26. Wyatt

Chapter Twenty-Six

WYATT

It was after midnight by the time we made it back to Gage’s bedroom, buzzed from reminiscing over pricey wine. The house felt strangely empty, but I locked the door with a sharp twist of antique key anyway. Dominic’s bodyguard had driven him back to his city apartment, and Mason and Ben had left to make the trade-off into Colton Langford’s custody. That left the kids in the foster wing and Gideon on the opposite end of the hall.

Sound carried strangely here. It filtered through paper-thin walls and cracks in the floorboards only to be swallowed up by empty rooms and secret passages. With the thick oak door cutting us off from the rest of the house, Gage’s childhood bedroom felt like it existed outside time.

Gage stood at the foot of the bed, staring off at nothing, working the buttons of his dress shirt one-handed. He’d faked it for hours, but I could see how much Ben’s sudden release had rocked him. He still blamed himself for everything that had happened.

I leaned against the doorframe to watch, rattled more than I’d ever admit. I’d nearly climbed out of my skin when Mason mentioned the task force, and it hadn’t escaped Dominic’s notice. His suspicion was sharp as a blade at my back. I’d been feeding Langford information for months, hoping it would lead to cleaning house in my own department. That gun turning up now felt like a challenge, like I’d missed something important.

Gage peeled off his shirt and tossed it toward the hamper. He looked strong as ever but so damn tired. Exhaustion dragged at him, forming visible knots between his shoulder blades. His bare back caught the glow of a bedside lamp, carving out lean muscle and a pale spiderweb of old scars. I’d noticed them many times, but I didn’t know their story. Gage’s past was a boundary I respected, even if I didn’t like it.

“You okay?” I asked, rougher than I’d intended.

He glanced at me over his shoulder. “How early do you work tomorrow?”

I knew what he was really asking. “Not so early that I can’t stay,” I said firmly, taking a seat on the edge of the bed.

The branches of an oak scraped against the window. A storm was building somewhere out there, far in the distance, but in this room, time had slowed to a crawl. Just for now, the rest of the world could wait.

Relief filled his eyes, but he quickly looked away, sliding out of his slacks with that easy, careless grace I admired. “I don’t know how I’m supposed to feel,” he admitted. “I’m so mad, Wyatt. If I could go back, I’d kill that bastard myself. But I couldn’t do it then. Ben had to do it for me. I want—I need to help him, but I can’t, and it’s making me feel so…useless.”

The raw pain in his voice hit me hard. Gage wasn’t the type to let others fight his battles, and that’s what made Ben’s sacrifice hurt so bad.

“You’re not useless,” I said. “Not even close.”

He didn’t look convinced. He stood, naked in the bronze glow of the lamp, radiating uncertainty. Yeah, he was gorgeous, but right now all I could see was the conflict in his eyes. That reckless edge I knew all too well. I’d seen it in him as a teenager, and it never led anywhere good.

Words weren’t worth much, so instead, I opened my arms. He hesitated, then stepped into my embrace, and I wrapped my arms around his waist. I pressed my cheek to his bare belly and felt him trembling.

“You’re not alone anymore,” I whispered, fanning my breath against his skin. “You know that, right?”

He threaded his fingers through my hair and muttered something under his breath.

“Do you?” I pressed. “Because sometimes, Gage, it’s like you still see yourself as that kid who crawled out of the bayou. You never ask for help. But you’re not alone. You’ve got your brothers, and you’ve got me. I’ll always be in your corner.”

Gage was quiet, breathing shallow and uneven beneath my cheek. I waited, tracing soothing circles across his back, grounding him with touch until his body began to soften in my arms. Slowly, his breathing steadied—not much, but it was a start.

“That’s it,” I murmured, pressing a kiss to his abs before guiding him down onto the mattress. The brace frame creaked under our combined weight as I turned him onto his stomach, but he went with it, flipping face down without question. Trusting me completely. I rewarded him with a kiss between his shoulder blades, letting my hands slide down his back to knead the tension from his muscles.

A low groan escaped him as I worked the stubborn knots along his spine. His reaction sent a spark of heat through me, and my hands slid lower, cupping his ass as I brushed my lips along the back of his neck.

“Just let go,” I whispered, kissing the shell of his ear. “I’ve got you.”

His eyes stayed shut, but he turned his head, seeking my mouth. I kissed him, hot and hungry, tasting his tongue as I rose up over him. He canted his hips back, grinding against me, and we both gasped. We fit together so perfectly, ready to lock together in every way that mattered.

A little coaxing was all it took to get him on his back, stretched out beneath me so I could kiss my way down his chest. His abs clenched beneath my lips as I moved lower, tracing the taut ridges with my tongue. Finally, he clutched the back of my head and guided me downward.

“Impatient, aren’t you?” I teased, gusting a hot breath over his swollen erection.

“Wyatt…” he choked, throwing an arm over his eyes and spreading his legs in surrender. I chuckled, settling between his thighs. His cock nudged at my lips, hot and damp and eager, and I didn’t make him wait. It was pure pleasure to open wide and take him deep, tracing the vein and curling my tongue beneath the sensitive ridge, exactly where it felt best on me. His taste hit me like a drug.

Lying between his legs, fully clothed while he writhed naked on a faded bedspread. Touching Gage here, in the room that held all his secrets and pain, felt sacred. Holy. It wasn’t just sex—it was love. I wanted to show him what he meant to me, over and over again, until he believed.

His moans grew ragged and desperate, and I knew he was close when he started white-knuckling the quilt. I hollowed my cheeks, slipping two fingers behind his balls and circling the tight ring of muscle there. His hips jerked in short, erratic thrusts, desperately trying to shove his cock deeper into my mouth. The blunt head nudged the back of my throat, and I sputtered, choking around his girth.

“S-sorry,” he gasped, pulling back in a panic.

“Don’t be,” I growled, struggling to catch my breath. My voice was shredded from abuse, but I didn’t care. All I cared about was watching him come apart for me, so I flipped onto my back, catching him off guard. His eyes flared wide, and he braced his hands on my chest. “Straddle me,” I encouraged, lifting him by the hips and guiding him onto my lap. “Ride me. Take what you need.”

His chest was heaving, and his pupils were blown wide, swallowing up the gray irises until all I saw was a thin ring of silver. He stared down at me, and then shifted, sliding one leg over my lap and spreading until I nudged his entrance. He cursed, gripping my shoulders for balance, and slowly sank down onto my hips.

“Good boy,” I praised, running my hands up his thighs, unable to look away as he sweated and strained above me. “Just like that. Let me see you, baby.”

At first, he was hesitant. The lack of prep made him careful, but soon, he was rocking his hips in a steady, rolling pace. His cock bobbed against my stomach, hot and slick, and I feasted my eyes on it. I gripped his hips, encouraging him to ride me harder until he finally let go. His head tipped back, and a low, strangled moan ripped from his throat.

“That’s it,” I urged breathlessly as I moved with him. “Come for me. Let it all out.”

With a helpless cry, Gage came. His spine bowed and his thighs clamped me from both sides while he shuddered, spilling hot release onto my stomach. I held him steady, my own arousal aching inside him, but this moment wasn’t about me. It was about him, about giving him the space to fall apart.

“Wyatt…you haven’t…”

“It’s okay,” I gasped, clutching his hips and yanking him harder onto my dick. “I’m there, baby. Just—just?—”

He knew what I needed. His inner muscles squeezed tight, and I couldn’t hold back any longer. I thrust up once, shoving myself as deep as I could go, and came so hard my vision went white. Release crashed through me in an uncontrollable wave, and I spilled into him, completely undone by those velvet muscles clenching around me.

He was trembling badly, so I eased him down onto my chest and kissed his sweat-slick temple.

“You—” Gage started, but he had to stop and clear his throat before he could continue. “How do you always know what I need?”

I smiled, brushing the damp hair off his forehead. “I pay attention,” I said softly, “Taking care of you, watching you fall apart in my arms, knowing I’m the one who gets to put you back together—that’s everything to me. You’re mine. You always will be.”

His breath hitched, and he felt like a statue in my arms. “You can’t mean that.”

“The hell I can’t,” I said, clasping his face in my hands and forcing him to look me in the eyes. “I’ve loved you for so long, Gage. Not always like this, but it was always love. Always strong. The boy you once were…that boy broke my heart. But the man you’ve become—the way you fight and how hard you love—that’s the man I fell in love with.”

He pressed his forehead to my throat. “You’ve got no idea how long I’ve waited to hear that,” he whispered. “But I don’t deserve it. I’ve never done a thing to earn that kind of love.”

“Jesus, Gage.” I brushed my thumb over his neck. “I’ve already told you. Love isn’t earned. It’s given, and I’m fucking giving mine to you.”

He met my gaze unflinchingly, letting me see his fear and vulnerability, like a storm filling those gray eyes. “Then I guess you should know this,” he said, sucking in a bracing breath. “I’ve loved you for as long as I can remember. Since the first moment you made me feel like I mattered. Even when I didn’t know what it meant. It was always you.”

I’d already known that, but hearing it was something else, and I broke out in a crazy grin.

He let out a shaking laugh. “You’re not letting me go now, are you?”

“Not a chance.” I kissed him and tucked his head into my shoulder. “Sleep now, sweetheart. I’ve got you.”

As his body melted into sleep, his fingers squeezed my arm. I wanted to believe it meant he trusted me, that he felt safe and loved, but deep down, I knew better. It was the desperate clutch of a man terrified of losing what little he had.

I pulled the quilt over us and switched off the lamp, plunging us into darkness. His steady breathing filled the quiet room, and for a moment, my world felt whole.

“I’ll always be there for you,” I whispered into his hair. “I swear it.”

He didn’t hear me, but that was okay. I’d said it for myself. Because the truth was, I needed the reassurance too.