Page 24 of Poles Apart
“We’ll see. He might be busy for all I know.”
“Come on, Jakey. It’s about time you started living a little. I love you, but I want you to be happy. You’ve spent all this time looking after me and not looking after yourself.”
If he was honest, Jacob didn’t know what to say. Abby saw him, saw his struggle.
“You need someone to take care of you now. I’m sixteen and won’t be here forever. I want to go to university, move away, and where will you be then? Stuck here on your own. I don’t want to feel guilty for moving away. I want to know that you’ll be happy with me gone, and I think Dom could do that.”
Jesus, when did Abby become so observant?
He reached over and held her hand. “I’ll always take care of you; you know that. But you’re right, I need to start getting out there. Problem is, I don’t know where to start.” Abby was about to speak, but Jacob stopped her. “Before you even mention Grindr or hook-ups, I’m going to stop you right there. I’m not doing any of that.”
Abby laughed at him. “How did you know I was going to say that? Iwasgoing to say that you should see where things lead with Dom. He’d be good for you.”
They both carried on eating, Abby intent on putting as much food in as possible, and Jacob pondering what she’d said.
She’d echoed what he’d been thinking, and he knew she was right. When she went away, he’d be left alone. He wouldn’t want her to feel guilty, to not go to university or wherever she wanted to go because she was worried about him being on his own.
After dinner, Abby tidied up the kitchen, and Jacob got his laptop from his bag and started to look at the outdoor centre and what they would need to do to sort this trip out.
It was almost midnight when he finally sat up and looked at what he’d achieved. He’d sorted out the permission letter, counted how many children would go and how many teachers they would need to take with them. He’d emailed the outdoor centre and asked what activities would be available for the children in his class and tried to figure out what would work.
At least he had something he could show Jodie tomorrow, and she’d be happy.
He went to bed, exhausted. It had been a long but productive day and he was looking forward to tomorrow when he would text Dom about going out at the weekend.
Friday morning dawned with dark skies and rain, and he battled through the rush hour traffic to get him and Abby to school on time. He walked into the staff break room to see Colin smirking at him.
“So, Lindsay met Dom then. Said he was proper tasty.”
Jacob looked at him. “Do people still say that these days?” He continued to pour his coffee as Colin buzzed around behind him.
“I don’t know, but she said he was very good-looking, and he apparently was a hit with Ivy. That makes him a good man in my book. You know how shy she normally is around people.”
“Mm, she did mention that. Have to go. See you at break?” Jacob picked up his coffee and left the room. As he got to his classroom, he sat at his desk and took out his phone. He couldn’t wait any longer to message Dom.
Hi, sorry I missed you yesterday. Hope Lindsay didn’t give you too much grief. Are we still on for this weekend?
He contemplated asking him if he was still interested but decided to leave that part off. He didn’t want to borrow trouble.
If so, let me know, and I can book something for us. I’d be happy to pick you up, or we could get a taxi. Jx
As the children filed into the classroom, he put his phone away and prepared to start the day. He spent the next few hours waiting for the tell-tale buzz of his phone, and when it came, it was all he could do not to pick it up and read the message. He managed to resist until lunchtime, and when he read it, he smiled. Operation ‘Get Dom Back’ was still on!
Chapter Thirteen
Dom
After receiving Jacob’s text, Dom agreed to go out with him. They arranged to meet at a Thai restaurant in town at eight but they would arrive separately. Dom figured if Jacob picked him up, it would be too much like a date, and he wasn’t comfortable with that right now.
Friday and Saturday dragged on. He had very little to do. Seb was teaching, and Hayden was busy with the coffee shop. That didn’t leave him much to do, so he occupied himself thinking about the set he could put together for Heaven.
He’d also received a text from Toby, confirming that they’d like to put something on for two weeks’ time, on a Thursday. It wouldn’t interfere with Abby’s lesson as he wouldn’t be needed until around 11 p.m. Toby wouldn’t be able to get a pole fitted in time and had asked if Dom would mind just doing a dancing session.
Dom would have been happy doing anything at this point as long as it was performing. He missed it and was tempted to look for somewhere else he could dance too. Heaven was a great place, but he wasn’t happy with the attention from Toby and his husband. Seemed that Toby had given his number to Owen too, and he’d been receiving texts from them both. He needed to put a stop to that.
Finally though, Saturday arrived, and he dressed in his favourite jeans and shirt. He decided to forgo his heeled boots, opting for a flat black pair instead. He gelled his hair, put on his eyeliner, mascara and a hint of gold on his lids. He remembered back to that night eight years ago when Jacob couldn’t get enough of him, and he smiled at the thought.
Arriving at the restaurant early, he was directed to the bar where he sat waiting for Jacob. He ordered a beer, gazing at the many people. There was a noisy crowd of men sitting not far from him, empty beer bottles littered the table, and he could see they were hassling the waitresses. He heard a number of lewd comments and sexist remarks and was in two minds whether or not to go and have a word, but it wasn’t his place to do so. Plus, they were giants compared to him.
