by Harlow Layne
And that was one of the reasons why I loved him, Fin was a damn good giver in bed, and he fucked me better than anyone who’d ever given it to me.
My clothes were off faster than he gobbled down his dinner before I climbed onto the bed. I didn’t waste any time taking Fin into my mouth. He let out a loud groan as he gripped my hips and moved me until he was licking along my shaft.
Sixty-nining was one of my favorite positions with Fin as we raced to give each other the most pleasure and see who could get the other to come first. We were competitive as fuck, but in the end, we both always won.
Opening my throat, I took Fin down my throat and then heard the cap on the lube snap open.
“Suck my cock while I fuck your ass with my fingers,” he demanded as one finger breached my hole.
Fin started to thrust his hips in the same rhythm as his finger. I heard a noise but thought nothing of it. We lived in a house with over twenty guys. There was rarely a quiet moment in the house unless you were awake in the middle of the night.
“What do we have here?” Our heads whipped up to find a man with the same black hair and eyes as Fin, but that was where the similarities ended. Where Fin was handsome, his dad looked as if he hadn’t smiled a day in his life with deep frown lines marring his face.
“As if it isn’t bad enough that my son is trying to get some blue-collar job and everyone in Santa Lucia knows about it, I come here to find you sucking some boy’s cock. I should have known my son is a good-for-nothing fag. Could you be any more of a disappointment?” His mouth curled up in a snarl.
Grabbing the blanket, Fin threw it across both our laps and glared up at his dad.
“You’re no longer my son. I’m telling everyone you were adopted and came from filth, and you were a lost cause. I tried my hardest, but it was never going to be enough to fix you. Your mother will be so upset to learn I found you in bed with another man.” With each word, his face became redder and redder with anger until he looked like he was going to explode.
“If you’re so disgusted, why don’t you stop looking at my boyfriend’s dick like you want to suck it yourself,” Fin snarled, moving to get in front of me. I loved the possessiveness he exuded while hiding me from his father, but what the hell was he doing?
Looking around Fin, I tried to somehow appeal to his dad and show him who his son really is. “Mr. Huntington, Fin is a wonderful person. If you gave him a chance—“
“And the fact that you were with this… this, I don’t even know what he is,” Fin’s father interrupted me. The way he looked at me made my skin crawl. I was beneath gum on his shoe.
“I don’t care what you say. This man here,” Fin pointed at me. “Loves me for me. Accepts me even though he knows all of my bad, and I mean all of it. Something you should have done all my life as my father.”
“You’re fucking pathetic,” his father spit out at Fin. “Don’t bother ever coming back to Santa Lucia. You’re not welcome there, not that you ever were. And you can forget the job, if it’s up to me, I’ll make sure you’re jobless for the rest of your life. You can rot on the street.”
I sucked in a breath. Most wouldn’t even talk to their worst enemy like that, and Mr. Huntington stood there, saying these horrible things about his own son. Now I understood why Fin was distancing himself from his family. “What the hell did he ever do to you? He’s your son.”
“Not anymore.” I watched in stunned silence as Fin’s dad turned around and walked out the door, slamming it behind him.
I turned, expecting Fin to be upset. Hell, maybe even crying because I knew if anyone, family or not, said those things about me, I’d be a ball on the floor sobbing. That shit was beyond harsh. Instead, he sat motionless, looking down at the floor.
Wrapping my arms around Fin, I rested my head on his shoulder and held him for what felt like hours before he finally moved and came back to himself. With one arm around my waist, he pulled me down as he laid down on the bed. I rested my head on his calmly beating heart while Fin stared up at the ceiling.
“I’m sorry you had to hear that. Now you can see why I’m so fucked up,” he said in a monotone voice, showing how much he truly believed in his words. He’d changed since we’d been together and become a happier person. It wasn’t only me who’d noticed. Everyone in the house had, and while they had a pretty good idea why, they didn’t say anything. They were happy to have a mostly happy-go-lucky Fin in the house, especially after how dark he’d gotten after hurting his shoulder.
“Every word he said was a lie,” I kissed his chest over his heart. “Don’t let him get in your head. Who cares if he doesn’t want you as family? You’ve got me and mine, and Oz’s. You’ve got more than he’ll ever have.”
“Oh, yeah.” He let out a soft huff. “And what’s that?”
“You’ve got people who love you, and while I might not be able to do anything about his threat, Oz and Ford sure as hell can. While your dad might think he’s the most powerful son-of-a-bitch in Southern California, he’s delusional. Even if he somehow makes you lose the job, you were too good for it, anyway.”
Fin hugged me to him but didn’t say a word. I understood, though. It was hard for Fin to express his emotions since while growing up, he was never able to. He didn’t know the correct way to act, and if he felt vulnerable, which was a foreign concept to Fin, he stayed silent. It meant a lot that he let me stay with him.
Eventually, his breaths evened out, and Fin fell asleep with me in his arms.
A noise out in the hall woke me up. I slid out of Fin’s bed and quietly opened the door. I was shocked to find Oz standing there with a scowl on his face, which wasn’t the norm for him. There was rarely a time I didn’t see him happy, so I was immediately on guard.
“Are you okay?” I asked as I slipped out the door and into the hallway.
“Is Fin, okay? My dad called me and said Fin’s dad was calling everyone he knew to say…” he closed his eyes and looked as if he was about to crumble into himself. “These awful things. And I…”
Oz seemed to be at a loss for words on how to describe what he heard. I might have been the same way if I hadn’t heard it all with my own ears. When he opened his eyes once again, they were glassy with sadness. Fin and Oz were like brothers, and to see him hurting for his friend reminded me of the retched words Fin’s dad had spoken when he’d been here.
“His dad showed up unannounced and found us in a compromising situation.”
“Oh shit,” Oz laughed and put his hand over his mouth. It didn’t matter, though; I could still see the sparkle in his blue eyes as he found humor in what happened.
“My dad is outraged.” Oz looked toward the door, leaned in, and spoke so no one else would be able to hear. The house was quiet, making me wonder what time it was. “Both of my parents are, and so is half the town. Everyone knows Cassius Huntington is a damn liar spouting off that Fin isn’t his biological son.”
“I felt so bad for Fin having to hear him say those words to him. What father does that to his own son?”
“He’s never been a father to him. I’m so glad Fin has you. Otherwise, I’m not sure how the whole thing would have gone down. If this had been last year, Fin would have decked his dad and then would have probably been thrown in jail.”
“Well, his dad wouldn’t have found out he was gay back then, and I’m not sure how Fin feels about him finding out now either,” I admitted.
“Like a weight has been lifted off my shoulders,” Fin said from the doorway. Oz and I both turned to see him standing there, and his entire demeanor seemed lighter. He stood tall and proud. “It’s over and done with, and now I can go and live my life. I don’t care what he thinks about me anymore. You were right, West. I have you, Oz, and his family, and that’s all I need. Well, I do need a job so I can eat and pay rent.”
And then he smiled the most dazzling smile. It was a smile I hadn’t seen before. It transformed Fin into a completely new person. It was one of a carefree man who
didn’t feel like he had to hide who he was or who he cared about. It was from a man who didn’t feel the weight of disapproval hanging over him constantly.
“We’ll figure out getting a job tomorrow. I’m glad you’re okay,” Oz gave Fin a one-armed hug and stepped back. “I’ll leave you two to celebrate or whatever,” he awkwardly laughed as he kept taking steps back toward the stairs.
“You don’t have to go,” Fin stepped toward him as if he’d stop him.
“I know, but I see the way you’re looking at each other, and I get it. Plus, I have some packing to do if we’re to be out of the house by the end of the weekend.”
“Thanks, Oz. For everything.” The amount of love and gratitude in Fin’s voice brought a smile to my face. I couldn’t imagine what his life would have been like without Oz in it.
“Always, bro, always.” Oz waved as he headed down the stairs, and after a few steps, he was out of sight.
“What do you say we finish what we started before we were so rudely interrupted,” Fin grabbed my hand and jerked me into his room. The door slammed, and then he promptly locked the door before his mouth was on mine in a hot, passionate kiss that had me weak in the knees.
Pre-order First Down, Oz and Lo’s story coming later this year.
Epilogue
Fin
4 Years Later
Turns out my grandfather on my mother’s side had set up a trust for me that I never knew about. When my dad cut me off after the day he found West and me together, my mom went behind his back and called the lawyer who was in charge. I’d never been more surprised in my life. While my mom had made sure I was taken care of, she slipped back into my father’s shadow and had nothing to do with me. I hadn’t heard from either of them since.
It didn’t matter, though. I had great friends who I knew I could count on for the rest of my life and my West.
The crowd shot up and cheered as West caught the ball and ran it into the end zone, securing the win of the game. It would be a miracle if the other team caught up now. He had one more game before the NFL team he’d been drafted to made it to the Super Bowl.
We no longer lived in California, but in Pittsburg since West played for the Steelers. It was his first year, and we were still trying to get used to the cold weather since we’d both grown up in California. Pittsburg was nothing like Santa Lucia or Willow Bay, but we were slowly coming to love our new town, our neighbors, and the Steelers family that had adopted us.
Ford turned to look at me from a couple of seats away. “God, I swear he gets better every fucking time I see him play.”
“He has taken to their training like it was custom made just for him. West was meant to be an NFL player.” I couldn’t hide the pride in my voice as I watched West’s teammates slap him on the back as he ran to the sideline.
I also wasn’t complaining since West’s body had transformed into something a God would be jealous of. He was better than a Greek statue with his taut, muscular body that filled out a football player’s uniform better than anyone else in the league. I showed him as often as I could how appreciative I was of his new physique.
“You’re just figuring this out now?” Easton elbowed me in the side. He was staying with us for the weekend so he could see his brother play in the AFC Championship game.
With a playful push to his shoulder, I laughed. “I’ve known since the first time I saw him play, but each time I watch him, I’m still impressed. And you have to admit, he’s miles ahead of where he was when we were in college.”
“Are you going to be able to get us all Super Bowl tickets?” Ridley said, leaning forward from beside Ford with a hopeful look on his face.
Back in our first year in college, we didn’t know much about Ridley, but once we were all living together our second year in our own house, we found out Ridley had grown up just as poor or poorer than West had. While his scholarship paid for the football house, it didn’t pay for living off-campus, something he didn’t know when he agreed to live with us. We came to a compromise; Ridley wouldn’t have to pay rent while he lived there if he cooked for us. He’d been holding back on his culinary skills while we all lived in the football house, but damn could that man cook. He was about to open his first restaurant in LA.
“I think he gets a certain amount of tickets, but I’m sure we can swing you,” I laughed. Ridley still lived most of the time like he had no money. He didn’t really since he’d put all of his savings into his restaurant, but we all knew it was going to be the next best place to eat in LA. He’d make his money back in no time. He’d already been in all kinds of food magazines and on TV shows. Ridley was almost as much of a celebrity as West was.
With only five minutes left on the clock, we all stood for the rest of the game and cheered the Steelers, but mostly West on. The crowd around us cheered his number, twenty-three, over and over again. I swore he could hear us. He looked back with a big smile on his face. Living his dream.
Never in my wildest dreams, when I was living in Santa Lucia, did I think I’d be where I was now. After moving to Pittsburg, I started a company to help troubled youth. I didn’t want anyone to feel ashamed or as if they had to hide in the shadows about who they were for fear of what others would think. The Jackson Huntington Foundation provided a place for people to talk to therapists about everything from coming out to friends and family to bullying, help with traumatic cases of abuse and assault. I was proud of who I was, and I wanted to be able to provide that for anyone and everyone.
“I see that look in your eye,” Oz said as quietly as he could so I could hear him and everyone else in our vicinity be kept out of the know. “When are you going to ask that man to marry you?”
I only shrugged because I didn’t know. We were both so busy and happy I didn’t want to rock the boat. We’d never talked about marriage, which was strange because we’d talked about adopting once West retired from football, so that would be a very long time from now. I guess I was waiting until the time came when West brought it up.
“Are you afraid he’ll say no?” Oz joked, but he hit the nail on the head. I wasn’t sure what would happen if I did ask West to marry me and for him to then reject me. I’d hit my quota on rejection for a lifetime.
Oz’s face sobered. “Fin, come on, man. Do you really think he’d say no?”
“Maybe I’m waiting for him to ask me. Did you ever think about that? Why should I always be the romantic one?”
We both laughed, knowing I wasn’t romantic. I mean, I had my moments, but it seemed to come naturally to West, and his actions always put me to shame. He set up candlelit dinners and surprised me with weekends away when he got the chance.
Shit, now I felt horrible for not trying harder and showing him how much he meant to me.
“Would you say yes if he asked you?” Easton leaned in, asking with a strange smile on his face.
“If your brother asked, I… yes, I guess.” I did plan to spend my life with him, so why wouldn’t I.
Easton only shrugged and went back to watching the game before he yelled. “He’s going to do it.”
Turning back to the game, I couldn’t believe I let them distract me from the game and fill my head with fantasy.
West was running down the field, and just like his brother, I knew deep in my bones; he was going to make another touchdown. He’d be the MVP of the game, and if he kept this up, he’d be the MVP of the Super Bowl they were now slated to play in.
“Fucking hell, man, he’s fast. There’s no way they can catch him,” Ford yelled as the crowd around us jumped up and down. There was nothing I loved more about the game than feeding off the energy of the surrounding people in the stands.
As I watched my man spike the ball and his teammates run into the end zone to congratulate him, I wished I could have been down there with him like I had been in college.
“That was unfuckingbelievable,” Oz shouted over the roar of the crowd.
The smile I had on my face was big enough to split it i
n two. I thought for sure when West was drafted to play for the Steelers, he’d be lucky to see the playoffs his first year, but damn if he didn’t make everything better by being part of the team.
“You give that motherfucker a big kiss for me,” Oz slapped me on the back with a wide grin of his own. “Now what?”
“We go to the family waiting area. West will meet us there when he’s done. I have a feeling it will be a while after the way he played today and all the interviews they’ll want him to do, so we might as well get a beer while we wait.”
“I like the way you think,” Ford chimed in. “And I need to get out of this cold. If we stay out here any longer, my balls are going to shrivel up and fall off. How the hell do you live here?”
I pulled at the collar of my parka. “I bought the thickest and most expensive parka I could find, invested in some long underwear, and enough of those little handheld heaters to last me a lifetime.”
I wasn’t going to lie. Once the game was over, the cold started to seep in. My blood was thin after living in California all my life. I wasn’t sure if I’d ever get used to the cold. By the time we got used to the winter there, West would likely be playing for another team.
“Well, my hand warmers feel like they’re starting to die, so let’s go inside with all the smart people and get warm.” Ford didn’t even wait for us to respond. He started moving like he knew where to go, which he did since he tried to come to every game he could, even though he still lived in California with his woman.
I stayed in the rear, soaking up the ambiance as Ford guided the group to the waiting area. Almost an hour later, West stepped into the room wearing a suit that made him look like the ten million dollars the Steelers signed him for, and the biggest smile on his face. I thought he’d greet our guests since I was on the other side of the room, but West headed straight for me with long strides, and with each step, his smile grew. I’d never seen him happier.
