Chapter Four

~ Xander ~

Wright tried to fight him about sleeping in the bed. Xander wouldn't listen to it. He also wouldn't listen to him demanding that he let him help strip the sheets and put on new ones. The kid was stubborn as hell and Xander knew he had his work cut out for him to keep him from exerting himself too much.

He'd fallen asleep on the couch more than once in the six months he lived in the guest house so he knew it wouldn't hurt him another night or so. He wasn't sure what they were going to do in the long run, but Xander didn't want to let Wright out of his sight until he was healed. And that would take a couple weeks at least. Being able to finally look closely at everything on his body, he was amazed Wright was even standing. He had to be in pain and Xander set a reminder on his phone for the next time he could give him medicine. He'd have to wake him up in the middle of the night, but he was sure Wright would be grateful.

After getting him settled to where he was half lying on his right side, his left shoulder still in a makeshift sling until he saw the doctor tomorrow, Xander went back to the living room. He kept the door cracked in case Wright called out for him in the middle of the night. His phone was vibrating on the tray table from their dinner. It was his brother.

"How's the kid?" Patrick asked in lieu of a hello.

"I just got him fixed up in my bed," Xander said. "I'm hoping he sleeps for a couple of hours, but I'm going to keep checking on him. He said he hit his head pretty hard a few times so I'm worried he has a concussion on top of his shoulder and maybe a cracked rib."

"Poor kid," Patrick said. "Have you learned anything else about him? Name, or where he lived?"

Xander smiled, thinking of his little quip earlier about calling him gorgeous or sweetheart. "His name is Wright. Pat, he thought his dad was dropping him off at a conversion camp."

"That's what I feared," Patrick said. "I put the pieces together when he threw the money on the ground. But he's here now, so we'll make it work. We'll figure out a place for him to stay."

"He can stay here with me," Xander said without thinking. There was a long pause where both of them were thinking about that and how it would work. "The houses are full and your guest room has more guests than it stays empty. It makes sense. And he might joke about what happened to him, but he's hurting and I think he'll be more comfortable with a place that doesn't have as much traffic in and out."

"Can you make that work?" Patrick asked. "It's just a one bedroom there."

"I'm sleeping on the couch," Xander said. "And I can always buy another mattress. It'll just be a couple weeks until he's healed up."

"Let him rest tonight but bring him to the main house tomorrow morning for breakfast. William wants to meet him and Tracy has been worried too. We all are. He has an appointment at the hospital at noon."

"I'll see if he's up for it," Xander said. He loved his family and the new additions over the last few years of that family, but they could be a loud, boisterous crowd. He wasn't sure if Wright was up for that. "I'll call you in the morning and let you know how he's feeling."

"Okay. Either way, I need to talk to him tomorrow. I'll see you in the morning."

Xander hung up the phone and turned on the TV, keeping the volume low. He scrolled through for a while before he found a sitcom playing reruns. It was a show he'd seen several times before, but it passed the time. He wasn't sure he'd be able to sleep tonight.

After another episode, he picked up his phone again. He kept an ear out for any noise coming from the bedroom while scrolling through social media. He started with Facebook, looking through nearly fifty accounts with the first name Wright that lived in Texas. He only had that and Instagram, but neither of them turned up anything. If Wright had an account, it was private or under another name. Which would make sense if his dad was controlling. There were a few hits, but he wasn't completely sure. A high school award that was shared on a school website, a list of people that were part of a community effort to get kids into college for free. The rest were older men or kids' parents posting.

A noise caught his attention and he clicked off his phone. He waited, listening for something. There was another noise, almost a whimper. Xander was on his feet and moving toward the bedroom within a second. He pushed open the door gently, hoping that the loose floorboard just outside the bedroom wouldn't wake him. There was a clear whimper and the lump under the blanket shifted.

Xander walked slowly into the room. He didn't want to scare Wright, but he was definitely facing something in his dream. His head moved from one side to the other, his face scrunched like he was in pain. His lips moved, pursing at first but then opening and closing like he wanted to say something. His hand that wasn't in the sling was clenched into a fist. He was still propped up, his bad arm resting against a stack of pillows. He had another pillow against his lower back and the last two pillows situated where he could lean to the right and rest his head. He muttered something again, Xander didn't catch it, and then his eyes flew open and he was breathing really hard.

"No, no. I'm sorry." He curled in on his bad side before Xander could react and Wright cried out from the pain. Or from the memory. Maybe both. He wasn't sure.

"Shhh," Xander said. He sat on the edge of the bed. "You're safe. I'm right here. It was just a nightmare. Can you move back to sit up? You're putting too much pressure on your injuries."

"I should have remembered to close the tab," he said into the pillow. He was crying again. Xander started moving the pillows so he could get closer. "I shouldn't have been so stupid."

"Hey, no. None of that talk, okay?" Xander finally got the pillows moved and Wright looked up at him. The bruise above his eye was darkening around the bandage. It was going to get a lot worse before it started looking better. He was sure the other spots were looking just as bad. "You are not stupid. You're strong and you're going to get through this, Wright. Are you in pain anywhere?"

"My head and shoulder. I can't get comfortable like this so I keep moving around." Wright rested his head back against the headboard. He closed his eye and sighed heavily.

"Chronic side sleeper, huh?" Xander raised one leg, bending it so his foot hung off the edge of the mattress. He laid his hand on Wright's ankle, like he'd done earlier. Wright's lips quirked into a short smile before it faded from his face.

"My mom, when I was little, would always joke that even as a baby, as soon as she laid me down, I would roll onto my side. She said she'd stay up for hours watching me sleep, making sure nothing bad happened to me." There was a moment of silence between them. A tear slipped down his cheek. "Funny how that mindset changed when she left me with him."

Thinking of anyone leaving Wright, especially leaving him with a man that would hurt him, broke Xander's heart. Maybe it was the years he spent seeing the worst moments of peoples' lives or saw firsthand how the justice system failed over and over to get victims help. Whatever it was, the dejected look on Wright's face and how easily he dismissed himself burned something inside him. He wanted to help him. Not just physically to heal, but emotionally. To show him he's worth something to this world, just how he is.

"Scoot over," Xander said. He moved to the other side of the bed and moved those pillows as well. He turned down the blanket too while Wright stared at him.

"What are you doing?" Wright asked. He moved, giving Xander plenty of space in the bed.

"I'm going to stay right here and watch over you," he said like it was obvious.

"You've already done enough," Wright said. He opened his mouth to say more, but Xander interrupted him.

"I want to," he said quietly. He kept a little space between them in case Wright wanted to sleep on his own. He reached down to grab the pillows and situate them between their bodies. "I'm going to be around you so much that you'll get sick and tired of seeing me."

"I doubt that will happen," Wright said. He wasn't sure if he meant for Xander to hear it, but something sprouted low in his heart at the words. His ex had said it, that he was tired of Xander's tendency to take care of him. He shut down that thought quickly. Wright was fifteen years younger than him. "What are you doing?"

"I'm fixing the pillows back for you."

"Oh." The word was dripping with disappointment. Xander looked up at him, stopping his movements to fix the pillows. Wright was watching his hands, avoiding him.

"Oh, what? Wright, if it makes you uncomfortable, I can go back to the living room or bring a chair in here to sleep on. I don't want to leave you alone, though."

"No, it doesn't make me uncomfortable. I just-" Wright looked away, toward the bathroom door. The room was mostly dark, all the lights in the house were off. There was a small flicker of light coming through the bedroom door where he'd left the TV on when he came in. He watched Wright's head move to look down, focusing on his lap. His right hand started picking at the bandage that was holding his shoulder and elbow in place. "I thought you were talking about laying together."

Xander argued with himself. He could hear the disappointment in Wright's voice. On the one hand, he wanted Wright to feel better, to help him however he could. He even thought about just holding him and comforting him earlier. But he knew he shouldn't get too close to him. Even under the bruises and cuts, Xander could see that Wright was attractive. He was cute, in a younger way. Being thirty-five and having been in a relationship for the last three years with another guy similar in build to him, having a smaller man in his bed was different. He was torn between wanting to help him, to make him feel better, and keeping from crossing a line.

"I'm sorry. I'm going to try and get some more sleep."

"No, no. I'm sorry." Xander moved the pillows again, one going to the floor and the other he put behind himself. "Come here." He would deal with his thoughts later. Right now, he just wanted Wright to feel better.

"I don't want to make you uncomfortable, if that wasn't what you meant." Wright stayed where he was as he continued talking. "You've already done enough for me."

"If you weren't injured, I would pull you over here myself but you are. So, come here." Xander situated himself on his pillow, propped up enough that when Wright snuggled against his side, they were both half-sitting still. Wright's head rested against his shoulder and Xander closed his eyes. It'd been six months of living on the ranch. After the breakup, he'd been the one to move out since his name wasn't on the lease. He'd thrown everything he had into helping with the ranch, the business side and helping to keep the new houses clean and in working condition. They were spaced out just enough to give privacy and Xander was the one that kept the grass cut low. And the one that got a snake out of the bedroom one evening.

Each night, he'd come back to this exact bed and ask himself why he kept such a large bed for one person. More than once, he thought about downsizing or finding a new place in the city again. He loved being back on the ranch and it wasn't like he would have time to date or anything if he was working in an Emergency Room or somewhere similar.

"Are you okay?" Wright's voice pulled him out of his thoughts. He realized he was brushing his fingers against Wright's middle back, across his spine from side-to-side. He made sure to avoid where he knew the bruises were, the one on his side and the space on his lower back.

"Yeah, I'm good. Just get some sleep, okay? I have my alarm set to give you more pain medicine in a couple of hours."

Xander woke up hours later to his alarm for the second time. The sky was just starting to lighten, a soft glow curling around the edges of the curtain. It was barely six in the morning, but he was on feeding duty this morning. He would have to make his way to the barn soon to care for the horses.

He'd woken up at two in the morning with his first alarm to Wright still pressed up against him. He'd slipped a leg between his own and was drooling on his shirt. It was adorable, really. Xander's arm was wrapped around his back, resting gently against his hip. He'd barely woken up when Xander slipped out of the bed and gave him the pills and a glass of water. Instead of moving him again and waking him back up, he decided to sleep the rest of the night on the couch. He kept the door open to listen out for him, but they had both slept the entire time. Now, he needed to get up and make sure he was good before starting the day.

"Good morning, gorgeous," Xander said softly as he bent over the edge of the bed. Wright was laying on his stomach- something that Xander wasn't the surest of with his injuries but he'd probably have to just deal with. His head was buried in the pillow, still drooling, and he looked so peaceful. He wanted to let him know that he was leaving the house though. In case he woke up alone. He ran his hand through his hair, pushing it behind his ears. "Wake up, Wright."

"Sleepy," Wright mumbled. "Don't want to get up."

"You can sleep a little longer, but I have to go help with the horses. I'll be back in a little bit to get you for breakfast. I'll leave a couple pills on the counter for you when you're ready to get up. If you're hurting or feel dizzy, just walk outside, okay? I'll keep an eye out for you. My phone is in the living room too."

Wright made some type of noise but didn't move. His good eye never opened during their short interaction. Xander gave him one more brush of his hair and then turned to grab fresh clothes before walking outside. It was the beginning of June, the air was already hot. He'd have to check the forecast for the rest of the week, see if they were getting rain or not. The horses protested him being just a couple minutes late.

"I know, I'm late. Sorry, guys." Xander got to work quickly. The barn was nice, state of the art for their business. They'd been a cattle ranch for generations, selling meat locally and across the state. Patrick was the fifth generation of their family to own the ranch. It was going strong and the additional income of the refuge only made it more stable. No pun intended.

Three of them were in the barn right now, the other two out in the pasture for them to graze. He started by taking all the buckets and baskets out of the stalls and mucking them out. He opened the doors to let them out into the paddock while he cleaned the stalls and laid fresh bedding and then replaced their food and water.

He was sweating from the heat and working by the time he was finished. He brought the horses back in to let them eat, including the ones that were out in the pasture. They easily came in with the promise of food.

"You're a good girl, Luna." He rubbed between her eyes as he passed. She was a Palomino, five years old. He moved to the next one, stopping to say hi as well. "Raven. Were you behaving outside last night? Of course you weren't. The question is, did you get Willow into trouble as well or was it just you?"

"Do you always talk to them like humans?" Wright's voice pulled him from his horse, Benito. He was a mustang, all black except for the white spot between his eyes. He turned from the horse to the sound of Wright's voice. He was standing in the open door of the barn.

"What are you doing up and walking around?" Xander moved quickly to stand closer to Wright. His face was several different colors and he was still in the oversized shirt and sweats. He immediately leaned against Xander's arm when he held it out. "You should be resting. I told you I would come back to get you."

"You did?" Wright looked up at him. "I don't remember that."

That concerned Xander. With the injuries he sustained yesterday, memory loss was a possibility. "What's the last thing you remember?"

"You waking me up to take more pills. Then I woke up on my own this morning."

"You were pretty out of it when I told you I was heading out," Xander said. He wouldn't think worst case scenarios. If he remembered waking up to take the pills, it could be nothing.

"I don't usually sleep this late either," Wright said. "I had to get myself up for school most days and then when I graduated, dad liked me to be up before he went to work."

"Well, you're going to get plenty of rest over the next couple weeks." Xander started to walk with Wright back to the guest house. "I mean it. You have serious injuries, Wright. You need to rest until they're better. How is your shoulder feeling?"

"It hurts, but not as much as yesterday. I think that might be the pills because I looked at the bruises in the mirror. I look terrible."

"You're still gorgeous, sweetheart."

Wright looked up at Xander just as they made it to the door. "A double endearment. Must be my lucky day."

"I'll call you that every day if it'll help you feel better," Xander said. He meant it too, which was probably something he should think about. But once again, he pushed it to the back of his mind for now. "But I need to shower before we go to the main house for breakfast. You have an appointment in the city at noon to see a doctor."

"I have to go back into the city?" Wright stopped in the kitchen and stood on his own. Xander turned around to face him. His good hand was wrapped around his stomach, both hands curled into fists. His good eye was rounded, shocked. Scared. Xander recognized the emotion.

"Just to see the doctor," Xander said. "She's a good friend of ours. We won't stop anywhere else."

"Which… Which hospital?" Wright started to shake and Xander ignored that he was sweaty and probably smelt bad. He moved closer and wrapped Wright in his arms. He kept his hands in his usual spot, one on his waist and one on the back of his head.

"She works at Trinity, in the trauma department."

"That's the one by the bagel shop and near the high school, right?" The question was asked directly into his chest. "I live near there. I don't want to see my dad again."

"Does he work in the hospital? We can arrange for the doctor to come here." Xander wouldn't risk that asshole getting anywhere near Wright again. He'd only known him for twelve hours, but he would do anything to protect him.

"No, he works in an office somewhere near the college. But the house is only ten minutes from the hospital. I passed it when I took the bus to school."

"We don't have to go," Xander said. "I can tell Patrick and we can reschedule or figure something out."

"No, it's okay. You're going with me, right?" Wright looked up and took a step back. "I'll be okay if you're there."

"Patrick is going too," Xander said. "We'll take you in the truck and be with you the entire time."

"And I need to see the doctor? I don't have money to pay for the bill."

"Don't worry about that, okay? We just need to know that you're okay." Xander rubbed his hand against his back, avoiding any hurt areas. "I'm going to take a shower and then we can go see the others. Are you okay to see everyone today?"

"I'll have to eventually," Wright said. He followed Xander to the bedroom and stood in the doorway while Xander grabbed fresh clothes. "Is, um, what's his name? The grooms. Are they still here?"

"They are," Xander said. He had a text from William himself, checking in on Wright. "They stayed here last night in the guest room of the main house. They're heading out on their honeymoon tomorrow. William is excited to meet you. He's worried."

"I want to apologize to them," he said. Xander stopped just short of the bathroom door and turned back to Wright. He dropped his hands, gearing up to give his same little speech, but Wright beat him to it. "Yeah, I know he doesn't care. He's just glad I'm safe. Doesn't help the fact that I feel horrible about it."

"We'll meet them in a few minutes," Xander said. "Did you want to take another shower before we go?"

"Should I?" Wright asked. "I mean, I tried to wash my hair yesterday but I couldn't do much with one hand."

"You're fine just how you are," Xander said. "I can help you wash it tonight if you want. Or get Tracy to wash it in the sink for you."

"No." Wright said the word quickly. Xander watched him. He took a deep breath and shook his head. "I can't do-" He took another quick breath. "I have bad memories with my head in a sink. Can we just leave it at that, please?"

"Of course," Xander said. "I'm sorry I brought it up. But my offer still stands. I can help you wash it later."

"We'll see how it goes today with the doctor, I guess."

Xander made quick work of a shower. He toweled off and dressed in the bathroom. He looked at himself in the mirror while he brushed his teeth. He'd gone to the barber and had his beard trimmed nicely for the wedding. He smoothed his hand down his chest. He never thought about how much hair he had on his chest until last night. Younger men were never really what he was attracted to, but there was something about Wright. The word gorgeous had come so naturally to him. Checking him over last night and bandaging him up, he was more aware of his own body and how different they were.

"Are you almost done in there?" Wright's voice came from the door by the hallway. "I need to use the bathroom."

Xander pulled his shirt down over his head and reached over to open the door. He let Wright in before walking out of the room to the bedroom. He focused on making the bed while Wright was occupied. He was just setting the pillows on the bed when Wright came back in.

Each time he looked at him, rage built in his chest. He wanted to go find this guy and beat him the same way. Worse.

"Why do you look like someone just kicked your puppy?" Wright asked. He adjusted the waistband of the sweats with his good arm.

"If you were my puppy, that man would be dead yesterday." The comment was supposed to be in his head, but of course Wright heard it. They both stared at each other, Xander's mouth doing a fish motion as he tried to think of how he wanted to apologize. He didn't know Wright that well to say something like that. He'd hinted at wanting to hurt his dad for what he did, but did he cross the line?

Wright's laughter and then subsequent grunting from the exertion caught him off guard. He was by his side in an instant and Wright leaned against him once more. "Oh shit, that hurt. A lot."

"Are you okay?" Xander led him to the bed and helped him sit down. He sat down beside him and hovered his hands over his body. The bandages, including the one wrapped around his shoulder were all under the shirt. Outside of his face and the slightly wheezing sound when he took a deep breath, he looked fine. He wanted to check the rest of his injuries.

"Yeah, I just need a breather." Wright laid back on the bed. The shirt was long, but his movement bunched it up and Xander could see a sliver of his skin between the shirt and waistband of the sweats. It was a deep purple to red. Wright lifted the shirt further up his chest and lifted his head to look down. Xander did the same. The bruise had grown in size and deepened in color. The bandage was wrapped around the topmost part of the bruising, but it looked painful still. Xander brushed his fingertips gently around the edges of it. "How's it looking, Doc?"

"I wasn't a doctor, actually." He continued trailing his middle finger around the bruise. He didn't want to do anything to hurt him more. "I was EMS, but I was in the Emergency Room on floater shifts helping out."

"Are you even qualified to be touching me, then?"

Xander pulled his hand back and raised his eyes to look at Wright's face. He had that same little smirk on his face and lowered the shirt back down. Xander helped him sit up, making him move slowly.

"I'm letting you get away with this now," Xander said. "Because you're hurt. But once you're in the clear, you better watch your comments, smart ass."

Wright smiled, a true genuine smile. It lit up his whole face. Xander was sure it was hurting him to do it, but it didn't seem to bother him. "I think that's my favorite name you've called me."

"Smart ass? Why?"

Wright shrugged. Xander helped him up and they started back toward the door to head to the main house. He wanted to pick Wright up and carry him, keep him from having to walk more than he had already this morning. The guest house had a small front grassy area off the patio style porch and the gravel area where they parked all of their cars was a decent size. It was a lot of walking for him, even if he claimed he wasn't hurting that much. They had his truck, Patrick's, and Tracy's SUV parked there. Wright spoke again when they started up the stairs of the porch. "I couldn't make comments like that without the fear of getting yelled at or hit. You just roll your eyes at them where my dad probably would have hit me at least. I had to be careful of my tone and what I said around him. It's nice to be called a smart ass and know you don't actually mean it."

"I would never hurt you," Xander said. "Physically or verbally. No one here would."

"I'm starting to realize that," Wright said. He was still using Xander as a crutch as he moved slowly up each step.