Jay’s heart dropped like a stone. “You were with Mark today?”
Harvey frowned, the lines between his eyes furrowing into deep grooves. “I haven’t been with Mark in a long time. Not since before you. I told you, there’s been nobody since you and I met. I went to work out with him today, but that’s all.”
Jay’s happiness crashed, and he couldn’t stop the surge of hurt, of betrayal. He knew it wasn’t fair to feel so angry, but emotions were tricky devils with wills of their own. “I thought you were going to do rounds.”
Harvey’s lips drew tight. “I did.” He flattened his palm against Jay’s cheek. “I wouldn’t lie to you. Not ever. And I’m not trying to hide anything from you either. Other than not telling you how I feel about you, how I’d already jumped into the deep end of love head first, I’ve never held anything back about from you.”
Jay clumsily let go of the breath he’d been holding. He forced himself to calm down, and prayed his racing pulse would slow. “So, you saw Mark today.”
“Yes,” Harvey said with a measure of trepidation. “He asked me to forgive him, and he asked me to give our friendship a second chance.”
“And?”
“And I forgave him, Jay. I realized that since I’ve had you in my life, I’m not mad anymore. I ‘m not scared. The only thing that frightens me is the thought of losing you.” He kissed Jay. “I never want to lose you.”
“And your friendship with Mark?”
“It’s been over for a long time. Truthfully, it was dead before our personal relationship ended. I just hadn’t said goodbye. Until today.”
Jay felt the tension in his chest loosen, and his breathing relaxed. “Really?” He’d been worried about Mark’s hold over Harvey. Worried that Mark would always be in the background, waiting for Harvey to have a weak moment. Guilt replaced his stress. Had he driven Harvey to give up his friend? Had his poorly hidden jealousy prompted Harvey to make the gesture? “I hope you didn’t do this for me.”
“No.” Harvey shook his head, the first hint of a smile playing on his lips. “I did this for me. I also realized that I’d walked on eggshells the entire time I’d been friends, and more, with Mark. I always worried how he’d react, so I kept things from him, especially how I felt. I avoided being honest so that I could avoid confrontations with him. I think I brought that with me when we started seeing each other. I’ve been serious about you since our first week together. I’ve wanted to tell you for so long how much I love you.” He inclined his head for another kiss. “I was scared that you wouldn’t feel the same and I’d lose you. Today I decided I’d rather risk you leaving me because of how I feel than have you leave me because you think I don’t care.”
“Is it sad how happy that makes me?”
“Only if it’s sad how happy you make me.”
“I feel the same way.” Jay recalled the moment with Jack when he realized the past didn’t matter anymore. Obviously, Harvey had come to the same conclusion, just in a different way. “Very happy,” he growled when Harvey’s palmed his shaft.
Harvey raised a brow as he broke out into a sexy-ass grin. “I can tell.”
“Say it again,” Jay whispered. He wanted to hear Harvey’s sensual, low voice telling him over and over how much he was loved.
“I’m in love with you,” Harvey said after he kissed the dip between Jay’s jaw and his neck. “Love you,” he said again, after he nibbled down to his collarbone. “Love you so much.” He nuzzled into Jay’s neck, pulling his head down to murmur into his ear. “So much.”
“Does this mean I get a drawer in your dresser?” Jay grinned. “I mean, I do have my own toothbrush holder.”
Harvey’s eyes sparkled. “It means you get anything you want. Anything.”
Jay words caught in his throat. He swallowed hard, trying to keep his eyes dry. “Deal.”
The End
Preview the next book
The Hurricane - Hot Toddy 2
The Other Team, Book 6
G.R. George
Hurricane Tucker Recipe
2 ounces dark rum
2 ounces light rum
2 ounces black cherry cranberry juice
2 ounces passion fruit juice
½ ounce lime juice
½ ounce simple sugar syrup
Shake ingredients together with ice then strain mixture over ice in a Hurricane cocktail glass. Garnish with a cherry. Hurricanes are powerful, but this one packs a sweet punch!
Chapter 1
Speaking of
Early June
Todd Nelson rolled over and wrapped his arms around his boyfriend Tucker Thompson. Tuck’s back, warm and hard against Todd’s chest, felt like shelter from the storm. He listened to the sound of Tuck’s soft snores, loving how, even in his sleep, Tuck’s fingers rubbed against the back of his hand.
They lay in Todd’s bed. While Todd loved everything about Tuck as a person, the chaos of his lover’s bedroom made it impossible for him to relax at night. Even so, Tuck willingly shared Todd’s bed without a fuss. They hadn’t spent one night apart from each other since the night they’d confessed their love.
Todd smiled, pressing a kiss at the base of Tuck’s neck. The moment had been sappy and exuberant—the kind of moment where he would have groaned had he been watching it play out in a Lifetime movie of the week. But as a scene from his real life, it had been perfect. Better than he’d ever imagined.
Theirs was a bond forged in commonality, brotherhood, friendship, and pain. They’d both been foster kids, both placed in the same home for their formidable years. Tucker had been there first. His mother had been abusive. The scars they’d left on Tucker had been more emotional than physical, and it had made it hard for him to believe he could be loved.
Todd’s situation had been much different. His mother never abused him, never called him names or treated him badly. She’d been helpless, needy. Drugs had been her crutch of choice, and Todd had spent his early years cleaning her up and cleaning up after her. She’d been arrested for selling drugs, and the state had taken Todd and placed him in care. When he’d met Tucker, the young boy had needed him, much like his mother, or so he thought. But over the years he’d discovered the great strength Tucker possessed. In fact, he was probably the toughest person Todd knew.
He remembered all the nights during their teenage years when he’d stared at Tucker’s sleeping form from across their small room at night. Even though they shared space, they’d had their own twin beds to sleep in. Todd had suppressed the urge to leave the cocoon of his own blankets to join Tucker, to crawl in bed with him, touch him, just to be near him. He’d never taken the risk.
He scooted closer and stroked his fingers down his boyfriend’s chest. So many years wasted. He kissed Tucker again, lower, between the shoulder blades. Tuck’s fingers laced between his own. He inhaled the scent of his lover’s skin—black cherry. Tuck’s favorite shampoo. Todd’s body reacted too easily to the aroma. Earlier in the week, he’d gone to Wal-Mart. Walking past the candle section, he’d gotten the barest whiff of a black cherry votive and it gave him an instant boner.
Speaking of boners…His hard length brushed against the back of Tucker’s thighs.
Tuck rolled over to face Todd. In the dark, the sharp planes of his face and his straight Roman nose, accented Tuck’s masculinity. His wide mouth, full and sensual, curved up into a lazy smile as he reached his hand between them and encircled Todd’s cock for a brief squeeze.
“I guess you’re up,” he said. Tuck stroked down the side of Todd’s face before picking up a blond curl near his ear and twirling it around his index finger.
“Lucky guess,” Todd said. He winced when Tuck pulled his hair tight—a small show of possession. He understood these little gestures of claim. He’d promised Tucker that he would give up his string of men if they were together, and he’d meant it. In the past two months, he hadn’t given another man a second glance. But Tuck had watched him with a parade of strangers over the
years, and while Todd knew his intention to stay true was real, he loved Tuck enough to be patient while he figured it out.
He outlined the planes of Tuck’s chiseled chest. Jesus. He could work out every day and not get the same definition. He traced the light dusting of blond hair between Tucker’s pecs that led to the slightly darker happy trail, ending in a short nest of sandy-blond curls. The back of his hand rubbed against the full thickness of Tuck’s erection.
“You’re up too,” Todd said. “Incredible.”
Tucker smiled, his eyes slimming with the upward lift of his defined cheeks. “I’ve been getting hard for you for years. There’s nothing incredible about it.”
Todd’s chest warmed with a myriad of emotions. Tucker was a gift. One Todd hadn’t earned or deserved. He worried he would fuck it up. Fuck up what they’d found in each other. Worried he would be a disappointment. Worried, in the end, he wouldn’t be enough for Tucker. He’d never been enough…
His expression must have darkened, because Tuck lifted his chin and said, “You okay?”
Tuck’s sweet concern, his sincerity, drove away Todd’s doubts for the moment. He smiled and moistened his lips. “I’m perfect.”
“Yes, you are.” Tucker’s breath blew hotly across Todd’s lips before his mouth lowered in a gentle, loving kiss.
With a soft moan, Todd parted for him, welcoming the invasion of Tuck’s tongue sensually stroking his own. Tuck still tasted like the cinnamon mouthwash he’d used before they’d gone back to bed. Sweet, spicy, and hot. Tuck rolled on top of Todd, pressing him into the mattress. He wrapped his arms around Tucker, pulling him closer. Todd’s hands roamed his lover’s body from head to ass, grasping at Tuck as need and desire rushed warmth to his groin.
Tuck kissed him deeper, drawing Todd’s tongue into his mouth, sucking it with raw demand. Todd clutched at him, digging his fingers into Tuck’s firmly muscled ass. An appreciative rumble sounded before Tuck kneed apart Todd’s thighs and nestled his lower body between them.
Todd tore himself from the kiss and groped his nightstand for the bottle of lubricant. Tucker never took his mouth off Todd, kissing, licking, and sucking along his jaw and neck and ear.
He rocked his hips forward as he squirted the slick substance into his palm. Reaching between them, Todd generously spread the oily liquid until both their lengths were coated. Tuck went up on an elbow. With his free hand, he reached down and encircled both shafts. He began to thrust his hips, dipping his head, his mouth slanting over Todd’s, kissing him as the friction against Todd’s cock made his balls ache for sweet release.
“You’re so fucking hot,” Todd muttered, raising his hips to meet every insistent stroke. “So good.” His brain muddied with lust, and he couldn’t think—didn’t want to think—beyond how fantastic Tucker made him feel.
They ground and thrust against each other, both fucking while being fucked with unspoken demands. Tuck kept himself propped up, a testament to his physical strength, as he continued to piston his hips between Todd’s thighs.
“I’m going to come,” Tuck ground out between clenched teeth.
The declaration made Todd’s cock harden even more as his balls drew tight to his body. “Yes,” he said, urging Tuck to let go. “Come for me, babe.”
“Oh God,” Tuck groaned. He blinked, his eyes rolling up as he thrust faster. Suddenly, his body went rigid, the veins in his neck bulging as a sharp cry tore from his lips. Tuck’s pleasure ripped Todd wide open as he stroked them both with his hand, milking Tuck’s cock, milking his own, while ropes of semen shot out onto Todd’s chest.
When they’d finished, Tuck dropped to his side on the bed next to Todd. He rubbed his hand across the creamy evidence of their desire, his expression serious. “You know how I’ve been thinking about going to the community college, but I’m not sure what I want to do for the rest of my life?”
“You’ve mentioned it once or twice.” Or a dozen times. Todd felt a squeeze in his chest. He knew Tucker wasn’t satisfied working as a bartender or a waiter for the rest of his life. He wanted Tuck to have everything, but a part of him worried Tuck would outgrow him—intellectually and emotionally.
Tuck grinned. “Beyond a career, I think making you happy is going to be my ultimate goal.”
Todd laughed. “Then you are already a big success. Congratulations.”
The cell phone next to Todd’s bed trilled loudly, startling him from his moment of pure bliss. The display said “unknown” and it was three o’clock in the morning. He glanced at Tuck who shrugged and shook his head.
Todd slid his finger over the screen and put the phone to his ear. “Hello?”
“Baby,” a woman’s voice answered.
His body locked up as the full weight of his shock hit him.
“What’s wrong?” Tuck asked.
Todd shook his head.
“Todd? Baby?” he heard the caller ask.
When he found his voice, Todd stared at Tucker as the word left his mouth. “Mom?”
Chapter 2
Just One of Those Days
Three weeks later
Tucker Thompson wiped down the table he’d just bussed then straightened the condiments and the napkin holder. He’d been working less hours with Todd, ever since Todd’s mother, Belinda Nelson, had reentered his life. Emptiness clawed at Tuck’s insides as he felt the chasm of distance growing between them. Even when they saw each other, they barely talked. Even their physical closeness had taken a hit. They hadn’t shared a bed in more than a week.
When they first got together, he’d imagined all the reasons why it was a bad idea. He’d thought of how many ways they could blow apart their friendship, but Todd’s mother had never been one of the scenarios. He couldn’t compete with her hold over Todd. He’d never stopped loving her, even when he’d made up his mind to leave her in his past. Why had she suddenly reached out? Todd hadn’t mattered to her when he was a kid. Why did he suddenly matter to her now? Which is what he’d said to Todd a couple of weeks back.
The memory shamed him. Of course, Todd mattered. He was the most important person in Tucker’s life. He’d just been so angry with Todd for shutting him out, for being secretive. From what little Todd would tell him about Belinda, she’d been in and out of prison for eight years, but it had been two years since she’d been released for her last offense. She told Todd she’d gotten clean in jail and hadn’t used since.
Tucker felt even more guilt that his anger over the situation made him wish sometimes that Belinda would just get on with loading a syringe and get the hell out of Todd’s life. It had always been he and Todd against the world, and now, with Belinda back in the picture, Tuck felt left alone.
“Hey, Tuck. I just seated a table of four in booth eight,” Jay Lincoln, his boss, said as he passed Tucker on his way toward the bar.
Tuck stared at the tall, dark-haired man for a moment. Jay was good-looking enough, he supposed, and Tuck liked him for the most part. Although, he hadn’t liked when Todd had pursued Jay in the past. He knew Todd and Jay had fucked around at least once. Now that Jay had a regular man in his life, Tuck scratched him off the list of potential threats to his happiness. He supposed he could see why Jay appealed to Todd. An older guy, fit, business owner, and he had soulful golden-brown eyes. Landing a guy like Jay would have been like hitting lottery for someone like Todd. And someone like himself. Someone who grew up with nothing and had to worry all the time about what might come next.
“Tuck?” Jay narrowed his gaze, his mouth pursed, and his expression curious. “Booth eight,” he reiterated.
Tuck snapped out of his musings. “On it,” he said.
A hand on his shoulder startled him. Tuck jerked his gaze to the man behind him then instantly relaxed. “Hey, Alex.”
Alex Michaels searched Tuck’s face, his expression pondering. “Are you okay?”
“Yeah,” Tuck said. He forced a smile. “Just one of those days.”
Alex and Tuck had gone on a da
te once, and the conversation had been easy between them. He’d been nearly the perfect guy for Tucker. The only thing wrong with Alex was that he hadn’t been Todd. Now, Alex had some weird thing going on between him and the night cook. As he and Alex became friends, Alex told him about some of Ricky’s demands. It sounded complicated, but Ricky made Alex happy enough. Even though Alex insisted he wasn’t serious about the relationship, he could tell Ricky meant more to Alex than a regular hook-up. He hoped his friend wasn’t on a road to heartbreak.
Alex shook his head. He gazed down at Tuck with his large, deep-set brown eyes. “You know you can talk to me.”
“I appreciate the offer, but really, I’m good.” Besides, Todd might be okay with Tucker’s friendship with Alex, but he wouldn’t be okay with Tuck talking about his personal life with Alex.
Alex put his hands up. “Okay. I get it, but the offer stands.”
“How are things going with you and Mr. Big Stuff?” Tuck asked, a sly grin on his face. From everything Alex had told him, Ricky slender body was misleading when it came to other parts of his anatomy. Tucker still couldn’t believe the guy was a doctor. The sleeves of tattoos on both arms, along with the thick tussle of dark, unkempt hair and the full beard only added to Ricky’s mystique. He was a dichotomy. A puzzle. Tuck believed that was part of Alex’s attraction to the man.
Alex pursed his lips, suppressing a laugh. “Strange, good, weird.”
“Normal then.”
Alex guffawed. “Yes, normal.” He nervously glanced at the kitchen doors as if he expected Ricky to bust out of the doors at any moment. “I invited him to my parents for their annual 4th of July party.”
“And?”
“And he said yes.” Alex frowned. “It’s too late to take it back. I hadn’t expected him to say yes. It’s going to be a disaster.”
“Why?” Tuck knew Alex liked Ricky a lot more than he let on. He had to be, on some level, thrilled that Ricky was willing to go.
The Old Fashioned - Wallbanger 2 Page 5
