A Gentleman's Secret ~ The third novelette from "Different Desire", a Gay Victorian Romance and Erotic novelette collection Read Free

he said and paused before he continued. “Oh, and I do believe your name is Simon, unless I mis heard your fellow friend in crime. Yes?”
    I grinded my teeth. To call the half-dressed gentleman in front of me annoying would be an understatement of grand proportions, to say the least.
     
    *
     
    I must admit I felt rather imposing, armed with my Kenyan spear and everything. One of the thieves had managed to run away, but I still had one of them, this Simon, at my mercy. However , now that he was under my control, I did not know what to do with him. I mean, I could not really march him down to the nearest police station dressed in a pair of trousers and slippers, could I? And I did not dare let my concentration slip for a moment. It felt like I had cornered one of my uncle’s wild beasts and that he was waiting for only an instant of hesitation or a small mistake to happen.
    It was something in his entirely grey eyes, which lacked even a hint of blue or green shades, as he studied me closely. The way he watched me made small goose bumps form along my arms, which had nothing to do with the cold draught from the open window. For one bizarre moment, I suddenly felt oddly embarrassed under his intense gaze. I have no idea why. I mean, yes, my upper body was undressed, but we were both men, for h eaven’s sake , and it was not like there were any ladies present to shock.
    I decided to question him. Perhaps if I knew who he was and where he lived , I could give that information to the police officers later when I reported the crime. I had easily exposed his first lie, which made him look rather vexed. In fact, it was actually quite a satisfaction to see him glare at me and the way his mouth had transformed into one slim line of irritation. He really did look like a rogue, unshaved and with his straw-blond hair in a pony tail , which looked like it was in desperate need of washing . A thin, pale scar crossed one of his eyebrow s just half an inch from his right eye and gave him the perfect “D evil may care” sort of look. Overall he was in a dreadful shape, and despite his oddly nice dress coat, he was nothing more than a larger and older version of the thousands of small street urchins that roamed London’s streets. But still, I suppose one may almost, surprisingly enough, call him handsome , in a dangerous way , under all those ragged clothes and dirt.
    It suddenly occurred to me that we had been standing in front of each other for several minutes now in complete silence. I cleared my throat and started to say something when he rudely interrupted me.
    “I think you should let me go, Mr… Percival-Davis ,” he said in a surprisingly soft voice.
    “Oh, do you, now?” I said and frowned the way Carl would have done at the ridiculous noti on. “Well, I think not. Why on e arth would I do that?”
    “Because you do not want this. You want your quiet life. Let us agree that I will go my way and never come back, and I will make sure that your house is left in peace as well.”
    I took a step closer, letting the spear point rest gently against his unshaved throat. The tip of the spear was made of steel and was very sharp . W e stood almost uncomfortably close to each other. The idea of letting him go strongly disagreed with me.
    “Oh, really?” I said in disbelief over his absurd suggestion.
    He looked at me with his unsettling grey eyes, and he smiled , clearly pleased with himself. It was not the insufferable grin of someone who had just proven that he was right; it was the smallest and rarest smile. The kind of smile of someone who had recently learnt to smile and was still a little bit unsure if he or she did it correctly. Just a gentle curve of his lips, but it made his eyes sparkle , and his entire character changed. I had absolutely no idea what it meant, but it was most unsettling.
    “Yeah,” he said in his broad Cockney accent and leaned forward so that the spear point almost threatened to pierce his skin. His