Will & Patrick Fight Their Feelings (#4) by Leta Blake, Alice Griffiths Page A

Frankie is the son of Stun-Gun Stan.”
    “Never heard of him.”
    “P’shaw. Your father would be appalled, but your ignorance makes my old heart sing. Never change.” Will can almost smell her perfume, a sense memory triggered by her laughter. “Let me put it this way: Stun-Gun Stan is a very important man, William. He’s a banging success, if you catch my meaning. And he has only one son, Frankie. Very pampered. Very, very spoiled.”
    “And what does this have to do with me?”
    “Yesterday, Frankie married a nineteen-year-old former porn star, a girl he’s known less than a month. Apparently, she’s a reformed sex addict and brand-spanking new Christian. She’s declared herself a born-again virgin, or some such nonsense. The crux is she refused to sleep with him until he married her.”
    Will whistles.
    “Oh, yes.”
    “So this means…?”
    “Bets are flying hard and fast on this one. Most believe Frankie’s recklessness is going to cost him. They say there’s no way the marriage will last, and what do you think Stun-Gun’s going to do when his only son is disinherited from the Molinaro Trust?”
    “What can he do?”
    “That, my darling, remains to be seen. But let’s just say that Stan holds sway over people who have the power to change things. Keep in mind: sometimes another’s folly is your own salvation. Never forget to be thankful for the idiots in this world. I suspect your Patrick would agree. Now, let’s see what the next few months bring, shall we?”
    “Wait, you said bets are flying. Are there bets on my marriage too?”
    “Of course. The odds are considered so good for your marriage’s dissolution it’s not even an exciting gamble, but darling, life has taught me one thing: men will throw their dicks and their money at anything.”
    After Will gets off the call with his grandmother, he finishes his snack and stares into space for a good fifteen minutes, trying to figure out why Frankie’s probable eventual divorce makes him feel so blue. He should be happy. If Stun-Gun Stan wrangles a way out of the consequences, he and Patrick might catch a lucky break. Yet all he can think is if that happens, he won’t wake up to Patrick’s head on his chest anymore. No more spanking. No more giving Patrick his breath. No more carbonation in his veins. No more urge to turn cartwheels down the hall.
    He knows it’s wrong. Patrick deserves to be free of Will’s mess, but he can’t help hoping Frankie stays happy with his porn-star wife longer than anyone expects him to. He’s not ready to give up his own situation just yet. Not when he’s discovering things he never knew about himself. Not when he’s finally getting to know the real Patrick.
    Not when they both still want each other so much. Surely they can coast and just be happy for a while longer.
    He forces himself to let it go and heads out to Brown Gargle on his way to the hospital. With a Buckaroo in hand, Will sits in Don’s office. They’ve been talking about some last-minute bids from a couple of ballsy contractors who have undercut nearly everyone else competing for the additions to the neuro department. Will’s not certain they can actually get the job done for the estimates they’ve submitted, and in the end it could end up costing them more than the higher, more realistic bids.
    “I agree completely,” Don says. “I suspect Dr. McCloud would argue that any dollar saved in the building process can be funneled back into equipment or nurses’ salaries.”
    Will nods. That is indeed what Patrick would say. He’s heard all about it a few times now.
    “Unfortunately, Dr. McCloud couldn’t make this meeting. And a decision needs to be made about what we’re going to suggest to the board. You and I are agreed. Dr. McCloud is absent. I say call this meeting adjourned.”
    Will laughs and looks at his watch. “Wow. We wrapped that up in under ten minutes. Maybe we should schedule more of these meetings when he’s in