Everyone has trust issues to some degree or another. I certainly wouldn't trust anyone who claimed otherwise.
Growing up in a small mining community where homophobia was rife, I suppose trust wasn't something that came easy to me, so it's no surprise this found it's way into Naked Hero as a major theme running through the books.
I found it interesting to consider how a celebrity would feel about such things, especially someone like Lewis Macleod who is a rarity - the only gay man in professional tennis and a target for the paparazzi. He's looking for love - his perfect man. But he's a healthy young lad who also needs some sex whilst he's waiting for Mr. Right to come along. How can he trust potential partners though?
He can't! It's as simple as that. Every encounter is a risk, and Lewis hasn't a 'condom' he can wear to ensure there are no nasty side effects. And it is with this backdrop we first meet him as an adult in Sydney. He's had a one night stand who has sold the story to a newspaper. Is it any wonder he doesn't trust Lee Porter when they meet at a party a few days after the scam?
Of course it's not just the tabloids that Lewis has to worry about. A man like Lee Porter could have countless reasons for wanting to get involved with a star like Lewis. Much of the first book has this as an underlying theme - What is he after? Is it me, or what I am - what benefits I can bring?
I suppose it's the same for many people. Unless a prospective partner comes from the same background or social level, then there is the question of motive. Are they gold diggers, or genuine? Trust! It needs to be earned, and won't come cheap the bigger the star you are. It's a just another price of fame and fortune.
Here's a snippet from the book around this topic...
It was almost 3 a.m. when Lewis finally got back to his hotel room, and he was far from amused to find Jim Murdoch sitting there, waiting for him with a storm on his face. He was even less amused at the inevitable bollocking that included the shattering news that he was due to play tennis in a few hours time.
Not surprisingly, his play that day was woeful and Lewis was soundly beaten by a player he should have thrashed. The jeers from the crowd as he left the court rounded his afternoon off nicely. There was some speculation in the press that he had actually lost the match deliberately - tanked it, in
order to move on to Melbourne and focus on the Australian Open. Not a very likely scenario, but players had been known to tank in the past. Whatever - the organisers in Sydney were far from happy with him and demanded an explanation for the lacklustre performance.
They got one the following day, but not from Lewis. It was the Daily Herald that came up with all the answers, by running a story under the headline: MY NIGHT OF STEAMY SEX WITH
WIMBLEDON CHAMP!
It was Jim who brought the good news to Lewis in his hotel room. Thrusting the paper into his hands, the cantankerous older Scotsman actually looked quite pleased with himself for the first time in several months. When Lewis read the article, it was clear that a lot of embellishments had been made, which was nothing new where the tennis player was concerned, but there could be
no denying the central truths, over which the good people of Sydney, and the following morning Britain, would gleefully eat their breakfast.
Growing up in a small mining community where homophobia was rife, I suppose trust wasn't something that came easy to me, so it's no surprise this found it's way into Naked Hero as a major theme running through the books.
I found it interesting to consider how a celebrity would feel about such things, especially someone like Lewis Macleod who is a rarity - the only gay man in professional tennis and a target for the paparazzi. He's looking for love - his perfect man. But he's a healthy young lad who also needs some sex whilst he's waiting for Mr. Right to come along. How can he trust potential partners though?
He can't! It's as simple as that. Every encounter is a risk, and Lewis hasn't a 'condom' he can wear to ensure there are no nasty side effects. And it is with this backdrop we first meet him as an adult in Sydney. He's had a one night stand who has sold the story to a newspaper. Is it any wonder he doesn't trust Lee Porter when they meet at a party a few days after the scam?
Of course it's not just the tabloids that Lewis has to worry about. A man like Lee Porter could have countless reasons for wanting to get involved with a star like Lewis. Much of the first book has this as an underlying theme - What is he after? Is it me, or what I am - what benefits I can bring?
I suppose it's the same for many people. Unless a prospective partner comes from the same background or social level, then there is the question of motive. Are they gold diggers, or genuine? Trust! It needs to be earned, and won't come cheap the bigger the star you are. It's a just another price of fame and fortune.
Here's a snippet from the book around this topic...
It was almost 3 a.m. when Lewis finally got back to his hotel room, and he was far from amused to find Jim Murdoch sitting there, waiting for him with a storm on his face. He was even less amused at the inevitable bollocking that included the shattering news that he was due to play tennis in a few hours time.
Not surprisingly, his play that day was woeful and Lewis was soundly beaten by a player he should have thrashed. The jeers from the crowd as he left the court rounded his afternoon off nicely. There was some speculation in the press that he had actually lost the match deliberately - tanked it, in
order to move on to Melbourne and focus on the Australian Open. Not a very likely scenario, but players had been known to tank in the past. Whatever - the organisers in Sydney were far from happy with him and demanded an explanation for the lacklustre performance.
They got one the following day, but not from Lewis. It was the Daily Herald that came up with all the answers, by running a story under the headline: MY NIGHT OF STEAMY SEX WITH
WIMBLEDON CHAMP!
It was Jim who brought the good news to Lewis in his hotel room. Thrusting the paper into his hands, the cantankerous older Scotsman actually looked quite pleased with himself for the first time in several months. When Lewis read the article, it was clear that a lot of embellishments had been made, which was nothing new where the tennis player was concerned, but there could be
no denying the central truths, over which the good people of Sydney, and the following morning Britain, would gleefully eat their breakfast.