Free Microsoft Word - MeantForEachOther.doc by Allison Page B

would be gone before they knew it. Andrew shook his hand, thanked him, and then he and Jeremy were alone.
    They strolled down Fifth Avenue and Andrew glanced sidelong at his lover who remained taciturn. He took Jeremy’s hand. “You want to go to dinner? We’re never up here and I’m sure we’ll find something we both like.” Maybe a nice dinner together with a glass or two of wine would help lighten Jeremy’s mood.
    Jeremy nodded and Andrew tightened his grip on his hand. The condos had exhilarated him. They were big, in a terrific location, outfitted with modern features. He and Jeremy would be able to enjoy the city in the kind of style he had worked so hard to be able to afford. Jeremy had been against moving from the beginning, but he seemed to be trying to remain open to the idea
    They headed south on Fifth Avenue, and decided on Lemon Grass for dinner, since they both enjoyed Vietnamese cuisine. The hostess seated them and they ordered.
    Sitting at their table, over glasses of chilled Pinot, Andrew prodded Jeremy about the places they had seen. “So, what do you think? That place overlooking Central Park was amazing. Can you picture us in a place like that?”
    Jeremy sipped his wine, meeting Andrew’s gaze over his glass. He seemed tired, like he was ready for bed. “I liked that place the best out of the ones we viewed today,”
    he said finally.

    36

    D.H. Starr

    Meant For Each Other
    His lack of enthusiasm was obvious. Better if they talked about it. Andrew frowned.
    “Spill. I know something’s on your mind.”
    Jeremy sighed. “I love the place, but…” Jeremy squinched his nose, something he did when he tried to think of how to say something he knew Andrew wouldn’t like.
    Andrew prepared himself. “The place is so much more than I can afford.”
    I should have seen that coming. “Jeremy. Please. Not this again. I’ve already told you, what we have is ours. I don’t view the money I make as just mine. The money is ours.
    Hell, without you I wouldn’t even care about the money. You are what makes everything worthwhile for me.” As soon as the words escaped his mouth, he questioned whether they were true. They used to be. He would have done anything for Jeremy to make him happy, including living in a small, crowded apartment in the East Village, simply because it made Jeremy happy. He would have done anything, content to be with the man sitting across the table from him, but somewhere along the line that had changed. He wasn’t so sure he would give up moving to a nicer apartment and the realization surprised him.
    Jeremy’s face had relaxed, but Andrew sensed tension in him. Everything he did or said upset Jeremy lately. He couldn’t figure out what Jeremy wanted. He was sincere, expressed his love—everything a boyfriend was supposed to do. Yet Jeremy remained resistant, hanging onto a desire to maintain complete equality in the relationship. So many of their friends had entered into relationships based on mutual physical attraction, but after months, or in a few cases a year, the physical attraction wasn’t enough for them and their relationships had fizzled out. Of all their friends, he and Jeremy were the only lasting relationship he knew.
    Andrew was about to confront him, but something in Jeremy’s expression stopped him. His shoulders had slumped and his eyes, despite the ambient lighting and the flickering of candlelight, seemed hollow. “Baby, if you don’t like the places just say so. I don’t want you to agree to something that will make you unhappy.”
    Several moments of silence passed between them, Jeremy’s face revealing a whirlwind of emotions. Exhaustion melting away, giving way to sadness, then frustration. Eventually, his face settled with an expression Andrew couldn’t read, one he had never seen on Jeremy…almost apologetic. He was about to reach out and take his hand when Jeremy broke the silence. “I think you are a generous man. I don’t give you