JENNIFER LABRECQUE - Red-Hot Nights - Daring in the Dark

Aroused … wait any longer … satisfy me. She talked to Elliot this way and he still got off on someone else? That told Simon all he needed to know about his friend. Since Elliott wasn’t dead, he must be gay.

“Yes. He’s right here. Okay.” She huffed out a breath and handed the phone across to Simon. “He wants to talk to you.”

Simon reluctantly took the phone.

Tawny planted her hands on her hips and glared at him. Brilliant. Forget a private conversation. Not that he blamed her. She had to feel jerked around.

Instinct told him he wasn’t going to like where this was headed. “Elliott?”

“Tawny wants to know what I wanted to talk to her about.” Elliott sounded positively panicked.

Simon leaned against the counter and crossed one foot over the other. “Right.”

“I can’t tell her over the phone,” Elliott said as if Simon had demanded he do that very thing.

Simon braved a glance at Tawny’s set features. “I don’t believe there’s a choice.”

“But there is.” He recognized Elliott’s wheedling enthusiastic tone. Whatever it was, Simon’s instincts were already screaming no . “The right choice. You tell her.”

Simon damn near dropped the phone. “No.”

“Yes. The more I think about it, this works out better.”

Maybe for Elliott. Cold day in hell and all that.

“Absolutely not.”

“Oh, come on, Si. You two already don’t like one another. And what else are you going to talk about? What have you got to do stuck there in the dark with one another? This blackout could last several hours.”

“Not a chance.”

“Think about it. It’d be better this way.” Was it only twelve hours ago that he’d declared nothing Elliott did could compromise their friendship? He was rethinking that position. “You don’t know Tawny the way I do. She’s not going to give up on this until one of us tells her. I can try feeding her some line about wedding plans, but when she finds out the truth, that’s just going to make it a thousand times worse.”

“I don’t see why your conversation can’t wait.”

“I’m telling you, she’s sexy and sweet but beneath those soft curves and big green eyes she’s relentless when she wants something. She’s a steel magnolia.”

Simon recognized that truth. He’d experienced it firsthand when she’d sunk her teeth into the topic of his love life. He considered banging his head against the counter or perhaps the cabinet. Anything solid would do.

Could this night possibly get any better? First he was trapped with a woman he wanted beyond reason. Now said woman was about to hound him to no end for news sure to crush her. And he was the lucky devil doing double duty. Not only was he in the firing line to be shot as the messenger, but who else was around to endure the messy aftermath? And when it was all said and done, he’d wade through hell and back if he thought she needed him.

“I’ll take care of it.”

“Simon, you are the best friend a man could have.”

“We’ll talk about that later.” This wasn’t for Elliott. This was for Tawny. Because she deserved better than hearing the truth over the phone while Elliott was locked in with his new lover. Because it might render him asunder, but he would give her a strong shoulder to cry on and be there for her.

“Okay. I’m grateful. Eternally grateful. Let me talk to Tawny for a minute.”

Silently Simon passed the phone back to Tawny.

“Yes? … He is? … Okay. Stay safe and I’ll talk to you later,” she said. She flipped the cell phone closed, disconnecting the call. She picked up her glass and polished it off. Putting the empty goblet on the counter, she looked at Simon expectantly, some of her former exasperation lingering in her eyes and the set of her mouth.

“I understand you have something to tell me?”

Apprehension knotted Simon’s gut. The proverbial shit was about to hit the proverbial fan.

“Let’s go in the other room. You’ll want to sit down for this.”

SIMON LOOKED GRIM. SO MUCH for the let’s-all-jump-in-bed ménage-à-trois theory, although she already pretty much knew that was toast. What could possibly warrant that rigid, resigned set to his jaw, and was that a flash of pity in his eyes when he looked at her?

The truth slammed her. She sucked in a calming breath. Elliott was dying. He’d been handed down some awful diagnosis and the two of them were going to break the news to her. She was the worst human being possible, having erotic dreams about Simon and wallowing in a private lustfest while poor, brave Elliott faced the specter of death alone.

Simon leaned forward, bracing his arms on his knees, his fingers linked together. He turned to face her. “Elliott should be the one telling you…. I was only coming to lend moral support…. I’m not sure where to begin.”

Tawny squared her shoulders and sat straighter on her end of the sofa. She’d be brave. “How long has he known?”

Simon did a double take. “How long have you known?”

“Well, just now.”

Simon slanted a questioning look her way. “Now?”

“I figured it out and Elliott can count on me to stand by him, even if the wedding doesn’t happen.” He might be too sick or he just might not have enough time to make it to the altar.

“Tawny, what is it that you think you know?”

“Elliott’s dying, isn’t he? What is it? Cancer? A tumor? How long does he have? I knew he’d been acting different lately, but I thought …”

Simon waved a hand, stilling her. “Let’s back up a bit. You think Elliott’s dying?”

“Isn’t he? You look like the Grim Reaper.”

“I always look like the Grim Reaper.” Simon sighed. “As far as I know, Elliott’s healthy as a horse.” Whew . She sagged against the sofa, limp with relief. As long as Elliott was healthy, nothing could … “He’s been seeing someone else.”

What? She shot up. “Bastard.” She’d kill him. Here she’d been feeling guilty over dreams , when all the while Elliott was playing Bury the Bone with someone else. “Is it someone I know?”

“I think you’ve met him.”

It took a few seconds for the definitive him to soak through her haze of shock and anger. “Him? Did you just say him , as in Elliott’s seeing a guy? ”

Simon offered a curt nod. “That’s what he told me this morning.”

“A man? A man! I’ve been dumped for a freaking man?” Another woman was bad enough, but a man? She’d never been so angry and humiliated in her life. And don’t forget betrayed.

The hot press of tears gathered. Dammit. She didn’t get really mad that often, but when she did, instead of ranting and raving she cried. It sucked.

Simon shook his head. “I don’t think he necessarily wants to break up. He just wanted to come clean. He says it’s only been once and he thinks he’s bisexual.” Simon looked grimmer than ever.

Elliott’s nerve floored her. He didn’t necessarily want to break up? That was rich. And it fueled her anger. She didn’t have anything against homosexuals, but she wasn’t marrying one. She tugged at the ring on her finger. It stuck on her knuckle. That was the final detail that totally unhinged her. Tawny, the family screwup, had once again managed to not get it right. Her anger spilled over in the form of hot tears rolling down her cheeks. She tugged again. Finally she yanked the ring off. She shoved it into Simon’s hand. “I won’t be needing this any longer.” The last word ended on a sob.

She was so angry she was shaking. And blubbering.

Simon slid across the space separating them. She caught a glimpse of his face. He looked positively stricken. He folded her into his arms, pulling her against the wall of his chest, cradling her, rocking her back and forth. “Please don’t cry, Tawny. It’s going to be okay.”