If his father were here, he’d tell Mayor McGregor exactly what he thought of his son’s athletic, and his academic accomplishments. He wouldn’t let anyone talk down to him. He wanted to do his father proud, but he loved Moss, he’d do anything for him. They only had to endure this bullshit a little while longer.
“You know Moss will be attending the family alma mater, UCLA, to carry on the McGregor tradition. You boys have been inseparable since middle school and I’ve tolerated it because it—”
“I’m sorry, sir. Tolerated it?” Llew interjected, his anger quickly bubbling to the surface.
Mayor McGregor sat forward, his hand tightly gripping the polished surface of his desk. “Yes, tolerated it. Boys will be boys. Now it’s time for Moss to grow up and be a man, leaving childish things behind. He has a duty and obligation to his family’s name.”
Llew didn’t know why he looked at Moss then, but he did. How could he sit there and allow his father to degrade someone he loved like that? Did Moss consider him to be a “childish thing” in his life?
“I understand, sir. I best be getting home now, my brother and I have plans,” Llew said, as respectfully as he could muster, already standing and slinging his book bag over his shoulder. They had nothing more to discuss.
Chapter Two
The two-mile bike ride to his neighborhood did nothing to tamp down his fury. Llew burst through the door of the doublewide trailer he and his brother shared, slamming his backpack on the floor while he paced back and forth between the kitchen and the living room. After about thirty laps, he went to the refrigerator, yanking it open so hard, most of the contents of the door tipped over.
“You break it, you fix it,” his big brother said, standing on the opposite side of the counter. Leslie’s sharp brown eyes watched him for a few seconds, while Llew tried to calm himself. “What’s going on, bro?”
“The damn mayor is a dick, that’s what’s going on.” Llew plopped down at the small kitchen table.
“He is who he is, Llew. He’s filthy rich, and thinks anyone that has to use their back and hands to work is beneath him. He’s never going to accept you as Moss’ equal, and he will definitely never accept having a gay son.”
Llew dropped his head in his hands. Why couldn’t people just be normal? The second his brother asked him if he was gay, he knew he didn’t need to lie. His brother would love him unconditionally, just like their parents had. He did warn Llew frequently to be careful while dating the mayor’s son. If anyone found out, it would be disastrous for all of them. Llew was eighteen, but Moss was still seventeen, so he had to be careful of that, too.
“Why don’t you and Moss just take a little break and once you two are away at college… then you can do what you want. The mayor of Emporia can’t control and monitor everything, especially all the way in California.” Leslie came over and sat down in front of him. “Llew. I don’t want to see you get hurt. Don’t you think you’re getting a little too serious about Moss? There’s a great big world out there for you to explore. You have a lot to offer. I don’t want to see you used as the small town flavor.”
Llew’s head shot up. He narrowed his eyes at his brother. The concern that he saw there made it hard for him to be angry, but Leslie’s words were hurtful. “I’m not the flavor of the town, Leslie. Moss loves me.”
“Are you sure?”
Llew stood up, looking down at his brother. “Yes!” he yelled.
“Hey! Sit back down and chill. I’m just having the same conversation Dad would have with you, Llew,” Leslie said, pointing at the chair Llew had been sitting in. He dropped down tiredly, and pulled again at the long strands of hair at the back of his neck that needed trimming. He hated thinking about this. Hated thinking about the look he saw in Moss’ eyes every time Llew spoke of their future together. The look of doubt.
“He’s just nervous about exams and stuff. He has a huge track meet at the end of the week, in Gloucester. He has a lot on him.” Llew tried to justify Moss’ behavior.
“You didn’t even have to take most of your exams because of your high GPA. Moss and his dad don’t recognize that accomplishment. You deserve better Llewellyn, I’m telling you this because someone has to. Moss McGregor the sixth seems fickle to me, even more so as he gets older and more like his father.”
“He is not fickle. Can you imagine how much pressure it is to have to take over for your father?” Llew pleaded with his brother.