Before It's Too Late (Troubled Hearts Book 3)

by Savannah Brooks

  “Not just us, silly. With you, Cael, and Abbey. When she’s better of course.” She pressed her lips into a hopeful smile. “Now get out of here. That woman better be thrilled to have a brother like you.”

  Zach ran up to Riley and hugged her. She squeezed him hard in return. He released her and hurried away.

  “And drive safe!” Riley hollered from behind him

  Zach beamed, his heart filled with joy and aching with hope. Abbey was fighting, and he’d be damned if he wasn’t going to help her win this battle—one of too many in her life. Call it a fucking war. That’s essentially what it had been for her since the night she was attacked a couple years ago. One fucking battle after another. It wasn’t fair, but if anyone could come out alive on the other side and win the war with death, it was Abbey.

  ***

  Zach bit his lower lip, unable to stop the stupid, hopeful grin from breaking across his face nor the damn fucking happy tears moistening his eyelashes, as he read Cael’s text messages again.

  Told you she would fight.

  I can’t talk now, with a patient.

  Call you as soon as I can. Maybe I can get Rick to cover my last 2 patients.

  Keep me posted if anything changes.

  Love you.

  Zach checked the time on his watch. Four-fifteen. He’d have to pick up Taylor from daycare soon.

  Since the doctor first called him earlier, there had been no change in Abbey’s status, which was both good and bad. She hadn’t woken again, but her increased brain activity also hadn’t shown any signs of deterioration. Of course, it had been less than a day. Anything could happen.

  After speaking with Dr. Cruz when he arrived a couple hours earlier, Zach had moved the lone chair in Abbey’s hospital room closer to her bed and sat down. He’d texted Chloe then called his mom and dad, giving them the latest update before spending the next hour or so just talking to Abbey. He told her all about what Taylor was up to, that Mom was having a rough day but promised to visit later with Dad, how everyone missed her, and ended with the current status of his relationship with Cael.

  “He’s been fucking amazing, Abs, especially with munchkin. I couldn’t have gotten through these last couple months without him. Hell, I couldn’t get through life without him. I can’t believe it took me so long to figure that out. And the way he kisses me, fuck, that’s the best. I can’t… I can’t even describe how wonderful it feels. And I can’t believe you knew.”

  Zach’s phone buzzed, and he glanced at the screen.

  “Speak of the devil.” He pushed the button on his earpiece. “Hey, you.”

  “Hey, I’m finally out of here. You still at the hospital?”

  “Yeah. Nothing’s really changed. Dr. Cruz said it could be hours, days, even weeks before she might wake up again, and even then, it’s impossible to predict whether she’ll stay awake, only that her odds are greatly improved.”

  “Do you want me to pick up Taylor and meet you there?”

  “I was actually thinking of heading home and picking Taylor up on the way.”

  “I thought you’d want to stay longer?”

  “I do but there really isn’t anything I can do.”

  “If you’re sure.”

  “Yeah, I’m sure.”

  “Then how about I pick up dinner and meet you at home?”

  “What were you thinking?”

  “Carolina’s?”

  “My stomach fucking loves you right now. For the record, I do too.”

  “You just love me because I keep you from starving to death.”

  “That, and other things. You are super adorable in protector mode.”

  “Shut up, before I start on just how cute you are when you attempt to cook anything more complex than grilled cheese.”

  Zach laughed. “Oh, them’s fightin’ words.”

  Cael snorted and giggled, actually giggled, and the Goddamn sound when straight to Zach’s heart. He glanced down at Abbey and could have sworn a hint of a smile had formed on her lips. He knew it wasn’t really there, that he was seeing things, but that didn’t stop him from bringing her into the conversation.

  “Abbey’s giving me that ‘you’re such a dork’ grin. I think she wants in on our conversation.”

  “I bet she does. Wonder if I could render her speechless for once if I kissed you right in front of her and then dragged you off to our bedroom without a single word.”

  A warm shiver raced down Zach’s spine. He lowered his voice. “Fuck, man, promise me you actually will do that.”

  “How ‘bout I promise to do that in front of both our sisters?”

  Zach grunted, blood rushing to his growing erection.

  “Anyway, now that I’ve got you thinking of my dick in your ass.” The sound of a car door slamming followed by an engine revving echoed through the phone. “You want your usual?”

  “Yeah. And I thought you liked shoving your dick in my ass.”

  “Is there something wrong with me fucking the man I love?”

  “Not at all, as long as it’s me.”

  “It will always be you, Pook. You’re stuck with me for the rest of your life. I hope you realize that.”

  “Rest of my life, huh?”

  “Yep.”

  “I think I can handle that.”

  “Yeah?”

  Zach nodded, even though Cael couldn’t see him. “Yeah.”

  His answer came out hoarser than planned, but Zach couldn’t help it. The sudden swell of his heart had pushed the air from his lungs as it crammed into his throat. Of all the girlfriends he’d had before, none had ever made him feel the way his best friend now did. Zach couldn’t imagine ever going back to the way things were. He’d gone beyond falling in love with the man, and that was all there was to it.

  Chapter 18

  “I think he’s afraid I’m gonna say no.”

  Gripping the faux granite rock, Cael lifted his leg and placed his foot in a nearby crevice. He shifted his foot around until his footing felt secure and glanced at his sister a few feet to his side.

  It had been several months since Chloe had come bouldering with him. Most of the time, Cael came alone. He preferred it that way. It gave him time to think. Chloe was the exception, however. She kept him company without being a distraction and often challenged and pushed him to his limits, sometimes beyond.

  Cael had taken up indoor rock climbing, specifically bouldering, shortly after his parents up and abandoned him and Chloe in order to return to their former lives as missionaries. That’s where their true passion had always been. Having kids had never been part of their plan.

  Kelly and John weren’t the most loving or attentive of parents, but Cael gave them credit for at least sticking around for as long as they had. Even so, he remembered them traveling a lot without them. Cael and Chloe had practically lived with Gramms and Gramps more often than not until his grandparents relocated to Oregon for work.

  He was barely eighteen when his parents left, leaving him to care for his sixteen-year-old sister alone. Well, not completely alone. Fortunately, he’d had Zach and his family for support. Then, when they’d heard, Gramps decided to retire, and he and Gramms moved back to the mile-high city and took them both in until each was ready to be on their own.

  At least his parents had had the decency to leave them some money too. Enough to get by for several years. They’d never said it, but Cael had always felt that part of the reason they left for good was because he was gay, and they didn’t approve.

  “Why would he think that?” Chloe asked, scaling the boulder alongside him.

  “Never mind why.”

  “Tell me.”

  “It’s stupid.”

  “Spill it, bro.”

  Cael sighed. “I heard him talking in his sleep one night. All he kept saying was, ‘Abs, he said no. He said no.’”

  “Seriously?” She rolled her eyes. “So, because of that, you’re going to ask him?” Chloe raised both eyebrows.

  �
��Well, because of that, and because I love him.” Cael pulled himself up about a foot using handholds barely big enough for his fingertips. “And, it’s what he’s always wanted, Chloe.”

  Cael pulled himself to the top of the boulder and sat to rest, waiting for her to join him. He flexed his right knee, massaging it with his hand. Twelve years after breaking it and it still ached to this day anytime he strained the muscles around it.

  “He’s talked about getting married and starting a family for years. I’ve always wanted to be the person to give that to him. Now I can.”

  “You guys should have been married a long time ago, but I suppose better late than never.” Chloe pulled herself up the last few inches and sat down beside him. She panted softly, catching her breath. “Whew. That took more effort than I thought it would.”

  “You’re out of shape.”

  “Am not,” Chloe retorted.

  “Are too,” Cael shot back.

  Chloe punched him in the upper arm.

  “Was that supposed to hurt?” he teased.

  “Shut up.” She rolled her eyes. “Anyway, back to you asking Zach to marry you… when were you thinking of proposing? And where? Oh, are you gonna get him a ring? Do guys do that for guys? I’ve always wondered—”

  “Chloe.”

  “—if that was just something guys did for girls. Hmm. I think Zach would like a ring though. Oh, maybe you should get an engagement set for both of you. That way he’ll see you wearing yours and maybe he won’t worry that you aren’t serious about staying with him.”

  “Chloe.”

  “That is what you think he’s worried about, isn’t it? That you don’t want to marry him?”

  “Chloe.”

  “And if you get engaged before Abbey’s birthday, she’ll win the bet.”

  “She will?”

  “Wait. Crap. Okay, I did not just tell you that.”

  “Are you telling me that’s what you and Abbey bet on, was when me and Zach would get engaged?”

  “Um, no?” Chloe mumbled as she bit one side of her bottom lip, scrunching her forehead.

  “Oh, yes you did.” Cael beamed. “I know when I have to do it by. Now, I just need to find us rings, because you’re right. I want him see me showing the rest of the world that I’m taken.”

  Chloe looked at him, her lips pressed into a knowing smile.

  “What?” Cael grinned.

  “You’re so in love,” she snorted, teasing him a little.

  “Yeah, so?”

  She tilted her head sideways, her expression shifting to something more serious. “It’s just good to see you free is all. I’m happy for you, bro. Zach too. He’ll say yes, for sure.”

  “God, I hope so.”

  “He will. I promise you, he will.”

  ***

  From Taylor’s bedroom, Cael heard what sounded like the front door open and shut followed by footsteps on the hard wood floor. He finished diapering a sleepy Taylor and slipped her feet into her footie pajamas. Cael zipped her onesie and picked her up. Holding Taylor against his side with one arm, he spun around and found Zach standing in the doorway, his hands shoved in his pockets, a mix of emotions all over him. Cael laid Taylor in her crib and glanced at his watch. Nine-twenty-two.

  “Sneaking up on me, Pook?” Cael whispered as he crossed the room toward him.

  “Yeah, something like that.” Zach exhaled the words more than spoke them.

  Concern filled Cael. “What’s wrong?”

  Zach backed into the hallway, and Cael joined him. He took Zach’s hand and led him into the kitchen. Cael leaned back against the countertop and pulled Zach into his arms, kissing him softly. Zach’s breathing hitched, and he pulled away from Cael’s lips, but hovered close, his eyes closed.

  “Did you finish your project?” It’s why Zach had worked so late tonight.

  Zach nodded. “Yeah.” Pause. Deep breath.

  “Talk to me.”

  “My grandparents are coming to visit Mom and Dad.”

  “Which ones?”

  “Abuelo y Abuela.”

  “Oh. And you’re worried about what they’ll think of us.”

  Zach’s grandparents on his father’s side were deeply traditional and devout Catholics. They hadn’t come right out and said it, but Cael remembered overhearing subtle, anti-gay comments during their last visit some five years ago. Comments about Zach’s choice of friends and how he shouldn’t be hanging around with people like that.

  The question now was, how were he and Zach going to handle the visit.

  Zach pulled out of Cael’s hold and leaned against the counter opposite him. Zach bracketed his hands on the edge of the granite. “I already know what they’ll think of us.”

  “And that bothers you.”

  “Well.” Zach scrunched his face. “I’m more worried what will happen between my dad and them, especially if they find out he’s okay with us. Plus, there’s Taylor. Can you imagine what they’ll say about us taking care of her if they know we’re a couple? They’ll ream Mom and Dad for sure, especially Dad.”

  “There’s a simple solution, you know?”

  Zach gave him a doubtful look. He folded his arms over his chest and crossed his ankles. “Yeah? What’s that?”

  “We just pretend we’re only friends whenever we’re around them.”

  “You would do that?”

  “For you, absolutely.”

  Zach stared at him, thinking.

  “Don’t burn out the motor,” Cael teased, hoping to lighten the mood. Apparently, it worked, because Zach gave him a wry, even if small, grin. A heartbeat later, the moment passed, and the frown returned, marring Zach’s face.

  “I couldn’t ask you to do that, and you shouldn’t have to. We shouldn’t have to.”

  “No, we shouldn’t, but under the circumstances, maybe we should.”

  “Cael—”

  “No, hear me out. I’ll follow your lead. Around your grandparents, we’ll just be friends, until you decide otherwise. Okay?”

  Zach regarded him for a quiet moment. “I don’t like the idea of pretending that you aren’t more to me than that.”

  A surge of warmth invaded Cael’s chest. He pushed off the counter and went right to Zach, not slowing his momentum as he framed Zach’s face with his hands and pressed a kiss to his lips. With tender nips and tugs, Cael kissed his best friend. The man with whom he intended to spend the rest of his life.

  God, how Cael loved him. Even more so after he said things like that.

  Cael ended the kiss but didn’t pull away. He slowly dropped his hands from Zach’s face, down his arms, and rested them on Zach’s hips.

  “What was that for?” Zach breathed against Cael’s lips.

  “Marry me.”

  The whispered words fell out before Cael could stop them. He’d planned on waiting until another time when they were surrounded by family and after he’d had a chance to find rings, but the moment just felt too right. He needed Zach to know that no matter what happened, Cael loved him and was with him for the long haul.

  Zach looked up at Cael, his eyes searching for what felt like an eternity. Cael held his breath, waiting, hoping to God once again that Chloe was right. Hoping Zach would say yes.

  Chapter 19

  Marry me.

  Cael’s words left Zach speechless, and he lost himself in Cael’s hopeful gaze. Tears threatened as a rush of emotions hit Zach square in the chest, knocking the proverbial wind out of him. Zach never imagined he would be on this end of that question, but the all-out joy and love flooding Zach’s heart knowing Cael wanted this with him to the point he was willing to put his heart on the line only solidified what Zach had come to realize.

  Zach was in love with Cael to the point of no return. From the moment Cael first kissed him, there had been no going back. He recalled how he’d worried about Cael falling in love with his perfect man, but this time, he saw himself and Cael. Sneaking kisses in the kitchen. Playing with their kids
—their kids. Making love in the middle of the night.

  How could he ever say no to any of that? It was everything he’d always wanted, with the man he loved most in the world.

  “Pook—”

  “Yes.”

  Cael sucked in a sharp breath. He looked at Zach with such reverence and affection that Zach could no longer hold back the tears.

  “You will?” Cael asked, his voice strained and thick with emotion.

  A smile broke across Zach’s face as a quiet half laugh, half sob escaped him. “Yes, I will.”

  Puling Zach into a tight embrace, Cael let out the breath he’d been holding and captured Zach in a blissfully passionate, lips-only kiss, sending an immediate zing of electricity straight down his spine. The surge of heat to his groin made Zach’s muscles clench, but it was the warmth and love from his best friend filling his heart that made Zach realize he’d finally found what he’d been looking for, and Zach wasn’t ever letting him go.

  ***

  “Are you sure you’re okay with this?” Zach asked as he parked in his parents’ driveway. His stomach knotted. Knowing his grandparents were inside at this very moment, Zach worried more than ever how they would treat Cael.

  “It’s fine, Pook. I promise.” Cael unfastened his seatbelt and shifted a little to face Zach. “It’s temporary, and it’s not like I haven’t dealt with intolerant people before, but I can still leave if you’d rather me not be here.”

  Zach shook his head. “I always want you here. Besides, you’re family whether they like it or not. You shouldn’t have to sit out, even if they do think we’re only friends. Mom and Dad are expecting you anyway, and I already told them our plan.”

  “What’d they say about it?”

  “Believe it or not, neither of them liked it, but they agreed to support it.”

  Zach heaved a sigh, feeling uncertain. He looked down at Cael’s left hand, and his heart ached.

  The day after Cael unexpectedly proposed, Cael had gone out and bought matching rings for them to wear. Before Cael had even paid for them, he’d slipped the simple silver band on his finger and had worn it religiously until this morning, because, as Cael had said, he wanted the world to know he was taken. Seeing Cael without the ring now made Zach second guess his decision to hide who they were to each other.