David, Renewed

by Diana Copland

  “My dad had a small arsenal and I kept some of it.” Jackson’s lips twisted wryly. “I’m covered at home, and I can put one of his pistols in the truck.”

  David took and released a deep breath. “You’ll show me how to hold it?”

  “I’ll take you to the range and teach you how to shoot it.”

  Just the idea made David’s palms sweat and he wiped them on his jeans, but he finally nodded. “Okay.” He looked into Jackson’s eyes again. “I really hate this.”

  “I know, baby.”

  The endearment warmed David even as Jackson slipped his big hand around his nape and pulled him in for a quick kiss. Out front the sound of car doors slamming echoed on the clear morning air. Jackson stood and went to the front window.

  “It’s Vern and Gil.” He crossed back to David and scooped up the box. “I’ll take this to the bedroom.”

  He moved quickly through the dining room, disappearing into the hall beyond. David felt odd, like people would know just by looking at him he had a weapon in the house. Which was patently absurd. He saved his document and shut the laptop as the doorbell rang.

  “Good morning!” he said, forcing a bright smile as he opened the door. “Coffee and donuts in the kitchen.”

  Gil smiled at him as he passed. “Thanks, David.”

  “Morning, sweet cheeks.” Vernon winked at him as he followed Gil, and David’s smile felt less forced.

  When Jackson joined them in the kitchen a few minutes later, his mug of coffee in his hand, Vern arched a steel-gray brow.

  “Where’ve you been? The bedroom?” He wiggled both brows comically and David laughed. It was almost not forced at all.

  “The john,” Jackson answered, scowling at him.

  “With your coffee?”

  “I detoured back through the living room to get it.” Jackson looked at the older man in exasperation. “What do you care, Vernon?”

  “Oh, I don’t know.” Vern leaned over, studying the donuts in the box before selecting a maple bar. “Just trying to keep tabs on you love birds, that’s all, Jackson.” He took a huge bite of donut and grinned around it, and Jackson gave David a warm look.

  By the time half the donuts were gone and Manny arrived, David no longer felt ragged around the edges at all.

  CHAPTER FOURTEEN

  DAVID SPENT time getting his home files squared away and his desk cleaned off in his office so nothing would be in Gil and Vern’s way when they were ready to start in there. They were finishing up trim in the main bathroom and would be moving on to the walls in the office next. He took his laptop and sat at his desk long enough to send the document to Karen, then locked the computer away in his desk and vowed not to think about Trevor’s phone call again.

  Between the guys working in the bathroom and the others on the roof, it was pretty noisy inside of the house. By one o’clock, David decided he had to get out for a while, and making a run to keep the men fed was the least he could do. He decided to take lunch orders and grabbed his iPad.

  He asked Gil and Vernon, who were finishing up the off-white trim in the bathroom, what they wanted from Subway, then headed out his front door. Jackson and Manny were standing in the front yard near the sidewalk. Jackson heard him coming, and the smile he gave David took the chill off the day.

  “Hey, I was just going to come find you.”

  David gave him what he hoped was a flirtatious smile in return “And here I am.”

  Jackson slipped his arm around David’s waist, his hand spreading on his lower back, and even the innocent touch made David feel heady.

  “Manny finished scoping the pipe. Good news: nothing’s broken.”

  “Oh, thank God. Manny, I’ll name my firstborn after you.”

  Manny sent him a shy smile from beneath the brim of his baseball cap.

  Jackson gave him a wry smirk. “Planning on having a firstborn, are you?”

  “Well, not vaginally.”

  Both men laughed. After a moment, Manny spoke. It was the first time David had heard his voice. “You do have a slight blockage in your pipe out here,” he offered softly, gesturing toward the curb. “I can use the snake and get rid of it for you, if you’d like.”

  David tamped down the giggle that was threatening. After the morning he’d had, his emotions were all over the place. “There are so many things my inner twelve-year-old would like to say in response to that,” he finally managed, “but I think I’ll leave it at ‘I will appreciate being able to shower in my own home very much. Thank you.’”

  Jackson gave him an amused look and Manny’s cheeks turned pink. “Stop using sexual innuendo to harass my friends,” Jackson muttered, but David could see he wanted to laugh.

  “Killjoy,” Manny tossed to Jackson, then walked away with an exaggerated swish to his hips. Jackson and David looked at each other before bursting into laughter. Jackson leaned forward, near David’s ear, while David was still giggling.

  “I haven’t seen him joke around like that in months.”

  “I’m glad he’s doing better.” He put his hand on Jackson’s chest. “I came out here to get your lunch order.”

  “Can I have whatever I want?” Jackson’s voice was low. “I like this, by the way.” He ran his finger down the front of David’s pink paisley button-down. “I’d like it better off you, but I like it.”

  The expression on his face made David’s breath catch and sent a surge of heat south of his belt buckle. “You’re a vicious tease, you know that, right?”

  Jackson hooked his finger between two of the buttons on David’s shirt and pulled him closer. “Baby, I’m not teasing. The minute I can figure out a way to be gone all evening, you and I are going on a proper date. With a proper date conclusion.”

  David licked his lips when the tip of Jackson’s finger brushed his stomach and it quivered in response. “Oh, planning to kiss me good night on the front porch?”

  Jackson’s full lips pulled into a very sexy smirk. “Among other things.”

  “You two do realize you’re standing in the middle of the front yard in broad daylight, right?”

  David looked around, surprised to find Michael standing about four yards away. When had he gotten there?

  “Yeah, I pulled up, got out of the car, and have been standing here, and you didn’t even notice.”

  Jackson looked at him over David’s shoulder. “Hello, Michael.”

  “Jackson.” He approached over the dry grass, looking past them. “David, were you aware there are men on your roof?”

  “Yes, I’d noticed.” He took a regretful step back from Jackson’s body heat. “They’re fixing the leak over the service porch.”

  “Ah.” Michael glanced toward the curb, his expression brightening. “Is that Gil’s truck?”

  “He and Vernon are finishing up the bathroom. Would you like to go in and say hello?” David teased. Michael flipped him off, and Jackson patted David just above his ass before walking away. David caught one of his belt loops, stopping him. “Jackson, wait. I did come out here for something, before I… well….”

  “Lost your mind and decided to grope your boyfriend in the front yard?” Michael supplied dryly. David caught the impish gleam in Michael’s eyes.

  “Oh, shut up,” David muttered at him.

  “He wasn’t groping me.” Jackson grinned even as David’s face heated. “I’d have noticed.”

  David rolled his eyes. “I came out here to find out what you and Manny wanted for lunch. I’m making a Subway run.”

  Manny shook his head. “You don’t have to feed me, David. You did donuts.”

  “And you didn’t have to snake out my plumbing on a Saturday afternoon either.” Michael opened his mouth and David gave him a dark look. “Do not even go there.”

  Michael snapped his mouth shut, but his gray eyes were sparkling.

  “Manny, I’m buying. You’ve got to eat. What do you want?”

  Jackson nudged Manny. “Just let him buy. Then I won’t have to
hear about it later.”

  David raised a brow at him, but Jackson didn’t look remotely intimidated. “A meatball sub with provolone on italian bread,” Manny said finally. “And thank you.”

  “My pleasure.” David typed it in. “And to drink?”

  “Coke would be great.”

  “Okay. Jackson?”

  “Actually I’ll go with the same.”

  Michael shook his head. “How do you all keep those bodies if you eat like that?”

  “Manual labor.” David gave him a look as he walked around the side of the house. “You should try it sometime.”

  “And you should try not being a bitch,” Michael shot after him, and David heard Jackson laugh.

  “I will so fire you—”

  “Stop saying it,” Michael interrupted. “No one believes you anymore.”

  Michael was grinning as he followed David down the driveway. When David had everyone’s order, he started for his car.

  “Want to come with?” he asked Michael.

  “Sure.”

  David tossed the tablet to Michael as he started the engine.

  “How the hell do you get anything done around there?” Michael asked, fastening his seat belt.

  “What do you mean?” David adjusted his mirrors as he put the Yaris into gear.

  “The new ones? The roof guys? They’re hot as hell. Where did they come from?”

  “They’re friends of Jackson’s.” David gave the man in question a small wave as they backed out of the driveway, and Jackson smiled in response. One of his slow smiles, the ones that dimpled his cheeks and went all the way to his eyes.

  “Oh, dear God,” Michael groaned. “That smile is lethal.”

  “Ain’t it just?” David drove off down the street. “In answer to your question, Jackson is acting as general contractor for everything because I have no idea who to hire.”

  “Are they gay?”

  “The roof guys?”

  Michael nodded.

  David shrugged. “No clue. I get the feeling they’re batting for our team, though. It sounds like the guys toss each other jobs whenever they can. The construction industry here isn’t exactly gay friendly.”

  “Hmm.” Michael’s lips twisted. “Big surprise there.” He studied the tablet. “You know, it would be cheaper and easier to buy all of this soda pop at the grocery store than it would be to try to carry trays of drinks back.”

  “You’re right. We’ll make a stop.”

  “By the way, have you heard from the demon spawn yet?”

  All of the lightness that had worked its way into the day faded. “As a matter of fact….”

  David told Michael about the phone call. By the time he was done, Michael’s fingers were white knuckled around the tablet.

  “Jesus, David, the man is nuts. At least you aren’t letting him get away with it.”

  “You know, I might have,” David admitted softly. “If it hadn’t been for Jackson, I very well might have.”

  “What do you mean?” Michael frowned. “Why is it different because you met Jackson?” David could feel Michael’s inquisitive stare.

  David hesitated before he answered, another habit he’d picked up from Jackson. He thought before he spoke now, which was very much a departure from how he’d been before. “I don’t want him to think I’m weak,” he finally admitted. “And if I’d let Trevor walk all over me, it would be weak.”

  He glanced at Michael and saw his satisfied expression. “Well, bravo Jackson, then. You deserve better, and Jackson certainly is better. And if you need someone to stay at the house with you until this mess with the dickwad is sorted out, I’d be happy to.”

  David reached across and squeezed Michael’s hand. “Thank you.”

  Michael returned the pressure. “Of course.”

  They decided to go to the grocery store first, and when they pushed the cart loaded with soda and beer to the front end, the checker was wearing whiteface, a big red rubber nose, and a rainbow-hued fuzzy wig.

  “What the hell?” David muttered. Michael laughed.

  “It’s Halloween, David. Didn’t you see the little kids dressed up as superheroes in the parking lot?”

  “I see kids dressed up every once in a while,” David responded. “I didn’t make the connection.”

  “So, the pumpkins and the cobwebs and ghosts all over the houses on your block didn’t make an impression?”

  “We never paid any attention to Halloween at the condo.” A little girl skipped by in a princess outfit complete with tiara, and David smiled. “We’d better pick up some candy while we’re here.”

  Michael ran back and got three giant bags of assorted candy bars.

  “You live in the burbs now, buddy,” Michael replied to David’s horrified expression. “You’d better have enough candy so they don’t smash a pumpkin on your porch. And you need good candy, not that hard syrup crap.”

  “I’ll take your word for it.” David added the candy to the drinks on the conveyor belt.

  They went to Subway next, and the scent of the meatballs and marinara almost made David resent his turkey on whole grain. Almost. He’d never work it off doing his job, and a potbelly would not be cute. Since he hoped someone would be seeing him naked soon, the turkey was sounding better and better.

  Michael was quiet after they left the grocery store, but David could see he was preoccupied. At one point he glanced over to see his friend chewing his lower lip, staring into the distance.

  “Okay, spill it.”

  Michael blinked “What?”

  “You’ve got something on your mind. What is it?”

  Michael pursed his lips. “The other day, when Gil lost that job in the valley, it was because he’s gay, wasn’t it?”

  “Of course no one would say so, but they think that was the reason, yes.”

  “So, if all of those guys are gay, and the opportunity for gays in other construction companies isn’t so great here, why don’t they band together and start their own company?”

  David frowned. “I don’t know, Michael. Some of the problem is with the major contractors not wanting to hire them. But Gil lost that job from a private client. I doubt they’d want to band together and make themselves an even bigger target.”

  Michael shrugged. “It was just a thought.”

  One that would return to David several times over the afternoon.

  THE WORK Gil and Vernon had done in his bathroom was beautiful. The woodwork and the wainscoting gleamed a glossy off-white, and the wall from the shining chair rail to the ceiling was now a soft, dusky blue that matched the tile on the floor. David had been convinced he’d need to replace the ugly flooring, which would have necessitated tearing out the pedestal sink and the claw-foot tub. Now that the paint was finished, the blue hexagon tiles on the floor looked perfect. There wasn’t a drip or a mark of paint anywhere, and David studied the finished product carefully. The crews he hired to do the painting for the firm were good, but not this good. He wandered to the office doorway and watched as Gil and Vernon carefully covered the hardwood floors, taping down a tarp around the edges, protecting the floorboards and furniture with more plastic. Gil looked up and noticed him.

  “Hey, David. Is everything okay?”

  “Oh, yes, it’s fine.” David smiled. “The bathroom looks beautiful.”

  Gil grinned, and David spotted a speck of paint on his chin. “We aim to please.” He winked, then opened the can of paint on the floor. David had picked a soft, mossy green for the walls, but Gil talked him into a darker, richer color. Now the paint was sitting there against the floorboards, David could see Gil was right; it did work better with the woodwork and the old frosted-glass ceiling fixture.

  “That’s going to be perfect.” David gestured to the paint Vernon was pouring. “You were right.”

  “I knew you’d like it better when we got right down to it.”

  “Yeah, and he’s so fucking modest about it.” Vern cleaned the side of the can wi
th an angled brush, then pressed the lid back in place.

  “Hey, there’s nothing wrong with knowing you’re good at something,” Gil said mildly.

  “Yeah, yeah, Mary. Get over here and pick up a roller before I prove how little work you actually do.” Vernon picked up a smaller container of the dark green paint and began to cut in expertly around the doorframe.

  “Isn’t he sweet?” Gil took a new roller out of a sleeve of plastic. “I keep him around because I figure you’ve got to be nice to old people, you know?”

  Without missing a beat, Vernon flipped him off along the back of the paintbrush, and David grinned. As he wandered toward the front of the house, he was thinking about what Michael had suggested, and the quality of the work Gil and Vern did. The crews he hired for the firm did mass projects with spray guns and hundreds of gallons of paint. Gil was an artist, expertly finishing each wall, not a drop of paint ending up where it shouldn’t. Except for on his chin. They really should be working with an interior decorator, getting paid what they deserved.

  Dusk was streaking the sky in shades of pale orange and cotton candy pink, and it was downright cold by the time most of the guys left. Manny and the roofers were finished and gone, and Vern and Gil bid David good-bye, grabbing candy bars out of the giant ceramic bowl he’d set next to the door. Michael had settled in on the couch, announcing he was going to help hand out candy and stay the night, when Jackson opened the front door. He acknowledged Michael, and then held out his hand to David.

  “Can I show you something?”

  “Oh, I’m sure…,” Michael started.

  “Do remember who you work for,” David interrupted, and Michael rolled his eyes.

  “Bitch, please.”

  David shot him a stern look as Jackson pulled him out through the front door.

  He linked their fingers as he led David down the steps, and then paused near the side of the house where the shadows were deep and cool. He stopped so quickly David almost collided with his back. He turned around and took David’s biceps in his hands.

  “I liked that, earlier.”

  David studied his face in the dying light. “What?”