Stay (16 page)

Jock and Braden weren’t alone on the couch. Jessie was curled up next to him, her head on his chest. A small blanket lay over the top of her, her soft breathing mixing with Braden’s.

They both had their eyes closed, dead to the world, the TV muted in the background.

Wes couldn’t move. He couldn’t stop looking at how relaxed she was with him. How good Braden was with her—this man who admitted many one-night stands; had had one with Wes himself. Who watched cartoons, and stuck his foot in his mouth more often than not, and couldn’t sit still half the time. He was here when Wes needed him, and he was here for Jessie. He was pretty sure the man loved his niece.

He closed his eyes, sucked in a deep breath, caught between wanting to grab onto this and run. Alexander had been different than Braden, but they’d had a good relationship. Until he left, the same way almost everyone had left him.

Could he risk that again? Could he risk Jessie’s heart?

He didn’t know. But still he couldn’t stop himself from moving forward. From letting the back of his hand brush over the couple days’ growth on Braden’s jaw.

His green eyes popped open but Wes didn’t move his hand. He touched him again, then his hair. Braden smiled, and it was like a shot to the chest. Not painful, but powerful. The man was so fucking sexy.

“What time is it?” Braden whispered.

“A little after ten.”

Braden looked down, then ran a hand over Jessie’s curls. “Sorry. She was worried about you.”

“No.” He shook his head. “Don’t be sorry. Let me put her to bed. I’ll be right back.”

Braden nodded and Wes walked to the other side of the couch and lifted Jessie into his arms. He heard the license on Jock’s collar clank and realized the dog followed him.

As soon as he laid Jessie in her bed, her eyes fluttered open.

“I’m home, kiddo. You good?” he asked.

She gave a sleepy nod before closing her eyes again. Jock jumped onto the bed with her and Wes let him stay. He hit the light, kissed her forehead, and then closed the door as he left her room.

Braden had the blanket wrapped around himself, his eyes closed again, when Wes made it to him. Christ, he really fucking wanted to kiss him. Kiss him, fuck him, whatever he could. But instead, he just sat on the table. As soon as he did, Braden opened his eyes. “Didn’t mean to pass out again. Let me grab my shit and I’ll get going.”

Wes closed his eyes, then opened them and shook his head. Braden sat up, right in front of him, their knees pressing against each other’s. “You’re thinking too hard over there. What’s up?” he put a hand on Wes’s leg.

Wes didn’t pause, just opened his mouth and said one word. “Stay.”

––––––––

“Y
ou don’t let people stay.” Braden wished like hell he didn’t have to say the words. That he could just say “yes” because every fucking nerve ending in his body was screaming for that. It was such a simple thing—to stay the night. He’d done so with many men and women before. He’d done it more than once with the same person because he liked sex and liked fun, so why keep himself from having fun with someone if they both wanted it?

But this was different. His body flamed with heat. His chest felt tight, but not in a way that he wasn’t okay with. To Wes this was a big deal, and that made it a big deal for Braden, too. Regardless if the only reason was the shitty weather, the man wouldn’t have asked him to stay before. Or if he had, he wouldn’t have wanted it. Maybe it made him a cocky bastard, because he knew that even if it scared the fuck out of Wes, he wanted it.

He also wanted to be sure, though, too, which was the reason for his confirmation.

Wes finally nodded. “I know. I’m still asking you to stay. I don’t know what it means, though.”

Me, either...
Though, that wasn’t completely true. Something about the man got to him. He’d crawled under Braden’s skin, and Braden found he wanted to keep him there.

“You can’t sleep with me. I don’t want to confuse Jess, but...You can have Chelle’s room...”

Braden slid his hand down Wes’s leg and then circled his wrist. Wes didn’t even sleep in that room, though he should. “Shut the fuck up and come here.” He pulled and Wes came easily. If he hadn’t wanted to, Braden knew he wouldn’t, but he collapsed next to him on the couch. “I’m not sleeping in your sister’s room, and I might be a little dense with some things, but I definitely know it wouldn’t be cool to have Jessie wake up to us in bed together.” He wrapped an arm around Wes, pretty sure he was about to stick his foot in his mouth again but not willing to stop. “Though if I’m being honest, I think she knows more than the two of us. Or at least she’s questioning something we won’t admit. She asked me if I’m your boyfriend, ya know.”

He felt Wes stiffen a little but he didn’t pull away. Maybe he was blowing shit out of proportion here. Maybe he shouldn’t really want to consider them together. It wasn’t like he’d never had fuck buddies before, and he’d only ever had one real boyfriend, but if he had to choose, he’d say this felt more like the second option.

“Braden—”

“Shit. You’re using your
shut the fuck up, Braden
voice. And here I thought I was doing better about opening my big mouth.”

Wes chuckled, put his hand over Braden’s jean-covered thigh, and squeezed. “Who the fuck are you?” He dropped his head against the back of the couch and looked up at the ceiling.

“I’m the guy who likes spending every Wednesday with your niece. The guy who likes fucking you but likes making you laugh just as much. I mean, you have to admit I’m good at it. The fucking and the laughing, I mean. I’m also the guy who screws up a lot, has a big mouth, is conceited as hell, pisses people off, and forgets to pay at least one bill a month. Jesus, how hard should it be to remember? It’s not like they change every month, but I always forget. Guess you can say I’m the guy who’s a little irresponsible, too.”

Wes shook his head but smiled too. Still resting it on the back of the couch, he rolled his head to the side so he was looking at Braden. Fuck, he wanted his mouth. Wanted it so much his whole body ached.

“You’re crazy.”

“Yep..”

“You cuss too much around kids, too.”

“Hey! I’m getting better at that!”

Again, Wes’s hand squeezed his leg. “You’re pushy, and act like a kid most of the time.”

“All true.”

Wes sighed, then leaned against Braden. His heart went fucking crazy in a way it never had before. Going off instinct, he reached over and turned off the lamp, thinking sometimes things were easier when you didn’t have to look at a person.

Wes pulled at the blanket, his feet joining Braden’s on the coffee table. “You’re the guy who’s good as hell with my niece. The guy who would help out a friend because it’s the right thing to do. And I’ll admit you’re right. You’re the guy who’s good at both fucking me and making me laugh.”

The only sound filling the room was Wes’s breath because Braden held his, not really sure why but doing it anyway.

“I haven’t let myself give a shit about anyone besides my family for a long time, Braden but you’re here...pushing your way in.”

Braden felt him shake his head.

He knew exactly what Wes was saying. He cared. He could try and disguise it as Braden pushing his way in, but the end result was the same. He cared.

“Thank you. You take care of her like she’s your own. That means a lot to me.”

“She’s a cool kid. I love spending time with her.” And he did. He’d never really put any thought into having kids, but if he did, he’d love a little girl like Jessie.

Wes pulled at the blanket, covering them both up. Maybe the moment was perfect as it was. Maybe Braden should keep his mouth shut and let them be. Wes would go to his room soon, and they could keep shit the way it was, but that wasn’t Braden. Nothing ventured, nothing gained. He’d always lived his life like that. It’s why he moved a lot and explored, willing to try anything out. There was always something to gain by taking chances.

“Who are you, Wesley? You know who I am. Don’t you think it’s time you shared yourself with me, too?”

***

W
es had no idea what he was doing—what they were doing. It felt as though there was an elastic band between the two of them. The harder Wes tried to pull away from Braden, the tougher the resistance made it. He should just loosen up and let them be pulled together, because it was so much fucking easier than fighting that resistance. Though he guessed it really wasn’t easier, but the urge to try stretched the band thinner and thinner.

It was more than just how he helped with Jessie. It was the coffee, and bowling and seeing them tonight. Seeing how much his niece loved and trusted Braden, and how much he thought Braden might love her, too.

It was also in the laughter, because Braden made him feel light in a way he wasn’t sure he’d ever felt. The way he looked at Wes and the way he stuck around made him want to believe Braden really
wanted
to be with him.
Like he wouldn’t leave...

“Aren’t you only supposed to be interested in fucking me?” he teased, not really feeling it.

“I think it started out that way.”

Leave it to Braden to be completely honest.

Braden settled into the couch more and Wes relaxed against him. He toed out of his shoes, one of them staying on the table and another hitting the floor.

“So you used to paint but you don’t anymore. You’ve never been with a woman. You came out to your sister. Oh, I know. Tell me why you didn’t go to med school. You said you wanted to be a doctor.”

The urge was there to clam up, but he was tired of that. Tonight, he wanted to take a page out of Braden’s book and just
talk.
“It was too much. When Mom died, she didn’t have life insurance or anything, so things were tight growing up. Chelle worked like crazy to support us. Lydia and I got jobs as soon as we could, but things were never really easy. When it came time to go to school...how could I do something that would take so many years and so much money? I had responsibilities to take care of. I wanted to be able to help her the way she’d helped us growing up, and spending eight years in school wasn’t the way to do that.”

“You and that big heart of yours. Pretty soon it’s going to get tired of not doing anything for yourself.”

“We’re going to have to agree to disagree on that one.”

“Of course we are. I think you like arguing with me.” Braden paused and Wes found himself waiting. Waiting to see what Braden would say next. “How’d you lose your mom?” he asked.

“Car accident. She was driving home after a graveyard shift and fell asleep at the wheel.”

“Shit,” Braden mumbled under his breath.

“It’s okay. It’s been a long time. I mean, I miss her. It was hard in the beginning, especially because how it happened. All she wanted to do was take care of her kids, ya know? But Chelle was there. I was close with my sisters, and we were...well, we were happy.”

“You guys are alike, then, you and Chelle. You all work hard for your family, would do whatever you could to protect them. It’s a good quality to have.”

Those words landed in Wes’s chest. How Braden always knew the right thing to say, he didn’t know. Even when it was the wrong thing...it was often right. He’d never really thought of himself like his sister or his mom before, but maybe he was. “Yeah. Yeah, I guess you’re right.”

Wes yawned. “I should get to bed. I had a long day, and Jessie has school in the morning.”

Braden didn’t let him go. “One more question first.”

“Yes sir.”

“Oh, I like that. I want to hear that when I’m fucking you.”

A loud laugh jumped out of Wes’s mouth. “I can promise you those words won’t be coming out of my mouth again.”

Braden sighed. “You’re no fun.”

“Shut up and ask your question. I’m ready for bed. If you wait much longer, I won’t answer.”

Braden’s hand ran through Wes’s hair, over and over. Wes’s eyes fell closed, his body relaxed and loving the feel of Braden touching him.

“What happened to your dad?”

That was an easy one. He didn’t give a shit about that bastard. “He left. Mom was at work, my sisters were gone, and I was home. Asked him to play catch with me but he couldn’t because he had to run to the store. I guess once he started running, he didn’t stop. Never came back.”

Much like Alexander in so many ways.

“That’s shitty. I’m sorry, man.”

Wes shrugged, ignoring the heaviness that set into his limbs. “Don’t be. What’s done is done.” He learned a long time ago nothing would bring his father back.

Braden’s hand kept moving in his hair. “You should paint me a picture sometime, Wesley.”

“Never going to happen, Roth.”

“Asshole.”

“You’re just figuring that out?”

Braden flicked his ear.

“Ouch, damn it.” But he was laughing, too.

“Fine. I’ll let the painting go, but... When are you going to admit you like me?” His voice was low, filled with sleepy playfulness. Wes closed his eyes, feeling the same way.

“That’s another question. You said only one more earlier. I didn’t agree to answer another one.”

“But you will,” Braden said. Damned if he wasn’t right.

“I like you, Braden,” he whispered, still holding his eyes closed. “I don’t know how it happened, but I do.”

“I like you, too.”

Wes used a page out of Braden’s book and said, “I know.”

But Braden didn’t reply. His breathing evened out and his hand quit moving.

Just a few minutes. Wes would give himself a few minutes before he got up and went to bed.

––––––––

P
ain shot through Braden’s crotch, splintering out through his whole body, which felt like it was being cut in half.

His eyes jerked open, the word
fuck
on the tip of his tongue, but he managed to hold it back when he saw a mop of blond curls belonging to the little girl who must have jumped onto his and Wes’s laps, her knee hitting the wrong spot.

As if he’d called him, Jock jumped onto his lap next and licked his face.