Page 55 of The Flirty Vet

"Her name was Emilia."

"Uh-huh."

"And we were married."

"Right."

"The ceremony took place during morning tea in the quadrangle. We were in grade two."

I chuckle, the tightness in my chest easing. "Got it."

"That's the closest I ever got to being with the fairer sex."

"Was she your first kiss then?"

"No." He taps the steering wheel a few times. "Believe it or not, I was a bit of a late bloomer."

He seems embarrassed by that, so I say, "Nothing wrong with that."

He flicks his gaze to me. "Very late."

"How late are we talking about?"

"Uni. Sorry, college."

"Okay, that is a little late. But still, nothing wrong with it. Who was it with?"

"A mate. Well, someone who's become a mate now. His name is Dunlop Palmer. He's from one of the richest families in Australia."

"Okay."

"We met at a club. Got drunk. Went back to my place. Kissed. But I stopped it before it went any further."

"Why?"

His lips quirk. "It wasn't because I vomited all over the place."

"Wilby." I turn to face him. "I can honestly tell you I am doing everything in my power to never relive that moment again."

"Fair enough. I won't bring it up again." He takes a breath. "I don't know why I waited so long. I just knew I wanted my first kiss and my first time to be special. I liked Dunlop, and like I said, we're good mates now. I'm happy he was my first kiss, but something told me he wasn't meant to be my first time."

"Fair enough. Have you always known you're gay?"

"Yeah. I think so. As much as a kid can know, you know? I always felt different, but in a place like Scuttlebutt, different is a very wide spectrum."

"I did notice yesterday at the pub, when everyone started coming up to us, no one seemed to have an issue with it."

"Why would they? Small country towns aren't as backwards as people think. At least this one isn't. The majority of businesses in Scuttlebutt are owned or run by women. We host an LGBT Pride event every year where we do backwards camel racing andall sorts of other cool shit. And many chicks, my mum included, successfully operate working farms."

"Wow."

Can't lie. I feel a bit guilty that I'm one of those people who assumed small country towns weren't the most inclusive of places. That's bad on me.

"So, uh, anyone else you loved? Apart from Emilia?"

Wilby smiles. "Just family and friends. And I shouldn't sayjustbecause I'm the luckiest bastard alive to have the people I have in my life, and for them all to overlook my many, many faults."

"But no romantic love?"