31. Aaron

31

AARON

We return to the art show hand in hand and get plenty of looks and smiles.

“It’s good to see the both of you,” Mom says from Jack’s tent. She’s sitting in a chair with Minnie in her pouch while June helps a customer. “June and I have been getting to know each other. And your photography is gorgeous.”

“Thank you.” Jack retreats to the back of the tent to rearrange photos in empty spots.

“Right?” June says, joining us after ringing up a purchase.

“I’m curious why he doesn’t make a living of it,” Mom says, oblivious to the can of worms that might open.

June and I share a wary glance.

“I’m sorry. Did I say the wrong thing?”

“Nah,” June replies. “Just don’t tell him that, or he’ll bite your head off.”

“I will not,” Jack chimes in. “I just have another business to run.”

I smile at him and shake my head.

“Well…” Mom says, “I’ve been thinking about retiring for a while now, so if you need someone to help with anything, I’d be glad to lend a hand.”

My gaze springs to hers. “Mom?”

“Oh, don’t mind me, just thinking out loud,” she muses, then asks Jack a question about the eagle’s nest.

While they’re chatting, June leans toward me. “Your mom is lovely.”

“Glad you think so.”

She winks. “Think Jack does too.”

Another hour in, and Mom is yawning. “This has been great, but I think I need a nap. You wore me out.”

I help her out of the chair. “Let’s head back to the motel.”

Jack hands me his keys. “Here, take my truck.”

I throw him an appreciative glance. “Thank you.”

Back in Jack’s truck, I say, “Do you need your oxygen?”

“I don’t think so. Mostly, I just need to lie down.”

I pull onto the road. “I hope it wasn’t too much.”

“It was perfect. I can see why you like the people here so much. Especially Jack. You two fit, honey. I’m happy for you.”

“Yeah, yeah, we do.” It’s the first time I’ve allowed myself to admit that aloud.

“So…did you tell him? About the property?”

“I did better than that. I showed him.”

I walk Mom to our room, where she uses the bathroom and then lies down.

“You go back to help Jack.”

“No, that’s okay.” I sink down on the edge of the bed. “I can stay here with you.”

“Don’t you dare. Go enjoy yourself.”

Mom slips into a peaceful slumber, and I watch her breathing for a minute, making sure she’s not struggling, before I head out.

On the way back to the fair, I call Chuck. It goes to voicemail, which doesn’t surprise me on such a busy weekend, so I leave a message.

I help Jack load his car when the fair ends, and then we stop at Johnny’s bar for food and drinks. I call Mom on the way. “Can I bring you home something?”

“Mae invited me to dinner. She’s going to pick me up shortly.”

Jack arches an eyebrow, and I say, “Guess you two have hit it off.”

“Suppose we have. Must be the dogs.”

I chuckle. “Have fun.”

“You too, and don’t worry, I won’t wait up.”

It feels good to take a load off at Johnny’s place. We shoot the shit with June and Cain, who showed up to eat too. I speak to Beth for a bit when she shows up to order takeout. She actually takes a seat beside me at the bar instead of trying to avoid Jack and the McCoys. Jack greets her and asks how the fair went for her. It’s nice to hear them exchange pleasantries.

“I told you you’d be here this weekend,” she muses around a sip of wine.

I smile and shake my head.

“Here you go,” Johnny says, placing a bag of food in front of her.

She takes the last sip of her wine and stands to leave. “Love looks good on the both of you.”

She passes by Dina and Chuck as they come through the door, looking as exhausted from their day as everyone else.

“I got your message,” Chuck says in greeting, thumping me on the shoulder.

“Cool,” I reply as he follows Dina to a booth. “Talk soon.”

“What was that about?” Jack asks, pushing his empty plate away.

I wink. “Exactly what you think.”

“I…holy shit. So this is actually going to happen?”

“Obviously, we need to figure out all the logistics.” I peck his lips. “But right now, I just need you to take me somewhere we can be alone.”

He throws money down and stands. “Don’t need to ask me twice.”

“I’ll meet you outside. Gonna have a quick word with Chuck.”

I tell Chuck I’m interested in the cottage and that I’ll call him tomorrow, and when I get outside, Jack has the truck waiting for me at the exit.

There’s a mix of small talk and comfortable silence on the way to his house.

Finally inside, no time is wasted making a beeline to his bedroom and getting naked between needy make-out sessions.

Once we’re skin to skin, with precome leaking and mixing between our hard shafts, Jack leads me to the mattress. I pull at his arm to join me, so he straddles my waist and owns my mouth with deep, passionate kisses. I love the feeling of being possessed by him like this.

We make out until my jaw hurts, as if we’re trying to make up for lost time. And in a lot of ways, we are. Because when it comes down to it, I still have to leave again at the end of this weekend. But this time, it’ll be with the promise of returning for good.

My heart batters around in my chest when I think about how he said he would consider moving with me. For me.

His face at my neck, he whispers kisses across my throat before heaving a deep, long sigh. “God, I missed your smell.”

I hook my legs around his thighs. “I missed the feel of you against me.”

“I want you so much,” Jack says against my mouth.

“Want you too.”

I miss Jack’s weight and warmth instantly when he rolls off the bed and reaches for supplies. He makes quick work of opening the condom and rolling it down his stiff cock. I open the lube and coat my fingers before curling my hand around his dick and stroking. “Damn, feels good.”

I jerk my cock a little with my other hand, but I’m afraid of coming too soon. “Need you inside me.”

He stills my hand on his shaft as he trembles. “Need it too.”

His eyes are soft and pleading, and I can’t help reaching up and gathering his face in my hands to deliver a bruising kiss. “Then take me. Please fucking take me.”

Releasing him, I lift my knees and grab for the lube. He bats my hand away and takes over, rubbing lube on my hole before pushing a finger in. “Ah, hell. Feels good. But your cock would feel better.”

He smirks as he adds a second finger. “Almost there.”

By the time he’s stretched me sufficiently, I am out of my head with need. He doesn’t waste time, scooting up on his knees, grabbing his dick, and pushing the head past my rim.

I inhale a sharp breath at the initial tightness, then breathe out in relief. Fuck, I missed this. As much as I enjoyed taking his ass in San Jose, there’s nothing like the feel of him inside me.

“Goddamn, I’ve never had better,” he grunts, rotating his hips and pounding me good. “Your ass was made for my dick.”

I reach for him and sloppily kiss his lips as he bends over. “You may be right.”

He pulls back to continue his onslaught, driving to the hilt, then pulling back, leaving me wanting more. Sweat trickles down his forehead, and I’m panting like I’ve run a marathon. “I can’t…I’m gonna come.”

He clenches his teeth as if holding himself back. “I’m right behind you.”

I grab my dick and messily jerk myself off as he clutches my thighs and thrusts into me. It’s like no time at all before that familiar pins-and-needles feeling starts at the base of my scalp and travels down to my groin. I moan brazenly as my balls let loose and I spurt all over my hand and stomach.

Jack shudders as he watches me, and not a moment later, he goes tense above me, calling out my name as he comes.

Once rid of the condom, he lies down and pulls me on top of him, holding me so close I can feel his heart galloping against mine. I bury my head in his neck and just breathe it all in. Him. Us. This town.

“Did you tell Uncle Chuck you want the house?” he asks in a breathy whisper. As if he’s checking to make sure our earlier conversation was real.

“Yeah. If all goes well, he thinks we can close in sixty days.” When Jack grows quiet, I feel unsettled, so I pull back to look at him. “Is that too soon?”

His hands lower to my ass, and he pulls me tightly to him. “Not soon enough.”

I huff out a laugh. “There’s a lot to decide. I haven’t even told Rocco yet.”

He winces. “What do you think he’ll say?”

I consider it a moment. “Honestly, I don’t think he’ll be surprised.”

He knows I’ve been looking at property, and naturally, the moving would follow. And though I told him it might just be a second home, that no longer sits well with me. I feel a soul-deep tug to this place, like the moon’s gravitational pull on the ocean tide. Jack is a force all his own, and I don’t want to be away from his orbit.

He nods. “And your mom?”

“She saw the house this morning and is encouraging me to do what feels best.”

“But your business…”

“Maybe I can do it from here or, I don’t know, come up with a different plan.” I grin because I can’t help myself. “It feels exciting to have other possibilities.”

“I hear you.”

My mind wanders off, considering his own. “I can always tell Rocco you’re finally selling me your station,” I tease. “And that’s the reason I’m moving here. It’s the ultimate sacrifice to get the sale.”

In one swift move, he flips me to my back and steals my breath. “I see you think you’re funny.”

I laugh, and he smiles down at me. The trust and confidence I see in his expression makes my stomach quiver.

The confidence is quickly replaced with uncertainty. “It’s hard to believe you won’t have regrets, but I promise to get better at managing my anxiety around it.”

“Better at being doubtful and grumpy?”

Jack pecks my lips. “You like me grumpy.”

“I do.” I grow sober. “What if I’m afraid you’ll have regrets? We haven’t known each other that long.”

“Long enough to know.”

“Know what?”

“That if I’m being honest, you’re the only man I’ve been able to see a future with.”

His raspy voice reverberates through my bones.

“So you’re intuitive now?”

“Maybe I am.” He hitches a shoulder. “Maybe I didn’t listen to my gut before.”

I think back to some of my own awful decisions. “Maybe there’s something to that.”

“See? I told you.”

He cups my face and kisses me, his tongue softly tangling with mine.

“You know what Beth said to me?” I ask as he draws back to catch his breath. “She said love looks good on you.”

He pushes a hair away from my forehead. “It does.”

“She meant for the both of us.”

“Huh. I’m finding myself agreeing with Beth more and more lately,” he replies.

I smile around a yawn. “Let’s go to sleep. We’ve got lots of planning to do tomorrow.”

He cuts the light, lies down, and pulls me into his arms. “Can’t wait.”