“Hey, buddy, he went to a lot of trouble to make those cupcakes. He must really like you even though you were an idiot to him.”
“I was, wasn’t I?”
“Yep. But I get that his coming out is a big decision. I just can’t stand to see you so low.”
“Yeah, I know. I have to do some thinking, fast.”
“So quit stalling and go think.”
He nodded. “Thanks.”
“Always a pleasure.”
He gathered his stuff and pedaled home. Dharmaram sat on the couch in front of the TV, drinking beer as usual. Micah ignored him, scooped up Furtwangler, and walked straight to his bedroom.
He put the cat on the bed and changed into a pair of sweats. Furtwangler watched intently. Micah sat opposite him. “Okay, buddy, wise old cat time. I’m tired. Tired of not sleeping. Tired of living with someone I don’t like. Tired of, well, to be honest, tired of not having Queen. I miss him. I don’t know if we’re meant to be a couple, but I’m sure as hell not going to find out this way. I want to protect Queen from Fuckface out there, but this doesn’t feel like the right way to go about it. What should I do?”
“Merwaor.”
“Yeah. I think so too. I’ll sleep on it, and as soon as I open my eyes, I’ll know what course of action to take, right?”
“Merwaor.”
He nodded. “Let’s turn in, watch a little TV, and wait for the final answer.”
He took off his sweats, pulled back the covers, and crawled under. He grabbed the remote for the bedroom TV and turned on a cop show. Cop shows bored him and were guaranteed to put him to sleep fast. Furtwangler padded across the comforter and snuggled against Micah’s side.
Micah took a deep breath and let it out slowly. He petted the slightly rough old coat of fur and got an appreciative purr. Ancient cat wisdom. There was nothing quite like it. His eyes closed.
Chapter Seven
THE INFOMERCIAL chatted through his consciousness. A juicer guaranteed to keep all the vitamins in. Fat chance.
What? What was that? Jesus!
Micah threw off the covers and bounded a foot off the bed. “What the fuck do you think you’re doing?”
Dharmaram sat up, which brought his highly erect cock into a full upright position.
“Fuck is the operative word, darling. I’m horny.”
“Ask me if I care. Get out of my bed now. Room and board does not include that board.” He pointed at Dharmaram’s stiffy. “Now get it out of here.”
“I can te-elllll.”
Micah’s hands on his hips probably looked pretty funny since he was stark naked.
“If you’re going to tell, tell. I told you I’d give you a place to stay for a while. No other benefits go with that arrangement.”
“You used to love me to fuck you.” Dharmaram stuck out a pouty lip.
“No I didn’t. I just said I did.” Micah stared at the handsome man he’d once thought he loved. Hell, next to Quentin, this guy was a joke—but not a funny one. And Micah had compromised himself and his life by having Dharmaram around. Quentin wouldn’t want that, Micah was sure. “Get out.”
“What? No. I’ll go straight to Grandma.”
“Do what you need to do. I need you to get out.” He balled his hands into fists. “Don’t force me to make you leave.”
Dharmaram’s eyes widened. The guy was six feet tall but still a coward. “Come on, Micah. Why wreck a guy’s life if you don’t have to?”
His breath caught. Was he doing that? Wrecking Quentin’s life? No, he wouldn’t listen. “It’s you who has the choice. You’re supposed to be this big, balanced person. That’s a joke. You’re a user who never got his life together. You’re a good teacher, Dharmaram. Grow up.”
“You uptight, self-righteous prig.”
Micah nodded. “Yeah, well, I’m working on that.” He took a step forward. “Get out. And this time for good.”
“Shit.” Dharmaram turned and walked out of the bedroom.
“Merwaor.”
Micah turned to the old cat still sitting in the piles of covers. “Thanks, buddy. We said I’d know what to do as soon as I woke up. You must have made me smarter overnight.”
But now he had to live with the consequences of his actions. He pulled on his underwear, jeans, and socks, threw a sweatshirt over his head, and walked into the guest room, where Dharmaram sat on the edge of the bed dressed in yoga clothes staring at his suitcase. Crap, it almost made Micah sad. Almost. “Do you need me to help you?”
For a second Dharmaram’s face looked lost. Then he scowled. “I don’t need anything from you, loser. I’m leaving and going to the studio. The second Mary Beth comes in, she gets the earful. Stick my stuff outside.”
“With pleasure. Give me the key.” Micah wiggled his fingers. Dharmaram fished in the pocket of his gym pants and pulled it out.
“All the locks will be changed tomorrow, so don’t bother using whatever copies you made.”
“Screw you.”
And for the second time in less than two weeks, Dharmaram left the building.
Micah ran to the kitchen, put out some cat food for Furtwangler, and gave the cat a quick pet. “Wish me luck, buddy. Hopefully I didn’t just screw up two lives.”
He hurried to the garage. No bicycle today. With a ping and whirr, he turned on the Leaf, backed out, and sped to the parking garage on Glenneyre. From there he ran to the cupcake shop.
Gasping for breath, he stopped outside the store. Locked. Of course. It was only eight thirty in the morning. At least Dharmaram’s class didn’t start until nine. If only Quentin would come here to the shop right after he dropped off his grandmother. Or maybe even before. Oh God. What if he went in and Dharmaram confronted them together? No warning. Just a smack in the face. Maybe he should run to the yoga studio? He took two steps down the pavement—
“Micah?”
He turned back to see that beautiful face. A beautiful face
