“So, what got you interested in the recording business?” Tomas took the lead, much to Jaime’s relief.
“I’ve always loved music.” Jaime lit up as he talked about his favorite topic, next to sex. “My mother said the only way she could get me to sleep was to play the loudest music in the house. No lullabies for me. I wanted beats and rhythm. Ever since then, music has kind of been my obsession. Sometimes I can even see the notes and pitches as colors and shades.”
When his ramble came to an end, he was surprised to see how intently Tomas listened. The typical what do you do question was so often just a polite line of small talk. No one really listened to the answer. Usually Jaime encountered glazed eyes when he spoke about his love of music in any detail. Instead, Tomas seemed almost entranced by Jaime’s wonder. A spike of heat rose to Jaime’s cheeks as he took a sip of his drink.
“I know it sounds weird,” Jaime mumbled into his glass.
“No, no.” Tomas reached across the table and stroked Jaime’s hand. The contact was electric and too brief for Jaime’s liking. “Your passion for what you do is amazing. It’s not too often I encounter people who see their job as anything more than a means to an end.”
“You don’t like being a lawyer?” Jaime asked.
“It’s all right.” Tomas shrugged. “Tax law doesn’t exactly take my breath away or inspire me.”
“What does inspire you?” Jaime asked.
The waitress arrived just in time to prevent Tomas from answering. Jaime was curious to know just what made this tax lawyer tick. He seemed so open and honest about everything, but now he was being coy.
“I think the salmon here is probably the best in town.” Tomas seemed more interested in dinner than in answering Jaime’s question.
It seemed so innocuous.
“So where are you from originally?” Tomas asked. “Leila said you moved to town to work at Harlequin Recording.”
“Oh, no you don’t.” Jaime wagged his fork at Tomas. “It was your turn to answer my nonspecific get to know you question.”
Tomas tried to pull off an innocent denial look, but Jaime was an expert at spotting avoidance. That only made Jaime all the more curious as to what Tomas was hiding.
“What was the question?” Tomas took another bite of salmon that was almost as pink as his cheeks.
The more he played coy, the more Jaime was interested.
“You were going to tell me what inspires a tax lawyer,” Jaime prodded.
Tomas’s playful smile dimmed a few watts and he took a sip of wine. He was stalling but Jaime wasn’t about to push the man. Jaime got the impression that whatever Tomas was about to say was going to come straight from the heart. It was hard to believe this man was a lawyer. He must be the most honest lawyer in his firm.
“I’m sorry.” Tomas started playing with his butter knife, flipping it over on its side and back again. “I’m avoiding the question.”
“Yes, you are. And now I’ve got to know.”
Tomas smiled. “Tenacious, aren’t you?”
“When I want something, I go after it with guns blazing.” Jaime was pleased to see Tomas nod his apparent appreciation. “And there’s no pleading the Fifth where I’m concerned.”
“So you believe in honesty?” Tomas seemed to be testing the waters. “Even if it’s not exactly first date material?”
Jaime shrugged. He couldn’t imagine Tomas was the serial killer type or problem gambler. What exactly did he think was not first date material? Maybe he was into some hardcore BDSM.
“I promise not to hold it against you.”
Tomas nodded. “Family. I want to start a family someday.”
Definitely not first date conversation material. Jaime felt the hair on the back of his neck stand at attention. The old Jaime would have been looking for the exits. Instead, Jaime went for his white wine, wishing he’d ordered something a little stronger—like a sedative. More and more of Jaime’s college buddies had been leaving the club scene. He was getting to that age, but he’d never even considered the all-American family as a part of his agenda. Two-point-five children just never figured into his lifestyle, let alone biology.
“I know it sounds pretty lame.”
When Tomas finally looked up from his glass of beer, Jaime saw the sincerity in his eyes.
“Not lame,” Jaime struggled to find the right words to reassure Tomas but not give the man the impression that was the answer he was looking for. “Just unexpected.”
“Most straight men my age are still sowing their wild oats,” Tomas admitted his shameful secret. “I’ve just always wanted to have my own family. Not exactly an easy task for a gay man. But some day I might just meet that lucky man who actually wanted to settle down. My mother’s always asking when she’ll be a grandmother.”
“Optimistic,” Jaime couldn’t help but marvel at the denial some people lived in. “I guess there’s always adoption.”
Tomas nodded. “So I got the degree, the good job and fell in love. The only problem was, he wasn’t ready to commit. I just wish he’d been honest with me about not wanting a family from the beginning.”
“That sounds rough.”
It was the only thing that came to Jaime’s mind other than run. This was far more information than he knew about anyone, let alone a man he had just met. He certainly wasn’t sure he wanted a second date, never mind thinking about starting a family. It was all well and good that he was trying to get more serious, but there was
