Of Love and Corn Dogs Read Online Free PDF

His love for Dean and his desire for the blond waiter.
    â€œYou hardly knew me when we kissed,” Henley reminded him.
    A quiet night, parents out for the evening, and the servants tucked in for the night. Two hormone-addled teens wondering what it would be like to have their first kiss. Darwin remembered the scene vividly. Even though he and Henley had known right away they were definitely not made for one another, it started them on the path to accepting who they were and, ultimately, had brought Darwin and Dean together for four years.
    â€œIt’s not like that,” Darwin protested, but the words didn’t sound sincere, even to his own ears.
    â€œBut it could be, right? You want it to be?” Henley asked softly.
    Darwin hated how perceptive Henley could be. As long as they’d known each other, it still surprised him when the wisecracking Henley turned serious. “I can fire you, you know,” he grumbled.
    â€œYou can. You probably should. Hell, I’d fire me if I had the chance. Doesn’t make it any less true. Since Dean died, you’ve thrown yourself into work. You start early in the morning and work until late at night. You don’t make time for anything or anyone. One meal with Ricky and you’re cancelling appointments to play mini-putts and eat food you’ve never tried before. I admit it’s not the stuff of a life-long commitment, but it’s a start.”
    The office door opened and Ricky stepped out, his mouth drawn into a grim line and his eyes red. Darwin glowered as Louisa called another server over, then pointed to the area in the rear of the restaurant. The waiter led Ricky to the back where they disappeared behind a dark wooden door.
    â€œShe fired him,” he whispered to Henley.
    â€œThen what will you do?” Henley prompted. “Are you going to let her fire him and watch as he walks away, or are you going to stand up for him?”
    Anger surged through Darwin at Henley’s questions. If a chance existed that there could be something between him and Ricky, he wanted to explore it. To do that, he couldn’t let the man just leave, and he wouldn’t let Louisa destroy his confidence over something that had been Darwin’s fault. “I’m not going to be long, but why don’t you go ahead and go. I’ll wait for Ricky and take him home.”
    â€œAre you sure he won’t go out through another door? Maybe an employee entrance?”
    Darwin hadn’t considered that. “Hang on,” he told Henley, pulling the phone away from his ear. “Excuse me,” he said to the hostess.
    â€œYes, Mr. Kincade?”
    â€œIs there another door that employees exit from?”
    â€œYes, sir. We have a separate entrance for workers here.”
    â€œI’d like to speak to Ricky before he leaves.”
    The hostess glanced toward Louisa’s office. “He has to come back up here,” she told him. “Louisa will collect his ID badge, keys, and any property belonging to the restaurant.”
    â€œThank you,” he said. He stepped away from the desk, and returned to his call. “I’ll be waiting for him,” he told his friend.
    â€œI can drive you both,” Henley said.
    What would Ricky say if he saw the limo and Henley? Darwin really didn’t want to find out. He liked being just Darwin for a change, not the president of Kincade International, not one of the hundred wealthiest men in America under thirty-five. Just Darwin.
    â€œIt’s fine. Go on home. If something comes up, I’ll call you.”
    â€œOkay, if you’re sure.”
    â€œI am. I’ll see you in the morning.”
    He hung up and strode toward Louisa’s office. He didn’t bother to knock, choosing instead to make an entrance she wasn’t likely to forget.
    â€œWhat did you do?” he demanded.
    She glanced up from the papers she had been going through, pushed out of the chair,