by Kelex
Jereme moaned, holding Anson’s gaze.
“And right now… I want you to come.” Anson switched the angle of his thrusts slightly, enough to light the spark Jereme needed.
He threw his head back, his body tight… his heart felt as if it might burst. And he came. Hard. Jereme screamed Anson’s name as it felt like he was dying and being born all at the same time. Barely able to gasp air into his lungs, the pleasure was so intense, it rode the edge of pain. Anson joined him soon after, driving deep and giving him another thick load of cum. I want to feel it without a condom… I want his load next time.
They moved together, cresting the wave before relief and satisfaction warmed his whole body. Boneless, Jereme fell back against the mattress. They lay there a moment or two, catching their breath before he spoke. “I think I just had a heart attack.”
Anson’s laugh burst from him sharply. “I’m the old man here. If there’s a heart attack to be had, I think it’ll be me first.” His daddy slowly withdrew on shaking forearms before rolling to his side next to Jereme.
He brushed some of Jereme’s hair from his face. “You okay?”
Jereme turned his head to get a better look at the man who’d shattered him… and so far, was staying to pick up the pieces. A slight smile played over his lips. “Yeah. I am.”
“Good,” Anson whispered before pressing a gentle kiss to Jereme’s lips.
After Anson got rid of the condom and wiped up a bit, Jereme turned and rolled into his daddy’s welcoming arms. No one had ever made him feel as safe as his stepfather did. It made him never want to leave.
Too bad he had to.
The rest of the day was spent in and out of bed. After cuddles, they went downstairs, watched a movie together on the couch. They ate, fucked, slept, and fucked some more. He was loath to leave Sunday evening, but they’d eventually decided that would probably be the end of their little affair. Jereme would just have to hold on to the memories.
He just hoped it would be enough.
* * * *
Anson could still feel Jereme’s presence in the house… a presence that a year before had been barely noticeable. Now his stepson took up too much space and wasn’t even there. He sat alone on the couch where they’d watched a movie earlier… snuggling close and simply enjoying one another’s company… and he realized he rarely relaxed like that with anyone. He was typically pretty Type-A and struggled to sit still for more than a few moments. His focus over the last decade had been his career. Everything was all about the next case. The next deal. The next chance to grow. It had been nice to slow down and be present in the moment with another human being.
The last time he’d slowed down for a moment, Gloria had come into his life. She’d been a tempest, tossing his life into chaos.
Now, her son had claimed his attention. Unlike his mother, Jereme’s nature was calming, and he craved his stepson’s energy back in his life. How he could miss the guy after one weekend spent together, he didn’t know.
He felt the loss of that spirit down to his core.
Anson’s phone rang, and for a moment he felt anticipation that it might be Jereme… until he lifted it and saw it was Gloria. A wave of guilt flooded him. He knew he had no reason to feel guilt. Not technically, but he couldn’t help himself.
Not wanting to, Anson answered the call. The sooner they could take care of business and end their relationship, the better.
Maybe there’s a future for Jereme and I after that? After all was signed and ties broken?
Stop it. We agreed it was over.
Anson lifted the cell to his ear. “Hello, Gloria,” he said numbly.
“I expected anger.”
“No point in being angry,” Anson said. He was more reminding himself than answering her. There was anger, but it wouldn’t be productive to vent it and start an argument. Not when he was so very close to ending things. “It’s over. So be it.”
Silence hung on the line, but he could hear Gloria breathing on the other end. “No fight to keep me, hmm? Then I guess I was right to leave.”
“I guess you were,” Anson replied, feeling a little anger surfacing. He shoved it down, letting the attorney in him take over. “I assume you’re calling to get the ball rolling?”
“I thought… maybe… maybe you’d want to give us another try?”
Anson shook his head. “No. We lasted longer than we should have. It’s time to end it.”
Gloria hesitated. “I love you, Anson.”
No. You don’t. You never did. “Did your new boyfriend end things? Or just having second thoughts?”
“Fuck you, Anson,” she spat.
He sighed. There was no reason to poke the bear. “Have your attorney get in touch with me,” he said. “We’ll get this wrapped up quickly.”
He hung up before an argument could explode between them. Jumping up, he headed into the office to try to get through a portion of the files he’d ignored all weekend in order to spend time with Jereme.
Anson knew he’d sunk himself into a hole, but it had been worth it.
So incredibly worth it.
* * * *
Jereme was nearly back to campus when his phone rang. He tensed when he saw who was on the other end. Does she know? Is she calling to terrorize me? He hated feeling like the bomb was going to drop at any moment. Traffic was heavy, and he wasn’t emotionally prepared to take her call, so he hit Dismiss and dropped the cell onto the passenger seat. His heart began to pound, and his stomach turned sick as he crossed the city.
The minute he called her back, his life could implode.
Had it been worth it?
A betrayal. Or had it been? His mother had left the man for another. She’d never truly loved Anson. He’d been a means to an end, just like all the men who’d come before him. Jereme wasn’t sure his mother really knew how to love—but then her upbringing hadn’t prepared her too well, either. He supposed the same could be said about him. Jereme didn’t know what a true, healthy relationship looked like. Had he reached for Anson because he was as fucked up as she was?
After circling the campus parking lots a few times, he finally found an empty space and pulled in. He turned off the engine and sat there a few minutes before lifting his phone to return that call. Breath catching as it rang in his ear, he waited for the catastrophe to come.
“Did you ignore my call?” No hello. No, how are you? Just a demand.
“I was driving, and traffic was bad,” he replied, rubbing the steering wheel of his fifteen-year-old Honda he’d bought and paid for himself. “I don’t have one of those fancy Bluetooth enabled cars like you do.”
“I was calling with news,” she replied, ignoring his comment. “I’ve left Anson.”
“Ah,” he murmured, knowing he should try to manufacture some surprise, but he was too exhausted. “Should I be happy or sad for you?”
“More of the attitude,” she snapped. “I am not in the mood, young man.”
Jereme squeezed the steering wheel, frustration filling him. He remained silent instead of saying what he wanted to say.
“You’ll need to find time to get back to the house and pack up your room. I don’t know what you want to keep… or if there’s anything you even want that’s left there.”
Oh, there was something there he wanted. But he couldn’t truly have it. Yet he couldn’t pass up the opportunity to see Anson again.
“You’ll have to call Anson,” she went on. “Set up a time.”
“Ahh… when will you be there?”
“I’m not sure. I called Anson to set things up, but he hung up on me. I’ll have to call him again. If I can get him when he’s not acting like an immature baby.” She tsked. “Do you know he had the nerve to ask me to come back? To give our relationship another try?”
Jereme couldn’t breathe.
Anson asked for her to come back? Just after they’d been together? He frowned, sensing that couldn’t be true… his mother and her version of reality had a war
ped association.
But what if it was true?
Were the things Anson had said been lies? An elaborate fantasy… an illusion Jereme had gotten caught up in?
He coughed, choking. Bile rose in his stomach, and he feared he might vomit.
“Of course, I denied him,” his mother went on, ignoring the sounds of his coughing. “There’s no way I’m going back to that asshole. Not when I’ve found the most magnificent man.”
Jereme rested his head back on the headrest and took a deep breath as she filled him in on the significantly older, wealthy man she’d snagged.
“Charles’ house is amazing,” she murmured in his ear. “It’s easily three times the size of that shack Anson bought me. I can’t wait for you to visit. But not too soon, okay? I haven’t told Charles about you just yet.”
“Yeah, I wouldn’t want to be in the way,” he mumbled.
“I never said you were in the way,” she said, sounding shocked. “Some men want to feel like they’re everything to a woman… that her attention will be fully on them. That’s all. I have to win him over before I tell him about you.”
“Have you ever thought about just being yourself?”
Silence hung on the phone for a moment.
“Of course not,” Jereme continued. “I don’t think you know who you even are at this point.”
“What the hell has gotten into you, Jereme?”
He closed his eyes. He was just so tired. Of being in the way. Of hiding who he was. Of not being loved. Anson had been a wonderful distraction for a couple of days, but now he was back to his world.
And he felt lost.
Alone.
Scared.
“I’ve got to go,” he spat and hung up the phone. His mother immediately called back… so he turned off his phone. Jereme wasn’t in the mood for her lectures when she had no right to lecture anyone. After he wiped the tears from his eyes, he grabbed his bags and headed up to his dorm room so he could try to catch up on work.
As soon as he got to his room, he saw it was thoroughly trashed. There were beer cans, liquor bottles, discarded food, and clothing strewn all over his room. Drug paraphernalia was all over. Not just bongs, but syringes, crack pipes, and a few other odds and ends he wasn’t sure about. There were three people sleeping in his tiny twin bed and two more in his roommate’s.
To make matters worse, the locked box he hid under his bed was sitting wide open on the floor. His toys had been played with… and from the looks of them, used.
“Hey, roomie,” his roommate said, lifting. “Wanna join the fun? Come’ere and gimme a kiss, sweet ass.”
Motherfucker!
He moved to his desk, pushed away the mess lining it, and shoved all his books into his backpack. Then he put some more clothes in the overnight bag and headed to find the building’s resident advisor on the first floor, taking as many of his belongings with him. The guy sleepily answered the door.
“Did you see what he did to our room?”
The RA, Cary, sighed. “What is it this time?”
“He destroyed it! I need a new room, as far from that asshole as possible!”
“As I’ve told you a hundred times before, there’s no room to move you in the building. The semester is over in a few more weeks, and you can get different housing next year.”
“Not. Good. Enough! He’s got a crack den upstairs, and I’m just supposed to deal with it? People sleeping in my bed? Rummaging through my stuff? Ruining my stuff? Fuck you! Fuck this college! I’m done!”
“Wait! Jereme!” the RA cried as Jereme stormed off.
He crossed campus and tossed his bags into his car before sliding behind the wheel. It was then he realized he didn’t know where he was going to go. As tempted as he was to run home to Anson, his mother’s words kept him rooted to the spot. He couldn’t go home to his mother—hell, he didn’t even know where she lived now. His own space on campus was compromised. Jereme looked around the interior of his car and realized it was the only home he had left. Grabbing a book from his bookbag, he opened it up, cranked a window open a bit, and got reading.
If he had to sleep in his car until the semester was over, so be it.
Chapter Six
“Hey, Jereme,” Anson murmured into the phone. “I called the last few days to check in and see if you made it home okay. Never got an answer. It’s Wednesday afternoon… and I’m really starting to worry. Please call me… or even text… just so I know you’re alright.”
He tossed the phone onto his desk, worry mounting. Instinct screamed within him to jump in his SUV and make the drive north three hours. Not that he even knew where to begin searching.
While they’d decided it might be best for them to not pursue anything else… it didn’t mean he wasn’t concerned. The weekend had been explosive for them both, and he wanted to know that Jereme wasn’t reeling from the things they shared. Jereme was a gentle soul… and Anson wanted to protect him.
He went back to his files, but struggled to focus. The day passed much too slowly. Anson felt out of sorts… his whole world flipped upside down. A knock at his door caught his attention. His father stood there, a knowing look on his face. “I just got a call from Bobby Blake.”
“Yeah?” Anson asked. “What about?”
“Seems he’s representing your wife in some divorce proceedings.”
“Why the hell is he calling you and not me?” Anson asked angrily. First the bank and now this?
His father shut his office door. “Simmer down. Bobby and I had a golf game set for next Tuesday afternoon, and he thought it might be prudent to reschedule it until after you and your bride were legally divorced. That way nothing could be said about me intervening in your case.”
He glared at his father but said nothing. That was part of the problem about living in a small suburb. Everyone knew everyone, particularly those who worked in such small circles.
“I’m glad you finally untethered that latch.” His father took a seat. “For once, you listened to me.”
“She left me.” While it was embarrassing to admit, he liked proving his father wrong more. That damned flaw in his character and all.
His father’s eyebrows rose at the confession. “I guess she got all she could out of you and moved on. That could be why I heard she’s spending her days with Charles Atwood.”
“Atwood?” Anson asked. The man had more money than god… or so it was said. His family had invested well a hundred or more years ago, and careful planning had helped ensure they sat on a mountain of gold. He chuckled. I wonder how much will be left after Gloria. “Good luck to him.”
“A man like Atwood is used to young, pretty girls clawing at his cash. I mean, with a face like that, he has to know what they’re after.” His father chuckled. “He holds the purse strings tight, I hear.”
“He hasn’t met Gloria.”
“Well, it’ll be interesting to see how that relationship unfolds.” His father smiled. “As soon as we can free you from her. You have an attorney yet?”
“No. I might talk to Chaz… see if he can add a case in.”
“I already mentioned you might need him. He’s waiting on a call.” His father rose. “I’ll be glad when this part of your life is over and you can move on.”
Anson eyed his father. He wasn’t accustomed to the man sounding so sincere, but as usual, he overstepped. “Honestly… I don’t know if I want my dirty laundry aired out through one of our own. I might pick someone outside the firm.”
“Chaz is trustworthy.”
“Dad… the point is… I can hire my own divorce attorney. I’m a grown man.”
His father eyed him. “I just wanted to help get you out of this mess you’re in. We both know that woman wasn’t for you.”
Anson sat back in his chair and rolled his eyes. “Of course not. She wasn’t a Stepford Wife like the one Howie married. I’m quite clear the type of woman you would find acceptable.”
His father frowned. “I never said I e
xpected you to marry a woman like that. Hell, I absolutely didn’t expect you to marry a woman like her.”
“Oh? I need a laugh right now. Who did you expect me to marry?”
“Someone who made you happy!” his father blasted. “Whoever that is. She’s out there, Anson.” His father ran a hand over his face. “Or maybe he’s out there. Who the hell knows.”
Anson froze, his eyes widening.
His father chuckled. “Didn’t think I could see who my own son was? I pay closer attention than you think.” His smile faded. “But if I ever gave you the impression that you had to conform to fit in some preconceived box… I guess that failure is mine. I pushed you… because I wanted you to strive for the best. If my pushing came off as something besides me loving my son… I’m sorry.”
Anson sat there a moment, staggering internally from his father’s words. “All this time, I assumed I would never measure up. I gave up trying… and switched to actively trying to piss you off.” He laughed. “It’s one of the reasons I remained married to Gloria as long as I did. I knew you didn’t approve.”
“I’m to blame for this horrible marriage? That’s good to know.”
“To blame? No. That was all me. But I enjoyed how much you hated her.”
“I hated her because she wasn’t the one, son. She most definitely wasn’t the one. I guess my pushing once again backfired.”
“So… if the next one’s a guy… you won’t have any issues with that?”
His father looked away for a moment before turning to meet his gaze. “Honestly, I haven’t spent all that much time around gay men. But if he makes you happy… then that’s all I can ask for.”
“For the record, I’m not gay. I’m pretty sure I’m bisexual.”
His father looked confused. “But if you’re with another guy, you’re gay.”
“No, I can be with a guy and still be attracted to both men and women,” Anson said. “I’ve enjoyed the company of both in my lifetime.”