Page 14 of Your Pace or Mine
Darius narrowed his eyes. “What did you say, Jax?”
Jackson mumbled something imperceptible. Then cleared his throat. “No comment.”
“What?”
“No comment, I said, no comment.”
That was not good. Darius had been through countless hours of media training and knew well enough that declining to comment just left room for whatever story they were spinning in their heads. Anders might not be media, but he seemed to have the uncanny ability to smell blood in the water that they did.
“Why would you say that?” Darius asked. He was trying to be objective, but couldn’t help some of the hurt creeping through. “And did anyone hear?”
“I don’t know,” Jackson wailed. “I panicked, and…”
“And?”
“Well, things have been kind of weird with us this year, and I guess I was thinking about that, and Anders caught me off guard.”
Thingshadbeen weird. Mostly since Jackson had put a stop to the benefits element of their friends with benefits situation. Darius hadn’t really thought much of it. They just needed to find their rhythm again. It wasn’t like he had been harbouring some deep romantic feelings for Jackson. The thing between them was just convenience. He was a good mate and fun to hook up with, but they were hardly going to leap into each other’s arms and share dramatic kisses at the finish line of their next race. He really didn’t want to lose him as a friend, though; he didn’t have many of those.
“We’ll be fine, right?” Darius asked. Far more worried about losing one of the few people he could relax around than any unsavoury articles the tabloids may publish.
“Yeah, I mean. If you can forgive me for the Anders thing.”
“I doubt he could hate me more than he already does. He’s just fishing for reasons at this point, and that article would have happened either way.”
Jackson nodded. “You could always set him straight on that, make them all eat their words… if you considered coming out.”
“I am out.”
That earned Darius an eye roll. “Publicly, Darius.”
“I don’t want to make a big show of things, you know how my father hates seeing our family in the tabloids, and even if I was going to, it seems too contrived to do it now,” he said. “Besides, it’s not like I have anyone to come out for.”
“You could, though, and it’d be a lot easier if half the people you meet didn’t assume you were a bigot.”
Darius sank further into the sofa. “Maybe.” He sighed. He really wanted to change the topic. This was too much introspection for him. Jax was a romantic at heart, and Darius knew he wanted to find someone. Darius didn’t need romance in his life, all it brought was problems. He’d learned that early on from his parents’ dramatic split and the subsequent battles over finances before his mum had disappeared back to Spain with her lover.
His dad had become even more closed off then; colder and more prone to reminding Darius and Selena just how the world really worked. ‘No one cares about you, only what you can give them,’ he’d say, or his favourite. ‘If you weren’t rich, they wouldn’t bother with your name, let alone your company.’Maybe he was right.
“What about you? Anyone special?”
Jackson flushed. “I don’t know. Maybe, I mean. There was that hot brunette…”
Darius could tell he was holding something back, but he didn’t push.
“Besides, I’m sure the Olympic Village will be full of fit people looking for a bit of fun, we’ll both do well there. That is, if you aren’t tied down to Jaaaamieee by then.”
“You’re ridiculous. Why are we friends?” Darius asked.
Jackson winked at him. “Best friends, you know that, right?” He threw his hoodie on as he headed for the door. “We’re cool, though?”
“Of course we are,” Darius replied. And he meant it.
“And you’ll be back at the clinic again this week, right? Don’t let Anders get you down. I know it was kind of, well, awful at the start there.”
“You mean when he implied to everyone that I was classist and homophobic?”
“Yeah, and I guess that article won’t have helped,” Jackson grimaced.
