by Chase, T. A.
Chaz nodded, not saying he would. Of course, he wouldn’t think of asking Cody for
help. Did he look like he wanted to listen to a lecture of how he was ruining his life by using the drugs to mask the pain?
He fumbled with his wallet as he tried to pull his key card out. Swearing under his
breath, he finally got the door unlocked. Chaz shoved it open with his shoulder, then
stumbled into the room. He braced his hand on the wall before kicking the door shut.
Taking a deep breath, he shuffled to the bathroom where he turned the water on in the
tub. He twisted the faucet all the way over to as hot as he could get it. Afterwards, Chaz went to his shaving kit. He dug around, looking for his pills, almost bursting into tears when he found one of his Vicodin bottles.
Chaz hoped there was more than one in the bottle. He couldn’t remember if he’d got
them refilled before he had headed to Tulsa. Probably not, since he hadn’t been using them and he was trying to prove he wasn’t addicted to the painkillers. He made a mental note to stop at the nearest pharmacy on his way to Peter’s.
He dropped the bottle as he struggled to get the cap off.
“God damn it,” he swore as the bottle exploded and all the pills spilled into the sink.
He watched the little white rectangles bounce everywhere, and he growled in
frustration. With trembling fingers, he picked five of them out before setting them on the counter. He stared at them, trying to figure out if he had the coordination to crush them up or if he should just swallow them.
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Looking at his hands, Chaz decided the best way to do it was to swallow them. He
wouldn’t be able to handle any kind of holding anything long enough to break the meds.
Chaz found a glass before filling it with water, then he took the pills, hoping and praying they kicked in quick.
Chaz struggled to get his clothes off, but in the end he won the war. After turning off
the water, he had to climb into the tub, hoping his hands or knees didn’t slip on the wet tile.
The minute his back hit the hot liquid, he groaned and his vision went black for a minute.
Fuck! That felt awesome. Chaz folded a towel before tucking it behind his neck to prop his head up. Resting against the side of the tub, he closed his eyes.
He was willing to soak as long as it took to untie the knots of muscles in his back.
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Chapter Eleven
Chaz stared at his truck, not sure he wanted to get in and drive all the way from
Oklahoma to Wyoming. He couldn’t tell how his back felt underneath the several painkillers he’d taken for the long twelve-hour drive ahead of him.
“Maybe you should consider flying to Cheyenne.”
Chaz glared at Cody, who had come to stand beside him. “Maybe you should consider
minding your own business, Cody.”
Cody snorted. “I would, but I know Tony would do the same thing for me. I’m just
looking out for my friends.”
“I thought we were friends,” Chaz said.
“We are, and I’m also doing this for you.”
Chaz shot him an incredulous look. “Are you serious? What the fuck is this? Some
fucked-up form of intervention?”
Cody shook his head. “Even if I think you should get help, I know it won’t work if you
don’t want help.”
“My back’s wonky from the hit I took from Halo last night, but that’s it. I’ve only taken two pills to help.”
Rolling his eyes, Cody wisely didn’t say anything about it. “I’ll see you at some point.
Now that I’m retired, I won’t be on tour anymore.”
He was willing to delay the excruciating drive he was about to take. “What happens
now?”
“I don’t know really, it depends on what my doctors say. I might have a job lined up,
though. Heading to Austin later in the week. I’m visiting my parents first.”
“Good idea.”
Chaz had thrown his bags on the back seat of the cab, so all he had to do was get in and
drive.
“Have a safe trip, Chaz. Be careful,” Cody warned before punching Chaz’s shoulder
lightly.
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Chaz watched Cody walk away, then finally sucked it up and climbed in. He stopped
once heading out of town to get gas and snacks for the road.
His phone rang after he’d been on the highway for an hour. Glancing at the screen, he
saw it was Peter. He’d ignored all of Peter’s calls last night. He should probably answer it.
After hitting his Bluetooth set-up, he said, “Hey, Peter.”
“Finally. Are you all right?” Peter sounded upset. “I got worried last night when you
didn’t answer your phone.”
“Sorry, honey. I’m fine. Bruised like hell, but I’m on my way to your place.” He didn’t
want to talk about his accident.
“It looked bad,” Peter continued. “Why didn’t you answer my calls?”
“I took a long hot bath, then a couple of aspirins. Knocked me out as soon as I crawled
into bed. Sorry about not calling you or anything.”
His apology was sincere. He’d only ignored the first of Peter’s calls because he didn’t
want to get out of the tub. Once he had, he’d taken a few more pills and gone straight to bed.
“Aspirin? That’s all?” Peter’s voice held doubt.
Chaz hated being treated like a child, but he knew Peter had the right to question him.
He lied again.
“Yes, aspirin. Did everyone get home okay?” Chaz changed the subject.
Peter sighed, seemingly aware of what Chaz was trying to do. Yet he allowed the
conversation switch.
“We’ll talk about this when you get to the ranch. They got in all right, and slept for a
while. Randy’s out checking the horses and cattle with Jackson, while Les is going over the accounts with me. I thought I’d leave him alone for a little bit while I gave you a call.”
“Good to know, though I’m a little nervous to meet all of your friends.”
Actually, Chaz was terrified of meeting the men Peter called his family. He wasn’t good
enough for Peter, and Chaz was afraid someone would figure it out.
“Why? They’re all great guys. Trust me, they won’t hate you, and I’ll put in a good
word for you,” Peter teased.
Chaz chuckled. “Just one word? You’re not going to sit them down and tell them
everything you like about me? Doesn’t seem right to me.”
Peter grunted. “The list is so long, I’m not sure I have time to tell them everything
before you get here.”
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“Well played there. It’s not like I’m going to be asking for your hand in marriage or
anything like that,” Chaz pointed out.
“Right.” Peter hesitated, then went on, “Umm… Chaz, I have to ask you something.”
“Go ahead.” He wasn’t sure he wanted to hear what Peter wanted to ask, but he
couldn’t really say no.
“While I know we haven’t known each other that long, and really only spent two weeks
together, I have to ask. Are we getting serious, or am I just a distraction?” Peter fell silent.
Chaz waited to see if Peter had anything else to say, but nothing was forthcoming. He
cleared his throat.
“You are a distraction, Peter, just not in the way you’re talking about. I’m not hanging
out or sleeping with you simply because I need something to do. I have a lot of other
interests to keep me busy. The reason you distract me is because I can’t think of anything except you.” He cringed at what he was admitting out loud.
Peter inhaled sharply. “Really? You’re not just saying that because you think I want to
hear it?”
“I don’t talk about things like that on a whim. I’ve never said anything like that to any other man. I like you, Peter. Hell, I could possibly fall in love with you, given time.”
Fuck! He slammed his hand on the steering wheel. He hadn’t meant to say that either.
What the hell was wrong with him? He wasn’t someone who revealed his hand this early in a relationship. Well, actually, he’d never told anyone that. Why was Peter different?
Silence greeted his statement and stretched until Chaz was pretty sure Peter had hung
up on him.
“Peter?” He should’ve hung up. Actually, he should’ve never answered the phone in
the first place.
“I’m still here. I’m processing what you said. Did you really mean it? Could you fall in
love with me?” Peter snorted. “God, I sound like a girl.”
“No more than I do,” Chaz pointed out.
“True, but answer me,” Peter demanded.
Chaz took a deep breath before saying, “Yes, I mean it. I really like you, and I haven’t
been able to think about anything else since we met.”
Peter laughed. “Join the club, man. It’s been difficult to get anything done because all I can think about is you and what we’ve done together.”
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The last part of the sentence was said in a whisper. Chaz smiled at the shyness in Peter’s voice. So adorable, considering everything they’d done before Chaz had left for the next
event.
“I assume Les is still there with you,” he commented.
“He’s in the other room, but I didn’t want to talk about what we’ve done in front of
him. It’s private, and I don’t think I’ll ever become used to discussing it with anyone but you.”
“Good. I don’t want you talking about sex with anyone else, and I don’t want you to
think about having it with anyone else either. I’ve decided I’m going to be the possessive type.” He shrugged, even though Peter couldn’t see him. “Not sure why, when I’ve never
cared about the other guys I’ve fucked like that.”
Yawning, he swerved slightly as he drove. An hour into the drive, and he was dead on
his feet—or ass, since he was sitting. Maybe he shouldn’t have taken all those pills before he’d left.
“I might drive as far as I can today, then stop. My back might not allow me to drive
straight through.” He hated admitting that to Peter.
He heard another voice in the background of Peter’s phone, then Peter said, “I have to
go now, Chaz. Call me when you stop, and drive safe.”
“I will. Bye.” He pushed the end button before taking a drink of his soda.
After another four hours, he pulled off the highway, then found a hotel to stay at. Chaz
checked in, praying he could get to his room without dropping anything or crumpling to his knees. He got the door unlocked, shoved it open, then carried his bag in.
Chaz dropped the bag on the floor, not caring about any of it. He fell face first onto the bed and was asleep before he could think about taking off his clothes.
* * * *
Warmth on his face woke him, and Chaz blinked, opening his eyes to see he’d forgotten
to draw the curtains when he’d got into the room. Wow… It was crazy bright out. He rolled over to check the time. It was eleven o’clock. He’d slept far longer than he’d planned, and his back complained about the position he’d been in the entire night.
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Shit! He’d forgotten to call Peter again. Peter was going to be pissed off if he kept not calling him. Chaz struggled to sit up, then looked around to find his bag. He’d stuck his phone in there when he’d arrived at the hotel.
His bag was on the floor just inside the door, so he pushed to his feet before making his way over there. Chaz dug out his phone to check his voicemails. There was only one from
Peter, and he didn’t sound upset.
“I guess you probably fell right asleep when you got to wherever you chose to stay. Just
call me when you wake up tomorrow.”
Chaz deleted the message, then dialled Peter’s number. This time he got Peter’s
voicemail.
“Hey, Peter, I’m about five hours out. Just woke up, so I’m planning on grabbing
breakfast before I leave. See you soon.”
He took a shower, then some more pills. Chaz grabbed breakfast at the diner next to the
hotel. After eating, he headed out, wanting to get to Peter’s before it got dark.
Five hours later, he pulled into the driveway leading towards the main house. Chaz
was surprised by all the activity centred on the barns. There hadn’t been nearly that much when he was there a week ago. Maybe because the big guys had been gone there hadn’t been
any major business going on or lessons. He’d learnt that Les worked with riders and Randy trained cutting horses. Those must have started up again now that they were back.
Chaz parked his truck next to Peter’s, and almost rolled out of the vehicle. He grunted
as his feet hit the dirt. After placing his hands at the base of his spine, he arched his back, trying to stretch a little.
“You must be Chaz, Peter’s friend.”
He turned at the sound of the softly accented voice. A tall, dark-haired man stood in
front of him. There was a distinctive white streak over his right temple, and Chaz knew he was talking to Les.
“Yes, sir, and you must be Mr Hardin. Peter’s told me a lot about you.” Chaz held out
his hand.
Smiling slightly, Les shook it. “I’m not that much older than you, so please call me Les.
I’m glad you were able to come to stay with us for a few days. Where do you need to be
next?”
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Chaz turned to open up the back door of his truck, then grabbed one of his bags. Les
took the other one before Chaz had a chance to get it. Les gestured towards the house, and Chaz followed him up to the front door.
“Nashville is next. So unfortunately I have to head out on Wednesday to get there in
time, but I really wanted to see Peter.” He gave himself a mental head slap.
It was one thing to make those kinds of statement to Peter. He didn’t need to blurt shit
like that out to complete strangers, even if Les was a big brother figure to Peter.
“Next time you decide to come, let me know, and I’ll send the jet for you. It’ll make it
easier for you to travel. Driving everywhere has to be hell on your back.” Les pushed the door open while he spoke.
The jet? Chaz had got the idea that Les was rich, with all the different businesses associated with the ranch that Peter dealt with, but he’d never thought the man would have a private aeroplane.
“Thanks. I appreciate the offer.” Though he’d probably never use it.
“I know what it’s like having to deal with an injury.” Les skimmed his fingers over the
white streak and the slight concave dent at his temple. “Plus, I’d like to help Peter out. If you used the jet, you could stay here longer.”
Well, that was an incentive to take Les up on his offer. Before he could say anything, the sound of footsteps coming down the hall caused him to look up. Peter was heading towards
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them, and his smile showed how happy he was to see Chaz.
“I’ll see you later at dinner, Chaz. I’m sure you and Peter would like to catch up.” Les
set his bag on the floor before slapping him on the shoulder.
“Nice to meet you, Les,” Chaz said absently, his attention fully on Peter.
Peter stopped in front of Chaz, and Chaz didn’t resist the need to wrap his arms around
Peter’s waist to draw him the last few inches. Their lips met, making Chaz sigh softly. The touch of Peter’s mouth on his, and the solidness of Peter in his arms, helped Chaz release tension he didn’t even know he’d carried.
He mumbled something against Peter’s cheek, but he had no real idea what he was
saying. He was relieved to be out of the truck and with Peter. His mind ground to a halt for a moment when he realised he probably was already in love with Peter. He didn’t know how it could’ve happened so quickly, but it had, and he found that he wasn’t too upset about it.
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Chaz bent slightly to get a better angle for the kiss, and his back reminded him he
wasn’t a twenty-year-old kid anymore. Chaz clenched his jaw, then stepped back.
“Why don’t you take me to our room, then you can show me some TLC,” he suggested.
Red tinged Peter’s cheeks, and Chaz chuckled. Peter shook his head when he saw how
pleased Chaz looked.
“Don’t look so proud of yourself. I’d blush no matter who said that.”
“That’s true.” Chaz couldn’t hide his wince as he reached for the bag Les had set on the
floor.
Chaz shuddered when Peter ran his hand down his spine.
“Maybe I should give you a massage before we get reacquainted.”
“Only if you don’t care that I might fall asleep on you,” Chaz informed him.
Peter didn’t say anything, and Chaz wondered if Peter was trying to decide what he
wanted more—sex or helping Chaz feel better.
“Don’t think too hard about it, honey. You can do—or have—both. One will just have to
wait until later.”
“How did you know what I was thinking?”
