Question Mark (40 page)

“Oh, blah fucking blah! Get on with it!” Christian yelled.

The screen changed showing clips from the films the actors were being nominated for and Christian drummed on his knees impatiently until they showed Zane’s scene. It was the one where Zane was licking a knife and talking to his victim and at the end he laughed with this haunting and creepy rasp in his throat. Goosebumps skittered over Christian’s arms. When the actress behind the mic appeared again, he bit down on his bottom lip.

“The nominees for Best Performance by an Actor in Motion Picture – Drama are: Ryan Shephard, Ties Unbound. Samuel Hodgeson, Religious Rite. Zane Whitlow, Innuendos—”

“Alright, alright!” Christian clapped. “Let’s go, buddy.”

“—Dennis Broadbent, Chain Gang. And Justin Green, Factors of Truth. And the Golden Globe goes to…”

Red dress fumbled around with her envelope and the screen split into five different squares. Zane’s square showed a calm face with Mark’s left hand squeezing his shoulder. On the ring finger of that hand, there was a white gold band. Christian went rigid.

“Zane Whitlow! Innuendos!”

The crowd around Zane shot to their feet, but a camera still managed to sneak in there and capture Zane’s reaction. He was clearly dumbfounded and as he turned to Mark with people clapping him on the back, Mark was beaming with pride, the smile on his face wide and thrilled. He grabbed Zane on either side of his face, the ring glinting under the lights, and they shared a quick kiss before the actor made his way to the stage. The dude was getting a standing ovation.

Christian watched, unmoving and shocked as Zane accepted the statue and took his place in front of the microphone. He was wearing a band that matched the one on Mark’s hand. At the sight of it, Christian sensed something give way inside him.

“Wow… I-I can’t really believe that I’m standing up here…”
Zane paused as the crowd got going again.

“Thanks so much to the Hollywood Foreign Press Association and to my fellow nominees—I am honored to be counted among you…”

Christian barely registered Zane’s thanks to the cast and crew, his agent and publicist, and all the dozens of other people. When Zane brought up his mom, Christian knew Mark would get some airtime, too.

“…Without the support of my mom, who’s been encouraging me from the start, I wouldn’t be on this stage right now. Thanks, mom. I love you. Finally, I can’t leave here without thanking my amazing, supportive, and totally awesome husband, Mark. Baby, since the first time I saw you, I knew. I love you with all my soul. Thank you.”

Mark was looking on with a giant smile and teary eyes. He mouthed an
I love you
back.

So the two of them got hitched…

Or whatever…

Christian eventually turned off the television and sank back into the couch cushions. The room was dark and he was by himself.

Still, there was a small part of him that was happy. For Mark…

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

S.E. Culpepper lives with her amazing husband and son in Florida and writes as often as she can. She loves hearing from her readers and makes it a point to get back to them. You can email her at [email protected] or visit her website at http://seculpepper.com.

OTHER TITLES BY THIS AUTHOR:

Private Eye (Liaisons #1)

Available on amazon.com, smashwords.com, Createspace.com, and Lulu.com

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