A Case of You

by Tymber Dalton

  “What about getting his truck?” Grace asked Tracey.

  “Brandon said we’re leaving it there. He and Stuart will go get it later tonight or tomorrow.” She retook the seat she’d occupied earlier. “I have a feeling he’s going to hide your keys,” she said to Jeff. “And I don’t blame him.”

  “I’m not a child,” he muttered.

  “No offense,” Em said, “but you’re acting like a big damn baby.” She walked over and kissed the top of his head. “Get used to being taken care of, like it or not. We’re not letting you do this again.”

  Grace stuck her tongue out at him before smiling. When she got up, she also kissed the top of his head before following Em into the dining room to do their homework.

  Tracey wore a playful smirk. “What?” he finally asked.

  She shrugged and dropped her voice. “I have a feeling there’s a bad spanking in your future, once you’re feeling up to it.”

  “I’m sure there is.” He settled in to try to nap, knowing he’d face an ass chewing, at the very least, when Stu and Bran got home.

  * * * *

  Stuart got it. Jeff felt helpless and useless, regardless of how wrong he was to feel like that. He and Brandon did not feel Jeff was useless or mooching or any of those other things. Those emotions lived only in Jeff’s head.

  But now Stuart wanted to take a paddle to Jeff’s ass and spank some damn sense into him, and he wasn’t even toppy!

  He couldn’t leave until he hit a stopping point on the job he was working on. Fortunately, it was a new construction house, not a repair job, or he wouldn’t be able to leave early at all. They still had two more days slotted for this job, and he could easily finish it in one with plenty of time to spare. He’d hoped to stay a little later today and make even more headway, but getting home to Jeff was more important.

  I know he’s in bad shape if he called Tracey for help.

  Despite his early dislike for the woman, Stuart now admitted Tracey wasn’t a bad person. Sure, she’d made bad choices, but then again, so had he. The difference was he’d lucked out, and his catfisher had been immediately outed by people who turned out to be compassionate and caring, saving him from himself.

  He was packing his work van when his cell rang. Being in a hurry, he answered without looking at the call screen. “Hello?”

  “Stewie?”

  He nearly tripped over his own damn feet as his body instinctively froze in fear. “Jake?”

  “Yeah. I want to talk to you.” His voice sounded odd, slurred.

  Pulse now pounding, Stuart struggled for something, anything to say. “I don’t want to talk to you.”

  “You’re going to listen to me whether you like it or not. You need to get your ass home to Iowa and forget this bullshit. You need to work with Dad on the farm and help him. Man up and do what’s right. They need your help.”

  “You help them.”

  “This isn’t about me! It’s about you being a pervert.” He sounded drunk.

  Stuart straightened, anger taking over. “Who the fuck do you think you are to tell me what to do?”

  “Because of this bullshit with you and your little faggot friend, Shelly fucking left me and took the boys. She filed for goddamned divorce today. And I’m sick and tired of my friends ribbing me for having a brother who—”

  “Fuck you, asshole. I don’t have anything to say to you. Forget this number.” Stuart hung up on him, fingers trembling as he tried to figure out how to block Jake’s number. He had to send two more calls from Jake to voice mail before Stuart finally figured it out.

  Son of a bitch!

  This was not the fucking day for this kind of bullshit. While he knew he should call Brandon and tell him, this could wait.

  He’d spent enough of his life in fear from the asshole. He was done giving him any space in his head.

  Plus he was in fucking Iowa. What the fuck did Jake think Stuart was going to do?

  Seriously?

  Master’s right. Jake is nothing more than a stupid bully.

  Not to mention it sounded like Jake had gotten himself drunk and full of self-pity. If Shelly had left him, finally, it was probably the best thing she could have done for herself and her sons.

  Stuart wouldn’t waste any more time thinking about him. At Jake’s age, it wasn’t like he was going to magically change and suddenly be the kind of older brother he could respect.

  After taking a deep breath to pull himself together, Stuart went back to cleaning up the job site and securing it so he could go home. If they didn’t lock everything up, thieves could come through and strip the wire they’d already pulled to sell in scrap yards for the copper.

  The sooner he finished, the sooner he could get home to his guy.

  To his real family.

  Chapter Twenty-One

  Once Brandon and Stuart had both arrived home, within ten minutes of each other, they asked Tracey and the girls to step onto the lanai for a few minutes so the men could talk in private. Brandon apparently didn’t want to make Jeff get up from the couch and walk to the bedroom.

  Jeff was desperately glad about that, because he wasn’t sure he could make that walk and then return to the living room to eat dinner. Once he headed for the bedroom that night, he’d be going to bed.

  He was barely able to remain sitting upright.

  Brandon sat on the coffee table and stared at Jeff. He sat with his hands clasped, elbows propped on his knees, and a lovingly stern expression in his blue eyes.

  Stuart stood next to him, arms crossed over his chest and staring down at Jeff.

  “We going to need to discuss this?” Brandon asked.

  Jeff shook his head. “No, Sir,” he quietly said. “I apparently don’t have Lyme as much as I have a case of the dumbasses. I’m done fighting.”

  Brandon reached out and cupped his cheek. “We have a case of you. We both do. We love you. You are not stupid, so stop saying that. We tried, you tried. The bottom line is you’re meant to stay home and be a kept man.” His handsome smirk belied his words. “So get used to it.”

  “I’ll even give up my Alpha subby title to you, if you want it,” Stuart offered. “Not like I’m toppy.”

  Jeff managed a small laugh for him. “That’s okay, buddy. I don’t care about the label.” He held his arm out to Stuart.

  He climbed onto the couch, lying down with his head in Jeff’s lap. Jeff ruffled his hair before returning his focus to Brandon.

  “My life,” Brandon said, “revolves around those two girls out there, and you two. I don’t care that it’s not perfect. I don’t care that you’re sick. When I married you, I meant it for life. Hell, I meant it for life when I collared both of you, and I’d be lying to deny it. Right now, my focus is on you. Because you need me the most. And that’s the way it should be.”

  Jeff hated that he couldn’t hold his tears back. “I love you.”

  “I love you, too, buddy. We love you so damn much, and you don’t know how fucking hard it’s been on me and Stu and the girls, standing back and watching you hurt yourself in bad ways the past few weeks.”

  “Thank you.”

  Brandon touched his forehead to Jeff’s. “Have we made our case, mister?”

  “Yeah. Yes, Sir.”

  “No. Brandon and Jeff and Stuart. You’re our husband.”

  Jeff stared into his eyes. “My doctor appointment’s at four tomorrow. I don’t want another PICC line.”

  Brandon stroked Jeff’s cheek with his thumb. “If he says that’s what you need, then that’s what you need. Let’s let him decide that, though.”

  “Yes, Sir.”

  Stuart spoke up from where he lay in Jeff’s lap. “Let’s talk about you filing for disability. If you get it, fine. If not, oh well, we got you covered.”

  “Okay.”

  “We need to hear you say it,” Brandon told him. “We aren’t going through this again.”

  Jeff took a deep breath. “I’m not working outside the house
.”

  “Thank you.” Brandon kissed him, long and tenderly. “We can talk about you going to school, or…something. But it needs to fit with your health. Making barely above minimum wage and killing yourself isn’t acceptable.”

  “Nakey house slave when the girls aren’t around?” Stuart suggested.

  “I actually really like that idea,” Brandon said. After one final kiss pressed to Jeff’s forehead, he stood and waved Tracey, Grace, and Emma back inside. “Let’s eat. I’m starving.”

  * * * *

  Stuart felt relief set in when Jeff finally agreed with them. One less worry on his plate. Maybe Brandon told them they should let him worry about stuff, but it was hard not to worry.

  Jeff ate on the couch, and Emma and Grace volunteered to sit with him, leaving the other three adults at the table.

  Brandon kept his voice low. “Thanks again, Trace. We owe you big time.”

  She shrugged. “He’s family. Hey, you came and rescued my ass on I-75 that night. This was easy.”

  “I really appreciate it, though.”

  She cocked her head as she stared at him. “Bran, I pried my head out of my ass that day at the pool. Maybe it’s a good thing you weren’t there for that. You might have ended up in jail.”

  “Might?”

  “Exactly. Anyway, it taught me two very valuable lessons that I will never forget. That Pat was an idiot, that I should never put someone above my daughter, and that Jeff and Stu love Emma as much as I do. Make that three lessons. And I can’t ask for better than that. You found not one, but two men who love her. You did a damn sight better than I did.” She shrugged again. “Would have been nice if one of them was bi, just sayin’.” She grinned.

  Stuart’s face heated, pleased at the praise, but he only smiled and didn’t say anything. This was more between Brandon and Tracey.

  Brandon chuckled and shook his head. “The Frightful Five are ready whenever you are.”

  “Yeah, well, it’s going to be a while.” She glanced toward the living room. “I want to make sure I’ve completely rebuilt my bridge with Emma first.”

  Brandon reached across the table and squeezed her hand. “If it means anything, I think you’ve redeemed yourself.”

  “Oh, I get off work at three tomorrow. I can come take Jeff to the doctor.”

  “You sure? That’d be a huge help.”

  “Yeah. I’ll stay with him until the girls are home. And I promise to go you on him if he argues with the doctor. My mom game has improved lately. You’re a great influence.”

  Brandon smiled. “That’s my girl.”

  Once they finished dinner, Brandon and Stuart headed out to retrieve Jeff’s truck. Maybe all the commotion was why Stuart had forgotten the call from Jake and didn’t remember it until they were almost to the dealership.

  “Jake called me before I left work.”

  “Your brother, Jake?”

  “Yeah.”

  “What’d he want?”

  “Same shit, different day. He sounded drunk. Apparently, Shelly left him and filed for divorce. I hung up on him and blocked his number.”

  “He went out of his way to harass you now? That makes no sense.”

  “He told me some bullshit that I had to move back to help Dad out.” He snorted. “That’s not happening.” He pulled out his phone. Jake had left one voice mail. “I wonder what he said.”

  “Play it. Just out of curiosity.”

  “You sure?”

  “Yeah. I want to hear it.” They turned in to the street behind the dealership, where Jeff’s truck sat parked, and Brandon pulled in behind it.

  Stuart put his phone in speaker mode and hit play.

  “Listen, you sonofabitch. Dad fucking needs help, and I’m done being a laughingstock in this town. You fucking embarrassed me, made my wife leave me, and that shit ain’t right. Get your ass back here, now, or so help me I will come down there and drag you home. You have a responsibility to your family, and we damn sure can’t count on that spic Eileen married. This is your last warning.”

  Rage filled Stuart. He started to delete it, but Brandon stopped him. “No, you need to hold on to that.”

  “Why?”

  “In case he tries something else.”

  “He’s not going to come to Florida. He’s fucking drunk off his ass. Tomorrow he probably won’t even remember he called me.”

  “We didn’t seriously think he was going to cause trouble at the wedding, either.” Brandon’s gaze met his. “Tomorrow, we’re getting you a new phone.”

  “I blocked his number. Besides, I get a new phone, I’m going to give the number to my parents and others, any of them might give it to Jake. At least this way, he’s blocked. Look, he’s fucking drunk. Shelly left him—best thing for her, finally—and he’s just being an asshole. I’m not worried about this. Seriously.”

  Brandon stared out the windshield for a moment as he tapped his fingers on the steering wheel. “I guess you’re right. Still, save that message. Please? At least for now.”

  “Okay.” He gave Brandon a kiss before getting out and walking over to Jeff’s truck.

  It felt…weird to be driving it. Especially without Jeff being there.

  Weird in a way he didn’t want to think about, because it pushed him too close to the small, dark corner of his soul that he wanted to keep relegated to some distant future he hoped he’d never have to face.

  One he’d been forced to glimpse while sitting in the hospital and awaiting word on his dad’s condition.

  Once they returned home and did a car shuffle to park Jeff’s truck closest to the garage, they headed inside and helped Jeff to bed.

  “I’m sorry,” he softly said as he lay there, in the middle, Stuart and Brandon cuddling him on both sides.

  “Please stop apologizing,” Brandon said. “Show us you love us by letting us take care of you.”

  He squeezed their hands and the pain in his voice nearly broke Stuart’s heart. “I love you two so fucking much. I don’t know what I’d do without you. Any of you, the girls, or even Tracey.”

  “That’s why you’re going to stop fighting us,” Stuart said. He nuzzled Jeff’s shoulder, pressing a kiss there. “Because we love you.”

  Stuart had asked Brandon not to say anything to Jeff or the girls about Jake’s call. It didn’t matter, and it would only upset all of them, especially Jeff.

  Right now, he wanted Jeff’s mind focused on climbing out of this flare and feeling better. Relatively speaking.

  What Stuart refused to do was waste any more time or brain cells on his stupid older brother. Hell, if his own mother had discounted Jake’s feelings on the matter, who was he to give Jake’s opinion any weight whatsoever?

  He’d gotten out of there, made a life for himself, and had struck a peaceful balance with his parents and with Eileen and Robert. The siblings were active on Facebook, chatting nearly every day now.

  He called his parents at least once a week to chat. They’d even asked about the four of them—Stuart, Brandon, Jeff, and Emma—maybe coming up for Christmas that year.

  His mother assured him Jake would not be invited, and had told Stuart they did want to meet Jeff and Emma.

  She also raved about John’s sisters, including positive things said about Miri and her wife.

  His mom still referred to Brandon and Jeff as Stuart’s “friends,” but he’d take the win. They’d made far more progress than he’d ever dreamed imaginable, and it felt damned good.

  Stuart closed his eyes and settled in, relieved that, at least in this way, their lives were swinging back into an easy, peaceful rhythm. Maybe tomorrow night, if Jeff felt a little better, they could sneak in some hot tub time. Snuggling or sex, it didn’t matter. He wanted to spend time cuddling with his guy instead of Jeff collapsing, exhausted and in pain at the end of the day.

  Chapter Twenty-Two

  Monday morning, Jeff lay in bed while Brandon and Stuart got ready for work. Stuart brought Jeff coffee and wa
ter and his morning meds.

  Including a Xanax.

  Jeff didn’t even fight him when Stuart helped him sit up and handed him the water and medicine.

  “Grace and Emma will be home after school to take you to your appointment for blood work.”

  “I know,” Jeff muttered. He hated that even the girls now had to help with his medical care.

  “Hey, you promised,” Stuart said, a slight tinge of hurt in his tone.

  “I know. I did, and I will.”

  “Do you want me to take off and come drive you?’

  “No. It’s just a blood draw.” The lab had already closed Friday afternoon by the time his doctor appointment had ended.

  And if the doctor decided he needed another PICC line…that’s what he’d get.

  He’d finally resigned himself to that.

  His health and his happiness and his family were worth more to him than having a “job.”

  Over the weekend, the girls, and Brandon and Stuart, had gently showered him with love and attention and he finally understood this needed to happen.

  His family needed him, and they deserved to have him. If he was too exhausted and in pain to actually be with them, it wasn’t fair to them.

  Once he had the house to himself, he spent time in the hot tub, then did some stretching.

  Then he realized the dip net that had been propped against the wall next to the hot tub following Stuart, once again, rescuing the dildo from the bottom of the hot tub Sunday night, was still propped there.

  He didn’t have it in him to stow it in the bracket overhead. He damn sure wasn’t going to get a chair or a stepladder and attempt it.

  Fuck.

  So he left it propped up by the kitchen sliders, easily visible, so Brandon or Stuart could put it away later when they got home.

  He spent the morning not doing much except getting a shower and watching TV. And making himself more appointments with Nate for that week, something else he’d let slide.

  Now? He hurt. He felt…exhausted.

  Almost as bad as the pre-Thanksgiving crash. Except maybe he’d caught this one in time.