21. Landon

Iwoke up alone without a trace of warmth on either side of me. Coolness settled in my chest even though my eyes heated and stung.

Had Callum…

Hopping up, I grabbed my boxer briefs off the floor and hopped around bleary-eyed while pulling them on as fast as possible.

His room's door propped open, his bed still freshly made by the staff from the day before.

He'd spent the night with Zack.

While jealousy riled up inside me, the feeling only stemmed from not being between them. I hoped Callum had made a dent in Zack's defenses. It wasn't exactly early in the morning, so perhaps their night alone had been so damn fantastic that neither was yet ready to leave the bed.

Fine by me—kind of.

I had work to do, which left Callum time to build a bond with Zack that he wouldn't want to break in three days.

Snagging a bottle of water from the mini fridge, I checked my cell.

Mother had left a voicemail, and internally cringing, I hit play.

She'd heard I'd run off to some tropical island, so of course she had to remind me to be careful. Her tone suggested I not forget what I'd done before.

As if I could. That shit haunted me to this day, dictated my choices while in public and otherwise.

Father's current goal was to get back into politics, and he didn't need any more fuckups from his only son.

How had she found out? Who all knew that Callum and I had gone on vacation?

It was bad enough my parents hated two single gay men living together, and while they claimed to be LGBTQ supporters, I wasn't even sure they would feel any better even if we were in a committed relationship or married.

My mind paused on that word as I stared out the slider windows to the rising sun glinting gold over the deep blue ocean.

Was marriage something that Callum wanted? Would he agree if I got on my knees and begged him to stay with me for the rest of our lives? He'd already promised he would never leave me. Putting a ring on it might help to ensure he stuck to his word.

But he would only own half of me. There would be an empty spot on my other side, one Zack owned. A space, last I'd been aware, he wasn't interested in occupying.

My mind began a spiral, which would lead to depression and an inability to focus on anything other than feeling sorry for myself, but I had shit to do.

Me: Hey, Cal, when you're done with Zack, would you mind grabbing me some breakfast? I'm going to start tackling those edits this morning.

Without waiting for a reply, I hopped in the shower, needing more than just bright sunlight to get my gears fully turning in my head. I'd taken a peek at Cyn's email, so I'd gone to bed knowing the task ahead of me.

My muse had simmered while I'd slept, and I had a somewhat clear idea of how to fix the mess of my latest manuscript.

A shiver slid over my body, raising the hairs on my arms.

Callum's shadow darkened the curtain a mere heartbeat after I'd felt him in close proximity. "Mind if I join you?"

Butterflies leapt into flight in my chest, which also enticed my dick to plump back up since Mother's message had killed my morning wood. "Please do."

Callum stepped in behind me, all warm skin and soft hands wrapping me up. He'd come to me alone, which I was surprisingly fine with. A soft kiss beneath my right ear made me sag against him. "Are you okay? he whispered, his breath hot on my skin.

I clasped my hands atop his over my belly. "Why wouldn't I be?"

"Because I didn't come back to you last night." Thankfully, he didn't sound as though guilt ate at him or like he'd been sent away from Zack's bed unsatisfied.

"Did you fuck?"

"Yes." He didn't hesitate in answering.

"Did you like it?"

"God, yes."

Elation swept through me, even more so since his cock thickened against my ass.

"Good. Get your fill, because there's going to be a serious lack of dick in your future unless Zack comes home with us. I'm a total bottom, Cal."

He snickered while trailing his lips over my neck. "I expected as such, but you're enough, Lan. I don't need anything but you if Zack sticks to his guns."

Talk about a swoon moment. I turned to goo, a smile curving my lips.

Callum and I hadn't discussed our return to Rhode Island or what it would look like. We needed to in greater detail, but I didn't want to potentially ruin the sweet moment between us. In comfortable quietness, we washed each other before once more embracing, but this time, face-to-face.

I'd been abandoned once before by a man I loved, but Callum wasn't the type to run. He'd stuck by my side countless times throughout our friendship, proving I could trust him with every aspect of my life.

"Can I touch you?" Callum asked, his tone low and as arousing as his hard length against mine.

I rutted just enough to make him groan while wrapping my arms around his neck. "Touch, taste, fuck—I want everything with you."

His huffed exhale against my mouth hinted of mint and underlying sweetness. "I want everything with you too."

Tears flooded my eyes, and I whimpered, pulling his face toward mine as elation rushed through my blood.

We kissed and frotted beneath the spray, our mouths quickly turning ravenous. Eight years of bottled up longing seemed to vibrate beneath Callum's thin control, but he kept himself in check rather than pushing me against the wall and shoving his dick up my ass without lube.

I'd have taken him that way if he'd been too far gone in his need, but in usual Callum fashion, he kept his focus on me. My comfort and safety. He wrapped his hand around our straining dicks, working our foreskin with short strokes to jerk us off.

He breathed against my parted lips, our foreheads together in a moment of intimacy with steam swirling around us in the type of tender moment found only in fairytales.

"I've told you lots of times that I love you," I whispered the words, my lower lip brushing over his, "but this…Cal, it's so much more than I ever imagined. I'm realizing now how deeply you're embedded in my soul, how integral you are to my life, not just my work."

"I've loved you for what feels like forever." Callum backed away from me, cradling my cheek in his free hand while gently stroking us. "And I'll love you long after we're both gone from this earth."

I swallowed hard, tears spilling down my cheeks regardless of the joy bubbling up inside me. "What about Zack?"

Callum's eyes flitted from one of mine to the other as though trying to get a read on my thoughts before answering. "You need me." He didn't ask a question, but I had to answer.

"Yes. Now and always."

"But you also want him."

Unable to speak, I nodded, pleading with my eyes that he not make me choose. I would rather die first.

"So do I."

"Oh, thank fuck." I sagged against him, clinging like the greedy boy I'd been nicknamed. "We have to make him fall for us, Cal. We only have a few days, and I have all these edits to get done?—"

"Hey."

I clamped my lips shut, trusting Callum to set my mind back on a straight path rather than that damn spiral, which would lead nowhere good.

"Zack isn't going to be manipulated, Lan. He's too jaded, too crafty to be pushed into something more, no matter how much the two of us desire it. We have to love on him, and while yes, we can continue to show him how perfect the three of us are together, he's going to have to make that decision on his own. There will be no rushing, no pushing our agenda, okay?"

I wanted to pout but chose to nod instead because my best friend knew best.

Callum smiled, popping that damn dimple that had used to make my belly feel strange. I now understood why. "That's my good boy," he murmured, and fuck me, did my stomach dip and roll in the best way possible.

I planted my mouth against his, suddenly horny as fuck and twice as greedy.

He groaned, shoving his tongue between my lips, and enough pre-cum soon oozed due to our face fucking that he released our dicks, grabbed my ass cheeks, and the frotting intensified by ten thanks to natural lubrication. We chased completion, sharing gasps and breaths, an occasional curse breaking the peace around us.

"Are you going to come for me, baby?"

I swallowed his words, whimpering in agreement.

Cum erupted between us a heartbeat later, both of us shooting off at the same time. Our arms tightened around each other, every inch of us melded as we'd always been meant to be.

Being with him, having his gentle hands clean me once we'd returned to earth, took me to an even higher level of euphoria.

If only Zack were there with us.

"Just be you today," I murmured before pressing my lips to Callum's, "and Zack will have no choice but to fall head over heels. I have a good feeling about this—and it's not just my needy heart and hole doing the talking here. We are a three-piece puzzle, I'm sure of it."

He squeezed me tight. "So am I."