by Cara Dee
In the end, not a lot could go wrong. Henry had sole custody, and Ty no longer wanted to see his grandparents. There was nothing they could do but accept it.
“Well, the more time you spend in LA, the better.” Martin spoke with finality. “Leaving Malibu makes sense, but for this?”
“Hey,” I protested. “You haven’t given it a chance.”
“We went on a cruise a few years ago,” Henry revealed. “I had to do the island excursions alone because Martin doesn’t like bugs.”
Martin shuddered.
I snorted. My phone interrupted me then, and I checked it to see who was calling me at almost ten in the evening. I didn’t recognize the number and was fully prepared to block another telemarketer.
“Yeah, this is Zach,” I answered.
“So we’ll do brunch on Sunday before I go home, yes?” Martin looked to Henry.
Releasing Henry’s hand, I stepped away from them to hear the woman on the line.
“—and I’ve been driving my husband up the wall with my second-guessing, but I just can’t get you out of my head, Zach.” The voice. I recognized it vaguely. “We finished the last shoot for our launch campaign this week, and here I am, ready to move on to the next project only because of you. I’d like to schedule a meeting with you.”
Holy shit, it was that lady. Brooklyn, Joseph’s boss.
“Um, meeting?” I must’ve sounded like an idiot, but she might as well have been speaking another language. “Can I ask for what?”
She spoke so fast it was hard to understand. “I have this diversity campaign in mind for the holidays. It’s been done before, but I want to go bolder—darker. I need spokesmodels to stay with us, to be able to handle more daring shoots. I want it genuine, so real you can feel it in the photos—aw, hell, I’m sorry. I’m rambling. You have no idea how much I’ve struggled with this, and then Julian told me you were going out for dinner, and I just checked out. I have to meet with you.”
I opened my mouth, and no sound came out. What the fuck was going on? I turned to Henry and Martin and gave them a helpless stare, but they were useless. Bickering old women.
“I’m interested,” I heard myself saying. I didn’t know why or how I was interested, but the excitement called to me. They wanted to meet with me, for whatever reason. “I, uh, I’m not in LA at the moment.”
“That’s fine. I’ll have my assistant call your people. Who reps you? I haven’t seen you anywhere. Anyway, they’ll set up a meeting as soon as possible, and we’ll make sure you get all the details beforehand.”
“Um, right, yeah, that’s great,” I stammered. I was in way over my head, yet I managed to prattle off a phone number like I was the most evil mastermind in the world. I just hoped they wouldn’t call it right now, ’cause my brother would be answering.
“Perfect, Zach.” Brooklyn sounded like everything was suddenly right in the world. “I look forward to seeing you.”
We ended the call shortly after, and I gusted out a breath. Oh, so now I had Henry’s and Martin’s attention.
“I…” I gestured to the phone, at a loss. “I need people.”
Twenty-Six
I need his rock hard…reassurance
“Mattie’s gonna want his phone back soon,” I muttered, chewing on my thumbnail. I couldn’t tear my eyes away from Martin, who was pacing in my little living room with my brother’s phone stuck to his ear. “I’m nervous. That’s not weird, is it?”
“Of course not.” Henry hugged me from behind, helping me relax slightly. “And you’re positive she said spokesmodels?”
“Yeah.” I’d assured them both of that ten times already. Last night, there wasn’t much to do. Martin had seemed frustrated I couldn’t relay more details, and Henry had looked weirdly proud. For what, I didn’t know. I hadn’t done anything.
“Certainly, certainly,” Martin was saying to…someone. Brooklyn Wright’s people. She had people.
“So, it’s like an audition for something?” I asked quietly. “I mean, that’s what we’re dealing with here. I might have an audition or interview with her makeup company.”
What confused me the most was how Brooklyn thought I was “repped” by someone. Hadn’t Julian told her I was only a guest at that club? I’d texted him, and he hadn’t responded yet.
“From what you told us…” Henry hummed and pressed a kiss to the back of my head. “I’m not sure, baby. It sounds like more than an interview.”
“I’ll have my PA send it to you,” Martin said. And he was lying, right? He didn’t have an assistant. “Yes, that’s perfectly fine, and I will book his ticket this afternoon.” That made my eyebrows fly up. “I’ll forward it.” He jotted something down on a notepad.
“Whatever it is, I think you’re leaving soon,” Henry murmured. “This is exciting, sweetheart. I hope you get the job.”
“Doing what?” I whispered, frustrated.
Henry chuckled and kissed my neck this time—a slow, openmouthed one that sent a shudder down my spine. “Isn’t that obvious? You’ll be a model, of course.”
“Model,” I tested the word. Crazy. “That’s crazy. Straight-up batshit.”
“Nonsense. You’re incredibly sexy. By far, the most beautiful man I’ve ever met.”
I rolled my eyes, though my face felt hotter at the same time. “You say that ’cause you love my ass.”
“I do, so much.” Fuck, he needed to lay off those kisses if we were gonna stay dressed. “I miss having you.”
I swallowed and looked up at him with a brief glare. “You have yourself to blame for that, buddy. Scratch what I said, you don’t love my ass enough.”
“Soon,” he whispered and kissed me. “I don’t want to worry about hurting you.”
Fretting fucker.
Turning back to Martin as he wrapped up the call, I adjusted my dick and waited expectantly.
“Well.” He released a breath and put a hand on his hip. “You, my dear, have a meeting with Brooklyn Wright and her team on Monday.”
“This Monday?” I asked incredulously. It was way too fast. I was supposed to have a year to figure out what I wanted to do, and now I had an interview with some makeup brand in LA for a modeling gig. On fucking Monday.
“Don’t you worry,” he told me. “As of ten minutes ago, I am your fabulous manager, and I will be there every step of the way. It’s a pretty straightforward gig. If they like what they see at the meeting, they’ll book you in for a couple weeks, and then you’re done.”
A couple of weeks. Shit, okay, I could do that. Besides, before the meeting, there were no guarantees. No matter the outcome, I’d be back in Camassia soon.
Pammie was just gonna love this. With Mattie starting school, he couldn’t work that much. Maybe it was time to bring in a part-time employee.
“This is actually happening,” I stated.
“Oh, it’s absolutely happening.” Martin was thrilled.
I wasn’t. Was I? There was excitement buried somewhere; I could feel it, but there was more. I was nervous, uneasy, and in serious need of reassurance from Henry.
Was this okay with him? What was he thinking?
“Can I have a moment with Henry?” The unease kept growing, and I wasn’t sure why.
“Of course, honey.” Martin walked toward us and extended Mattie’s phone. “I gave them my number instead.”
“Okay, thanks.” I pocketed the phone, then nodded when he said he’d go to the coffee shop on Olympia Square.
When it was only Henry and me left, my brain started spinning again. This wasn’t how we’d planned it. We were gonna have a year of dating and hopefully soon exchange I-love-yous and grow together like a family. I was gonna get closer to Ty; Henry was gonna get to know Mattie better and meet our grandmother.
“It’s going fast,” I admitted. “My biggest plans this weekend involved asking you to dinner and giving you a blow job for comfort after you’ve seen your folks.” I guess it was my turn to pace. “We’ve never rea
lly been on a date. An official one. I want that.”
“Zach, we’ll get it,” he reasoned gently. “You’ll be back before you know it. By then, I will hopefully have found a house.”
“So you think this is a good idea?” I needed to know.
Part of me wanted him to say no. It was the part of me that was intimidated, I guessed.
He chose his words carefully, and I stopped him before he could even begin.
“I want your honesty here, Henry.”
That gave him another pause. “You’re right.” He inclined his head and took a breath. “I am working through my insecurities, so I will have to ask for your patience. And permission to come visit you on the weekend if you do stay the whole two weeks. Possibly three, if you think about it. They probably won’t get you started the minute the meeting is over.” The irony wasn’t lost on me, because as he got himself worked up, my comfort grew. I allowed myself to relax. “I suppose what I’m saying is, I will encourage every new challenge you face because I will make sure to be there with you as much as possible.”
He said the exact words I had to hear. If we’d been together for months or years, the need to check in and constantly be close wouldn’t have been healthy. But we’d just gotten back together and were ready to combat those worries. He wasn’t the only one with insecurities if I got anxious this easily.
“Thank you.” I exhaled in relief and returned to him, wanting his arms around me. “I wanna focus on us, if that makes sense.”
“Perfect sense.” He lifted my chin and kissed me. “I do look forward to you asking me out.”
I grinned into the kiss. “Henry, do you wanna go on a date with me when you visit me in LA?”
Because now that I’d gotten the reassurance from Henry, the excitement built up rapidly and spread like wildfire in my veins. Brooklyn saw something in me, and I was gonna ace that audition…or whatever it was.
“I’d like nothing more,” he murmured.
“Good. You put out, right?”
He laughed, even as his eyes darkened with lust.
The next day, Henry, Martin, and Ty were arranging things in their temporary home, and it was a good time for me to drag Mattie to see Nan.
The bruises were thankfully starting to fade, and no one looked at me twice as we located Nan in the common room on her floor. Mattie and I did our part, asking the ladies about their lives and whatnot, and then we helped her into her apartment.
“I’m disappointed you didn’t bring Henry, sugar,” Nan told me. “I thought you two worked things out.”
“They did.” Mattie got crackin’ with the tea and plating the pastries while I helped Nan into her chair by the window. “I swear, every time I turn around, they’re all over each other.”
Wow, he was exaggerating.
“Good.” Nan eyed me over the frames of her glasses. “That’s how it’s supposed to be. Where is he?”
“Getting settled in,” I replied, sitting down across from her. “I’ll bring him next time, I promise.”
“Perfect.” She was appeased. “Now, come closer so I can see your face, Zach.”
I suppressed a sigh, and my forearms landed on the table. “I’m okay. No headache anymore. I’m just a bit sore when I twist my upper body.”
She gripped my chin and tilted my head slightly, angling it. “It sickens me. Did you get in a few punches?”
I smirked.
She nodded. “I’m glad. Oh, if I could get my hands on those cowards.”
Mattie brought over the beverages and pastries. “Zach, tell her about your trip.”
“Dude, we just got here.”
“What’s my pumpkin talking about?” Nan looked between us. “Are you leaving again?”
“Yeah. It’s a temporary work thing. And it’s an interview—I don’t know if I’ll get it.” After talking to Julian, though, I had high hopes. A misunderstanding had made Brooklyn believe I was a professional, but after Julian had corrected her, she was even more interested in meeting with me. “I’ll be back in a few weeks.”
“Well, what’s it for? Don’t hold out on me.” She put a pastry on her plate and stirred her tea. “I don’t suppose it’s a conference for store owners.”
Mattie laughed.
I chuckled and shook my head. “It’s a modeling gig, I guess.”
“And if he’s hot enough for that, then I gotta be too,” Mattie reasoned.
Nan looked intrigued. “This is certainly different, sugar. I want to know everything.”
I realized how tense I was when Henry joined me in bed that night. He had been busy with Ty and the house search all day, plus getting some essentials for their temporary place. With Martin around, essentials were never enough.
“I missed you today.” He hugged me close, and I let out a breath and tried to unclench. “Are you okay?”
I nodded, then hesitated. “I had a fight with Mattie, and it’s possible I overreacted.”
For never seeing Henry’s age as something to worry about, I sure focused a lot on other people’s ages. Namely, my brother’s. He was seventeen, and I felt guilty for leaving him alone. He started school next week too, which made it worse. Like I was abandoning him, and yeah, I could hear how crazy I sounded. We’d been on our own from time to time since I was fourteen and could babysit him. So when Mattie called me out for being ridiculous and pointed out he’d been alone with Ty while I was in LA the first time, I may have resorted to yelling.
When I explained it all to Henry, I was glad he didn’t laugh at me.
“For all intents and purposes, you’re the boy’s dad.” He pressed a kiss to my jaw and stroked my back. “Of course, you worry. I’ll be here, though. I would like for him to stay with us if it’s all right with you. That way, we can have dinner together, and I can make sure they get to school on time.”
“I’d like that.” I burrowed closer, slipping a hand underneath his boxer briefs. “How did it go with the Realtor today?”
“Excellent, as a matter of fact.” He smiled in the dark, the light on my bedside table almost not catching it. “There are some beautiful lodges and ranches in Westslope. We found one overlooking the river. Ty loved it.”
That was good news. Henry had already promised to send me pictures of the places they looked at while I was gone. It helped to keep me relaxed if I had the future to focus on, and that was what every photo would represent. It was the home I’d one day share with Henry whenever we were in Camassia.
“Remember when I came to you in Malibu and explained everything about Ty and said Mattie saw him as a brother?”
Henry smiled and brushed our noses together. “You said you wanted to keep it that way.”
Yeah. Now it was getting real in a way I sure as hell hadn’t expected.
“Before you leave in two days, there’s something I have to tell you.” Henry shifted me onto my back and crawled over me, and I was the last person to complain. Fuck yes, I hoped this meant he was done fussing over my ribs. “I understand completely if you’re not there yet, but waiting two weeks won’t work for me. Hell, even one week is too much.”
“Oh?” I wriggled beneath him and rubbed his chest. My mouth followed, leaving a trail of kisses along his sternum. “We need to fuck, baby.”
He huffed. “Zachary, I’m trying to tell you I’m in love with you.”
My gaze flashed to meet his, and I was momentarily dumbfounded. Then I replayed the words I obviously hadn’t paid attention to, my lips slowly stretching into a grin.
He smiled carefully. “I can’t get over how beautiful you are, inside and out.”
“I’m in love with you too.” I pulled him down on me, and Christ, it was so right. His weight on me could set me on fire.
His hazel eyes were nearly liquid with heat and affection, and his kiss promised all sorts of wicked and tender things. His hands on me were reverent while his cock pressed demandingly against my thigh.
He groaned and thrust his tongue against mine at the sam
e time as I managed to work a hand between us to palm his cock.
“Do—” He shuddered. “Do you feel better?”
“Yeah.” It would’ve been my response even if I hadn’t. “We need this.”
He nodded and broke the kiss.
“Nightstand drawer.” I explored his chest and neck with my fingers, pushing my cock alongside his hip, and he reached for the table.
“When did you buy this?” He kneeled between my legs and got rid of his underwear before slathering his big cock in lube.
“The other week.” I eye-fucked him while I shed my own boxers. How could he be so damn sexy? His erection jutted out, thick, long, intimidating, and glistening. The ridge of his vein glinted in the low light. “Since I didn’t have you, I had to use my fingers.”
He caught me watching him and slowed down his stroking. He showed me how he got himself off, the unhurried edging, the twist, the pressure at the base, his other hand cupping his balls.
“Ugh, so much better than porn.” I bit my lip.
“We’ll get you a vibrator for when you’re gone,” he murmured huskily. He kept stroking himself slowly but used his other hand to prepare me. I shivered as he spread my cheeks and slipped the tip of his pinkie inside me. “I love feeling you like this.”
“I know.” I grinned and pulled up my knees so my feet were planted on the mattress. “You do that little wiggle thing.”
He did it and smirked.
“I want to do it in public.” Easing two fingers inside, he elicited a moan from me. “When you’re not prepared. Grocery shopping or at the movies. Just slip my pinkie inside and feel you.”
“Dirty,” I chuckled, breathing heavier. “Speaking of toys… I may have checked out a site where I can get a kit for making my own dildo shaped after your cock.”
