Page 21 of Forbidden Lust

They washed each other in the shower and dried off, before Daniel pulled together some cold meats and cheese with bread. Neither of them were hungry after that lunch, so a snack would see them through to tomorrow morning.

Josh took out plates and wine glasses, and set the table in Daniel’s kitchen diner. It was oddly domestic, and he loved it. He finished plating the food and took it over to the table, as Josh was looking over the photos he had on his bookshelf. He didn’t have many on display, just those of the most important people in his life. He noticed Josh was quiet and lingering on one particular photo. Daniel wasn’t sure which one it was, so he walked over. He looked at Josh and was taken aback. He looked like he’d just seen a ghost.

“What’s wrong, Josh?”

“What’s his name?” he asked, pointing at a photo of Gavin, his wife, and two daughters.

“That’s my best friend, Gavin.”

“Gavin Wilcox.”

“How did you –”

“He’s my father.”

Daniel stared at him, unsure if he’d heard correctly. The look of pain in Josh’s eyes told him he hadn’t. This couldn’t be true. They’d been friends for twenty years and knew everything about each other. He would know if Gavin had another kid. And the arsehole Josh was describing earlier was not the man who was like a brother to Daniel. There was no way they were the same people.

Josh walked over to the table and picked up his phone. He scrolled to something and showed it to Daniel. It was the contact details of “sperm donor,” but the number didn’t look right. You rarely remembered people’s phone numbers these days, but Gavin’s was one he knew by heart. He’d had the same number for two decades.

“That’s not his number,” said Daniel, but he wasn’t feeling any sense of relief.

He grabbed his phone and scrolled to Gavin’s phone number. He compared the two. They weren’t the same.

“Is that his personal number?” asked Josh.

He nodded.

“You need to check his work number. He would never give me his personal phone number.”

Daniel flashed with anger. Who the fuck was this arsehole? Because he wasn’t the man he’d loved like a brother for twenty years. He scrolled to Gavin’s work mobile number and put the two phones side by side. Daniel felt like he’d been punched in the gut. There it was, in black and white. Josh was Gavin’s son. A million things flashed through his mind. How had Gavin not told him he had another kid? Josh would have been five when they first met. Had he reallytreated Josh the way he’d described? That wasn’t Gavin. He adored his daughters and was the epitome of a super dad. Then there was the kicker; Daniel had fucked his best friend’s son, and not just once, but a lot, and he wanted to do it again. That was the reality. This changed nothing for Daniel, other than that he wanted to have a strong word with Gavin and find out what the fuck he was playing at.

Coming to his senses, he realised Josh had disappeared. Where the fuck was he? Daniel went to his bedroom and saw Josh packing up his stuff.

“Josh, what are you doing?”

“I think it’s best if I leave.”

“Why? We should talk about this.”

“What is there to talk about?”

“The fact you’re my best friend’s son.”

“And that’s the issue, Daniel. He’s your best friend, and getting to know you this weekend, it’s obvious you know a very different Gavin from the one who’s my sperm donor. I won’t come between that. He doesn’t need to know about this.”

“What are you talking about?”

“We both know this thing between us was just lust, and on Monday morning we’d go back to reality and we’d have a few awkward looks whenever you came into the office to see Oscar.”

“No, that’s not... I’d never treat you like that, Josh.”

“I know you wouldn’t. You’re a good man, but...” he said, getting choked up. “I would never be anything more than a fuck to someone like you.”

He’d packed all his stuff and was zipping up his bag. Daniel had to say something. He didn’t want Josh to leave, but his head was spinning. He had to speak to Gavin, but his priority right now was Josh.

“Thank you for a wonderful weekend, Daniel. I’ll never forget it,” he said, kissing him on the cheek.

His eyes were flooded with tears, and the pain written all over his face was an image of everything Daniel was feeling right now. He gripped Josh’s arm.

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