Fragile

by Skyler Snow

  Fragile

  Strictly Off Limits Book 2

  Skyler Snow

  Rheland Richmond

  Contents

  1. Jack

  2. Tom

  3. Jack

  4. Tom

  5. Jack

  6. Tom

  7. Jack

  8. Tom

  9. Jack

  10. Tom

  11. Jack

  12. Tom

  13. Tom

  14. Jack

  15. Tom

  16. Jack

  17. Tom

  18. Jack

  19. Tom

  20. Jack

  21. Tom

  22. Jack

  23. Tom

  24. Jack

  25. Tom

  26. Jack

  27. Tom

  Epilogue - Jack

  Also by Skyler Snow

  Also By Rheland Richmond

  Skyler Snow

  Rheland Richmond

  Copyright © 2020 Rheland Richmond & Skyler Snow

  All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any electronic or mechanical means, including information storage and retrieval systems, without written permission from the author, except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and events are a product of the author’s imagination. Any similarities to actual persons, living or dead, is pure coincidence. As are any similarities to any businesses, events or locations.

  All products and brand names mentioned are registered trademarks of their respective holder and or company. I do not own the rights to these, nor do I claim to.”

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  1

  Jack

  “So yeah. That’s what’s been happening. Scott and I thought it was only fair that we tell you everything.” My son’s voice came through the phone, but I couldn’t really hear it. I was lost in a daze, still trying to process exactly what he was saying.

  I stood frozen in the middle of my living room, staring out into nothing. Elliot was never the type to sit me down for a serious talk. The moment he called, I knew that something had happened. I just didn’t exactly expect this. How exactly did I respond to my son coming out to me as bisexual and then saying that he’s dating my lifelong best friend? The bisexual part honestly was of no concern to me. But Scott… my first reaction was one of anger. I hadn’t sent my son there to be pawed over by my best friend.

  I stopped and took a deep breath. I’m worried about him. I knew that was why I was angry, but I didn’t want Elliot to hear it. He would think I was mad at him and I wasn’t. I really didn’t want to be upset at Scott either.

  Scott was a good man. He was my best friend. That I’d trusted him to look out for Elliot spoke volumes. In fact, it might be good news that he was dating my son. At least Elliot wasn’t with some stranger. Maybe he was a safer bet. What was there really to be angry about? It still felt weird, but I couldn’t deny that I trusted Scott with my life. He would never let anything happen to my son.

  “All right.” I was still conflicted, but Elliot was waiting for some kind of answer. I needed to break up the silence. Elliot had always been anxious and I knew the silence would kill him. “All right, son, I’m proud of you for telling me. I know all of this is really overwhelming.” I gripped my phone a little tighter. “I’m glad you found someone.”

  I was struggling with my words, trying to balance my acceptance with the instinctual need to protect my son. I took a deep breath then rocked back on my heels. The situation was even more difficult because I wasn’t there. I was all the way in Oklahoma.

  “Look, I trust Scott and of course I trust your decisions. I just—” An idea clicked in my brain and I only needed to think about it for a moment before I knew what I was going to do. I could easily do my job from home and I often did. It didn’t matter where I was, as long as I turned in my projects and met deadlines. The more I thought about it, my excitement grew. “I’ll catch a flight tonight and I’ll be there tomorrow. We can discuss all of this when I get there.”

  “Oh, dad you don’t have to—”

  I instantly had the image of his red face in my mind. Just like when he was a teenager, he tried to assert his independence. It was a good thing, but I was still a concerned dad and I wanted to see my son. He was all grown up now, but that didn’t mean I would suddenly drop out of his life.

  “No, I will. I’m not angry at you or Scott, but I’m worried. I won’t try to break y’all up, but I should at least have this discussion with the two of you in person.” I walked around my house, already heading to my room to pack. “Plus, it’s been years since I’ve seen him. It might be nice to do some catching up.” After the divorce, Scott had always been there for me. We’d grown closer and closer over the years. Now that he was dating my son however, would that change our dynamic? The thought of being Scott’s father-in-law was a bit jarring and almost laughable. There was some whispering on the other side of the call before Elliot spoke up again.

  “Scott wants to talk to you.”

  “Hey,” I said when he was on the phone, my stomach still doing a fluttery thing I didn’t care for.

  “Hey. Sorry about keeping you in the dark.” It was so like him to immediately jump to apologize when he knew that he fucked up. I shook my head and smiled a little at his words.

  “No, it’s fine. Elliot’s a grown man now and I trusted you with him. I’m just surprised that I have to trust you with this now.” We both chuckled, falling back into our usual dynamic of casual jokes and teasing. I felt relieved knowing that even though things had changed, we could still be us. “So, you’re finally going to visit LA?”

  “Yup. I should be there by tomorrow just to keep an eye on things.” That sounded a bit ominous, but I wanted to make sure everything was fine. Their age gap was significant. I was sure Scott wouldn’t use my son for sex, but there was still that little nagging feeling to make sure my son was actually okay. Being a parent was hard. I realized that I’d been quiet for a while. I dropped my voice to a ridiculously deep tone. “I don’t trust you with my son.”

  “Ah, shit. Are you going to come kick down my door with a shotgun?”

  “Are you telling me that’s what it’s going to take for you to walk my son down the aisle?” I raised a brow even though he couldn’t see me. “I might be a little late. Let me pick up that shotgun first.”

  The tension eased as we both laughed at the image. “Don’t worry, Jack. You know I’ll always keep Elliot safe.” I could hear the smile in his voice and my heart squeezed. That wasn’t the sound of a man in a casual fling. “You’re more than welcome to visit. We would love to have you. It’s been way too long.”

  There was a flutter in my chest, and the memory of the long-dead crush that I once had on Scott floated into my mind. I rolled my eyes, letting the feeling pass over me like it was nothing. At one time I had been in love with Scott. Maybe that was why it was easy to accept the fact that Elliot was dating him. It was hard not to fall for someone like Scott.

  I’m too old to be falling in love, anyway. At least Elliot will have someone.

  That thought immediately stirred the loneliness that sat in my chest. It was a familiar feeling. Although maybe sharpened by the reminder that Elliot didn’t need me as much anymore. Maybe even less now. Sure, he’d still be around, but whenever a kid grew up and fell in love, it was different.

  “Jack?” Scott’s voice held
concern. “You okay?”

  “Yeah,” I shook my head to clear the cobwebs before I started grabbing clothes. “I’ll see both of you tomorrow.”

  I finally hung up and stared at the suitcase on my bed. Everything had just been flipped on its head with a single phone call. I bit my lip.

  “Man, this is going to be weird.”

  2

  Tom

  Ring. Ring.

  I groaned and put my hand out, searching for my phone. When I picked it up, I opened one eye and immediately closed it when the glare hit my retina in the darkness of my room.

  Still, I saw who was calling. It wasn’t the first time that Elliot had called me at two in the morning in our friendship. It didn’t happen as often as Issac or Connie’s midnight calls, but I still answered all of them. Although I often cursed them out since they knew I was a light sleeper. The smallest buzz and I was up.

  The difference between Connie, Issac, and Elliot’s midnight calls was that Connie and Issac usually called me for work-related stuff. They were both night owls and workaholics. Elliot, on the other hand, was different. He loved his job just like the rest of us, but he didn’t work late. Or maybe he did, but the only time he called was when he worried. My friend worried late. Picking up the phone made my eyes burn from the bright light, So I shut them again and blindly swiped the answer button.

  “What’s wrong?” My voice was still raspy from sleep. I heard Elliot laugh.

  “Why does something have to be wrong, maybe I am calling to check on you.”

  A grunt followed by, “Elliot.” Had him replying “How do you always know these things?” He asked. It sounded like maybe he had been crying, but my brain was still too foggy with sleep to really be worried. I sighed and rolled over. Sleep was still trying to pull me under, but I fought it, wanting to figure out what was wrong with Elliot first.

  “It’s ‘cause I’m sexy. What’s wrong?”

  “My dad is flying out to visit. Tomorrow. I told him about me and Scott and he seems…” He was quiet for a moment. “Well, he said it’s fine but I think he’s worried. Could you talk to him? Like, when he gets here?” Elliot rambled when he was nervous and it wasn’t making him any easier to understand through my sleep-addled brain.

  Why did he want me to talk to his dad? It took a moment before I brushed it all aside. It didn’t really matter why he needed help because he needed it. I wasn’t about to leave him hanging. Maybe it would help that I was an impartial party. It also sounded just fucked up enough to be entertaining. I was into that.

  “Yeah. What exactly are you worried about? That he’ll think it’s weird that his son is fucking his best friend?” I asked it without thinking, but it was still something I would have said even if I was wide awake. Elliot sputtered on the other side of the phone for a minute.

  “Shut. Up,” he growled. “And yeah I’m a little worried about that. My dad doesn’t talk to many people and I just know he and Scott will be weird about this.” He was rambling again and I didn’t have the energy to listen to him nervously pace around and basically rap to me on the phone.

  “Of course he’s gonna be weird about it. This is a weird as shit thing, you know? What’s his name?” I cut him off and there was a pause on the other side of the call, almost like Elliot was debating whether to argue with me.

  “Jack. He’s the guy in a lot of the pictures in my apartment.”

  “The hot one?” I could picture his face almost immediately. I had visited enough times to memorize almost all of the pictures that hung up on the walls. He was a good-looking guy, but they took some of those pictures a decade ago. Maybe he was old and crusty now.

  “Tom, that’s my dad.” Elliot sounded tired, but he had woken me up. I was justified in my curiosity. Besides, the man really was hot. I couldn’t be held accountable for what I said. Especially when I was still half asleep.

  Not that I wouldn’t say it when I was wide awake.

  “Too bad, might bang your dad. And yeah, I’ll talk to him. Just call me when he gets in and I’ll try to come over.”

  Another pause.

  “Thank you.”

  “Of course, man. I love you.”

  “Love you too.”

  I hung up and rolled over to set my phone on the nightstand. As much as I loved to mess with Elliot I was worried about him too. I yawned and yanked the blanket back over my body. It seemed like I was about to get dragged into something, but I wasn’t all that bothered. My life could use a little excitement.

  3

  Jack

  “Hey, dad!” Elliot was the one to greet me at the door and I felt a rush of relief at the sight of him. He hadn’t changed a bit, except for the beaming smile on his face. Had he gained a little weight? He threw himself at me and I had to practically catch him before he knocked both of us over. Elliot’s arms wrapped around me tightly. I hugged him back surprised at the sudden display of affection.

  Elliot had always been shy. It had been years since he voluntarily hugged me, but my arms wrapped around him instinctively. The last few weeks had been difficult to cope with having Elliot so far away from me. The house felt bigger, emptier without him and I had found myself stagnant and lonely.

  Even when he was at college, he still spent time at home. Those little weekend visits had kept me going. This was the furthest he’d been away from me and the longest time since we hadn’t seen each other. It was part of him growing up, but it still felt strange.

  “Hey, kid.” My voice was shaky, but Elliot didn’t point it out. We finally broke apart, and I looked him over. He was still the same boy that I had raised by myself all these years, but there was a glow of happiness about him that made me smile. “Hey Scott! You’ve been feeding my kid well?”

  “Abso-fucking-lutely. I wouldn’t dare do anything else.” I looked over Elliot’s shoulder and saw Scott standing in the living room smiling. A thousand memories came rushing back to me as I stared. I was vaguely aware of the fact that Elliot had moved out of the way. “It’s been a while, man.”

  I stepped toward Scott and he immediately pulled me in for a hug. He had always been the more emotional out of the two of us. I didn’t mind. I was grateful to Scott for everything he’d done for me and Elliot over the years. As he held me he laughed and I felt the rumble against my chest. It felt good. Maybe I was touch starved. Okay I’m definitely touch starved. A hug was the most physical affection I’d gotten in some time.

  “It’s been too long,” I muttered, feeling a little embarrassed when we finally broke apart. Elliot stared at us with a mix of curiosity and genuine relief on his face. “You’re looking good!”

  Scott had always been an athletic guy, but I would have thought he’d have lost a little bit of his good looks with age. Nope. He was just as muscular as he had been when we first met decades ago. Besides the streaks of grey in his hair, the beard and the fine laugh lines on his face he could still pass as a jock.

  “Of course! When do I look bad?” He held open his arms and gestured to himself, making me roll my eyes. Scott. He could be ridiculous sometimes. “And speaking of looking good, I do need to get to the gym for work. You and Elliot will have the place to yourself for a while.”

  When I looked at Elliot’s face I could tell that they had planned this in advance to give us some privacy. Scott was like family to us, but we had a few things to talk about without him present. I nodded at him, slapping him on the back.

  “Of course. I’ll see you soon?”

  “Yeah! We’ll go out for drinks like the good old days!”

  “Don’t say that,” I groaned. “It makes me feel ancient.”

  We both laughed before he moved toward Elliot. His body blocked my son from view. They exchanged a few words until Elliot slipped his hand into Scott’s and he lifted it. I was pretty sure he’d kissed Elliot’s hand. He waved and headed out, leaving Elliot and me alone finally. It was a completely new place to me, but to Elliot, it was home. That felt strange and I shifted from one foo
t to the other.

  “So,” Elliot finally broke the silence. “How was your flight?” He plopped onto the couch. I glanced around the apartment still taking everything in. It was somehow both so distinctly Scott and Elliot with the wood carvings, pictures of hiking trips, and the little paintings that now hung on the walls. I expected it to clash, but it all seemed to work in an odd way. It was perfectly balanced, like two people coming together putting their lives together. It felt as if two people in love lived there.

  “It was good! I booked a place in a hotel nearby. I don’t want to invade your privacy.” I tried to put it lightly. Elliot nodded, a blush creeping up on his face. I went back to wandering around looking at the old pictures that Scott had hung up on the walls. Quite a few of them were of the three of us on camping trips, faces tanned and smiling. I remembered those trips. Hiking, fishing, camping; we’d done it all. Now it felt as if I was missing out on something.

  “So,” Elliot cleared his throat. “Let’s just talk about it so when Scott gets home it isn’t so awkward.” I turned to look at my son. He was gnawing on his lips like it was his next meal and looking uncomfortable as fuck.

  You and me both, kid.

  Since he was young I’d tried to curb that habit, worried about him tearing up his lips. I guess I understood it though. Elliot was never the type to tackle his problems and he didn’t really talk about his feelings openly. I always wondered if it was because of his mother leaving when he was just a baby. She’d never been in his life and I regretted every moment of that.