Someone Like You Read online

  “Someone Like You”

  An M/M Gay Romance

  Max Hudson

  © 2020

  Max Hudson

  All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying, recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical reviews and certain other non-commercial uses permitted by copyright law.

  This book is intended for Adults (ages 18+) only. The contents may be offensive to some readers. It may contain graphic language, explicit sexual content, and adult situations. May contain scenes of unprotected sex. Please do not read this book if you are offended by content as mentioned above or if you are under the age of 18.

  Please educate yourself on safe sex practices before making potentially life-changing decisions about sex in real life. If you’re not sure where to start, see here: http://www.jerrycoleauthor.com/safe-sex-resources/ (courtesy of Jerry Cole).

  This story is a work of fiction. Names, characters, businesses, places, events and incidents are the products of the author’s imagination or used in a fictitious manner & are not to be construed as real. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, or actual events is purely coincidental. Products or brand names mentioned are trademarks of their respective holders or companies. The cover uses licensed images & are shown for illustrative purposes only. Any person(s) that may be depicted on the cover are simply models.

  Edition v1.00 (2020.04.08)

  http://www.maxhudsonauthor.com

  Special thanks to the following volunteer readers who helped with proofreading: Bob, E.W. Gregg, Jon Niehus, RB and those who assisted but wished to be anonymous. Thank you so much for your support.

  Table of Contents

  Chapter One

  Chapter Two

  Chapter Three

  Chapter Four

  Chapter Five

  Chapter Six

  Chapter Seven

  Chapter Eight

  Chapter Nine

  Chapter Ten

  Chapter Eleven

  Chapter Twelve

  Chapter Thirteen

  Epilogue

  Chapter One

  It hadn’t been easy, but he was there. Looking out the window of his new apartment in a new city. The big beautiful skyline of New York City. It was a place that he had never thought he would end up.

  Not that there was much to view out of that window. They weren’t exactly in some expensive penthouse. They were in a high rise on the edge of a bad neighborhood. The kind of place they were warned not to live in, but it was an adventure. Even if the view was just a building next door instead of the skyline that they had dreamed about. This was the kind of place that they belonged in.

  Jared was absolutely sure of it. They had taken the risk and it was absolutely going to payout. It had to payout. He knew that it had to work out somehow. He didn’t have this much faith for nothing. There was no other way that all of this could work out. He had come all the way to New York from the middle of nowhere to pursue a dream of acting on the big stage someday, maybe even the screen. And he was going to make it. His best friend had the same dream, acting alongside the stars. That was what the goal was. And they had saved up for years, carefully putting money together so that they could make this big break. They had enough to make it for a few months, allowing them to get on their feet again with some sort of work.

  There was an excitement welling up in his chest as his roommate hauled another box into his room. “Hey.”

  “What’s up?” Jared flipped his head around to look at the man that he had come to the city with.

  “Got another box of my stuff.”

  “How did that much stuff get mixed up?”

  “They were all in the back of the same van, I guess.” Harry shrugged. “Things got stacked funky.”

  “We’re actually here. I can’t believe it.” Jared grinned at the man next to him. “Can you believe that we actually made it?”

  “We have to go and find work still.” Harry laughed. “We only have so much money saved up.”

  “I’m sure in six months we can find something.” Jared shrugged. He was just thrilled to be there. After everything they had been through. All the saving and fighting they were finally there. “Even if it’s not acting. We can do something.”

  “I’m sure we won’t be able to start acting right away.”

  Jared grinned. He wasn’t the type to just give up that easily. It just wasn’t in him to do that. “I know, but we’ll at least give it a shot.”

  Harry laughed loudly. Jared was happy to see his friendly smile an honest smile. “You’re going to be excited for months, aren’t you?”

  “Can you blame me?”

  Harry smirked. “You’re way too happy considering all of the things that could go wrong. I’ll be starting to job hunt in the morning. I’ve got an interview already lined up for Wednesday. What about you?”

  “I have an interview this afternoon.” Jared grinned.

  “Dude, we literally just got here. That’s cutting it pretty damn close, isn’t it?” Harry shook his head. He was laughing though.

  “Did you really expect anything different?”

  “I guess not. You always kind of have that faith.” Harry shrugged.

  “See?”

  “I see. You actually managed to do it.”

  “It’s at a playhouse. Doing some set work. It’s nothing special or anything.” Jared was still grinning widely as he spoke.

  “Which one?”

  “Just one of the small ones. It’s nothing big. But they’re interested because I worked in Dad’s shop all those years and I have some experience on stage.” Jared was one of those ruggedly handsome types. The types that were expected in romanticizing of mechanics or farmers but were rarely the reality. He came by his muscles honestly. He had worked as a carpenter in his father’s business through high school and college. His powerful features were striking and memorable.

  “From all that volunteer work with the community theatre back in Albuquerque?”

  “Yeah, I guess it paid off. Anyway, I’m hoping that it’ll let me keep an ear out for casting calls and stuff.”

  “Should you get an agent or something?” Harry tilted his head. His hair wasn’t as blond as his friend’s. He hadn’t spent nearly as much time working out in the bright New Mexican sunlight. And he wasn’t as broad or strong. But he was Jared’s best friend, and that was all that mattered. The two had been thick as thieves ever since they had met in elementary school. It was hard to even count the years. It just felt like they had known each other their whole lives.

  “Yeah, I’ll be going to talk to an agent or two. I’ll try to find someone.” Jared nodded along with what his friend had to say. “I’ve got a plan for that.”

  “You’re starting to sound like a politician. Always have some kind of plan that only has a fifty percent chance at best, of working.”

  “Oh, ye of little faith.” Jared teased his friend.

  “Do you want to just keep saying that everything is going to work out?”

  “What else would I say?”

  Harry laughed. “I don’t know. You just have this crazy faith that everything is just going to be perfect. Like it’s all just absolutely going to work out your way.”

  “Hey, my faith got us this far, didn’t it?”

  “Do you really think we’re going to make it right away?”

  Jared shook his head. “Nope. It’s gonna take a lot of hard work. I already know that. And if it doesn’t happen right away, we’ve got each other.”

  “You’re lucky we can even afford this
apartment right now. I’m not so sure we’re going to make it for that long if we don’t figure some way to make money that’s not a dead-end job.”

  “The set work at the theatre isn’t a dead-end job.” Jared shook his head.

  “Yeah, I’m sure.” Harry chewed on his lip. “Sorry.”

  “Dude, it’s fine. Just relax. It’s all going to turn out.”

  “See, this is why you can always get a date on Saturday nights. That stupid optimism.” Harry shook his head.

  Jared laughed loudly. “I mean, can you blame the boys for loving this? And I’m sure you’ll get a girl at some point.”

  “You say that now.”

  “Yeah, I say it. And I mean it. Dude. You’re amazing. If you were into me, I would have snatched you up a long time ago.”

  “You keep saying that, but I don’t see any girls knocking down my door.” He shook his head. “Come on. You can’t honestly believe that that kind of thing is true.”

  “I can and I do.” Jared set his jaw. There would be no convincing him otherwise. “You’re my best friend, dude. You stuck with me through hell and celebrated my good times with me. Why wouldn’t that be a catch?”

  Harry sighed. “Yeah. Yeah. You say that every single time.”

  “Because it’s true. Now stop being such a downer. It’s going to be fine. I promise. We’re going to figure all of this out.” Jared turned to take a look at the apartment. It wasn’t a huge place and it was on the verge of falling apart. The place was maintained to the bare minimum. But, it was a place to start a new life. A chance to break into the world of acting and find their own way regardless of how hard it was. They were going to have to work hard to get into this world, but they could make it. He knew that he could do it.

  But he would be lying if he didn’t have a few doubts rattling around in the back of his head. It was just the way of the world, those doubts, that painful knowledge that all the good feelings and faith in the world weren’t going to stop the world from sending you crashing to the ground.

  He wasn’t going to let it slip away. He wasn’t going to lose this chance that he worked so hard for. It may mean more hard work, more sacrifice, but he wasn’t going to just let it all slip away from him. He had come too far for it. His resolve was steeled. And it was something that meant more than anything else, the strength to see this dream through. It was just the way he was. Willing to fight hard for everything.

  No matter what else had to wait, he was going to find his way in this new world. He was going to make it. And he was going to drag his best friend there with him. Harry had been with him through thick and thin, supported and loved him in more ways than one. He had always been there, through all the difficulties of school and the ways that he didn’t quite fit in all of the time. He had always felt too big for the world around like he was walking around at ten feet tall and had no way to really fit into the rest of the world. That wasn’t even in a good way, it was more that he simply didn’t sit well with everyone around him.

  Harry was staring at him. He could feel it even if he were facing the crappy view from the window. “You ok, dude?”

  “Yeah, I’m fine.” Jared shrugged.

  “You looked a little weird for a second.”

  “It’s nothing. I’m just making more plans.” Jared plastered a smile on his face and turned back around.

  “Yeah, I know. Excited. You’re always excited.” Harry laughed as he shook his head. “You might want to go ahead and get in the shower if you’re going to make that interview. You still have to find your way there.”

  Jared nodded. The grin was widening on his face. “Here’s hoping I come home with a job.”

  “Good luck, that’ll help out a lot. Especially not having to wait as long to stop living off of our savings.”

  “Everything helps. Even if that means I have to get a second job, I will.”

  “At least I have that freelancing gig that I do online to fall back on. It’s not enough to make a living, but I can supplement the income a lot.”

  “See, now you’re thinking about plans and ideas instead of worrying.”

  “I can’t have been worrying that much, I actually did this crazy plan with you.”

  “I know, and isn’t it great?”

  Harry laughed. “Go get ready for your interview. I’m going to get the kitchen unpacked and then figure out what to order for dinner.”

  “Oh, what are you getting?”

  “Don’t know yet.”

  “Get me some?” Jared asked his friend. He knew that it was going to happen anyway, but he was always polite enough to ask in his own informal way.

  “Sure. You know I will.”

  “You know what I like, right?”

  Harry snorted. “If I don’t know what you eat by now, you might as well call me completely hopeless.”

  “You’re right.” Jared laughed. This was an old conversation that they had many times in the past. “You should know what I eat.”

  “Don’t worry. I promise I’ll check the reviews.”

  “Ah, look at that, you do care.”

  “I just know that you hate going into new restaurants blind, that’s all.”

  “Giving up that great adventure just for me. I’m touched.” Jared put his hand over his heart.

  “How long is this going to take you?” Harry asked it was obvious that he was a little bit jealous that his friend had already gotten a job interview. He was probably hoping that Jared had been able to be home their first day at the new apartment.

  Jared shook his head. He knew how his friend must have been feeling and he got a bit more serious about the matter at hand. “Not sure how long I’m going to be gone, but I’ll do what I can to get back before dinner is too cold.”

  Harry shrugged, shooing his friend toward the bathroom. “Just go. You’re wasting time.”

  “I’m on it.” Jared laughed. He had a contagious smile and he saw Harry laugh too. It made him feel a little bit better about all of this. “Don’t rush me.”

  “Being late for an interview is never good.” Harry pointed out to his friend.

  And with that Jared grabbed some clothes from one of his boxes and a bag of travel-sized toiletries and was on his way into the shower. He was ready to do this. He had to get this interview right. It had to go well.

  Chapter Two

  “What do you think?” The young woman looked across the desk at the man that was sitting there.

  Killian Templeton steepled his fingers. He pursed his lips and considered the paperwork in front of him. “Hire him.”

  “Are you sure?” The woman asked.

  “I’m sure.” Killian nodded. His voice was firm. It was a tone that he didn’t often take with the woman presenting him with the idea. “Hire him. Get the paperwork done today. Is he still in the office?”

  “Yeah, he is.”

  “Then give him the normal starting package. Put him on the set design team so he can start work next week.”

  “He doesn’t have any set experience.”

  “I don’t care. Hire him.” Killian shook his head. “And I see some experience there.”

  “That’s not even decent experience, not really.” She shook her head. “You can’t be serious.”

  “I’m serious.”

  “Have you seen the extent of his experience?” She was shaking her head, frustrated by what he was having to say. “It’s not much.”

  “It’s good enough.”

  She wasn’t going to back down. The woman was pure tough. “Community theatre; all volunteer work. It doesn’t really mean anything. It’s pretty much useless.” She was small and blonde but had a powerful personality. She was the type of woman that nobody wanted to piss off. That’s why he had hired her to do that. “I don’t think he’s qualified at all.”

  “How else is he going to get experience?”

  “I don’t know, but you can’t be serious about actually hiring him.” She was in disbelief.

  “I
’m absolutely serious.” Killian nodded his head. “You’re going to hire him.”

  “Where the hell do I even put him?”

  “Put him with the team. He’ll learn as he goes.”

  “We never hire anyone so unqualified.” She shook her head. “And he came to the wrong playhouse. He was just asking for directions.”

  “Hire him.” Killian’s voice was firm and definite. “I didn’t ask you to argue with me.”

  She gasped at a sudden realization. “You think he’s hot.”

  “I don’t hire people just because they’re hot.”

  “Are you so sure about that?” She was teasing now.

  “Ms. Edwards. Do you really think I am short sighted enough to hire someone simply because they’re pretty?”

  “You don’t hire aspiring actors. But this man is good looking, that’s got to be it.” She smirked. The woman was astute. He had to admit that. He wouldn’t have hired her for any other reason. She also never minded speaking her mind when she felt it might help the business to do so. This was a woman that he trusted completely, but he had his reasons. And she was going to have to accept that. “I think that if you want to date this guy, you should just ask him out, not hire him for this job.”

  “It will be fine.” He made the promise even if he didn’t feel as sure about it as he was portraying. But he had made the commitment and he wasn’t going to show weakness now.

  “All right. I’ll take care of it.”

  Killian nodded. “Thank you.”

  “I still think this is a terrible idea.”

  “But it’s my terrible idea to have.”

  She put her hands up. “Hey, as long as you sign my paychecks, who am I to argue. I didn’t mean any offense.”

  “None taken, it’s just hard to explain this feeling.”

  “Is it carnal in nature?”

  That made him laugh. “No.” But he wondered in the back of his mind if it was actually due to the strange physical attraction that he felt toward this random guy who had found his way in here.