Page 77 of Learning to Run

Okay, well, it might not have been much of a fuss but Cashcouldn’t handle it any more than Brady could because he broke really fast.“It’s okay. Brady can ask about me.”

Bates and I looked so surprised, Jude laughed. “It’s okay totell Bambi no. He’s not going to die if he hears the word, no matter what hethinks.”

I wasn’t so sure about that but contradicting Jude seemedrude. Bates seemed to be on the same page because he was coughing and lookingdown at his plate like the last few bites of his meal was suddenly veryinteresting.

I liked how he was letting Cash decide what he wascomfortable with, but I was pretty sure we needed to work on Bates’s poker facea bit more.

“It’s fine.” Cash sat straighter and shot Bates a look thatI thought meant he should stop fighting off the giggles and behave.

It didn’t help Bates’s giggles at all, but aside fromrolling his eyes, Cash seemed to understand how hard it was. “I don’t need twoboyfriends to be happy in general. I fell in love with Bates and he helped merealize that I’d already loved Gareth like a boyfriend. We just hadn’t seeneach other that way, and I think we need Bates to balance us out.”

Oh, he’d done a good job of explaining how he was feelingwithout actually mentioning any of the interesting bits. Bates’s lips werepinched together making me think he’d noticed that too, but he managed not tolaugh or sigh, unlike Jude.

He was such a tattletale.

“Wait.” Brady frowned, looking around the table again. “Whatam I missing?”

A lot.

“I don’t know but it felt like he said a lot of nothing.”Jude shrugged. “It’s probably just me being suspicious. Sorry.”

Well, that was kind of polite?

Cash must’ve been thinking something along the same linesbecause he sighed. “I’m really not used to talking about myself like this andit has nothing to do with family or not. I’m just…I’ve never come out aboutanything.”

He was right.

Most kids at school had assumed he was gay from prettyyoung, so he’d just never denied it. We might’ve technically come out when we’dtold his parents we were gay but that’d been about it. The moms had only caredbecause they’d been planning on us marrying sisters so we could have some kindof joint wedding.

I’d never bothered to ask if they’d already picked out thegirls, but looking back, that might’ve been kind of odd.

Brady frowned, staring right at Cash. “I’m not supposed tomake anyone come out about anything they’re not ready to. That’s why I can’task questions.”

Was that a way to tell Cash he had to volunteer hisinteresting bits?

Brady was really smart sometimes…and really confusing othertimes.

“Is he manipulating us or being honest?” I figured I mightas well ask since I couldn’t figure it out.

Bates started coughing again as Cash sighed. “Both.”

Oh, well that just made things more interesting.

“I’m a switch. I like dominating Gareth but I likesubmitting to Bates.” Cash waited for that to sink in and Brady’s eyes to lightup. “I don’t need both kinds of relationships to be in love, but I like havingboth of them in my life. It makes me feel good to know that no matter how I’mfeeling, one of my partners can really understand what I need.”

For some reason, Cash turned to me with a questioning lookand just waited.

What the fuck was I supposed to be doing?

“Sir?” I decided to let Bates translate and now it wasCash’s turn to fight off the giggles.

“Cash wants to know if he can talk about his relationshipwith you as he’s describing his dominant side.” Bates quickly translated theexpression, so it’d probably been obvious to everyone else, but I didn’t mindbeing confused.

“Okay, yeah, you can talk about me.” It was just Brady andJude…and well, Brady was family and everyone Brady knew…okay, maybe I could seewhy Cash thought he should ask about it.

Brady might not ask questions but he wasn’t really good atkeeping things to himself.

“Thank you.” Cash reached under the table and squeezed myleg.

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