Chapter Fourteen

Leo

One second Andy and I were stuffing ourselves with candy, and then the next, he was snoring softly in my ear. I found myself easily drifting off next to him, his warmth and spicy scent surrounding me. I woke to Andy clinging to me, his hands buried in my shirt, his long leg tossed over mine.

I admired his long lashes that brushed his skin and the fullness of his pink lips. I dragged my fingers over his face, against his mouth, and over the scruff on his jawline. I pressed my forehead against his as tears stung my eyes, and I forced myself away before I did something stupid. Like wake him up and beg him to fuck me.

Without disturbing Andy, I managed to climb from the bed. I pushed my feet into my fuzzy slippers and crept to the ensuite bathroom. I took a quick shower to wake myself up, brushed my teeth, and assured myself that I was okay. That this was the right thing for me to do. I did a double take when I walked back into the room to find Andy sitting up in bed, his hands folded on his lap as he waited for me.

"Sneaking out on me, Ricky?" He popped a brow.

It should be illegal for someone to look as good as he did first thing in the morning. His dirty-blond hair was a sexy mess, and the shirt he wore was loose around the collar, giving me a glimpse of his skin.

I flushed. "I wasn't...I wouldn't...Hon." I huffed as I watched his lips twitch. "You were sleeping. I didn't want to wake up you. Go back to bed. I was just going to go downstairs to get some coffee. Maybe talk with your dad."

"He'd like that." Andy smiled as he settled back against the pillows. "I could come with you."

I shook my head and moved to sit on the edge of the bed. "You're exhausted. Rest, and I'll bring you a cup later."

"Do you think that you could ask Dad to come here when you're done? I think I want to tell him. About, you know." He chewed on his lip nervously.

Maverick would love that. He would climb into the bed, cuddle with Andy, and hold him like the most precious child. "Of course I can."

He reached for my hand. "Thank you, Leo. For staying with me last night and not pushing me away. I will... I promise that I will tell you soon."

"Yeah, of course." I squeezed his fingers.

I love you. Those words were on the tip of my tongue, but I shoved them back down. I made my way downstairs to find Maverick sitting at the kitchen table. With Ezra.

Shit.

"Fancy meeting you here, boo." Ezra tilted his head, and I tried my best to ignore him as I went to pour myself a cup of coffee. "You slept here last night."

I spun around. "I did. I'm sorry if you have a problem with that, but Andy needed me." I glanced at Maverick, who was staring at Ezra with something I couldn't decipher in his eyes. "Andy asked for you, Dad."

"Me?" Maverick's brows shot up.

I nodded. "Yeah, he wants to talk to you. Go cuddle with your son for a little while."

Maverick wrapped me in a tight hug. "Thank you, Leo. For bringing him home." Then he was rushing upstairs to get to Andy.

"Andy isn't himself, Ezra. He's not the same boy. He's changed. He has demons you're not even aware of." I resisted the urge to slam my mug down onto the counter as he stared at me, his dark eyes narrowed.

"He wasn't here to pick up all the broken pieces. Maverick, Noel, and I did that. Maybe Andy would like a recap on what that did to you, because I have notes." Ezra clenched his teeth. "Sit." He pointed to the chair across from him.

I dropped into the chair. "It's not what you think. Boo, he's hurting."

"Mm." Anger flashed in Ezra's eyes as he took a sip of his coffee. It wasn't even eight in the morning, and he looked flawless. Like he had gotten a full night's sleep on a mattress made of clouds and had forest animals dress him when he woke up. "You were hurting, too."

Crap, this was going to be tougher than I thought. I glanced behind me at the stairs before I answered. "His mother showed up." I knew Ezra would find out sooner or later, especially with Andy talking to Maverick. "Right now, I'm worried about Andy, my friend. Not Andy, my ex-boyfriend."

"He's home, so I guess that's a star." Ezra leaned back to stare at me, his gaze moving over my face. "You know I love you, right, boo?"

I nodded. "I do, and I love you, too. I appreciate that you care about me and that you're so worried."

"There's a but coming." Ezra giggled softly. "Why is there always a but?"

He wasn't wrong. "I still love him, and I just... What if this time it works? What if we get our happily ever after? You and Carson got a second chance. So did Mav and Jax. I want that, too, Ezra, so fucking bad. He's the only one I've ever wanted."

"CC and I..." He sighed. "We were friends forever and then things just happened."

I snorted. "Things happened all right." I giggled when he stared at me. "Oh, please. You kissed the man before you molested him in the back of a dark club."

"I took my shot." Ezra grinned, a faint blush dusting his skin. My bestie was an open book about everything, but he had it bad for his husband. It was adorable.

I chewed on the inside of my cheek before I spoke. "I want to take my shot. I love him and don't want to lose him again."

"I know." He reached across the table to pat my hand.

We both glanced over when Maverick stepped back into the room. He ruffled my hair playfully, but I noticed the redness in his eyes and the somber look on his face. Ezra was instantly on his feet, hugging his friend.

"I want to burn down the world right now." Maverick pressed his face against Ezra's shoulder.

Ezra rubbed his back. "We can totally do that, boo, whenever you want. You just let me know, and I'll bring the damn matches to start the fire. No questions asked."

Maverick sniffed. "I appreciate that." His green eyes swam with tears. "Everything good between the two of you? I didn't hear any yelling."

"We're good. Leo knows that I only want the best for him." Ezra winked at me, and I huffed out a laugh. I couldn't stay mad at him even if I wanted to.

I gasped when I looked up at the clock over the oven. "Shit, I have a meeting at the shop this morning," I announced. "I'm going to be late if I don't get dressed and get out of here."

I left the two of them together as I dashed up the stairs. I found Andy scrolling through his phone as he continued to lounge on the bed.

He glanced up at me with a sad smile. "Hey."

"Hey, hon." My hand reached out to touch him, but I stopped before I made contact. "I have a meeting."

I grabbed my jeans that I had on yesterday, stripped off my bottoms and top before I slidmy legs into my pants. I realized just what I had done as I heard the gasp Andy let out. I felt my skin heat, but when I looked over at him, his eyes were cast down.

"It's okay. You've seen everything before. And we washed up together yesterday," I murmured.

Andy's pupils were blown wide. "You're even more beautiful, Leo." He fiddled with his phone before he met my eyes again. "Will you come back after your meeting? Spend more time with me?"

"Is that what you want?" I shouldn't. I needed to go home and get myself ready to head out again tomorrow for the next race. But the urge to wrap myself around Andy again was there. Nearly impossible to resist, no matter how hard I tried.

Andy nodded. "Yes, please. I want to tell you the truth. I think I'm ready now."

"Okay." I dragged a hand through my hair as I walked over to him. "I'll come back."

His eyes shimmered with tears. "Thank you."

I leaned down to kiss his forehead, and Andy grabbed my wrists and yanked me against him. He hugged me tight before his arms dropped away.

"How'd it go with your dad?" I started to put on my sneakers, the warmth of Andy's body still clinging to my skin.

When he didn't answer me, I turned to find his hands over face, his shoulder shaking.

Andy pulled away when I touched his shoulder, and then I found myself climbing into the bed, not caring if I was late to my meeting. I wrapped my arms around him in a tight hug and held him as he sobbed, his face buried in the pillow.

"I've never seen my dad cry like that before. I mean, tears of happiness when Pop won a game or something good happened to us, but fuck, Leo. He was just so upset. He told me how much he loved me. That he would always love me and that he would be there for me no matter what. I don't know what I did to deserve parents like them, but I don't want to disappoint them." Andy twisted around to stare at me.

I brushed the wetness from his face. "You could never do that."

"Thanks, Ricky," he whispered. "Please come back. I need you."

I pressed my lips to his forehead. "I promise."