Fireside Romance Book 1: First Flames Read Online Free Page A

fix. I wasn’t half as nervous this time as I headed towards Gamble Street. I just hoped he’d be there, and not with another customer. I really didn’t want to imagine what he’d be doing with other people. I rounded the corner, and thankfully there he was. My heart lifted.
    Jeez, I thought, what’s wrong with you? Surely I can’t be developing feelings for this guy.
    I was able to damp down these feelings quite easily; I’d had plenty of practice. I played a game with myself, it was a self-defence mechanism. The percentages rule was what I called it. I’d read that approximately ten percent of the male population was gay. I wasn’t too sure how they arrived at this figure, I just accepted it. The way my game worked was to remove those guys who were attached one way or another. Many gay men married women. Then there were those few lucky sods who managed to find a long-term boyfriend. Let’s say attachments ruled out half of the gay population. These men were off limits to me. I absolutely could not be the ‘other man’. I couldn’t live with myself if I was the cause of a relationship breaking up. So by my calculations I was left with five percent. How many of these men were interested in forming a relationship? I had no idea of course. I surmised some men were content being alone. Then I guessed others preferred a long string of one-night stands. No commitment, no strings. The thought of this turned my stomach. I wanted—no needed—someone long term, permanent. Where did this leave the percentage tally? Let’s say two percent.
    It really doesn’t matter if all the above figures were wildly inaccurate because the final determining factor was the killer. How many of these remaining men would be interested in someone as plain and uninteresting as me? I picture a decimal point with a frightening number of noughts, and just give up on the idea of ever finding someone.
    Mark’s welcoming smile had me instantly snapping out of my morose mathematical maundering. “Simon! Come for a return match, aye?”
    I nodded, too embarrassed to speak. Mark gave me a quick hug.
    Conversation on the way to my place was much easier this time. I knew he enjoyed movie musicals. We had also touched on the subject of books. Hey, I’m a librarian, what did you expect me to talk about? We both enjoyed biographies of famous people. All of this inconsequential chat lasted until we got to the house. As I shut and locked the door behind us, I asked if I could take his coat…my old coat. I was glad to see he was wearing it. It was now mid September, and the number of cold days was increasing. I’d been anticipating this moment ever since the last time I’d seen Mark, yet now it was here I grew shy. Mark seemed to understand. He sat on the sofa and patted the seat next to him. I smiled and complied with his unspoken request.
    Quite quickly our arms were around each other again. I grew a little bolder.
    “Can I kiss you?” I was able to ignore my incorrect grammar.
    “I’d like that.”
    His head moved closer, and we engaged. The feelings that were running through my body were so difficult to describe. A warm, light-headed and all-over tingle.
    After a short while I pulled back. “I went shopping the other day and should have a few goodies left. Have you eaten?” I asked, then winced at my stupid comment.
    “Thanks, that would be nice,” Mark replied, obviously choosing to go along with my odd behaviour.
    We both got up together. I didn’t want to break the body contact completely, so I held his hand and Mark didn’t seem to mind. We went into the kitchen to see what was available. I suggested what British Rail would call an ‘All Day Breakfast’: bacon, sausage, mushrooms, tomatoes, and fried bread. I also scrambled a few eggs.
    We decided to eat at the table in the kitchen. Our knees would often touch as we sat there and, when this happened, we would look up and smile at each other.
    I loved watching Mark eat. He could