King’s teeth nipped Row’s lips as he mumbled, “Fuck,” into Row’s mouth and then he too began pulsing over his hand and onto Row’s stomach.
When King finally pulled his mouth away, he shifted his knees underneath him and sat up. Then, once he made sure that Row’s eyes were on him, he brought his hand up to his mouth and slurped their combined cum into his mouth. Then he leaned forward and fused their mouths together once again, sharing their essence, sharing their fluid….sharing their love.
Thirty-Two
“Mom, Dad, I want to introduce you to my boyfriend, to the man that I love very much,” Jaden said as he squeezed his fingers in Colby’s hand.
His parents stared at the two of them for a moment before his Dad said, “Well, does this man have a name?”
Jaden glanced at Colby as he swallowed because this was when the shit was really going to hit the fan. Probably sensing his nerves, Jaden brought their joined hands up to his mouth and kissed Colby’s knuckles. Colby knew he was just buying time as he tried to work up his nerve.
Colby’s eyes glanced to the coffee table, and when he saw several of Westley’s drawings spread across it, including one of his younger self as he lay on his back in grass, he saw a chance for him to help Jaden.
“Wes drew that one on a beautiful summer day that we’d spent swimming in the river that runs through my folks property. We dried off in the sun while we talked about what we wanted the future to hold for us. Surprisingly, what it boiled down to is we both wanted to be happy. Drawing made Wes happy.”
Jaden’s Mom inhaled a sharp breath as she looked between the drawings and Colby and he watched as her brain began to put the pieces together. Jaden’s Dad, however, remained frighteningly silent…and frozen…except for the fingers that were now digging into the arms of the chair he was sitting in.
“But, but, but, but….” his Mom began mumbling.
“Mom, this is Colby,” Jaden said quietly.
“Get,” his father growled and all eyes turned to him.
He furious glare bounced between Jaden and Colby, “that piece of filth out of my house.”
Colby’s eye squeezed shut. This was what he was afraid of, what he was terrified would happen.
He tried to take a step backwards so he could turn and flee out the door but Jaden’s fingers gripped him tighter and refused to let go.
“No, Dad. Colby is not going anywhere.”
Jaden’s Dad shot to his feet, “This is MY house,” he yelled.
Jaden pulled his shoulders back as he took a step towards his Dad, “And this is MY boyfriend,” he shouted back.
“He killed your brother!”
“No, Dad. A car accident killed my brother, a tragic car accident. One that wouldn’t have happened if my brother hadn’t gotten completely blind drunk!”
His Dad sucked in a sharp breath, “Did, did, did he tell you that?” he said.
But Jaden could see the truth, the guilt, in his father’s eyes.
“Yes, Dad, he did. And you know what? I believe him. I believe him Dad. This man has told me more about my brother and that tragic night then you two ever have. You never told me anything about what happened. Hell, from that day on, you two acted like Westley never existed. I lost him that day too, Dad. You lost a son but I lost a brother and the first real friend I’ve ever had! He was an artist Dad, an amazingly talented artist. I had no idea about that.”
His Dad glanced at the drawings, “No he wasn’t. That was, that was….”
Jaden leaned forward and grabbed one of the drawings off the table and held it towards his Dad’s face, “What? It was a phase? A hobby? Is that what you were going to say? That this was a phase? Look at this, Dad. Really look at it. These drawings weren’t done by someone going through a phase. They were done from the heart, a beautiful heart that belonged to an artist, a true artist, one that the world probably would’ve loved eventually. Tragically, he was taken from us too early for that to happen…”
“Because of him,” his father mumbled without much conviction.
“Because of an accident. One that Colby paid dearly for but I’m not going to go into that. But thanks to him, these are still here, Dad. The world can still know who Westley Payne was.”
Jaden’s father let out a breath as he plopped back down into his chair.
Jaden looked at his Mom, who wiped a tear from her cheek and then reached a shaking hand towards Westley’s drawings.
Jaden turned to look at Colby and the moment their eyes met, the room fell away. Colby could see the strength in him, the determination but also the vulnerability, the fear. He pulled Jaden into his chest, pressed his nose into his hair as he inhaled sharply. He pressed a kiss into Jaden’s head, “I’m so damn proud of you,” he whispered.
Jaden’s body melted into his, as if he’d been holding on just long enough until he heard those words.
His fists clenched the back of Colby’s shirt, holding tight as he took a deep, shuddering breath.
Colby rubbed his hand up and down Jaden’s back as he pressed his lips to the side of the man’s head.
“I can’t help but question why you’re with him. I do hope you understand that,” Jaden’s Dad said.
Jaden flinched, like he was going to turn and argue again, but Colby cupped the back of his head, holding him in place, as he said, “I do understand that, Sir. And I hope that you will one day be able to understand why I spend every day of my life making you see, making him see, that I’m with him because I can’t imagine ever being anywhere else.”
Jaden sighed in Colby’s arms, as if the words he’d just spoken had washed all of his fears away. “I love you,” he whispered into Colby’s chest.
Even though Colby could still sense the tension in the room, none of that mattered in that moment. His finger and thumb gently pinched Jaden’s chin, tilting his face up until Colby could look into his eyes and he whispered, “I love you too, Jaden Payne,” just before he pressed a kiss to Jaden’s lips.
“Wh-wh-what will you do with these, Jaden?” his Mom whispered.
Jaden turned in Colby’s arms until his back was pressed to Colby’s front, “Colby’s Ma knows someone who owns a gallery. He saw one of Westley’s pieces that Colby’s parents have up on their wall and he wants to do a showing of Westley’s work.
“Really?” she said.
“Yeah. Would you want to help me pick out which pieces to show?” Jaden said.
His Mom looked back at the drawings for a moment before shaking her head as she turned back to them, “No. I think Wes would want the two of you to decide that.”
Jaden gasped slightly because that was the first time he’d heard his mother say his brother’s name since that night.
“Mom,” he whispered.
Her chin trembled as a tear trickled down her cheek, “You’re right, my sweet baby boy. We never should’ve acted as if Westley never existed. At the time, it was the only thing I could do while still staying sane. But now, you’ve made me realize that it’s time, it’s past time, that I, that we,” she said as she looked at Jaden’s father, “remember what a wonderful son he was, just, just, just like you are.”
This time Colby let Jaden go when he pulled away and he watched, with tears in his own eyes, as Jaden hugged his mother. He felt his phone buzz in his pocket so he pulled it out. He snorted and rolled his eyes as he read the text from his Ma:
When do we get to meet them? Invite them over for dinner!!..:)
When he looked back up, he saw everyone watching him, “Sorry,” he mumbled as he slid his phone back into his pocket.
“Your Ma?” Jaden said with a smile.
Colby nodded, “How’d you guess? She wants me to invite everyone for dinner so she can meet you.”
“Oh, um, well,” Jaden’s Mom whispered.
Colby held up his hands, “No worries. We can definitely do this another time. This is just how my Ma is. You’ll get used to it,” he said with a smile as his eyes moved to Jaden. His sile
nt message behind those words was very clear to Jaden: Colby was here to stay….and that was more than okay for Jaden.
Thirty-Three
King eye-fucked Row’s backside as the man walked to the back of the surveillance van. Row stopped in the open door and that was what finally had King’s eyes snapping back up. He found Row staring at him. His eyes were filled with nervousness and also a touch of fear but they were also filled with so much love as they stared back at King. King felt like he might burst out crying, like he might shatter into a thousand pieces. But that was the last thing that Row needed to see right now. Row needed to keep his focus firmly in the game.
So, instead of the weepy, emotional display that his body begged him to put on, he dipped his chin in a nod and said, “See you on the other side, Bates.”
Something washed over Row’s face the moment those words left King’s lips. His eyes closed as if he were allowing them to penetrate every cell in his body. When he opened his eyes again and looked at King, all he said was, “Catch me.”
Those two words broke King’s heart because they meant that Row knew that this case was going to break him and yet he never wavered in his resolve, never made anyone think that he couldn’t go through with this.
“Always,” King miraculously managed to say without his voice breaking.
With that final word, Row stepped out of the back of the large van, dropped to the ground below and closed the door behind him.
King tried to take a deep breath as he turned back to the monitor in front of him but his lungs felt like they were filled with water. His brain began to panic, telling him that he couldn’t do this, that he had to run out that door and stop Row because he couldn’t breathe without him. But then he felt strong hands on his shoulders, kneading the tension out of them as JD leaned forward and said, “This is the hardest part, King. It’s one thing to stand post with the man you love but when he has to go off on a case without you, you feel like you’re missing a limb, like someone has torn a chunk of your heart right out of your body. But what you need to remember is that, while you may not be physically with him right now, you’re still with him. He needs you to watch him, to listen to everything that’s said, to know when to wait and when to move in so the case doesn’t get blown. Right now, the only reason he was able to walk out that door is because he’s totally secure in the knowledge that you have his back.”
King’s lungs shuddered as they finally sucked in air and he nodded, “You’re right and I do, I will always have that man’s back,” he said both to JD and to himself.
The van they were in was in the dilapidated parking lot of an abandoned convenience store, with a construction logo on the side and proper permits for them to be there just in case the local law stopped by. Those permits were in the system thanks to their tech guru Billy, who had driven down with his husband Ben. The back door opened and Brent, who had just returned from some family thing, stepped inside, along with two men who King had never seen before.
“Look who offered to help,” Brent said.
“Justice, Garrett, how are you two doing?”
The blonde man that JD had called Garrett blushed as he glanced at the tall, hard, dark haired man beside him, “Good, we’re good. Needed to get away from the isolation on that mountain for a bit. Justice was going a little stir crazy.”
Justice wrapped an arm around Garrett’s waist and pulled him close, “I wasn’t going stir crazy, I just couldn’t keep my hands off of you. And since I had nothing else to occupy my time….well…..”
“Yeah, that,” Garrett mumbled with a smile, “I love this man but there’s only so many orgasms a guy can have before he needs a moment to catch his breath.”
Justice pressed his lips to Garrett’s head, “And it’s been hours since you’ve had one so you should be good,” he said with a chuckle in his deep rumbling voice.
“You two are as bad as Colby and Jaden,” Brent said with a groan.
Justice’s head whipped around, “Who?”
“Colby and my cousin, Jaden. They’re a new couple and they can’t keep their hands off of each other either.”
“Like you and JD are any better,” Justice said with a snort.
Brent waved his hand, “Puhlese, JD and I are an old married couple now. We can hardly get it up anymore.”
“Speak for yourself, old man,” JD said.
“So, wait, your cousin’s name is Jaden?” Justice said.
“Yeah, why?”
“There was a guy on our Ops team named Jaden. He disappeared a little over a year ago. When he finally got out I think he needed to decompress by totally shutting himself off from anyone that he knew when he was in the service. I’ve been worried about him.”
“What’s your guy’s last name?” Brent said with a frown. He knew his cousin had spent a little time in the military but he didn’t think he was doing the dangerous off-book missions like Justice did. Not his little cousin.
“Payne,” Justice said.
Brent flinched. “Shit,” he mumbled.
He glanced up at Justice, “Are you telling me that my little cousin spent years doing shady-ass, dangerous missions and he didn’t even tell me?”
“Apparently. Is he, is he okay?”
Brent pulled his phone out of his pocket, frowning as he shot off a text. Then he slid a hand through his hair as he nodded, “Yeah, he’s really good now. He’s got a new boyfriend, Colby. Colby works for Morgan Doyle out in Denver but he’s on leave right now and, here’s the kicker, when Colby was a teenager he had a secret relationship with Jaden’s older brother Westley before Wes got killed in a car accident in a car that was driven by Colby.”
“Holy shit! What is this, six degrees of separation on steroids? That is crazy.”
“Tell me about it. I just got back from seeing Jaden’s parents and smoothing things over when Jaden and Colby did the big reveal that their youngest son was in love with the man that they blamed for their oldest son’s death.”
Justice pulled out a chair and flopped into it as if his legs would no longer hold him up. Garrett stepped up behind him and began rubbing his shoulders. “That is so fucked up. How’d they take it?”
“Not well at first. But they’re coming around. Colby’s a good guy and what happened back then wasn’t his fault. It’s just hard not to blame somebody when you lose a child.”
“Yeah, I get that,” Justice said.
“Heads up, people, he’s going in,” JD said and everyone in the room narrowed their focus down to the monitors in front of them.
Brent handed Justice an earpiece and a casefile. He stuck the tiny thing in his ear and began reading, cursing under his breath when he saw who they were going after and why.
“What is it?” Brent said.
Justice glanced up and saw Brent watching him. He didn’t work for this team full time but after seeing them in action on the Op which not only rescued Garrett but gave Justice the most beautiful man he’d ever met, he knew that he owed them….a lot.
“I’ve dealt with this asshole,” he said.
“Tell me.”
Thirty-Four
Jaden’s stomach dropped when he read the text:
Ops, Jade? Really??? We are talking when I get home.
“Everything okay?”
Jaden turned to look at Colby. He couldn’t help but wonder if the man would still love him once he’d learned the truth.
“Babe?” Colby said, bringing Jaden’s thoughts back and making him realize that he still hadn’t said anything.
Fuck.
He really should’ve said something before now.
“I, I need you to pull over,” he mumbled.
Colby frowned, “Okay, are you feeling sick?”
“Kind of. But only because there’s something that I need to tell you, something I should’ve already told you.”
Colby put on his blinker and turned onto a side road that was overgrown with weeds. He pulled forward until a gate that was barely hanging
onto its post stopped their forward progress. A dirty for sale sign hung in the middle of it like it was desperately gasping for its last breath of air.
Colby put the car in park and shut it off. And then he just stared silently out the windshield. Jaden was trying the work up the nerve to talk to him when Colby turned and said, “Come on, I want to show you something.”
He got out and waited for Jaden to do the same before he walked to the front of the car. When Jaden joined him, he threaded their hands together and then he stepped around the side post and started walking down the barely visible driveway. It curved around to reveal a worn down, two story farmhouse that had definitely seen better days. The wraparound porch had holes in it, the front screen door was hanging on one hinge, a few of the upper floor windows were broken, and the top part of the brick chimney had toppled onto the roof.
Without saying a word, Colby walked up the front steps, avoiding holes and weak spots like he knew the place well. Jaden followed his steps while he watched Colby, a line between his eyebrows as he frowned.
Colby reached his fingers up to the top of the door, slid them over and came down with a key which he slid into the lock and pushed the door open. He stepped inside with Jaden right behind him. Sunlight filtered through the dirty windows, shining on the dust floating in the air. Jaden watched it for a moment as it filtered down to land on a tattered sofa. He saw the fireplace in the corner that must belong to the broken chimney he saw on the roof, and in front of that, a thin mattress with a sleeping bag on top of it, surrounded by a camping lantern, matches and two tin cups.
He stepped forward, dropping Colby’s hand as he looked around the room. His eyes kept coming back to that mattress and when he realized why, he looked back at Colby and saw the tears tracking down his cheeks.
“The two of you came here, you and Wes,” he said.
It wasn’t a question but Colby dipped his chin in a nod, “We, we wanted a place that was just ours.”
Thunderstorms on the Horizon Page 15