Chapter 18

CHAPTER 18

Brooks

Skylar's skin was slick against mine as we kissed in the shower. The walk-in stall was more than large enough for the two of us not to touch, but that would defeat the point of getting naked together.

This was the first time Skylar had fully undressed for me, and seeing all of him only confirmed what I already knew: I was incredibly attracted to this man. He was all slim, artistic lines and angles where I was blunt, crude edges.

Even his cock was damn pretty.

"Every part of you is gorgeous," I muttered as I moved my mouth to his neck, rubbing my stubble against him until he shivered even under the hot spray.

"You really mean that, don't you?"

I met Skylar's eyes. "Of course. I always mean what I say."

His lips curved. "I'm starting to understand that."

I reached for him again, but he sank gracefully to his knees before I could claim another kiss. His tongue traced my cock, which had inevitably grown hard again as our bodies slipped and slid in the hot water.

"Fuck," I whispered.

He tsked. "This looks painful. I should make it better."

I braced a hand on the shower wall. "You really should."

Skylar made quick work of me, his mouth a perfect sucking pressure, his lips sliding easily with the cascade of water pouring down on us. His hair was dark and wet, his eyelashes clumped into points, his face and lips red from the heat.

"Not gonna last," I gasped.

Skylar made an encouraging sound, his fingers pressing against my taint in just the right place, and I came so hard my mind whited out. By the time I caught my breath, leaning against the shower wall, Skylar was slipping out the glass door and wrapping himself in a towel.

"Wait, what about you?"

Skylar grinned, though there was a tension around his eyes. "I'm good for tonight, pretty boy. I'll see you in the morning."

I wanted to protest. Wanted to ask him to climb into my bed. I'd never much cared whether I slept with my sex partners. But everything was different with Skylar.

"Yes, Alpha," I said instead, keeping my voice light.

Skylar wasn't ready, and I couldn't push him. Like his cat, I had to win him over one treat at a time until he was ready to trust me with more.

The next morning, we followed our usual routine, and I left Skylar at the coffee shop to pop in to see Grandma. Our visits were short, so I tried to make them frequent, though I missed a day here or there.

When I walked into the rec room, she was just entering from the hall to her private apartment. It was little more than a bedroom, bathroom, and kitchenette, but it was hers alone.

Grandma used only a cane today, rather than the walker, and her gait was smoother than I'd seen it in a long time. The physical therapy was paying off.

Her eyes lit up. "Brooks! Just the man I want to see."

She reached for the coffee, and I sighed and shook my head. "You just love me for my Spit-Roasted Blonde."

She laughed. "You caught me. Speaking of blondes… How is yours?"

My heart stilled. "What?"

"Your friend. Skylar, wasn't it? How is he?"

"Oh." I turned to walk with Grandma toward a seating area, my pulse settling now that I realized she hadn't meant that Skylar was mine in a romantic sense. Though, would it be so bad if she did? Grandma was open-minded enough I didn't think she would care. "He's good. He'll meet me at the pub later."

She nodded. "He seemed like such a sweetheart. You should bring him by again."

"Are you trying to make me jealous?" I teased. "One visit and you already love him more than your only grandson."

She scoffed. "Don't be ridiculous. He's just easy on the eyes."

I chuckled. "You're not wrong."

Grandma flicked me a curious look at that, and I changed the subject. "You look like you're moving pretty good with that cane."

She lowered herself carefully into the recliner she favored, then pulled the crank on the side to lift the footrest.

"I'm feeling more like myself," she agreed. "It's been a long, hard road."

I patted her knee and took a seat on the loveseat across from her. "You've worked hard to get better. I'm proud of you."

"I have." Her eyes brightened. "Maybe one day I won't need this place anymore."

I frowned. "We sold your house, Grandma."

"I know, but a regular apartment would be cheaper, wouldn't it?" Her mouth pursed. "You work so hard to afford this place. Too hard."

"I've been taking more time off."

It wasn't even a lie. With Blaize in town, I'd wanted to be home with Sky in the evenings. It was going to hurt my paycheck, and things would be tight, but his safety and peace of mind had been worth it.

Not to mention all the other, unexpected benefits of staying with him.

"Good," she murmured before sipping her coffee. "Your needs are important too."

I smirked to myself, thinking of the many ways my needs were being met lately. Not that I could exactly share the details of last night's sexy shower with Sky.

"Enough about me. What's new with you? Any hot gossip?"

"Well, don't get upset, but your mama called me this morning. That's why I was late."

My heart tumbled to the pit of my stomach. Nothing good came of that.

"What does she want now?" I asked, my voice flat.

Grandma clucked. "Oh, honey, just to catch up with me. She wanted to know about you. She still cares."

I scoffed. "She never reaches out unless she wants something. You know that."

Grandma's mouth tightened. "She's my daughter, and she's made her mistakes, but I won't just write her off."

"But—"

"If she calls, I talk to her," Grandma said firmly. "You won't change my mind about that."

"I know, Grandma." I sighed. "Sorry, I just…"

"You worry. I know." Her smile was sad. "But a mother doesn't just stop loving her child."

My heart ached. Wasn't that exactly what my mother had done? She'd dumped me with my grandmother and never come back for me. When she reached out now, it was a reminder of all the times she didn't reach out then.

I swallowed the lump in my throat, determined not to let my mother continue to hurt me. I was a grown man. I didn't need her. I hadn't needed her in a long time.

"So, what did you all talk about?" I forced myself to ask.

"Oh, she's doing so much better," Grandma said, leaning forward with a smile. "She got herself cleaned up, and she has her own place. She's got a boyfriend. Life is looking up."

Mom had gotten clean before. It didn't last. But I couldn't bring myself to kill my grandmother's optimism.

"That's great," I said.

"Maybe she'll move back home," Grandma mused. "Wouldn't that be nice? Then I could be her problem instead of yours."

"You're not a problem ," I said sharply.

"I feel like one. I scold you for working, but don't think I don't know why you have to." She scowled. "I'm supposed to be taking care of you."

"You did," I said gently. "Now it's my turn. We take care of each other, right?"

Grandma sighed and took another drink of her coffee. "Yes, we do. That's how all family should be."

I knew she was including my mother in that, but it would do no good to protest.

"We can agree on that." I stood and bent to kiss her cheek. "I should get to work. You take care."

"I will."

I hesitated. "And promise you won't give Mom money, or…anything else when she asks."

Grandma looked disappointed in me, and my chest ached, but I had to make sure. Mom always wanted something. This time wouldn't be any different.

"I won't," she said. "I'm not a gosh darned child you need to supervise."

"I know. It's not you I worry about."

She flapped her hand at me. "Go worry about your drunks at the pub. I'm fine."

I left before I pushed her too far.

My mood carried over to work, though. Skylar took one look at my face and dragged me into the stockroom.

"You look awfully broody today. Everything okay?"

I wasn't used to someone paying such close attention to my feelings. "Better now."

Skylar kissed me. "Good. You're scaring away the customers."

I pulled him tighter against me. "Is that why we're back here? You're worried about the customers?"

He widened his eyes in a playful act of innocence. "Someone has to make sure you don't scare them away."

I laughed and kissed him once more, letting the sweet taste of caramel cockiato on his tongue and the warm weight of his body comfort me.

It would be easy to get used to this.

But Skylar would leave, just like everyone did eventually. I couldn't let myself forget our situation was temporary. Skylar was already regaining his confidence. Before long, he'd run out of excuses to stay in Swallow Cove and head back to his real life.

"I should get out there. It'll be the lunch rush soon."

"All right. But you're sure you're okay?"

"Never better," I said, squeezing his hand on my way to the door. "Thanks, Alpha."

He smiled, his eyes crinkling up. "Someone's gotta look out for my pretty boy."

Time passed quickly as the pub got busy. I pulled beers, mixed drinks, and put orders in to Vera. Skylar helped bus tables and refill drinks for the server when he wasn't making calls for his father.

About seven, my friends came in—minus Fisher—and Skylar joined them. But Sawyer came up to the bar, eyes full of questions.

"Haven't heard from you much lately," he said.

I set his favorite beer in front of him and waved to the space behind the bar. "Well, you always know where to find me."

"You and Skylar."

I raised an eyebrow. "You want to ask me something?"

He leaned in. "Something's different with you. You barely take your eyes off him. And… your face, it's doing something weird."

I blinked. "What?"

"Smiling," he said, as if it were a terrifying prospect. "You look fucking happy, bro. What's the deal?"

I laughed. "Oh, fuck you."

"Pretty sure someone else has the pleasure of that."

My gaze flicked to Skylar, even though Sawyer had just called me on it, and damn, the thought of what we might do once we were alone was enough to send my thoughts drifting into very inappropriate territory.

I'd told Skylar he could fuck me. I'd never had more than a single finger in my ass, but somehow, I was going to take that beautiful dick of his.

Because whatever Sky wanted, I was his. That was the damn truth. It was exciting, but also terrifying.

"Shit," Sawyer muttered. "Can't they stay on their own damn side of the lake?"

I glanced toward the door, where he was glaring at Ashton Dixon and Melanie Armstrong, a petite woman with sun-streaked blond hair—and Sawyer's high school sweetheart.

She'd dumped him for Ashton when they were teens, and he'd never gotten over it.

Not because Mel was some great prize. It had hurt Sawyer's pride. He and Ash had been best friends as kids—growing up a couple of counties over from this one—but when Sawyer's mom got divorced, he'd moved to Swallow Cove and suddenly Ash had become his rival instead of his teammate.

Every sporting event, every lake event, they were on opposing sides, trying to one-up each other. It had mostly been friendly, if competitive. But when Mel had chosen Ash, it had destroyed the last of their bond.

Sawyer hated Ash, but he also didn't. That was the complexity of relationships. Just like I should hate my mom, but no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't quite manage it.

And Grandma? She loved the woman she raised, even when she disappointed her again and again.

It was sad to see her get her hopes up. Infuriating to know they'd inevitably come crashing down. And heartbreaking to realize there was nothing I could do to prevent it.

Sawyer, though? He was another matter. I slugged his shoulder to get his attention.

"They're not worth it."

He lifted his bottle and took a long drink. "I know, man. I don't care. Water under the bridge."

Words were easy. I knew that well enough. But turning off those old feelings of rejection and disappointment? Not so easy.

"Good." I set a second beer on the bar. "Go hang with our friends and forget about these assholes. And, uh, Sawyer?"

"Yeah?"

"Don't say anything about me and Sky just yet? It's pretty new…"

"Sure, no prob. I'd never out you, man."

"I know." I shrugged. "I'm not worried about that. Just not sure how he'll feel about it. He's just out of a bad relationship, and this is just…casual."

The word wasn't comfortable. It didn't encapsulate how I felt. Regardless of what happened with Skylar, I knew this experience would stay with me for a long, long time.

But it was the closest I could come to explaining it to Sawyer without sharing too much about Skylar's private life.

Sawyer didn't look as if he was buying my casual explanation, and who could blame him? I'd never been with a guy before, and Skylar and I had practically been glued at the hip lately.

But with Ash and his ex-girlfriend taking up spots at the bar, he didn't stick around to question me.

I took Ash and Mel's orders, and when I served their drinks, I accidentally spilled beer all over Ash's lap.

"What the fuck, dude?" Ash exclaimed, looking indignant as he scrambled off his stool and swiped at his wet shorts.

"Whoops. My bad," I said, holding out a stack of napkins. "You might have better luck across the lake. You look like Shallow Beach is more up your alley."

Ash narrowed his eyes at me, then glanced across the pub and scowled.

"Fucking Sawyer," he muttered. "I should have known."

I didn't answer. I was loyal to Sawyer first and foremost, but there was a flicker of frustration on Ash's face, a hint of hurt to his tone that made me wonder. Did their old friendship mean more to him than Sawyer thought it did?

"Let me get you a new beer," I said, feeling a little bad for being a dick. I'd only meant to spill the drink, not saturate him in it.

"Nah, it's okay," he said. "This is Sawyer's turf. Message received." He glanced sidelong at Mel. "Let's meet your sister at The Drunken Worm instead."

Mel frowned, glancing between Ash and Sawyer. "Maybe I should talk to him. This has gone on long enough."

"No," he said quickly. "Don't make it messier."

She sighed and pulled out her phone. "Okay, I'll text Kat."

He nodded toward me and tossed a five-dollar bill on the bar.

"Your tip for being a good friend." His lips quirked. "Have a shitty night, you asshole."

I snorted with amusement. Not like I didn't have the insult coming. "Yeah, better luck to you with the rest of yours."

He tipped his head and cast one last look Sawyer's way before heading out of the bar.