The Language of Love

By Silas St. James

Perpetually single and unlucky in love, Nathan is in his mid-thirties with no romantic prospects to be seen. According to his best friend Kat, he lets go of guys too easily and doesn’t fight for relationships to work. In a final act of desperation to meet someone, Nathan begrudgingly signs up for a class at the local community center. He hoped to take Beginner Spanish, but the class was full, and Nathan finds himself in a drab pottery class with a strict teacher.

However, Nathan’s luck changes when he meets Eduardo, a fellow student. He can barely keep his eyes off Eduardo, a man his age who is handsome, charming, and, most importantly, has an empty ring finger. After a flirty conversation after class, Nathan and Eduardo connect over their mutual desire to learn Spanish. They soon ditch the pottery class like mischievous school boys. Sharing a magical kiss makes Nathan’s heart flutter as he wonders if Eduardo is the one he’s been waiting for.

When Eduardo meets Nathan’s friends, he fits right in. Nathan can’t believe how well their relationship is going. That is, until Eduardo seems to be holding back and hiding something. When the reason for Eduardo’s secretive behavior is accidentally revealed, Nathan is left reeling. Will Eduardo’s trust issues ruin everything he and Nathan have built together? Is a relationship with Eduardo worth fighting for?

• Language: English
• Publisher: JMS Books LLC
• Release date: Feb 5, 2022
• ISBN: 9781685500382

Book preview

Chapter 1

As I pulled open the double doors to the community center, it felt like I was the new kid in school again. We moved so many times growing up that I got used to being the new kid. I got good at making new friends and then saying goodbye a year or two later.

My best friend Kat said that’s where all my relationship problems stem from. She said I was too good at letting people go, that I just accepted it when they left, and I didn’t fight for them.

Speaking of relationship problems, I had plenty of them. Well, really just one big problem: I didn’t have a relationship! I was perpetually and depressingly single. I was in my mid-thirties with no romantic prospects. I’d had a handful of flings over the years, but they only lasted a few months. No one stuck around long enough for me to introduce them to anyone.

Of course, everyone loved to give me romantic advice. I had heard it all: Mr. Right is still out there, You just have to be patient, You’ll find him when you’re ready, and my personal favorite: Date yourself first.

Date myself? I do that every night with lube and two fingers. No, I need a man.

Which brought me here, to the local community center. I signed up for a class one lonely night over the summer after I received my fourth wedding invitation. Like I needed another reminder of my loneliness. I thought that maybe I’d meet someone in class.

I tried to sign up for the Beginner Spanish class, but it was full, so I signed up for a pottery class instead. I figured it was the least boring option. I certainly wasn’t choosing scrapbooking or advanced poetry.

I’ve wanted to learn Spanish since high school. To be specific, my interest in Spanish sprung up the moment I saw the cute foreign exchange student undress in the boy’s locker room. He was from Spain and absolutely gorgeous. That day, an interest in Spanish wasn’t the only thing that sprung up…

It wasn’t until I got an email reminder on my phone that I remembered I had signed up for the community center class. I dragged myself off the couch, put on something halfway decent, and drove to the community center across town.

As I stood in front of the pottery classroom door, I wiped my sweaty palms on my black jeans.

I really hope I don’t regret this. At least let the teacher be hot.

I walked into the room and saw a few other students finding their seats at pottery wheels. There was an open seat on the very end of the row, so I took that one.

A moment later, the door opened, and our instructor walked in. She was a thin older woman with a long gray ponytail. She dressed in a T-shirt, jeans, and muddy boots.

Welcome everyone, she said. I’m Theodora, and we’re going to make art together.

Just my luck, I muttered under my breath. I guess I wasn’t going to be swept off my feet by a sexy pottery instructor.

Theodora leaned against a desk at the front of the room and looked us over.

Let’s do a round of introductions, and then we’ll dive in, she said.

We started at the other end of the row. There was Arthur and Louise, an old couple who had apparently taken every class the community center ever offered. There was Xavier, a soft-spoken guy who had just graduated college with a degree in philosophy. Next to him was a soccer mom named Janet, who brought her own box of wine.

Then the class’s attention turned to the person beside me. I had been so focused on everyone else’s introductions that I hadn’t even looked at who was next to me.

I’m Eduardo, I’ve never taken a class here before, and…what was the last question? Oh, right, I decided on pottery because my friend recommended it, he said,