The Current Between Us (29 page)

“
Mom, Dad, I would like you to meet Trent Cooper and his family. This is Rhonny, Em, and Hunter. Trent, this is my mom and dad, Connie and Jack,” Gage said, but glanced up sweeping his arm around the room at the many faces staring at them. Judging the looks they received back, Gage apparently took everyone off guard with his introduction. Many of the eyes looking at them traveled down to their joined hands, then back up at Trent, speculatively.

“
Trent, this is my brother, Garrett, and his wife Natalie. This is Gary, you might remember him from the other night. This is Ginny, my sister, and her husband Kent, and Ginger, my sister, and her husband Stephen. These are all my nieces and nephews.” Gage went through them all quickly and efficiently. There were at least ten children all ranging from four to twelve. Gage held firm to Trent’s left hand, which left his right hand free to shake his father’s hand.

“
It’s a pleasure to meet you,” Trent said. Em came to stand closer to him, wedging her hand in between his and Gage’s, until Gage was finally forced to let go so Trent could hold her hand. Hunter came in close, too, wrapping an arm around his leg. He didn’t blame them; they weren’t shy children by any stretch of the imagination they were just tossed into too many big situations at once to process all these inquisitive faces. And by the look of it, Gage’s family tried to acclimate to a new set of events as well; they appeared as surprised to meet him as he was them. Gage’s mother followed her husband’s lead and stood, tentatively shaking Trent’s hand.

Gage took after his mother. She stood tall, elegant, and blond. They shared the same eyes and lips. His father was darker and their other children shared more of his looks. Still
, no one said a word. They all stood there staring at one another.

After a long uncertain moment and Gage
’s acknowledging chuckle, it became obvious to Trent that Rhonny was the complication in this scenario. They didn’t know what to make of her. She stood beside him, staying quiet, but her hands rested on Hunter’s shoulders. Gage picked it up first, and his chuckle turned into a full laugh.

“
Trent, honey, my parents never know what to expect from me… Mom, Dad, this is Rhonny. She’s a firm member of Trent’s family. She’s also the children’s nanny,” Gage said, and Trent couldn’t help the small laugh at the relief clear on his parents’ faces.

“
Ahh… Trent, let me start over. It’s such a pleasure to meet you,” Gage’s mother said, with the others stepping forward. Em and Hunter were sucked into the fold with the children and Gary, Gage’s youngest brother, zeroed in on Rhonny.

After getting through all the hand shaking and introductions Gage interrupted them.
“I have to get back out there. The guests are starting to arrive. I hoped Rhonny and the children could stay out here with you, have dinner, play, and be more comfortable.”

“
I can stay here with them while you take care of business,” Trent said immediately. Through all the hand shaking, Gage retook and never let go of his left hand, but Trent began to pull free now.

“
I would really like you by my side tonight. If you’re comfortable leaving them out here,” Gage said, keeping hold of Trent.

“
I’ll be here with them, Trent. I promise to keep an eye on them,” Rhonny said. Trent glanced over to Hunter and Em, already absorbed in playing with the other children. They didn’t even notice they were being talked about. The whole idea of standing by Gage’s side tonight, playing host, made Trent a little nervous. Gage looked so eager, Trent steeled his nerve and tried to jump in, hoping not to embarrass Gage too badly.

The evening whirled by in a blur. Trent greeted guests for the first hour. Then the official opening launched, unveiling all of Gage
’s photos. Attendants stood by each photo and pulled a dark curtain off the frame. Gage’s curator, Jacquelyn, looked elegant and regal, selling her way through the gallery. The big names everyone waited for arrived, adding the glitz and glamour to the night. Gage kept Trent by his side all evening, introducing him to everyone. When it came time for Gage to give his speech, he even tried to get Trent to come up on stage and stand by him, but he drew the line there. Instead, he stood off to the side, alone, waiting for Gage to finish. After a few minutes, both Gage’s mother and father came to stand beside Trent.

“
Your children are adorable… and fine. I see you poking your head around, keeping an eye on them. My oldest granddaughter has the littlest ones upstairs in Gage’s apartment coloring,” Connie said quietly as Gage finished his speech.

“
Are they in the way?” Trent asked, quickly looking over at Gage’s mother. His father stood beside her, his arms wrapped around his wife, staying quiet, but listening to their conversation.

“
No, they’re fine, I promise. She has them tucked away happily playing and I’m sure making a mess of Gage’s place. My littlest granddaughter, Mirabella, is only a few months older than Emalynn. They are cut from the same cloth. Rhonny’s with Hunter and the boys. I do believe Gary is quite taken with her and is there, too.”

“
She’s a good girl, ma’am,” Trent said immediately about Rhonny.

“
I can tell. You have a nice family, Trent,” Connie said, giving a reassuring smile.

“
Thank you.” Trent’s eyes were drawn back to Gage as he left the small platform.

“
You’re the first person Gage has ever brought for us to meet,” Connie added. Trent stayed quiet, watching Gage shake hands with a dozen more patrons. “We’ve worried for him. He’s so stubborn and independent. Always going to make it on his own.”

“
He has, too,” Trent said, keeping his eyes on Gage, trying to figure out where this conversation might be headed.

“
Yes, he has, and we’re very proud of him.”

“
Gage has always been gay. When did you decide you were?” his father abruptly asked. He said it with no real aggression, just wanting the information.
Now
he understood the conversation. Trent smiled. The parental protective claws were coming out. Trent knew them well. He played both mother and father to his children and was absolutely sure he would be asking these same questions if he were in their shoes.

“
I’ve always been gay, sir,” he responded back, looking Jack straight in the eyes.

“
Were you married to their mother?” Jack asked.

“
Lord no, that would be terribly wrong. They’re my sister’s children. She died almost four years ago while giving birth to Emalynn. I adopted them shortly after. Their father was killed in the service, and our mom was older. She passed away about the time Hunter was born. It’s just me and them,” Trent said, turning to make eye contact with both of them as he spoke.

“
Trent, I’m sorry,” he said immediately.

“
No, sir, no need to be, I get it. I’m a parent now, too. I’m the electrical contractor on this job. Rhonny is my nanny. I found her a few weeks after Emalynn was born. She saved me because I had no idea what I was doing. We’ve all been together since. I haven’t known your son long, and believe it or not, I held out. I don’t like having a bunch of different people in front of the kids, and I don’t like messing with anything that will affect my business. It’s how I pay for everything they need. But they actually sold me on Gage,” Trent said. Gage worked the crowd, still several feet from the three of them, but diligently working his way over. Gage smiled and beamed when their eyes met as he continued to shake everyone’s hand.

“
You’re the new lead electrical contractor on this job? You did the immediate panel change? I understand you kept this job on track for my son,” Jack said.

“
Yes, sir, I did, but Gage kept this job on track. He’s a born project manager. It has to be in his blood. My end wasn’t that big a deal, Mr. Synclair, it’s my job. Gage pulled the strings getting the city and power company out here to work with me. I wouldn’t have been able to do that,” Trent said.

“
Son, I’m Jackson Layne. Synclair is Gage’s middle name and stage name,” Jack said. Trent stopped moving his attention between Gage and his parents to focus solely on his father, the pieces to the puzzle all coming together. Gage’s parents were Layne Construction, LLC, the billion dollar construction and property company. They owned the largest general contracting company in the world.

“
Sir, I didn’t know.” He couldn’t say anything else, stunned into silence. His heart hammered in his chest.

“
Trent, you just keep getting better and better,” Connie said, while reaching out to hug him tightly. “Welcome to the family, son.”

Trent let her draw him in, but his shocked eyes stayed on Trent
’s father who stood back, the smile still on his face. Gage chose then to break free from the throng, coming back to Trent’s side. Gage’s hand landed lightly on Trent’s back, but his mother wrapped her arms around him, too, dragging him into the embrace.

“
You did great, son. Such a nice evening. Congratulations,” she whispered between them.

“
Thank you, mom,” Gage said, and leaned in to kiss her cheek, but wrapped his left arm around Trent, keeping him close. His father stayed back, chuckling, clearly watching the scene unfold in front of him.

“
Trent and I have been discussing business,” Jack said. Gage gave a laugh, still holding his mom close, but did venture a quick look over at Trent.

“
So
there’s
the reason for the look on your face. Don’t be mad at me, baby. I’m not really in the family business. I didn’t want it to sway you away from me with all your separate parts of life,” Gage said quickly, leaning in to kiss Trent’s still stunned lips.

“
I didn’t even guess…” Trent started, but couldn’t finish.

“
Gage, can we get a picture with you and the painting,” Jacquelyn came to his side.

“
Mom, Dad, we’ll be back shortly,” Gage said. With no more time for discussions, Trent got pulled away, back by Gage’s side for the rest of the night.

Around ten, Rhonny appeared at his side, Gary standing close by, letting him know Em had fallen asleep on Gage
’s sofa and Hunter was drifting off fast. They were two hours past their normal bedtime, and Trent was actually surprised they’d lasted this long. Gage, having heard their exchange, immediately arranged for his driver to take them back home.

Trent and Gage got the kids loaded in the car with Rhonny. Gary valiantly tried to ride home with them, but settled for Rhonny
’s number and a promise for a date on Saturday night. Trent could see so much of Gage in Gary. Gary knew what he wanted and he worked to get it; it hadn’t bothered him at all to ask for the date in front of everyone.

Trent stayed by Gage
’s side throughout the remainder of the evening until the final guest left. He helped in shutting down the gallery, while Jacquelyn went over the sales numbers for the night. As it turned out, Gage was a complete success as a solo artist. He’d sold every photo hanging in the gallery. They were the last to leave, somewhere around one in the morning. Security stayed around the clock now that photos hung in The Gallery, but Gage set the alarms and locked the doors before getting in the limo to take Trent home.

“
I can get home, Gage. You’re exhausted, I’ve seen your hidden yawns and you couldn’t have slept more than a few hours all week,” Trent said, stifling his own yawn as he got settled inside the limo. Both were already tieless, jackets discarded, neck and cuff buttons unfastened to get comfortable after the last guest left.

“
I’m not sleeping when I could be spending time with you. I’m leaving tomorrow, and I’m not sure when I’ll be back. Did I tell you I’m having presents delivered to Em tomorrow? Don’t let her open them until her birthday. I don’t know what she has so take back anything she doesn’t want,” Gage said, sliding into the car and shutting the door.

“
Gage, you do too much,” Trent said as Gage pulled him forward, bringing them both to the long sofa on the side. Gage untucked his shirt and stretched out in the corner seat, kicking his shoes off.

“
I do nothing, and I feel awful I might not be there for her birthday. She invited me again no less than eight times tonight. She plans on wearing her dress again all day Sunday.” Gage moved him to sit where Trent’s back rested against his chest, wrapping him tightly in his arms. They hadn’t been apart for more than a few minutes tonight, but Gage still wanted him in the circle of his arms exactly where Trent wanted to be.

“
Is it possible to already be deeply in love with your children? They’re precious, Trent. So well behaved, they were perfect tonight. You’ve done such a good job with them,” Gage said, adjusting Trent to where his back lay across Gage so he could look at him as they spoke.

“
Thank you for tonight… Hell, scratch that, thank you for coming into my life. You’ve made me a whole man. This night was incredible, better than I could have expected and it’s all because you were with me,” Gage said, looking down at him with such love in his eyes. Trent didn’t respond, but leaned up and kissed Gage softly on the lips.