22. Aiden

Chapter Twenty-Two

AIDEN

Aiden stood at the kitchen window, breath fogging the glass as fresh snow covered the pasture. A hush had fallen over the Double Jay, and the world seemed to be holding its breath. Snow muffled the normal waking sounds of the ranch, leaving a serene, almost magical silence in its wake.

Aiden's body ached with fatigue, but he couldn't sleep; he'd woken the moment Seth slipped out of bed without him. Usually, Aiden prided himself on pitching in whenever he spent the night, but he couldn't force his weary bones out into the cold this morning.

The past few weeks had been an endless blur of early mornings and late nights. Days were filled with his usual grueling work at the Triple M, spiced up with the extra side jobs he'd taken to pay for Seth’s saddle and the shingle installation his mother had already scheduled. Whenever he had a few spare hours strung together, he headed up the mountain and crawled into Seth's bed. He didn't knock or wake anyone; he just wanted to listen to Seth breathe. He shucked his clothes into a pile on the bedroom floor and lifted the corner of the patchwork quilt, shimmying across the mattress as cautiously as possible so no trapped body heat escaped.

Seth’s heavy arm draping over his waist soothed him. He'd felt like a helium balloon most of his life, seconds away from floating off into the atmosphere. Seth was his anchor, settling him, grounding him, and providing a sense of security Aiden had never felt. He didn't need to rely solely on himself anymore. It was a strange feeling.

Mornings at the Double Jay were usually a flurry of activity as they hacked through the backlog of work that had piled up. Winter was usually downtime on farms and ranches, but not for them. They might not have their hands full breeding, calving, and pasture seeding, but they had enough repairs and maintenance to keep them busy for a full year or more. Whatever free time Aiden had was spent at Seth's side, replacing broken troughs, insulating water pipes, repairing equipment, and fixing fences. So many fences; they'd already gone through two shipments of wire. Old Gus had warmed considerably to Seth when he saw how much business he brought the shop.

It felt different than working for a paycheck. They were building a life—together. The sweat and blood they poured into the Double Jay was its own reward. Aiden didn't like to think about how silent it had been for Seth, up here all alone, when even Tessa had gone off to school and left him. But it wasn't quiet anymore; Aiden made sure of that. He brought laughter into Seth's life, and Seth gave him a sense of home.

Aiden turned away from the window and took in the ramshackle farmhouse kitchen with a sense of fondness. The wooden table was scarred by decades of hard use, surrounded by mismatched chairs that favored practicality over style. The walls were cluttered with aged paintings and decorations from bygone generations that Aiden knew the siblings held onto from sheer nostalgia. Both of them hated at least a few of the geegaws, but they would never take them down.

A photo of Seth's father hung above the door, framed by a curving pair of antlers. He stood, tall and proud, beside a prize bull, looking so much like his son that a knot of emotion swelled in Aiden's throat whenever he studied it for too long. He could almost hear David's gruff voice and smell the sweet, pungent scent of tobacco that clung to him wherever he went. For Seth's sake, Aiden desperately wanted to believe the heart attack, so shortly after they'd been forced to declare bankruptcy, was just bad timing. After all, the man had eaten nothing but eggs, bacon, and steak for four decades. But sometimes, he wondered. If they hadn't hemorrhaged money after losing the herd and his stress was reduced, David may have had a chance. The heart attack might have happened regardless, but it could have happened later, in town, closer to emergency services. Maybe Seth wouldn't have been forced to fill his father's boots so young. They could never be sure, but Aiden knew it nagged at Seth and probably always would.

He was just pouring his first cup of coffee when the kitchen door clicked behind him, and a moment later, Seth’s arms circled him like a steel band.

"Careful," Aiden cautioned, licking away the coffee droplets that spilled over his mug's rim. "Don't make me spill. Caffeine is the only way I'm getting through the day."

"It's freezing out there," Seth murmured, slipping his frozen hands under Aiden's t-shirt and stroking his belly. He rested his chin on Aiden's shoulder and pressed a chilled kiss to the side of Aiden's neck. "Give me a sip," he coaxed.

Aiden chuckled and leaned into the embrace, ignoring his goosebumps and breathing in the scent of snow that clung to Seth's shirt and hair. Seth's solid chest easily absorbed his weight, and the steady beat of his heart flickered at Aiden's back between their layers of cotton.

"Here," he said, tilting the mug at a precarious angle so Seth could slurp it over his shoulder. He enjoyed this view of Seth, so close he could see the pores in his skin or count the individual pricks of stubble along his jaw. "Why didn't you wake me up?" he asked.

Seth finished his sip and licked his lips. "I figured you'd earned it with how late I kept you up last night."

"I bet you never factored in the good side of Tessa finding herself a boyfriend," Aiden teased. "Now that she's spending so much time in town, you've got full use of that rug in front of the fireplace."

"Mm." Seth nibbled at his earlobe. "We ended up mostly off the rug if I remember correctly. We should try again. It looked mighty soft."

"Now?" Aiden asked with a thrilling zing of pleasure. "I thought we were going to tackle the fences by the river today?"

"Later," Seth whispered, tugging down the collar on Aiden's t-shirt and trailing his lips over his exposed collarbone. "There's a lot to catch up on around here, but the most important part is sex. Lots and lots of sex. My sex tank was running on empty for so long, it's going to take months of dedicated work to refill it."

"Months?" Aiden asked, tilting his head to beckon Seth's mouth to the spot that drove him wild.

"Years," Seth amended. His hands were busy at the snap of Aiden's jeans. He thrust his hand inside and cupped Aiden's swelling cock. "A lifetime."

Aiden groaned, hips jerking involuntarily into the pressure of Seth's firm hand. The rough edge of his callused palm sliding against Aiden's sensitive shaft was so good, so right, it was nearly too much to bear. He grabbed Seth's bicep with one hand for support as he set down his cup, coffee sloshing over the lip of the mug and onto the counter.

"I guess we better make up for lost time, huh?" Aiden managed to grunt out between ragged breaths.

"That's the plan, cowboy." Seth chuckled, flicking his tongue over Aiden's sensitive earlobe.

Before Aiden realized what was happening, Seth spun him around and tugged his jeans down his legs. He rucked Aiden's t-shirt up under his armpits, kissed a trail down his naked belly, and then dropped to his knees in front of him.

"Damn," Aiden gasped, biting his lip as the moist heat of Seth's mouth engulfed him. They were alone in the house, but it still felt naughty and dangerous to be sucked off out in the open inside Seth's childhood kitchen. Aiden was standing right next to an air fryer, for cripes sake.

Seth's tongue felt like velvet, swirling in circles around Aiden's pulsing tip before laving the vein on the underside of his shaft. Aiden's cock was still swelling, splitting Seth's lips wide open. The sight of his strong, virile cowboy on his knees, submitting to him, pleasuring him, was enough to drive Aiden half out of his mind. He locked his knees and braced himself against the counter to keep from collapsing. He tried to crack a joke, but his voice was shaking when he admitted, "I'd give anything to wake up like this every day."

Seth looked up at him, eyes so dark with lust that they looked almost black. His mouth was crammed full, so he hummed in response. The vibrations rumbled down the base of Aiden's cock. He threw back his head, cursing through gritted teeth.

Seth squeezed the base of Aiden's shaft with one hand while his free hand undid his own belt buckle. His moan was muffled by Aiden's girth when he shoved his hand inside the open V of his jeans and began jerking off.

"Yeah," Aiden encouraged breathlessly. He ran his fingers through Seth's long hair, restlessly combing tangles before cupping his head and gently guiding him to the rhythm he craved. "That's so hot. Make yourself feel good. I want to see it. Want to see you come all over your stomach while I pump down your throat?—"

He bit his tongue before he could finish the sentence. The suction was so intense that Seth's mouth felt like a vacuum on his rock-hard cock. Seth's hand was moving in time with his mouth, creating a perfect, slippery sheath for Aiden to thrust into. It might be freezing outside, but the kitchen suddenly felt boiling. Aiden was sweating so much that his shirt stuck to his back. "I'm not sure how much more I can take," he warned, teetering on the brink of release. "Seth, I'm gonna… I'm g-gonna…"

Seth timed it perfectly and pulled off with a hard, loud suck. He released his own dick and gripped Aiden's hip in one hand, holding him steady as he increased the pace of his strokes. His fingers were a blur on Aiden's wet shaft, aiming the tip directly toward his open mouth.

"Oh, fuck!" Aiden yelled as a burst of white-hot light exploded behind his eyes. He crashed through the barrier that had been holding him back, diving headlong into the most exquisite orgasm he'd ever experienced, so pleasurable it was almost painful.

As he began to spurt, Seth let out a primal growl and closed his eyes, bathing his face and lips in Aiden's sticky release. Aiden's toes curled in his boots and his limbs turned to jelly, but Seth wasn't finished. He milked every drop from Aiden's spent cock, and then he reached down and gripped his own swollen erection in both hands. He came in seconds. His hips jerked forward, pumping like he was fucking, and his thick, hot seed spurted in streams onto the freshly swept kitchen floor.

It was the hottest thing Aiden had ever seen.

Once he was finally finished, Seth curled one arm around Aiden's thigh and slumped against him. His head was bent, and he was panting like he'd never catch his breath again. Aiden stroked his hair, charmed by his vulnerability and feeling intensely fond and protective.

"Damn," he said once his heart had stopped racing. "If you keep paying me like that, I'm gonna need to quit my job and start up here full-time."

Seth gave an exhausted chuckle and opened his eyes, blinking away the fog of his climax. He fastidiously cleaned Aiden's come from his face with one sleeve, then planted a kiss on the tender skin of Aiden's inner thigh. "I can't offer overtime and a health plan like Michael Whittaker does," he murmured.

"Mm," Aiden murmured, petting him affectionately. "Orgasms are good for health."

"Yeah?" Seth's lips curved into a small, hopeful smile. That light in his eyes was something special. Aiden would do anything to keep seeing it.

"Yeah." Aiden took a deep breath, feeling more vulnerable than he had a moment ago when he was coming all over that handsome face. "It's… it's something we could talk about, I guess. Right?"

Seth climbed to his feet, tugging Aiden into a gentle kiss before saying cautiously, "The Double Jay is years away from profitability. It's far from town. I go weeks without seeing another soul, and you're the biggest extrovert I know. You'd be giving up a hell of a lot."

"Maybe," Aiden acknowledged, looking into his eyes and falling deeper in love when he saw the care and concern there. "But I'd be gaining even more."