that you'd show up, talk trash about me and Lachlan would suddenly come to his senses and forget I exist?” he asked with a quirk to his smile.

Konnor hated him for being so casual about everything and making out like he knew anything about what Lachlan felt and how he was going to react. He didn't.
He
was the only one who knew the real Lachlan and he would talk until he was blue in the face to get him back to normal. This…this
thing
with Cormag…was
not
normal.

“Don't insult my intelligence, Konnor. I know you don't like me and in a way I understand that. This is sudden for you, but you will have to accept that
this is something Lachlan is trying to understand. God help me, I tried to talk him out of it.” He chuckled, a sadness in his eyes that surprised him. Konnor could tell that he was telling the truth, but that didn't help him and it didn't explain what was going on with Lachlan either. “But this is how he feels and we have to respect that and do what we can to make him happy. I'm not going anywhere,” he promised, as if that was supposed to comfort him.

“I'm here because he needs me to be. To help him adjust to this new feeling, to help him deal with the break up; I'll be here for anything he needs. But if you keep making this about sex you're going to alienate him even more than you have already.” Cormag kept talking, but nothing made sense.

Konnor felt sick, if he was honest. His insides felt like even they were shaking at the thought of losing Lachlan to this older guy. He looked at least five years older than them, all pure muscle and shaggy hair. He had that frustratingly casual look that said he woke up looking incredible with no amount of effort. He couldn't help but reach up to his own well kept hair and fiddle with it nervously. If Lachlan was exploring an attraction to guys, why did it have to be this one? He was exactly what Lachlan would want and need right now.

He took a deep breath and reminded himself that no matter what happened he could never lose Lachlan; they were best buds and always would be. This stranger wasn't going to change that, so he might as well figure this out. “What does that mean?” he asked, cautiously.

“It means that last night you dragged his ass off a stool in the bar so that he couldn't kiss me, even though he wanted to. This morning you dialled up his hangover and didn't think anything of it. You've done nothing but act like a selfish shit since you met me and I'm sick of it,” Cormag confessed, only to sigh and shake his head. “But I'm not what matters,” he said, which was the first sensible thing he'd said since he met him.

“No, you're not. La
chlan is what matters,” he agreed.

“Exactly. And what hurts him the most is that he counted on you to be the only one he could be himself with and all you did was disappoint him.” He shrugged, as if it was simple. But it wasn't simple. It was a load of shit.

And he would never admit it to this stranger, but it hurt to hear that he'd disappointed him. It couldn't be true. Lachlan would tell him the truth. He'd tell him that Cormag was a one night drunken mistake or a one off experimentation because he was doubting himself after what Orion had done. Yes…he'd say that and it would be okay. He'd be there for him, to help him figure things out. To ground him again. It was his job to be there when he needed him.

“Don't talk to me about Lachlan. You don't even know him.” Konnor objected to having a complete stranger trying to tell him how Lachlan was feeling or what he was thinking. He was decided; if Lachlan wanted to experiment then that's what they would do. But they would do it at home, in a safe environment with no strangers involved.

He headed for the door, planning to find Lachlan and get the hell out of the house and get his friend home. He would sober him up and then they would have a long chat about what the hell he'd been thinking.

“Whatever. Ask him and h
e'll tell you himself,” Cormag called after him.

Lachlan wasn't pleased about the fact that Konnor chose to stay and wait for him. He was trying to push him into going home again, as he'd done last night at the bar. Since he refused to go and he wasn't going to let him dictate where he went or who he went with, he started giving him the silent treatment. At least until he apologised for claiming he was a total slut who jumped into bed with anyone who asked.

Yes, he'd been in Cormag's bed, but he would never have left the bar with him if he thought sex was all he was after. Konnor wouldn't even listen when he tried to explain that they hadn't even done anything more than kiss.

So by the time Cormag got himself organised for the day and ventured into the kitchen to grab a coffee he found the room in total silence. He sat on the opposite side of the breakfast counter from Konnor, avoiding eye contact. “I made breakfast to go.” Lachlan handed him a coffee cup and a bagel loaded with his favourite morning treat; bacon.

“Thanks. I'm starving,” he confessed, tucking into his bagel right away. He was going to take a seat when Lachlan got up and handed him his jacket. “So you remembered that I've got to go to work?” he asked, teasingly.

He gave him a playful shove in retaliation for teasing him. He hadn't been that drunk when he told him; in fact, it had been late on in the evening and he'd only had one beer and a few bottles of water since being at the bar. He'd been entirely sober at the time. But he wasn't going to argue about it. He lifted his coat and his mug of coffee, heading to the door.

“Yes, I remembered,” he confessed with a faint smile, as he shook his head. He could see that Konnor didn't approve, but he didn't care. He had finally followed his advice and done something stupid and reckless and downright dangerous and it had paid off. He didn't feel so lost when he was with Cormag and the whole thing with Orion didn't feel as hopeless when he was around him. Maybe it was because he was older and had his own experience of break ups, or maybe it was that soothing presence he had that seemed to relax every bone in his body.

“
Can I come with you? I'll pay,” he offered as they both headed through to the living room by instinct.

Cormag picked up his messenger bag and slung it over his head, grabbing his keys as he turned to evaluate him. He knew
that look by now. He was weighing up his options, so he stood there and let it happen. Cormag took another bite of his bagel. Lachlan was embarrassed by the way his cheeks burned at the look, but it seemed his companion approved because he took his hand and led him to the front door.

“You can tag along. I'll say you're my
research assistant or something,” he relented. Lachlan scored himself a point for the fact that he was going to make up an excuse to get him in on the tour. He could have simply claimed he was a last minute student.

They both stood on the doorstep, drinking out their coffee cups while Cormag polished off his breakfast. They waited on Konnor, who eventually appeared with his head down and his hands in his pockets. He didn't look at either of them, he kept walking down the steps and over to his car. Lachlan decided not to care; he was feeling a little impatient and hoped that it was because he was still feeling a little delicate from his 'gentle' hangover.

Cormag looked up at him as he locked the door, a questioning concern in his eyes. He wasn't sure how he knew, he just did. He shrugged in reply, not knowing what to say and as clueless about how Konnor was taking the whole thing. To his surprise Konnor didn't drive off; he sat behind the wheel and stayed there, staring straight ahead.

“Do you think he'd give us a lift?” Lachlan asked hopefully.

“I think that would be asking too much.” Cormag gave him that sympathetic look that said he understood why he asked, but he also understood that Konnor wasn't in the mood.

“Come on,” Lachlan decided to go for it. He grabbed his hand and dragged him off towards Konnor's car. He knocked on the window and his friend reluctantly rolled it down, not even looking at t
hem. “Can you give us a lift?” he asked. The museum was a ten minute walk and he wasn't feeling up to it.

“Both of you?” Konnor asked with a raised eyebrow. Lachlan didn't appreciate the question, particularly after he'd used the word 'us'. So he didn't bother answering him. He stood there, staring at him to see if he was going to back down or give up and drive off. “If I drive, you sit in the front and
he's
in the back,” he demanded.

Lachlan stepped back from the car, shaking his head. He wasn't going to let anyone tell him what to do or who to spend time with. Not even
Konnor. “Forget it. We'll walk,” he decided. He turned away and walked in the opposite direction, while taking a sip of his coffee.

Cormag appeared at his side a moment later, reaching into his bag to extract a pair of sunglasses that he handed to him.

“Thanks.” He took them gladly, popped them on right away. He let out a sigh of relief for the fact that the sunshine was a whole lot less startling now. He hoped it helped lessen his headache a little.

“You can still go back and get Konnor
to drop you off, if you want?” he offered.

Instead of arguing, Lachlan took his hand and walked along, quite happily, drinking his coffee and hiding behind the sunglasses. He never said a word about the offer or about Konnor. He didn't want to think about him right now. He was eighteen; he didn't owe anyone an explanation for his actions. He certainly didn't answer to Konnor. Besides, he didn't know how to say it.

They had agreed not to be 'official' boyfriends, to see how it went as they spent time together. In his head that translated to dating, but he knew that Cormag was a little apprehensive about the whole thing. He thought he was cursed; that as soon as they said the word 'boyfriend' then they were dooming whatever was between them. So he was content not to label their relationship right now, until he realised that he wasn't going to scare him off. But it did make it damned difficult to explain.

Instead of worrying about it he asked all about the tour Cormag was covering for a friend at the last minute. It was the only reason he had to be up so early on a Saturday morning and once it was over, they would get to spend some time together. He was looking forward to it.

***

Lachlan sat outside the office to check his mobile, while Cormag sorted out some paperwork and talked to his boss about letting him join the tour. There were countless texts and voice mail messages from Konnor and Coly, asking where he was and wanting reassurance that he was safe. He deleted them all. He composed a generic text that he could s
end to everyone who was worried.

I'm fine. Konnor got his knickers in a twist for nothing. I'll see you on Monday.
He promised, sending the same text to Coly, Jax, Justice and Hayes.

There was only one voice mail from his mother, so he pressed the button and listened,

“
Hello honey, I wanted to let you know that Konnor called. He said something happened at school so you left. We'll talk about it later, but I thought I should warn you that he got your father all up to high doh. Be safe and have a nice time. Don't get into too much trouble,
” she said, with a humour in her voice that he loved.

He figured she was glad that he was spreading his wings a little and she trusted him to be sensible. It was typical that his dad was freaking out now, though. He was the only one he worried about.

He decided to call her back, unsurprised that her work phone went straight to the messaging service. “Hey Mum, it's me checking in. I guess Konnor got you all worked up about nothing because I was fine. He knew that, but…well, we're having some issues at the moment.” Lachlan wanted to be honest with his mother, since she had been good to him no matter what he did to deserve it. She only ever wanted him to be happy, so he hoped that she trusted him.

“And I wanted to tell you before anyone else did that Orion and I broke up. But I think it's going to be okay. She's with someone else now and…and I think I've found someone too. I can't go into it in a message, but I'll talk to you more about it tonight. I get home from work around ten so I'll bring in some munchies and we can have a chat.” He thought of his talk with his mother. They used to have them more when he was younger, but his work schedule quickly got in the way. Tonight he was going to bring her favourite ice cream home and hope that she understood about Cormag. “I love you
, Mum; I don't tell you enough. I'll see you tonight,” he promised, before hanging up.

“Everything all right?” Cormag asked as he left his office.

“Yeah. Fine.” Lachlan had no trouble admitting than everything was going well. With the exception of Konnor.

“Well, we got the go ahead so let's go do this tour.”

Lachlan put his phone off and shoved it in his jean pocket, following Cormag into the main exhibition room; there was a glass door dividing it from the reception area where a group of ten people were hanging around. He was surprised to see that they were mostly of his own age, all with bags, notepads and eager looks on their faces.

“The group is a scheduled tour from the local college, Briarwood. These kids are taking a History lecture thi
s year, based on the World Wars,” Cormag explained quietly, before opening the door and walking into the reception area. He caught everyone's attention immediately; the chatter died down and everyone turned to stare at their guide expectantly.

“All right everyone, we're going to start the tour in a minute. I'm Cormag and I'll be your guide. Please remember that the museum is open to the public today so I'd like to keep the noise to a minimum. Before we go anywhere I need you all to switch off your mobile phones and put away any cameras you've brought.” He made the announcement like a real professional.

Lachlan was surprised to see the change in him, from lonely, intellectual history buff to calm and collected tour guide. He was even more surprised when he spotted Konnor standing at the back of the tour, switching off his mobile phone. He was the only one who had to since the college kids seemed to know the routine.

Once everyone was abiding by the rules
, Lachlan got a quick glance of surprise when Cormag spotted Konnor. Then, as if it had never happened, he turned to the receptionist who handed over a stack of ID visitor tags and a clipboard.

“Thank you. Now, if you want pictures for your presentations there is a machine in the shop. You select the object or display that you want an image of, from a list of provided photographs by the museum and pay a pound for each set of ten p
hotographs you order,” Cormag talked as he handed out the tags. Most of the students tagged them to the strap of their bags or their jacket lapels. Lachlan clipped his on his jean pocket.

“It's like any ordinary photo printing machine. It's all instant and you can take them away with you when you leav
e to do what you want with them,” he explained as he opened the door and ushered everyone through it. “You can have as many copies of each item as you need as long as you pay. The museum is community funded, so we need all the help we can get,” he reminded them that all donations were greatly received. Then, with everyone looking eager and cheerful, he let the door shut and began leading the way to the first exhibit.

“Now, as we go through the tour, I don't doub
t you'll have questions,” he said, as he walked backwards through the room. “But if you can contain them you will have a chance to ask questions after each stop on the tour. If I miss you at one stop don't forget to catch me at the next. We have a lot of ground to cover and not a lot of time to do it,” he explained, weaving his way skilfully through the displays and public visitors.

With the tour under way
, Lachlan made his way to the back of the group and pulled Konnor aside. He didn't want some angry college kid shouting at him for interrupting the tour or getting in Cormag's way, so he dragged him over to the side of the room where it was quiet.

“
What are you doing here?” he asked, worried that he was going to try to ruin the tour on purpose or that he was going to go all crazy stalker on him and try to prove his theory that Cormag was useless and a user.

“You're my best friend, Lachl
an, and I won't let you do this,” Konnor began, before he stopped him. He put his hand over his mouth, shutting him up quite effectively.

“
Not another word,” he warned him, before removing his hand. He looked around so no-one was able to hear him and gave Cormag a quick glance, to see that he was in full swing of a story. “Whatever you think you're doing or saying, stop. I don't want to hear it. So, yes, maybe I'm not exactly gay, but I'm into Cormag. I like him, Konnor. I like him a lot. I think-” Lachlan sighed and looked back at Cormag again before taking a deep breath. He had to say it because Konnor wouldn't understand otherwise, but it was tricky. He didn't know the right words. All he knew was how he felt.

“I've been thinking about it and I don't think I was ever really straight. I like who I like so…as far as labels are concerned, I'm…open to anything.” He hated putting a label on himself and putting himself in a box, but he believed that it was the only thing that would shut Konnor up. He looked shocked for a moment and angry again.