Aria Read Online Free PDF Page B

them had gone anywhere and he hadn’t cared. Now he was suddenly self-conscious, his suit rumpled after a long day bent over piles of documents, his hair undoubtedly sticking up in odd places as it liked to do.
When did it get so hot in here?
Sam pulled off his jacket and draped it over the back of his chair. As the second drink went straight to his shoulders, he felt his old confidence return. “What do you do for a living, Aiden?”
“Musician.”
“Really? What kind?”
Aiden seemed uncomfortable, almost apologetic. “I’m a singer. An opera singer.”
“You’re serious?” Explains the voice of God vibe.
“Yeah.” Aiden shifted in his seat.
“That’s cool,” Sam said enthusiastically.
“You think?”
“Yes, definitely.”
Aiden laughed—a warm, rumbling laugh that made Sam melt like a puddle into his seat. Aiden Lind was a handsome man, even more so when he laughed. “I get a lot of flak from my family about it.”
“Really? Why?” Sam finished his drink and flagged down the waiter for another round.
“They think it’s queer. I used to sing rock and gospel. That was okay with them. But opera? And shit, if they knew I liked men and women….” He laughed again, but Sam heard an edge to the sound this time and saw a flash of something like pain in Aiden’s eyes. “So what do you do, Sam?”
“Compared to singing opera? Just boring stuff. I’m a lawyer for a firm near Wall Street.”
“I sort of guessed. Nice suit, briefcase ’n all. Nice tie too.” Aiden wasn’t looking at Sam’s tie, though; his gaze never left Sam’s.
Maybe it was the booze, but Sam wasn’t in the slightest bit tempted to look away. Instead, he loosened his tie and undid the top button of his shirt.
“So what kind of law do you practice?”
Shit. What was it about Aiden that made everything he said sound like an invitation to do something sexual? The voice. Definitely the voice.
“Personal injury. Not my first choice.” Sam had rationalized taking the job for many reasons, but one in particular topped the list: the prospect of going home to Tennessee and back into the same dark and claustrophobic closet he had come out of was too horrible to contemplate.
“What would you rather be doing?”
At that moment Sam could think of a few things he’d rather be doing that had nothing to do with practicing law. “Employment law. Plaintiff’s work. You know, the underdogs?”
“Nothing wrong with that, is there?”
“No. Nothing at all.” The job had been a compromise: it hadn’t been what Sam had wanted, but it hadn’t been part of Samuel Stetson Ryan III’s “plan” either. It had been a huge disappointment to the old man that Sam didn’t return to Memphis to work for his firm.
Sam shifted in his seat, brushing Aiden’s foot by accident. At least he thought he’d done it by accident. “So.” Sam changed the subject and tried to focus on something other than Aiden’s foot rubbing against his own. “What’s it like, singing opera?”
The waiter came with another round of drinks—Sam lost count of how many he’d downed. Was this three already? It was hard to focus, and Sam was pretty sure it wasn’t the alcohol that was turning his brain to mush.
Aiden leaned back in his seat with his legs slightly apart. It was an inviting pose. Aiden held his beer in his right hand and gesticulated with it as he spoke. As Aiden’s leg pressed against Sam’s, Sam tried to keep his eyes focused on his companion’s face. His own face felt warm.
“It’s great,” Aiden replied. “I’m planning to go to Germany soon, maybe do a few auditions there.”
“Sounds exciting. What would you be auditioning for?” Laughter erupted from the bar. Sam moved his chair closer to better hear Aiden’s answer, and his leg slid between Aiden’s. Sam shivered with the touch. He found it more and more difficult to focus on the conversation, but it had nothing to do with the noise level.
“Most of the larger German cities hire contract