It didn’t take them long to get to the park. Mason had been here before. It was a little out of town, and had not only hiking trails but also sports and other activities on the other side.

They’d grabbed some food, water and ice before they arrived and put them in a small, insulated bag that Mason had with him, then tossed it into a backpack.

“You seem awfully prepared. I’m starting to think you had this planned.” Gavin leaned against the door as Mason walked over to his side.

“You figured me out. It’s my MO. I find sexy men, give them jobs, make them jump out of planes with me and then lure them onto hikes where I can take advantage of them.” He leaned in, invaded Gavin’s space. “Or let them take advantage of me.”

Gavin pushed away before heading for the trail, leading through the trees. “Makes sense. One question, though. Why go through all that trouble? I mean, is it that hard for you to get laid?”

“You’re a funny man.” Mason stepped up beside him. “More likely excuse is being busy. When I’m working, that’s typically all that’s on my mind. And I’m always working.” Which was only a partial lie. He thought about sex, often. But he also kept busy. Even before the bar, when he worked for the restaurant chain, his life mostly consisted of work.

He and Isaac had that in common. They’d worked well in that respect. Worked hard, and when they had time, fucked hard, too. They were committed to each other but also committed to their work. They’d been exclusive, but their first priorities had always been their career—a career Mason had been more than willing to leave behind, even if it took a lie to finally make him do it for good.

“Really?” Gavin glanced at him as they rounded a rock and continued on their way up. “You don’t seem the type. Not that I’m surprised you take your work seriously, you just…”

“Eh, things haven’t always been the way they are now,” Mason finished before Gavin could continue. “I grew up thinking my life would always be one thing—my parents own a few very high-end restaurants. I grew up around them, working with them, always knowing that one day they would be mine.”

“How high-end?” Gavin asked.

“The kind where I worked in a suit every day. I started to run the main restaurant in Denver. It’s the kind of place where people drop big money on a meal.” He never fucking got that. His parents were the same way. Mason could think of a million other things he’d rather spend money on than a meal that left him still feeling hungry and a bottle of champagne.

“But you didn’t want it?” He nudged Mason, which made him stop. Gavin pulled a bottle of water from the pack on Mason’s back and then they were on their way again.

Not wanting it was an understatement. “I never really felt like I fit. I grew up well, never went without anything. My parents loved me and supported me. Never had a problem with me being gay, but…” It had never felt right. He’d never wanted the same things they did. He’d always felt different.

“You’re lucky. Not everyone has it that easy.”

Mason didn’t take offense. Gavin was right. He’d known a lot of people in this life that had friends or family who had a problem with their sexuality. He’d never get that, why one person cared who the hell someone else loved. “That doesn’t always change how you feel, though.”

“No…no, it doesn’t.” Leaves and branches cracked beneath their feet as they walked. Neither of them spoke, but he sensed the heaviness of the moment. Sensed the heaviness pulsating from Gavin. Things must have been pretty bad with his family, and that reminded Mason how lucky he was in so many ways. Why couldn’t he just accept that?

Finally, Gavin spoke. “We have a few things in common.”

If Gavin thought he was leaving it there, the man had another think coming.

***

“Like what?” Mason asked.

Gavin’s first instinct—not to reply—hit him, but he still had all that adrenaline pumping through him from the jump and his epiphany that he wanted to spend his life flying instead of keeping himself chained to certain ideas of what his life should be. It was those things that made him admit, “Seeing your life a certain way. Having people who love you expect something specific from you.”

“And what do they expect?” Mason grabbed the bottle of water from Gavin’s hand and took a drink.

His legs burned slightly from the climb, mixed with the intensity of his jump. “To be a good Christian boy. To repent, find a nice woman to marry, have children and raise them in the church. It’s the only way to spend the afterlife with my parents instead of burning in hell.”