"He decided to stay in Austin to party with his friends, and I'm havin' a hard time not bein' pissed he wouldn't have rather spent his birthday with me. I think he's acting like a child, even though he's turnin' twenty. I don't know what the fuck to do. Pretty stupid of me to come here, I guess," Henry told him.
Jase chuckled. "Now, stop it. Tell me why you are attracted to him in the first place," he requested.
Henry Sachs ended up being a pretty deep guy, much to Jase's surprise. He was taking philosophy classes as well as business classes, and the two men sat together in the living room of Jase's house until three o'clock in the morning, discussing their college experiences.
Jase learned Henry had enjoyed a bit of the herb over his time but he was finished with it as well because he was ready to grow up and take his future seriously. Jase had been up front with Henry regarding how much he loved Danny and how hard it was for the two of them to try to figure things out because Danny had struggles Jase had never experienced.
Jase looked up at the clock to see it was late. "You might as well stay. I've got a spare room if you don't mind sleeping in Kayley's pink and green room," he teased.
"Not at all, Jase. I'd like to give that church a chance on Sunday if you don't mind. I'd like to hear this preacher. Mom and Dad were Baptists till they found out they had a queer son, so they switched to the Lutheran church, but it's not exactly gay-friendly if ya know what I mean," Henry offered.
"Sure. Ready to go? I'm really tired," Jase told him.
Henry nodded and they went down the hallway of the ranch house toward the bedrooms. Jase directed Henry into Kayley's signature-designed room, smiling as he looked around. They were her favorite colors, and Jase was a sucker for anything Kayley wanted.
He told Henry where he could find towels and a toothbrush in the bathroom before he went to his room and collapsed in bed. He'd pulled the covers back, but he fell asleep in his cargo shorts and t-shirt. It had been a long day.
The doorbell was ringing incessantly that Friday morning as Jase was finishing another fix for the same client from the previous day. He hurried down the hallway to open the door to see Danny Johnson looking at him with an angry face. Something was wrong, for sure.
"Come in, Babe. What's up? It's really great to see you," Jase tried as he leaned forward to kiss the man. When Danny pushed him away, he swallowed. It was ups and downs, as Pastor Stu had told him, and he was trying to be patient. Of course, sometimes, it was hard.
"So, you and Henry? You can't wait until we try to…I mean, I shouldn't even ask because I have no right," Danny told him. Jase took his hand and led him to the kitchen, placing him at the table. Jase poured the man a cup of coffee and took a seat at the table across from him.
"Who do you have spying on me, Dan? You know I love you, and Henry came here because he's having some adjustment issues with a boyfriend, but it's not me.
"I'm waiting, patiently, for you to decide if we're going to be best friends or if we're going to move this into something more serious. I mean, hell, my balls ache at night after I spend time with you. The only person I've been having sex with is him," Jase told Dan as he held up his right hand.
He then continued. "I know, trust me, you need time to work through shit and…hell, Danny, I've never had intercourse with anybody because you're the only guy I'd ever considered having it with. I love you, Danny. I have since we met years ago, and I haven't stopped," Jase admitted.
He saw the look on Dan's face, and then there was a tear he didn't expect. It was damn sure time to move forward to something more. He didn't know how Danny found out about Henry spending the night, but it wasn't important. Danny, however, was.
He took Dan's hand to lead him down the hallway into his bedroom where he closed the door and turned to the shorter man he loved. "See that bed? See these clothes? I fell asleep by myself, fully dressed, Daniel. The first things I ever did with a man was with you, and while I did a few things in college with other guys, it was never serious. I've only ever seen myself making love with you, okay? I love you too much to be with anyone else, okay?"
When Danny pulled Jase closer and wrapped his arms around Jase's neck, the whole world changed in a flash. Jase kissed him and stripped him, taking his time because it had been far too long since they were naked together. He kissed and touched every inch of Danny's body, relishing in the memories of their first time naked together.
After Danny returned the favor and they were both naked, Jase stopped the man before he could venture too much further down his body. "For clarities sake, are you a top or bottom?"
Danny's amber eyes met Jase's blue ones, and he gave the taller man a sheepish smile. "You first?"
Jase chuckled. "No idea. I wouldn't mind trying both," he offered.
"I, uh, I'm a bottom, Jase. I can try to top if you want, but I enjoy bein' on the bottom," Dan explained quietly, his gorgeous face turning red.
Jase smiled and kissed Danny gently. "I think this could be a beautiful relationship," Jase teased as he went down on Dan Johnson, taking him into his mouth as he'd done before. Starting at a familiar place seemed like the best idea.
While Jase had never had intercourse, he'd made it a research project in college, watching all the porn he could get his hands on. He knew how to ready his partner, and he knew he wasn't exactly slim when it came to girth in the penile area. He was about seven inches long when erect, but the circumference had been a problem with blowjobs in the past.
After he did the things he'd read about regarding preparing one's partner, with some pretty fantastic results from Dan regarding how much he seemed to enjoy the loosening process, he ensured the condom was firmly in place before he slowly entered Danny Johnson and looked into those beautiful, golden-amber eyes.
"I love you, Daniel. Never again will you send me away, you hear?" Jase whispered as he stilled himself before he shot off like a rocket. It was his first time in the position, and he didn't want to make a poor showing, so looking into Danny's beautiful eyes seemed to be a good way to steady himself.
"I'm sorry…I did it…in the first place…we're at a better place now…Jason! Please?" Dan panted.
Jase leaned forward to kiss his lover, feeling the softness of his lips before the two of them did the dance lovers the world over did when they reached the point where they couldn't stay away from each other.
A more solid connection than just a kiss was needed, and as Danny and Jase enjoyed that connection with thrusting, kissing, and a little biting, they looked into each other's eyes and smiled. Gratification delayed didn't have to be gratification denied.
"How about I pick up chicken tonight and you come over for dinner? Kayley has somethin' she wants to talk to you about. It's a Girl Scout thing, and she thinks I'm too dumb to get it," Danny told him as they got dressed. It was a Friday afternoon, and the morning and early afternoon had been amazing.
Jase hopped up from bed in all of his naked glory. They'd joined together several times, and it had been the most incredible experience of Jason Langston's life. His first time out of the chute was more remarkable than he could even contemplate.
Love had been made and been returned. It was too unbelievable for him to give voice, but he knew for sure he loved the man who had been the object of too many lust-filled fantasies during his college years.
He pulled Danny into his arms, sorry for the clothes his cowhand had put on. Feeling Dan's skin on his had been so fucking amazing, it was hard not to crave it, but they both had other obligations, and they had Kayley. Besides, Danny also had a meeting to attend.
"Sure, I'll come over. You want me to pick up Kayley? I can bring her to your house after her soccer practice. Are you going to a meeting?" he asked.
"Yeah. Um, do you mind if Javie and Phil come over too? I've been wanting all of us to get together, and I wanna make sure there are no hard feelin's between you and them, okay? They were friends of mine after we…after I broke up with ya, and they kept me goin'.
&nb
sp; “I want you to get to know 'em, okay?" Danny asked as Jase finished putting on clothes. They wandered down the hallway, seeing it was just after two in the afternoon. Thankfully, Henry was long gone before Danny showed up that morning.
"I've kind of started getting to know them, but that sounds great. I need to get online and do a little work, but I'll pick up Kayley. How're things at the ranch?" Jase asked as he made the two of them coffee. After they'd made love that morning, they'd slept a little before they made love again. Danny was walking with a limp, but Jase was loath to point it out because of his injury and he wasn’t sure of the cause. It had been a little rainy lately, so he wrote it off as maybe just an ache associated with an old injury.
Dan laughed. "Things at the ranch will be goin' a little slow because of that can between your legs I had shoved up my ass a few times, but I'll get by. I'll call Javie and Phil about tonight. They'll be happy about it, I swear," Dan told Jase as he leaned forward and kissed him on the lips, pulling away with a "hmmm."
He gave Jase the up and down before he walked…slowly…out of the house to his truck. Jase watched him leave and smiled. Things were getting better between them. Life was set to be good once they smoothed the rough patches.
Jase knew needed to speak with Henry so the guy never showed up at his place unannounced again, but if that was the worst thing that happened, his life was going to be pretty damn sweet.
Chapter Twenty-one
Danny Johnson sat on the front porch swing of the house Jason Langston had rented. The little house where Danny and Kayley lived didn't really hold a candle to Jase's, but Kayley was used to the smaller house and Dan wasn't in a hurry to cause more disruption in the girl’s life by moving them into Jase's larger home…or so he told himself. The fact was, Jase hadn't asked him to move in.
With Jase's sudden reappearance after graduating college and Danny's stint in rehab, he worried Kayley would be emotionally traumatized due to the volume of changes in her life recently. Yes, she was his daughter…legally…but he still worried if he was the best influence for the girl.
Jase had been incredible with Kayley since his return, and Danny was so grateful for the way the man felt about his daughter, he couldn’t explain it. The week before, Jase surprised him by admitting he knew how to sew things by hand, and he'd shown Kayley how to sew her badges on her Girl Scout vest, along with embroidering some quilt blocks for a quilt to be raffled off for a food bank at Christmas.
Miss Katie and Miss Jeri had volunteered to quilt it over the fall, and somehow, Jase had come up with the proper fabric for it. Danny just thanked his lucky stars for the younger man.
When Jase's Ford pulled into the driveway, Dan hopped up from the porch swing and walked down the stairs to greet his man. "How was the trip down?" he asked as he relieved Jase of his overnight bag.
One Friday a month, Jase had to travel to the headquarters for his job in Rockville, leaving on Thursday night and staying in a hotel near his office. Dan missed him, but it was another thing they'd decided to take in stride.
On Thursday evening, Danny and Kayley had a father-daughter date after she got home from school. On that Friday, Dan took off a half-day from work to go to an earlier meeting in Blacksburg so his evening was free to spend with Kayley and Jase.
He noticed Jase's face was sullen, and he worried. "What's wrong, babe?" he asked.
Jase reached into the pocket of his suit coat and handed Dan a crinkled, pink paper, not saying anything as he pulled out his overnight bag from the truck. Danny opened the document he’d been handed, seeing it was entitled, "Notice of Furlough." He glanced down the pink paper but didn't understand anything else he read, really. The title was enough.
He followed Jase up the stairs and into the house where Kayley was standing in the kitchen with a knife, slathering butter over slices of bread as the cheese was placed on the counter next to her. "Can I turn on the stove now, Jase?"
The tall brunette actually dropped to his knees and hugged her tightly. "I love you, Little Bit. You wanna make grilled cheese? You bet we can," he told her as he reached for the pan the girl had put on the counter and placed it on the stove.
He turned to Danny and smiled. "I'm gonna go change. I'll be right back, okay?"
Dan nodded and watched him hurry down the hallway, not certain what to do. He turned to Kayley with a smile, hoping to cover up the worry. "Should we see if Jase has tomato soup? I always liked it with grilled cheese," he suggested.
Kayley nodded and walked over to the cabinet, finding two cans of tomato soup. She found a sauce pan, opened the cans, and poured them into the pan, turning to Dan. "Can you turn on the heat. Jase looks sad. Is he okay?" she whispered.
Dan kissed her forehead. "He'll be fine after this special dinner, Sweet Pea. You're a shining star," Danny told her as he felt his throat close a little.
Jase walked into the kitchen in a pair of jeans and one of Danny's flannel shirts he must have liberated the house after a sleep over. He rubbed his hands together and looked at the two of them with a big grin.
"Grilled cheese and soup? My favorites. How about after we eat, we light a fire in the pit outside and make smores? I bought marshmallows and graham crackers at the store the other day before I went to Rockville," Jase offered. Kayley's squeal was nearly deafening.
After dinner dishes were loaded into the dishwasher, Jase made cinnamon cocoa for the three of them before they retired to the back yard where he had a little, copper fire-pit on the deck. There was a plate with all of the ingredients to make the perfect smores, including banana slices which Kayley loved. Danny felt his heart stutter a little. He knew, for a fact, that Jason Langston was the man for him. As unlikely as it might seem, they were a well-oiled machine.
Jase came out with three mugs and sat down on the wicker couch next to Danny. There was a little wicker rocking chair that was Kayley's, and she sat with a skewer at the ready. "Can I put marshies on this?" she asked as she whipped it in the air.
Dan laughed. "You keep flingin' the damn thing and your gonna poke out an eye."
Kayley looked back at him and grinned. "I'm not doin' anything. I'm just waitin'," she stated.
And that comment hit home with Danny, reminding him he wasn't doing anything either. He'd been waiting for Jason Langston to make the next move, and maybe it was his turn to make a move?
It had been four months since Dan had come home from rehab, and he went to meetings religiously, but his relationship with Jase had progressed at a snail's pace. It was time to shake things up.
Jase took the skewer from her and loaded some large white puffs on her skewer. "Do not get close to that fire, Missy. Just hold them there," Jase ordered as he picked up a paper plate and a large graham cracker. He broke it in half and added part of a chocolate bar and four pieces of a cut-up banana as he watched Kayley roast two marshmallows. Danny noticed how Jase observed her, ensuring her safety first, and he knew there was no other choice.
After Kayley blew out the flaming puffs of sugary goo, Jase made her a sandwich. "Don't eat that yet. It's really hot. Let it melt a little, okay, Little Bit?"
With every word out of the man's mouth, Danny Johnson knew he'd made the right decision. After Kayley was settled, he turned to Jase and smiled. "I have a request," he stated quietly.
"What? You want me to make you one, too?" Jase teased with a sparkle in his eyes.
"Yeah, I do, but I love you. You think you could find yourself happily married to a cowboy with a bum leg? Oh, I've got an alcohol problem, but with your help and love, I've got that under control. Oh, I've also got a hanger-on-er," he teased as he pointed to Kayley.
"Hey! I'm a good kid. You're lucky to have me, Daddy," she added as she continued to eat her s'more, staring at Jase while waiting for an answer.
Dan saw a tear slip down Jason Langston's cheek, which really surprised him. "I could, Dan. I really could."
And, just like that, Daniel Johnson found himself engaged…which was something he ne
ver thought would ever happen in his life. The three of them hugged and actually danced on the back deck after Jase turned on music and left the door open. It was more incredible than Danny could have ever imagined. It wasn't hard at all.
Danny was humming a song he'd heard on the radio as he drove to work. Kayley was snuggled up in her bed at Jase's house to spend the Saturday with him because she had soccer practice that morning.
They'd stayed at Jase's house the night before, and they'd made plans, which made him quite happy. Danny had thought about attending a meeting that morning, but he didn't even have a craving for the liquor as he’d had before Jason Langston came back into his life, so he'd slept in a little, feeling himself in Jase's arms and not wanting to get up until he absolutely had to leave. They were shipping calves at the Circle C that morning, and he needed to be there to oversee the operation went off without any glitches.
As he pulled up the drive, he saw the cars and trucks of the various hands from the Circle C and the Katydid. They helped out each other, and the cowhands at the ranch were always grateful for the cowboys from the Katydid when something was going on with regard to the cattle.
When Danny walked into the kitchen that morning to check in with Matt, he saw Henry Sachs sitting at the breakfast bar. He had a little bone to pick with the boy, so he didn't hesitate to cuff him around the neck, squeezing. Nobody else was in the kitchen, so it was as good a time as any.
"I know you went to Jase's a while back and ended up sleepin' over, but that's the end of it, okay? He and I are gettin' married, so you keep your scrawny ass away from his house unless I'm there, ya hear?" Dan threatened.
Rocky walked in and looked at the two of them. The kid was damn big for seventeen, and he was a star athlete. He was also bigger than Dan or Henry. "Hmm…confrontation. So, what are you two upset over?" the younger man asked.
That kid would have scholarships out the ass the next year, but Danny had a feeling he might be a good psychiatrist…or maybe a psychic if they existed. Danny wouldn't back down from another opinion, though.
Loving the Broken Man (The Cowboys of Katydid Farm Book 3) Page 21
