Christian climbed into the passenger seat and chuckled, remembering the last time he’d been in this seat. “Remember the first time you gave me a ride? You were very annoyed.”
Alexander snorted, starting the car. “You were very annoying. And talked too much. And…” He trailed off, and Christian fidgeted, suddenly remembering it was also the night Alexander had kissed him for the first time. The night that had started it all.
Silence stretched, getting more awkward by the minute.
When the silence became unbearable, Alexander’s phone rang again. Thank fuck.
“Could you put the phone on speaker?” Alexander said, his eyes on the road as he maneuvered the car through the dense traffic.
“Sure.” Christian pulled the phone out of Alexander’s coat and put it on speaker. He hoped it wasn’t Mila. The last thing he wanted to hear was Alexander and her being all lovey-dovey.
“Sheldon speaking,” Alexander said.
“Sheldon speaking,” a deep male voice repeated, clearly teasing him.
Alexander smiled. “How is good old London?”
“Probably still there,” the caller replied. “But I’m not there, actually.”
“You arrived already?”
“Uh huh. At my old place. Come over and bring some beer.”
Alexander glanced at Christian. “Now? Don’t you have jet lag?”
“I do, and that’s precisely why I won’t be able to sleep until I’m knackered.”
“Knackered,” Alexander repeated, snorting. “Don’t forget to boil a pot of tea for me, mate.”
The caller laughed. “I won’t. So you’re coming?”
Christian pursed his lips, trying to suppress his disappointment.
Alexander glanced at him. “I’m out with a friend, actually.”
There was a short silence on the line. For some reason, Christian had the impression the caller was surprised.
“Well, bring him along, then.”
Alexander looked at him with a question in his eyes.
Christian shrugged.
“We’ll be there in half an hour,” Alexander said.
“Who was that?” Christian asked when the call ended.
“My cousin, Jared. You’ll like him.”
Chapter 17
Alexander’s cousin looked a lot like Alexander.
That was the first thought Christian had as he watched the men hug and clap each other on the back.
They were freakishly alike: the same height, the same dark hair and dark blue eyes. Jared Sheldon was a bit stockier than Alexander and their facial features were slightly different—Alexander’s were a bit more angular—but they could be easily mistaken for one another if one didn’t look closely enough.
Jared noticed him staring and smiled. “No, we aren’t twins. He’s three years younger.” He shook Christian’s hand. “Jared Sheldon.”
Alexander put a hand on Christian’s shoulder. “This is Christian.”
“I can introduce myself, you know,” Christian said, nudging him. He turned to Jared and smiled crookedly. “Christian Ashford.”
“You have an unusually beautiful smile,” Jared said.
Christian hid his surprise as he took his jacket off. The guy definitely wasn’t flirting with him or anything, but it wasn’t exactly something a straight guy would say. Wait, was Jared the gay cousin Alexander had mentioned a while ago?
“Thanks,” Christian said with a small laugh. “Yours is pretty nice, too.”
An hour later, as they finished the six-pack they’d brought, Christian concluded that Alexander had been right: he liked Jared. A lot. He was a great guy— calm and pretty laid-back. He had a quiet strength about him that instinctively made Christian trust him.
Apparently, Jared was a doctor.
“It suits you,” Christian said, leaning back against the couch. “I hate hospitals and doctors—no offense—but I wouldn’t mind to have you as my doctor. You look like a good doctor.” He wiggled his eyebrows and gave him an exaggerated once-over. “And well, you’re hot. I bet you look super hot in a doctor’s outfit. Anyone call you Dr. McDreamy?”
Jared laughed, and Alexander dropped his arm around Christian’s shoulders.
Christian shot him a sideway glance.
Alexander had been very quiet, mostly listening and watching them chat. As always, he appeared calm and composed, but… there was a difference between his calmness and Jared’s. It wasn’t obvious, but it was there, and Christian couldn’t help but notice the difference. Jared’s calmness seemed effortless; in comparison, Alexander’s calmness felt unnatural. Deceptive.
It wasn’t the first time Christian had noticed that, but it had never been more obvious than now. The two men looked so alike but felt like complete opposites: one was a rock and the other was like a sleeping volcano. Christian shivered, wondering what if it was awakened. He’d never seen Alexander truly angry or emotional. Sure, he’d seen him somewhat irritated and annoyed, he’d seen him laugh and smile, but all of those emotions were mild enough and controlled. He could feel that Alexander constantly held back, keeping a tight rein on his emotions.
Christian wanted to know why. He wanted to know what made this man tick.
Alexander’s cell phone went off again.
“Sheldon speaking.”
The caller started yelling, and Christian saw Alexander frown.
“Please calm down, Mr. Kabenov.”
The caller only yelled louder.
“???????????, ??????????, ???????? ???????,” Alexander said, in what sounded like Russian. “??????? ????????? ????????, ??? ???????? ????.”
Brushing Christian’s neck with his fingers, Alexander stood up and left the room. “Mr. Kabenov, I assure you Robert is a highly qualified professional…”