A Gift of Family

by Tami Veldura

  Scott went looking for any other way to help her. If he couldn’t give her a drug to manage the symptoms, what else was there? The internet said steam. He didn’t have a humidifier but he did have a tub in his bathroom. “Okay, my dear. Let’s try something else.” Scott dressed in swim trunks and stripped Lexi down to skin. He sealed up the bathroom, throwing a rolled towel down at the base of the closed door, and let the shower run on hot until the mirror fogged up and steam billowed around the ceiling. Scott plugged the tub, adjusted the temperature, and climbed inside with his daughter. She splashed in a few inches of warm water, blew raspberries in her wet hands, and tried to scoop the water onto her own head.

  It took nearly an hour for her energy to flag, by which time her sniffle had developed into a cough, and Scott reluctantly admitted they weren’t going to make it to Brennan’s Christmas party that afternoon. He was disappointed, but Lexi came first, and if Brennan didn’t understand that… well, then he had been too good to be true.

  Lexi fell back asleep against Scott’s chest in the tub. She still gurgled and drooled, but such was life with a little one. Hopefully the steam had helped loosen things up in her nose.

  It was a bit of a trick to get them both out of the tub, dry, and Lexi back in her crib without waking her too much. He found another text from Brennan when it was managed.

  Missing you. ETA?

  Scott checked the clock. It was almost three. He shook his head and texted him back. Sorry, Lexi’s down with a cold. It looks like we won’t make it today. Thank you again for the invite.

  Brennan’s reply was swift, like he was holding his phone and waiting for it. Oh no! I hope she feels better soon.

  There wasn’t much to say to that. Scott resigned himself to a lonely Christmas Day on the couch with Netflix. Lexi roused herself twice more that afternoon. Both times Scott offered her food and water. She picked at the food, drank her water, and swiftly went back to sleep. He kept the volume low on the television so she could rest.

  When a soft knock sounded on his door near seven that evening, Scott stared at the wood in confusion for several seconds. None of his apartment neighbors ever talked to him, and he didn’t have anyone to come visit on a holiday. He muted the television and opened the door curiously.

  Brennan stood on the other side, both arms weighted with bags. His hair was a bit tousled, and he wore one of those infuriating three-button shirts. Two of the buttons were done this time, and Scott itched to undo them. “Merry Christmas,” Brennan said with a lopsided smile.

  “What?” Scott gaped at him for a breath, then stepped aside. “I mean come in, but why are you here?”

  “Well I heard this great guy was stuck at home with a sick kid on Christmas and had no one to celebrate with… so I brought Christmas dinner to you.” Brennan walked into the apartment, taking the whole layout in with a big sweep of his gaze. He headed straight for the kitchen table.

  “You did what?” Scott trailed after him.

  “I hope you haven’t eaten yet.” Brennan set his bags down. He opened one of them, revealing a stack of Tupperware loaded with steaming foods.

  “Not yet,” Scott said with soft wonder. “Is this still hot?”

  “Straight from Mama’s kitchen.”

  There was turkey, ham, mashed potatoes, veggies, what looked like a pot pie without the crust topping, a box of buns, a to-go cup filled to the brim with gravy. Scott’s stomach roared at the scent, and he quickly grabbed plates and silverware. Brennan busied himself setting out the spread of food options. He even brought sparkling juices. “A Price tradition for the holidays,” he said. “We’re always swamped with kids.”

  Scott found himself set at the head of his table with a heaping pile of homemade food on his plate. He stared at Brennan in wonder, his heart swelling. “You didn’t have to do this.”

  Brennan snorted softly. “And leave you hanging on Christmas? Not likely. Mama taught me better than that.” He sat in a chair beside Scott so their knees touched. “She would have driven me here herself if I wasn’t already planning on it.”

  “You told your mother about me?” Scott’s butterflies started up again with their flipping. He was both nervous and delighted at the idea. He hoped he’d made a good impression. Brennan talking to his mother was a good sign, right?

  “Only the best things,” Brennan said with a wink.

  Scott chuckled. “I want to meet your family. All of them. They sound amazing.” They sounded unreal. Perfectly happy. A tight-knit family group that played and talked and supported each other. He craved that so strongly, he couldn’t breathe for wanting. He and Lexi needed that kind of camaraderie, not just from a partner, but with an entire family unit.

  Brennan pressed his knee against Scott’s a bit harder. “You will,” he said casually. “We always do a New Year’s party. And the Fourth of July barbecue happens at my uncle’s house—he has a pool.”

  Scott looked up and smiled. Then he smiled wider. Brennan wasn’t just making plans for them in a week, he was looking six months ahead.

  In her crib, Lexi woke with a sniffly cry and, by the sound of it, was trying to stand up. Scott excused himself to attend to her. He cleared out her nose and throat with the bulb, which she expressed her dislike for by scrunching her nose and turning away, but her breathing was clearer when he finished. Lexi rested her head on Scott’s shoulder when he returned to the table, too worn out from her cold for much else. Hopefully she would sleep through the night.

  “How’s she doing?” Brennan asked. “Sounds like a lot of congestion.”

  “Yeah, she’s all full of slime. She’s been picking at the food, but she’s drinking, so I’m not too concerned.” Scott bounced her lightly as she looked around. “Just gotta wait it out.”

  Lexi spotted Brennan at the table and blinked widely at him. “Woof?” She leaned heavily to one side, checking the floor.

  Brennan and Scott chuckled. “No, Jazz isn’t here. Just Brennan.”

  “Woof,” she said firmly, striking Scott’s chest with her open palm. Lexi reached for Brennan and made a grasping gesture with one hand.

  “She wants you to hold her,” Scott said.

  Brennan scooted his chair back immediately. “I’d love to.” He stood to reach across the corner of the table. “Hey, Lexi. It’s good to see you again.”

  “Woof,” she said. Scott handed her over, pleased to see Brennan seat her against his chest and hold one thick arm under her. Lexi wrapped her little arms around his neck and burbled something into his shirt, then sighed heavily.

  “Let me get you a drool rag,” Scott said. “She’s been running like a faucet.” While he was up, Scott mixed a batch of formula in case she felt like filling her belly. When Brennan offered her the bottle, she grabbed one of the small handles eagerly. Brennan looked down at her, his expression intent and focused. Scott had a moment to watch without being watched back, and he liked what he saw. Brennan was confident with Lexi and clearly had handled infants in the past. When she shifted to hold the bottle with both hands, he accommodated automatically. He started swaying in his chair, and Scott was pretty sure the gesture was unconscious. He was gorgeous. All that energy completely attuned to Lexi was attractive as hell. He and his daughter were adorable. Scott’s heart was going to melt right out of his chest. When Lexi finished her bottle, she smacked her lips, grabbed a fistful of Brennan’s shirt, and curled into his chest.

  Brennan looked up at Scott with wonder and delight all over his face. “I think she likes me,” he whispered, grinning foolishly.

  “Your evil mastermind plot is working.”

  “Good.” Brennan’s grin only widened. “That means the handsome, single father is going to fall for me soon.”

  They shared a laugh.

  Truthfully, Scott had fallen for him already. Like they didn’t know that. Scott was both relieved and thrilled that Brennan seemed to be as smitten with him as Scott was with Brennan. Their personalities clicked, and Brennan saw Lexi as an
asset. All that was left to test was a partnership in the bedroom. And if Scott’s reaction to Brennan’s three-button shirts and exposed collar bones were any indication, there wasn’t going to be a conflict there. Brennan had rolled up his shirtsleeves to dish the food at the start of their meal, and his powerful forearms were dusted with dark hair just like his chest. They flexed as he laid Lexi down in her crib, powerful and gentle. Did that hair trail down his stomach? Lower?

  Scott blushed fiercely at the train of his thoughts and tried to redirect them, but discovered Brennan’s amused eyes on him instead. He flushed hot.

  “Where did your thoughts go?”

  “Nowhere,” Scott said too quickly, He might as well have admitted everything.

  “Oh, they were going somewhere interesting,” Brennan disagreed. “I could feel you peeling this shirt off with your eyes.” His smile was teasing, and his eyes lit with appreciation. He undid one of his buttons at his throat with a practiced flick of his fingers. “Should I take it off? We were in the middle of dinner. Scandalous.”

  Scott couldn’t look away. Brennan had trapped him body and soul with just a smirk. The second button came undone. Tease. “I was thinking you should kiss me,” Scott said breathlessly. “Right now.”

  Brennan’s gaze sharpened with arousal. His pupils swiftly dilated as they reached for each other. Their lips touched, dry and soft, and caught together, pressing, skipping, breath puffing gently on cheeks. Scott’s whole body tingled. His skin buzzed. He pressed closer, opening for Brennan, his tongue diving forward when Brennan’s didn’t. A needy groan vibrated in Scott’s chest that had nothing to do with dinner.

  Brennan cupped Scott’s cheek and pulled away just far enough so their eyes could meet. “If you’re done with dinner,” he whispered, “I brought dessert.”

  “You are dessert, Brennan.” Scott blushed at his daring, but he couldn’t keep his feelings a secret. Brennan had broken him open for all to see, and Scott was filled with admiration. He wanted, and he was going to have what Brennan offered.

  For his part, Brennan was on board. His eyes gleamed. “Let’s go indulge, then,” he said.

  Scott couldn’t agree more.

  SCOTT’S BODY tightened from head to toe as he led Brennan to his bedroom. He’d gone over a year without this kind of intimacy with another person, and it spooked him as much as excited him. He was ready. Brennan laced their fingers together as he mostly shut the door. If Lexi woke again, they would hear her. Scott drew Brennan close by that connection, directing Brennan to wrap his arms around him and hold him tight. Their bodies met; Scott tingled where they touched. He pulled Brennan’s head close, resting their foreheads and noses together, breathing in the oak and forest scent that was Brennan Price. “What are you expecting tonight?” Scott whispered. With how close he felt in both heart and mind, speaking any louder just seemed jarring. “Because I want everything you can give me.”

  “I want your lips on my skin.” Brennan released Scott’s waist to pull his three-button shirt overhead. There was a treasure trail of dark hair down his stomach. Scott pressed his lips to Brennan’s collarbone and sucked lightly. His skin was warm and salty, like sunlight had been trapped inside for Scott to feast on. He mouthed from collar to pectoral, raking one stiff-fingered hand down Brennan’s chest, following the line of hair straight down to his pants. Brennan groaned. “Oh yeah. I want your hands on my body, just like that.”

  Scott was happy to repeat the motion, dragging the pads of his fingers through soft, dark hair while his mouth wandered across to Brennan’s thick deltoid. He slid both his hands around to Brennan’s back and hugged him close. There was already a stiffness in Brennan’s pants, and it sent a thrill through Scott’s entire body. He nipped a path back up to Brennan’s bulging neck while he scored his fingers down a broad, defined back. It hadn’t been obvious with the shirt, but Brennan sported a classic triangle from shoulders to waist. It was mouthwatering. Scott sucked a light welt into the muscle under his tongue, and Brennan shuddered from top to bottom.

  “Fuck, Scott….”

  “What else do you want?” Scott scraped his teeth lightly up Brennan’s neck and jaw.

  “I want to see you. All of you.” Brennan grasped Scott’s ass and snarled into a breathy kiss. “I want you hard for me.”

  Scott bit his bottom lip to keep from groaning. He shoved Brennan back. The man stepped and hit the edge of the bed. He sat heavily. “Eyes on me,” Scott said. “Hands on the bed.”

  “I like it when you tell me what to do.” Brennan grinned and set his hands wide on the bedspread, leaning back to watch. The bulge in his jeans had to be throbbing. Good. Scott wanted him gasping and desperate. Then maybe he’d know just a little how Scott felt about him.

  Scott turned around as he lifted his shirt overhead, tossing it to the side, and throwing a hooded glance over his shoulder. Brennan had caught his tongue between his teeth, his eyes fixed on Scott. Confident he had the man’s full attention, Scott unzipped his jeans slowly, making the sound as loud as possible to ramp-up the anticipation. He dropped the jeans and stepped free, leaving himself in tight black boxer briefs that outlined his ass well. He spread his legs a bit and bent over with agonizing exaggeration to pick up the jeans and throw them in the growing clothes pile. Brennan’s hot eyes followed every aching motion. His hands fisted in the bed cover. The striptease was working.

  Dragging his hand up his leg as he righted himself, Scott slipped his fingers under the band of his underwear. He peeked one asscheek out, then the other, and covered them back up again. Brennan’s groan of disappointment made him laugh. Scott turned to face him instead, and dragged his hand sideways across the bulge in front, highlighting his size as it grew. The exhibition had been spur-of-the-moment, but it felt right, especially with Brennan’s eyes wide as saucers and his breath short. Scott leaned his hips forward and hooked his thumbs in the waistband again. He dragged his underwear down, pinning his erection under the band and drawing it downward with it.

  Scott might not be as athletically fit as Brennan, but with his hips cocked forward like this, he sported a hip V just as attractive. He slowed down as the band inched closer to the end of his arousal, keeping the head hidden from Brennan’s view. The man stared. Scott had him utterly enthralled. With another inch the band released Scott’s cock. It bounced up, long and red, and struck his stomach with a slap. Scott didn’t move, letting the shaft bounce several times for Brennan’s obvious enjoyment. When the movement settled, he dropped the underwear, kicked them aside, and took himself in hand from base to tip and down again. With the addition of his palm, Brennan seemed to snap out of his trance. He looked up at Scott and swallowed hard.

  “Fuck.” Brennan’s hands wandered up his own thighs.

  “Ahh, no touching.” Scott smiled when Brennan snapped his hands back to the bedspread. “What else do you want?” he asked, pumping himself slowly.

  “I want to taste you—no, I want to worship you.”

  “Then get on your knees.”

  Brennan fell bonelessly from the bed to the floor and reached for Scott immediately. His hands skimmed up Scott’s hips and down again, then wrapped to the back of Scott’s thighs and pulled him closer. Brennan opened his mouth, allowing Scott to line himself up. The first touch of his glans to that wet muscle made his ass clench. Brennan lapped at Scott’s cock, sliding his tongue across the head, then underneath and around. With sufficient wetness he pulled Scott closer, forcing him to straddle Brennan’s knees. Brennan’s jeans against the inside of his legs were a heady friction. He hissed his pleasure at knowing Brennan’s cock was trapped and throbbing. He had to be uncomfortable, but his sole focus remained on Scott. Brennan pulled suction all around Scott’s most sensitive skin, teasing and stroking with the tip of his tongue. Then Scott was pulled deeper until his head hit the back of Brennan’s mouth. There was still an inch or two to go.

  “Can you take all of me?” Scott threaded his fingers into Brennan’s hair and me
t those dark eyes with his own. “Open wide.” Brennan obeyed. He took a deep breath and stretched his jaw farther, snaking his tongue under Scott’s cock and unlocking his throat. Scott didn’t just slide back, Brennan swallowed him. Brennan hooked the head of Scott’s cock with his throat and pulled him down from the front. His muscles jerked around Scott’s girth, working the hot flesh for several seconds. Then Brennan breathed out as he pulled off, lapping up to the tip and finally withdrawing. Scott’s knees shook. “Goddamn, that was hot.”

  Brennan’s lips were flushed red, stretched and used. Scott knelt and kissed him, savoring the hot, swollen touch that had brought him to the brink. “Next time I’m gonna come down your throat.” Brennan’s eyes fluttered. Scott pressed his thumb to Brennan’s lips, running it inside and over his teeth and tongue. “I’ll spill everything for you, and then I want to taste my cum on your lips.” They kissed again.

  “Your dirty mouth is going to make this a very short evening.” Brennan’s eyes sparkled with pleasure.

  “Like that, do you?”

  “Fuck yes.”

  “Get on the bed.”

  They scrambled up on the mattress. Brennan rolled to his back, and Scott grabbed both of his hands, winding their fingers together. He dropped his hips and rolled them against Brennan’s covered groin. Every motion scratched pleasantly up Scott’s cock. Brennan’s eyes turned up in his head. He bucked under Scott, giving as good as he got until he shuddered and moaned. “Hurts so good.” He panted. “Gonna come in my pants if you keep it up.”

  “Oh, that’s tempting.” Scott ran one hand down Brennan’s chest until he hit the jeans. He squeezed the bulge he found there and pressed his thumb across the length of Brennan’s trapped erection. “Making the big alpha dirty himself like a teenager.” He leaned closed and whispered, “I could clean you up with my tongue.”