by Kelex
Noah let out a slow breath, trying to hold on to his emotions. With everything that he’d been through in the past couple of weeks, his control was at its limits. He lifted his gaze to her and went for the truth. No matter if it hurt. “Dad and Abbie Lee… they told me you didn’t want me anymore. Over and over again. For years, I thought you abandoned me. I’ve spent most of my life hating you for it.” Noah saw the pain in her eyes. He’d put it there, and guilt slammed into him. “To learn it was all lies…”
“We’ll need time to come to terms with what they did to us. What they robbed us of.”
Noah nodded. Lowering his head, he had no idea where they went from there.
“Damn them,” his mother cried angrily. “We fought, tooth and nail, to get you back, sweetheart.”
“I know. Brody told me.”
His mom smiled softly, tears welling in her eyes. “I feared I might never see you again. I’m so excited to have you home again.”
“I’m excited to be home again, too. Though it’s been so long, it really doesn’t feel like home anymore.”
She patted his hand. “It will. Give it time.” She wiped away a stray tear. “So I want to hear everything. How you did in school… what you like, what you don’t like… if you have any grand plans now that you’re free.”
“School was pretty much terrible. That town was terrible. I didn’t fit in. At all.”
“How so?”
Noah took a long, deep breath. He assumed she’d accept him, considering she was with Geena—but there was still a hint of fear within. “I’m gay.”
His mom smiled softly. “And in a small town outside of Nashville, that was likely a problem.”
Noah relieved the breath he’d pent up. “Pretty much. I mean, I tried to hide it. I must’ve done a decent job of it. Dad has said a time or two, I don’t look like a homo. Whatever that means.”
“It means not wearing a feather boa, makeup, and hot pants—like he did when he was younger.”
Noah’s head popped up. “What?”
“Oh, your dad was gay… as in very gay… before he met Abbie Lee.”
“Seriously? Fuck…” he turned to his mother. “I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to cuss.”
“It’s okay. After learning your conservative father was once the Grand Marshall of the local pride parade, I think you deserve to scream fuck at the top of your lungs at least once. If not more.”
Noah chuckled, before shaking his head. “So he shoved himself back into the closet… for Abbie Lee?”
“Your father was lost for a while. I’d been friends with him all through school. Neither of us were out of the closet way back when, but maybe we both sensed it in one another. Being different. It brought us close. As Walt got older, he really seemed to struggle with his sexuality. There’s so much more pressure put on a man and his sexuality. More stigma. He did some really dangerous and self-destructive things before he finally came out of the closet. And then once he did.” She paused, her eyes widening. “He really went all out. Partying a lot. Sleeping around. Lots of unsafe situations. Then he got himself addicted to heroin.”
Heroin? His holier than thou father was gay and an ex-addict? Fuck…
“When he hit rock bottom, Geena and I helped get him clean and back on some sort of path to living again. He stayed with us for a while. Once he’d detoxed and gotten over the roughest parts, it was calm. He seemed to find himself. Then things went sideways. One night when Geena and I had had a little too much vino, things got a little weird, to say the least—I won’t go into the details other than to say it wasn’t the best choice any of us have made—and then you happened.”
“So I was a mistake?”
“No!” his mother barked. A smile spread over her face. “You were the happiest of accidents. Geena and I had always talked about potentially having a child. When I found out I was pregnant…” Her smile grew. “We were ecstatic. We became a family.” She squeezed his hand. “After that night, though… your dad fell off the wagon. He nearly overdosed and ended up in rehab. That’s where he met Abbie Lee—who was a volunteer there. She convinced him he needed to change his life completely if he wanted to get better. He bought into her brand of salvation lock, stock, and barrel.”
“Religion is a joke,” Noah snapped.
“I’m sure the religion you’ve been exposed to might seem like that, but I like to believe God is a loving spirit, not spiteful. Geena and I attend a very open church where everyone is welcomed and worthy of God’s love.” She caressed his hand. “I’d love for you to come with us sometime—so you could see it’s not the religion that’s bad, but the person who wields it like a weapon against others.”
“I think I’ve had enough of religion for a while,” Noah murmured. “Good or bad.”
“That’s understandable… but the offer is always open if you ever want to come down the road. Until you ask, I’ll never speak of it again. Okay?”
Noah nodded.
His mother grew quiet, and Noah sensed there was something she wanted to say. He tensed simply from her tension.
“What do I need to know about your life with Walt and Abbie Lee? The attorney is likely going to ask some hard questions, and I want to be prepared.” Her jaw clenched. “Have they ever… abused you? In any way?”
“Not really.”
“What does “not really’ mean?”
“There were a lot of punishments for what Abbie Lee thought I’d done wrong—which was practically everything I did. When I was younger, I’d get spanks, but once I could read, I ended up on my knees in the kitchen for hours, reading passages from the Bible while she cooked dinner. Then I’d get screamed at by Dad when he got home from work.” He paused, taking a cleansing breath. “Dad drinks sometimes… and he gets really ragey. Throws things. At the wall or me.”
His mother’s face was pale. “I’m… so… sorry, sweetheart.” She shook her head. “And you’re wrong. That is abuse. It’s not just about being hit with a fist. No child should have to live a life where they constantly cower in fear of a parent’s rage.”
Noah eyed her. Perhaps she was right, but he didn’t like feeling like a victim, either.
“Was there anything more?” his mother asked.
“Manipulation? I mean, they wouldn’t let me get a job because I had duties at the church. I was able to apply to a couple of colleges thanks to my guidance counselor, and got into three. I then tried to apply for financial aid to start college in the fall—so I could get away from them. Dad and Abbie Lee said they would do it for me—some excuse about me not needing to see their finances—and then claimed they had applied. By the time I found out they hadn’t, it was too late. I found some of my paperwork for college in Abbie Lee’s desk—deadlines had passed there, too. When I confronted them, they said I wasn’t ready to leave for college yet.” He sighed. “I got angry. Started acting out and doing things I would’ve never done before. It was stupid and I shouldn’t have, but I was just so mad. Now they might use some of those things as weapons now.”
“What did you do?”
“Didn’t go home for a few days. I couch surfed at a few friends’ houses to scare them. A friend got me a fake ID and we snuck into a gay club in Nashville. Uncle Dave dragged me out of there and drove me home.”
“The sheriff?”
“Yeah. He cuffed me and put me in the back of his patrol car. Rode all the way back to town with the lights flaring. He made a big deal of escorting me home in front of all the neighbors.”
His mother let out an exhale. “Your father seemed like a much different man when he came to our door the other day. Angrier.” She scoffed. “But then, if I’d spent sixteen years forcing myself back in the closet, I’d be angry, too.”
“You think that’s the reason he is the way he is?”
“Possibly,” his mom said. “It explains why he felt the need to pull you out of our home. He thought he was on a mission to save you from becoming like him. In his mind, he’s likely the
hero of this story.”
Noah cringed. “A hero? Not hardly. He’s the villain. He and Abbie Lee.”
“As parents, we can only give our children all the love and support they need and hope they find their own way. I’m sorry you didn’t have that growing up. But you have it now.”
Would she still love him, even if she learned the secret he was hiding? He swallowed thickly, deciding to test the waters. “I did something else since getting here. Something that could give dad and Abbie Lee ammunition if they ever found out.”
His mother frowned. “Do you mind telling me what this terrible thing was?”
Noah cringed. “I told you I got here a few days before I came to your house.”
“Yeah.”
“I met a guy… and I spent a few days with him.”
Her face tensed a little. “Okay… and?”
“You’re not upset I spent a few days with a man I barely knew?”
She tossed her head side to side some, as if weighing her words. “While I would worry if you were making safe choices and if you protected yourself, I wouldn’t be angry at you. You’re an adult now and free to make your own decisions. That was not a terrible thing. But I would warn you not to go home with strangers. It’s dangerous.”
“What if I used a fake ID to get into a bar where I met him? And then lied about my age and my name, using what was on the ID?”
His mother hissed. “Now we’re treading into murkier waters. What you did was illegal and dangerous—but again, not enough to cause me to stop loving you. I would only hope you wouldn’t do something like that again. You’re risking your safety.”
“I really, really like the guy. A lot. I want to keep seeing him, but there’s a problem. A big problem.”
“What’s that?”
“He found out the truth and now he’s really upset. He’s a little older, and he assumed I was in my early twenties since I was in the bar.”
His mother eyed him. “Older? Like how much older?”
“Closer to your age than mine.”
“Noah… that’s a bit extreme, isn’t it? I mean—you’re barely an adult. You should be spending time with people your own age.”
“But I am an adult… capable of making my own decisions. Isn’t that what you just said?”
His mother sighed. “Yes, you are. Guys your own age would be better, though. Wouldn’t they? Not someone who’s already experienced so much.”
“I like older men.”
His mom eyed him, appearing as if she was ready to argue—but that vanished. “Okay. You like who you like. I won’t judge your choices.”
“Well, there are other problems, too.”
“I don’t like the sound of this, at all.” She shook her head. “What is it?”
Noah was about to spill all of the truth when Brody entered the apartment. His daddy’s stare first caught Noah’s and then drifted to his mom’s.
“Hey, Stace. I thought you were keeping some distance?” he said before closing the door behind him.
“I was able to get an appointment with an attorney this afternoon to get an action plan going—to find out what we can do to keep Noah safe.” Stacey smiled wanly before turning to Noah. “I guess you should go get that shower so we can head over.”
“Sure thing,” Noah murmured before rising. He eyed Brody a moment before he disappeared into the bedroom.
Brody’s stare followed Noah before he focused on Stacey. Her eyes rounded before tuning into a hard glare—and he had the sudden sense she might be aware of the truth. My god, he didn’t tell her, did he? He walked into the apartment and tossed his keys and wallet onto the side table, trying to ignore the knotting of his stomach. “An attorney, hmm? Good idea.”
Stacey looked away, not meeting his gaze. “Yeah. It was Geena’s idea, of course. She’s the smart one.”
Brody headed for the sink to wash his hands. The air was thick between them, and worry mounted. “Where is Geena?”
“She had a shift at the hospital.”
“Ah.”
Brody leaned against the island opposite her. “Any news on Walt? He still standing sentinel outside the homestead?”
Stacey turned to face him. “Are you sleeping with my son?”
All the life went out of Brody. His mouth opened, but no words came out.
“He told me about some older man he met when he first got to town… he used a fake ID to sneak into a bar.” She shook her head. “For some reason, I went online and searched for the Greyhound stop… I wanted to know how far he’d walked. This bar is right down the road from that stop.” She paused, shaking her head again. “He had to come here.” Stacey turned back to face him, eyes wide. “You haven’t seen Noah in fourteen years. He said he used the name on the ID, not his own. So you wouldn’t have known he was my Noah. Right?”
“Stacey… you have no idea wh—”
“Don’t lie to me,” she growled. “I saw the way you two just looked at one another!”
Bile rose up Brody’s throat. He closed his eyes, Lex’s words once again whispering through his mind. The truth would ultimately come out. When he reopened his eyes, Stacey’s pain tormented him. “He said his name was Chris. I had no idea who he really was. I had no idea, Stace. No idea.”
She chuckled grimly. “Are you incapable of thinking with anything but your cock?”
“That’s unfair. I had no idea who he was!”
Her eyes closed. Her lower lip quivered. “But… it’s over now. Right?”
No. “Yes,” he lied.
She reopened her eyes, and they flashed at him. “Is it? He seems to believe he’s still attracted to this man of his. Wants it to continue.”
Brody glanced away, hating lying to her. “It has to be over. I told him that last night.”
Noah padded out of the bedroom, still wet and wrapped in a towel. “What’s going on out here?”
“Your boyfriend and I were just having a little conversation,” Stacey said before turning to Noah. “Get dressed and get your things. You’re coming home with me.”
“No,” Noah replied. “I want to stay here. With Brody.”
Stacey frowned at Noah. “He’s Parker’s father. My ex-husband.”
“Brody already told me… it was a business arrangement. His sperm for your insurance.”
“Oh? That’s all it was, hmm?” Tears welled in her eyes as she spun to glare at Brody. “Is it, Brody? Is that all we are to one another?”
“Of course it’s not. It’s not that simple. We’re family.”
“Exactly. Family. And family doesn’t do this to one another.” Stacey pulled open her purse and took out a folded slip of paper. She slapped it on the island before pulling her purse over one shoulder. “You want to play daddy? So take him to see this attorney. I need to get the hell out of here before I say something I might regret later.”
With that, she marched to the door and left them with a slam.
“Why did you tell her?” Brody asked.
“I never told her it was you!”
“You gave her enough to figure it out.”
Noah frowned. “How? I only said it was some random older guy I met in a bar. I gave her nothing else. There’s no way she could’ve known.”
“She saw the way we looked at one another.”
Noah paused, silent. “How do we look at one another, Brody?”
Brody lifted his gaze and met Noah’s. There was heat and hunger mixed with the horror and outrage he saw there. “Something like that.”
“Do you see how much I want you when I look at you, Brody?”
Brody broke the stare, unable to answer him.
“I see how much you want me when you look at me.” Noah scoffed. “At least, I think I do. I hope I do.” He dropped the towel from his waist and padded over. “You do want me, don’t you, daddy?”
Brody turned away, unable to see what Noah was freely offering. “We can’t do this anymore. I promised your mother it was over. And it is.�
��
“I made no such promise.”
“You saw how upset she was.”
Noah ran his hands over Brody’s back. “Now the truth is out. We can do whatever we want.”
Brody bit back a moan. “No! No, we can’t!” He spun and grasped Noah’s wrists. “Go back into that bedroom and get dressed. You have an appointment—which you need to be at if you want a chance to be free of your father.”
Noah yanked his wrists away, frowning. “Fine. We can discuss this later.”
“No, Noah. We’re done.”
Noah padded away, his bare ass too much of a lure for Brody to ignore. Forcing his stare away, he picked up the paper and eyed the address. They needed to get going if they were to arrive on time. Fortunately, he’d seen his truck parked out back when he returned. The keys had been under the mat.
His mind drifted back to Noah. Naked and alone in his bedroom. He walked back toward the bedroom, fists clenched.
Cringing, he stopped himself from busting into the room and taking what he wanted. He’d promised… it was over.
And it was.
Send him home to Stacey and Geena. Get some distance… some clarity. Once he’s gone, you can forget all of this.
Yeah… maybe that’s what he’d do.
Somewhere deep down, he knew there was no way he’d forget one single second of the time he’d spent with Noah.
12
The ride to the attorney’s office was silent. Brody’s dark mood filled the truck’s cab. Noah was lost in thought for most of the drive, wondering what he’d learn at the appointment and what was going through Brody’s mind. He’d obviously crossed a line—but he hadn’t told his mother it had been Brody he’d been with. How could he have known she’d figure it out?
She saw the way we looked at one another.
That one statement spoke volumes. It had been an admission of guilt on Brody’s part. His daddy still wanted him.
Along the way, he kept sneaking peeks at Brody, so many questions swirling. Finally, he could hold back no more. “Brody?”
“No,” the man growled. “Just don’t.”
“We have to talk about this.”