Free Turning the Page by Andrew Grey Page B

close to someone, and Hans was nice. But he didn’t want to give him the wrong idea. Eventually Hans woke and straightened up slowly.
    “Sorry.”
    “Don’t be,” Malcolm said.
    “Okay, I won’t.” Hans smiled and turned, leaning a little closer. “I know you aren’t ready, and I’m not going to push you, but I really like you, Malcolm.” He slowly moved his head closer. “You’re a wonderful guy, and I’ve been looking for someone like you for a very long time. I don’t have much luck with men, as my last relationship will attest, but I think my luck can change with you.”
    “Hans, I…. It’s only been a year, and….”
    “I know. So I’d really like to be friends.”
    Malcolm could feel the energy coursing between them, and his better judgment told him that wasn’t the best idea. Not that he didn’t want to be friends with Hans, but he wasn’t sure it was possible to remain just friends. Already Malcolm was warm, and his heart beat a little faster just because Hans looked at him as though he was starving and Malcolm was a buffet lunch. Part of him wanted to give in and say to hell with it, but he knew it would end badly, and that wasn’t fair to him or to Hans. “I….” It was on the tip of his tongue to say no, but he ended up nodding.
    “Excellent,” Hans said and then did the last thing Malcolm expected: he kissed him. Not hard, but it was enough to send Malcolm’s lips tingling.
    “You usually kiss your friends?”
    “Sorry.” Hans moved back. “I shouldn’t have done that. It was too much, and I did promise we could be friends.” Hans got to his feet. He put on his jacket and placed his tie in his pocket. Then he got his coat. “I don’t want to be a problem, but it’s probably best if you take me home.”
    Malcolm thought that was best as well. He gathered the dishes and took them to the kitchen before getting his coat. As soon as they stepped out of the house, the cold assaulted Malcolm. Any residual effects of the Scotch were instantly gone. He locked the door and hurried down the walk to the car. Once they were buckled in, he started the car and pulled out.
    Neither of them talked very much along the way. It wasn’t a particularly long drive from Whitefish Bay to Shorewood. Malcolm knew he should say something, but he wasn’t sure what. Hans had surprised him with the kiss. But it was only a kiss, and he was an adult. He certainly should have been able to deal with it.
    Too soon Malcolm pulled into Hans’s driveway. He definitely should say something. The silence had gone way past comfortable. Malcolm pulled to a stop and turned to Hans, who opened his door, the cold air surging inside.
    “I had a nice time this evening. I hope your arm is okay.” Hans got out of the car. “I’ll see you later.” He closed the door, and Malcolm watched as Hans hurried inside. The lights came on in the living room, and Malcolm pulled out of the drive and began the journey home.
    When he got there, Malcolm went right upstairs and undressed, hung up his tuxedo, and then went through his nightly routine before climbing into bed. He knew he’d overreacted, but he wasn’t ready to be kissing anyone other than David.
    His phone vibrated, and Malcolm checked it, answering the call when he saw it was Peter.
    “So how did it go?” Peter asked.
    “You really are worse than Mom ever was.”
    “Don’t give me that. How did it go? Is he still there? I don’t want details, but did you have a good evening or a world-shattering evening?”
    “Good Lord,” Malcolm groaned.
    “That bad?”
    “It was a nice evening, and I got back a little while ago from dropping Hans off at his house.”
    “Okay, what happened?” Peter asked. “Come on. You wouldn’t be pissy if it had gone perfectly, so what happened? Did he burp or say something stupid?”
    “No.”
    “Then what?”
    “He kissed me.”
    Silence on the other side of the line. “Okay. That’s bad?”
    “I’m not ready. I knew