by R. Cayden
My father crossed his arms over his chest, glaring down at me. “An explanation, Malcolm. Now. Otherwise, we’ll sadly have to depart.”
I wished Maddox and Gunner were still standing behind me and placed my hand on my own shoulder, imagining the comforting touch that had been there a moment before. “This is who I’m dating,” I said. “And I wanted to introduce you.”
My mother’s voice shot up an octave. “Well then why is this older man here as well? Is he some sort of acquaintance of this…” She waved her hands in the air, then spat out the word like it was a curse. “This Gunner?”
“I am dating Maddox,” I said, as slowly as I could. “Maddox is here because I am seeing him.”
“Then why is Gunner here?” my mother asked, exasperated.
My father’s face hardened into a scowl. “Did you just say you’re dating that old man? He must be your twice your age, Malcolm. That’s insanity!”
“He’s forty,” I said, heat travelling up my chest and burning up my neck. “And Gunner is here because I’m dating him, too.”
My mother turned to my father, burying her face in his chest. “He’s simply not making sense,” she said. “He’s contradicting himself and talking nonsense.”
“Malcolm, have you been drinking?” my father asked, pulling my mother closer. “Are you in some sort of trouble you don’t know how to tell us about?”
I sighed, then turned to walk into the living room on my own. If they couldn’t manage to get past the entranceway, that was their problem. “I’m not drinking,” I said, “although I sure could use a glass of that damn wine.”
“Language!” my mother corrected, her hand shooting to her mouth.
“I knew something was wrong,” my father said. “It’s been obvious for weeks.”
“There is nothing wrong,” I said, as patiently as I could. “I am dating Gunner, and I am also dating Maddox. The three of us are dating each other. That’s what I wanted to tell you.”
My mother looked faint, and her knees got wobbly as she leaned against my father. He tucked her up into his arms, then walked her over to the armchair, depositing her in the seat gingerly.
“You can’t date two people, Malcolm,” Father said firmly. “That is not how it works, not in our family at least.”
“Especially not two people who look like that!” Mother added. “They’re not respectable. I’m sure your father and I can find another suitable young man with whom you can spend your time. Just please, send these men away and cease with this foolishness!”
Tears started forming in the corners of my eyes, and my breath tightened. It was going exactly as I had imagined, but the reality was somehow so much worse. It was like every other conversation. They weren’t even hearing a word I said; they were just plowing over me and telling me who I should be.
They kept lecturing, both talking at once as I sat there with my trembling lip. As though things weren’t bad enough, now Maddox and Gunner were about to see me crying like a baby. They were strong, good men, and they had shown up for me over and over.
And me? I was a dweeby librarian who couldn’t stand up to his own parents. Sitting there with shaky hands and tears running down my cheeks, I couldn’t think of a word to say. All I could do was try to breathe and wish it would all end soon.
GUNNER
I was pissed off. I was pissed to hear Malcolm’s parents talking to him that way, pissed to listen them steamroll over the guy, and I was especially pissed to hear them talk about our relationship that way.
Not respectable… fuck you! I’ll show you not respectable.
“We’ve got to say something,” I said to Maddox, anger bubbling in my stomach. “We can’t just stand by while they say those things to him.”
Maddox placed his hand on my shoulder, and his touch helped me to calm down. “Give him another minute,” he said confidently. “Malcolm knows what he’s doing.”
I leaned against the wall, sighing and crossing my arms over my chest. “It’s like his parents don’t even know him,” I complained. “Malcolm might be kind of timid, but he knows what he wants.” I clenched my fists. “They’re talking like he’s a child.”
Maddox nodded. “I know this must be a shock for them, but you’re right. They don’t seem to hear a word that he says.”
Malcolm’s voice rang out from the living room, strained and urgent. “I do care about them! I care about them more than anyone else I’ve dated.”
Maddox and I caught each other’s eyes, and I couldn’t help but smile. “At least he’s standing up to them,” I said. “It’s kind of sexy to hear him defending our relationship.”
“Our relationship,” Maddox repeated.
I scrunched up my face, worried I had said the wrong thing. “Or whatever this is,” I muttered.
“It’s a relationship,” Maddox said. “Not a conventional one, sure, but it’s definitely a relationship.” He smiled down at me. “I’m not planning on going away. Are you?”
I chuckled, then leaned into the warmth of his body, happy to hear him confirm that, even with the stressful conversation in the other room. “Absolutely not,” I agreed. “You know, one of the other bartenders at the Steel Rose is in love with two guys.” As soon as I said it, my mouth clamped shut. I hadn’t meant to drop that L word that casually, even though I was talking about someone else.
“Brick,” Maddox said. “Yeah, Lilith told me a little about him.”
I looked up to him, trying to read his face, but Maddox’s expression was sternly focused on the conversation between Malcolm and his parents.
“Malcolm!” his father said suddenly, his voice rising. “You will end this foolishness now, before there are consequences for your actions, and I won’t hear another word about it!”
In the pause that followed the outburst, I heard Malcolm’s breath, strained and fast. It sounded like he was about to hyperventilate. Even with Maddox holding me close, the rage burning in my chest was too much. I just wanted the two of us to be out there by Malcolm’s side, instead of hiding in the kitchen with a rhubarb pie.
Maddox must have read my mind because when Malcolm choked on his own desperate breaths, he sighed. “Okay,” he said. “Let’s intervene.”
Without a second’s delay, I burst out of the kitchen and into the living room, Maddox immediately behind me. Malcolm was sitting alone on the couch, his face trembling as his parents berated him.
I started to open my mouth to yell at his parents, but before I could, Maddox joined Malcolm, placing an arm around his shoulders and pulling him close. When Malcolm immediately relaxed into Maddox’s embrace, I swallowed my words and joined them on the couch, holding Malcolm from the other side.
“Absolutely not!” his father declared, rising to his feet. “I will not sit here idly and watch this display!”
“What?” I spat at them. “Two people who care about your son? Is that really so bad?”
Malcolm’s mother stared, her eyes circling between all three of us. It was like she was trying to understand something, but with her husband fuming behind her, she quickly turned away.
“We’re leaving,” his father announced, helping his mother to her feet. “I will not stand by and watch my only son make such foolish, ill-conceived choices!”
Maddox pulled Malcolm a little closer. “If you think Malcolm is capable of making foolish choices, I doubt that you know your son at all.”
His father grunted under his breath. “And I suppose some aged grease monkey and his delinquent friend know my son better than his own parents?” He turned to Malcolm, narrowing his eyes. “We will see you this Sunday for dinner and discuss things further then.”
I stood up, my body shaking with anger. If they were leaving, the argument might have been my last chance to actually talk to them, and there were some things I needed to say. “Your son is a strong, good man,” I announced. “He’s sweet, and he’s caring, and he’s good. He doesn’t judge people based on how they look or how they were rais
ed. He accepts people for who they are, and that takes a hell of a lot more strength than either of you apparently have.” Malcolm grabbed my hand, squeezing tightly, but I couldn’t stop the words from flying out. “If you refuse to see that, it’s your loss. But Maddox and I are going to keep on caring about Malcolm and looking out for him, no matter what anyone else says.”
Maddox stood, joining me by my side. “We know that Malcolm is someone special,” he said. “It’s a real shame his own parents can’t look beyond their own noses to see that, too.”
Malcolm’s mother still stared at us, not saying a word. She searched my face, then Maddox’s, and then turned back to her son. I thought she was about to say something, but before she could open her mouth, his father grabbed her elbow.
“Goodbye, Malcolm,” he said abruptly, turning away from us. “And good riddance to the two of you.”
I turned back to Malcolm once they had stormed out. His eyes were watery, and his shoulders slumped.
“Are you okay?” Maddox asked, joining him on the couch.
“I’m sorry,” I said, returning to my seat. “I just couldn’t keep my mouth shut.”
Malcolm shook his head, then pushed his glasses back, rubbing his eyes. “I knew it was going to go poorly all along. I guess the reality of it was just more painful than I realized.”
Maddox pulled Malcolm a little closer, stroking the back of his head. “I’m proud of you,” he said. “You showed a lot of integrity by sharing your life with them, even knowing they wouldn’t understand.”
My stomach knotted as the memory of my own mother came flooding back to me. She would have accepted Malcolm and Maddox. She would have loved them, in fact. It felt so unfair that she was gone and never going to meet them.
Shaking my head, I pushed those thoughts aside. This evening was about Malcolm, and I wanted to be there for him.
“Thank you both,” he said, still staring at the ground. “For being here, and for standing up for me.”
“Do you need anything?” Maddox asked. “What can we do to help you feel better?”
“I think I just need some rest,” Malcolm said. “I feel tired.”
Maddox and I looked at each other, then nodded without saying a word. “Come on,” I said, helping Malcolm to his feet. “Let’s get you in bed to rest.”
After all the yelling and arguing, we didn’t really need any more words. Instead, the three of us just did what we needed to do. Maddox smoothed down the sheets and prepared the bed, and as we led Malcolm to his room, I removed his glasses and unbuttoned his shirt. We undressed him together, then laid him between the sheets.
“Would you like us to stay with you?” Maddox asked.
Malcolm nodded, his head already against the pillow. “If it’s not too much to ask.”
As Maddox and I undressed and crawled into bed with him, I realized something. It didn’t matter what Malcolm’s parents thought or what anyone else thought, either. We already were in a relationship, and no matter what they said, we were damn happy about it.
Malcolm curled up into Maddox’s embrace, and when I joined them, Maddox stretched his arm further, pulling me close. Slowly, I felt Malcolm’s body relax. His muscles stopped trembling, and soon enough, his breathing returned to normal, too.
“We’re here,” I said. “You just rest and know that we’re here.”
Fuck everyone else, I thought to myself. We’re happy together, and no one can take that away.
Chapter Thirty-Three
Maddox
I woke early the next morning, with the sun still rising outside. In my arms, Malcolm and Gunner snoozed, their chests rising and falling together. Crawling out of bed, I tucked the sheets up close to them and snuck out of the room.
I was proud of my guys. Not just proud of Malcolm for sharing a difficult truth with his parents—a thing I never would have had the strength to do at his age. But proud of Gunner, too, for standing up for himself and for the relationship forming between the three of us.
There was a tug at my heart as I looked down at the two guys. When Malcolm invited me to dinner with his family, I at first didn’t understand why he wanted me there. Surely, his relationship with Gunner was more important. But after they surprised me with a date at the sculpture park and after seeing how much of his own life Malcolm was willing to risk in order to have his feelings for me and Gunner respected, it finally dawned on me.
I was falling in love with them. After nearly a decade spent hiding from the world, these two had come into my life and changed everything. The idea of returning to the way things were felt impossible.
I pulled on my clothes, then left a note for them, explaining that I went out to run some errands and would return soon. I had some chores to do in the city and figured I could pick up some fresh orange juice and breakfast for the three of us while I was out.
Once I stepped outside, however, I froze in my tracks. Halfway down the block was a gray Chevy sedan. It wasn’t the kind of car that would stand out to most people, but I knew it was the favored vehicle of my uncle’s thugs.
Flipping on my sunglasses and averting my face from the car, I walked down the street, my gut twisting. Could my uncle have connected the dots? With the money going missing at the same time regulators showed up to complain about his business practices, it wasn’t impossible.
Maybe I should have given him more credit after all…
As I passed the car, I spotted the driver, glaring at the apartment building from his seat. Sure enough, he seemed to be scouting the place.
Fuck. After all this…
I started to panic, thinking of all the horrible things my uncle might do if he figured out that Malcolm was at the heart of it. Part of me considered running away again, knowing my presence would only bring more attention to the situation. But then I thought of Malcolm, standing up to his parents and refusing to hide.
Hopping on my motorcycle, I did the only thing that made sense. I started the engine and drove straight across town, arriving at Uncle Elmar’s office just as the day began.
I headed straight to the side door, not wanting to waste any time. My uncle would probably be sitting there with his bear claw and his coffee, just like every morning. I didn’t know exactly what I would say to him or how I would cover my tracks. But I did know that, once his attention was focused on a problem, he was like a ticking time bomb.
And I was not about to let the clock run out on Malcolm and Gunner.
I opened the side door and stepped into the dimly light hallway. I blinked a few times to adjust my eyes, but before I could get my surroundings worked out, a figure jumped out of the shadows, cursing under his breath.
My mind slipped into autopilot from my criminal days. I jumped to my toes, then ducked as a baseball bat swung through the air, crashing against the wall where my head had been a moment before. My heart rate spiked as I leapt back, dodging another blow. When a pair of strong, burly arms grabbed me from behind, I flung my weight forward, sending one of them tumbling into the wall.
I was so disoriented, I barely knew what was going on. I took a fist to the gut, the pain exploding like a firework, then sprung forward, knocking some thug out with my right hook. Another man hollered bloody murder as he charged me, a knife in hand, but I managed to easily disarm him, spinning him into a headlock and then throwing him to the ground with a roar.
“Stop right there! Every one of you!”
I looked up, ready to lurch forward and defend myself. Instead of another armed goon, however, I saw my uncle, standing at the end of the hallway.
A few of his men were groaning on the floor, but the second he issued his command, they fell back.
“My nephew,” he said, sneering the words. “What a delightful surprise.”
I was breathing fast, my face flushed and a rush of adrenaline spiking through my system. “Good morning to you, too, Uncle,” I managed through panting breaths.
“You’ll forgive the rough greeting,” he said, stepping
forward. “Tight security this week.”
I cracked my knuckles, staring at the downed men. “Sorry about your goons.”
He laughed sharply, then gestured for me to come forward. “Come, join me. It’s not every time I reunite with a lost relative after… what? A decade?”
I stepped across the hall, my heart still pounding. There was no way he knew about the robbery I had run with Declan. If he had, his men would have tracked me down years ago. And there was no way he knew about my recent trip with Malcolm and Gunner, either. Otherwise, things would have moved a lot more quickly than just posting some scout outside of the apartment building.
“I was back in town,” I said as he led me to his office. “Couldn’t resist the temptation to step in and say hi.”
He looked at me skeptically as he returned to his desk, then gestured to an open chair. “Does that mean you’ll be saying hello to my brother, too?”
“I’m not sure my old man and I have much to say to each other,” I said, ignoring the pictures of scantily clad women that covered the walls.
“But you and I do?”
I leaned back, folding my arms over my chest. Uncle Elmar was about as distrustful as me as I was of him, which wasn’t surprising. The family business relied on loyalty, and as far they were concerned, I was about the most disloyal man in the city. “It’s been a decade,” I said. “Surely we have a little to catch up on.”
He scoffed. “You always loved chatting like the ladies,” he sneered, trying to rattle me by making fun of my sexuality. “But are you sure this is your first time back in the neighborhood? I could have sworn you were here just last week.”
He was poking me, trying to see if I had anything to do with his recent troubles. I couldn’t blame him. If I had been double-crossed like he had, I’d probably look at a long lost relative with just as much skepticism.