Chapter Nine

~ Xander ~

By the third week of Wright being in his life, Xander was fucked. Not literally, because Wright was still healing, but he couldn't get the young man out of his head. He was a thirty-five-year-old man with a career behind him, six hundred acres of land to help maintain, boring bills like insurance and rent to pay. And yet, he felt like he was twenty all over again whenever he saw Wright. Even from a distance. Patrick would just laugh at him and clap him on the shoulder, saying nothing. He didn't understand the pull this guy had on him, but he was enjoying it.

"Uncle Xander!" He turned his head at the sound of his niece, Paxton, calling out for him. He couldn't see her, but knew she'd be rounding the corner into the barn soon enough. "Ah, hey. There you are. I swear I checked in here, like, ten minutes ago."

Paxton was smiling. Her hair was in a tight ponytail with a few strands sticking out by her ears. She was wearing her typical running clothes, a loose tank top with a pair of black shorts. Her sneakers were a rainbow of colors. She'd grown up fast the last couple years he lived in the city. He came back as much as he could, since they only lived a half hour outside of the city, but there were still weeks between his visits. Between working double shifts and his boyfriend, he didn't have a lot of free time. Not like now.

"I was reorganizing the tack room," Xander said. "Your dad has been busting my ass unloading the feed today."

"Dirty mouth. Dirty mouth," Paxton chanted with a bright smile. Xander rolled his eyes and locked up the tack room before moving closer to his niece. It was a thing made up when the kids were little. Patrick, Xander, and their friends would do their best not to cuss around the kiddos and that little chant was the main reason. Tracy had taught it to them when Paxton repeated a ‘naughty' word in school. She'd been six. They grew out of it gradually.

"I'm sure if I go on those runs with you, I'd be chanting the same," Xander said back jokingly. Paxton ran on the ranch twice a week, despite complaining about how much she hated doing it. Now that the school year was over, she had upped it to three times a week so she kept in shape to try out for the soccer team in college. He was proud of her.

"I plead the fifth," Paxton said with a smile. "But not what I came here for. I had a question."

"What's up?"

Xander pushed his shoulders back, letting out a small grunt when it popped in several places. After they restocked the hay bales this morning, he tended to the grounds around the refuge houses. They were all still occupied. Brett said they'd be like that until the end of July and then they could talk about Wright moving into one. Xander didn't like that idea, Wright being away from him. It was a little possessive, but he couldn't help it.

"You and your boyfriend are going into the city tomorrow, right?"

"He's not my boyfriend, but yes."

"He's not my boyfriend," Paxton said mockingly. "You just live together, take care of him, go on daily evening walks, and don't you have a date planned tonight?"

Xander opened his mouth to say something, but he realized that she was right. He looked forward to their evening walks, going a little further each time. They'd walked to the main gate and back last night, almost an hour walk, but he'd also taken him to the small stream that ran throughout the property. Tonight, he planned on taking Wright to one of the flatter pastures in the truck, with a blanket and pillows so they could lay under the stars for a while. Maybe watch the animals grazing too. He felt bad about scaring him last week with the warning to not go out alone.

"Yeah, exactly. Anyway, would you mind if I joined you? I wanted to meet with one of the girls that's running the training camp in the Fall for the university."

"And is this just a meeting or a meeting-meeting? Because you know your parents' rules."

Patrick and Tracy were great parents, trusting their kids to make their own decisions for the most part. But they still had some rules in place, especially when it came to dating. Neither of their kids were allowed to go on a date until they met the person.

"It's just a meeting. In a very public place." Paxton held his stare. He waited for a moment, knowing what her tell was on the rare occasion that she lied. His niece and nephew were pretty cool kids, honest and hard working. They had their moments, but he was proud to be their uncle. "You can even meet her before Wright's appointment if you want."

"I'll talk to your dad about it and see what he says, but I don't have a problem with it. I don't know how long we'll be at the hospital for, but I want to take him shopping afterward as well."

"Okay, just let me know. She's going back home next week so this is the only time I can meet with her before training starts."

Paxton walked back out and toward the house while Xander went to the tack room to finish making sure everything was where it should be. When he walked into the guest house, he was greeted with silence. His nerves immediately spiked because Wright was always making some sort of noise. Whether talking to himself, moving around, or playing music. But today, there was nothing.

"Wright?" Xander hung his hat and started walking through the house. He checked the living room, wondering if he was asleep on the couch. Nothing. The bedroom was next. He found Wright sitting on the bed, his back against the headboard. He was sitting cross legged, the blanket pooled around his waist. He was shirtless, the bruises looking almost healed by now. They looked like irritated skin more than actual bruises. The next thing that caught his attention were the tears on Wright's cheeks. "What's wrong?"

Wright looked up when Xander sat on the bed next to him. His eyes were red, like he'd been crying for a while. His eye was still bruised above his brow, where the stitches had been. There was a small scar left but the swelling was gone and he said he could see fine. They'd know for sure tomorrow. "Nothing. I'm fine."

"You're crying," Xander said, stating the obvious. He swiped his finger over Wright's cheek and smiled softly. He knew he was sweaty and probably smelt as bad as he felt, but Wright as usual, took priority to him.

"It's nothing. Really," Wright said. He leaned his head into Xander's palm. He moved his other hand and reached for something next to him. It was a book, one of Xander's that he kept in the closet. Living in the city, he'd had quite a library, organized on shelves. Now, they sat in two totes in the closet floor since there was no bookshelf in the guest house. "I was just reading and it got to me."

"Oh, gorgeous." Xander wanted to hug him. He was such an innocent soul, crying over characters from a book. After everything he'd gone through, he was still full of love and empathy. He showed that to Xander every day they spent together. He was adamant on helping out once they got the all clear from the hospital. He spent time with Tracy, learning to cook meals beyond the basics that he already knew. He met Brett and Wylon, immediately offering babysitting services if they ever wanted a night away. That was most of them because their newborn little boy was adorable. But then there were the small moments, when Wright would talk about what he'd gone through and Xander had to ask himself how someone could go through that much pain and still smile and find the good in people and situations. "I want to hug you, but I need a shower first."

"Can I join you?"

"Depends," Xander said, with a small smirk. "Are you going to actually shower?"

Wright turned his head and kissed Xander's palm. "Guess you'll have to find out."

"You're going to be the death of me, you know that right?"

"Only fair seeing that you brought the life back to me."

"You think too highly of me, gorgeous. Come on, let's start the date early then."

The contradiction of his tear-stained cheeks and the smile that lit up his face had Xander forgetting he was sweaty and gross and he pulled him in for a kiss. Wright went willingly and they stood like that in the bedroom for a minute. Xander couldn't get enough of the younger man. He didn't know what was going to happen to Wright. Afterall, he'd only been here for a month. It wasn't like Xander could just ask him to stay with him, no matter how he felt. He'd mentioned school in the Fall. He felt like he was too old for a summer fling but he couldn't stay away. He and Wright had something.

That thought struck a nerve in the back of his brain and he pulled away from Wright with a long sigh. Wright narrowed his eyes but held on to his forearms. "What was that for?"

"Just thinking," Xander said. He pushed the thoughts away and smiled. A genuine smile. "Nothing you need to worry about, though. Let's get cleaned up."

"Okay." Wright let his hand trail down Xander's arm until he laced their fingers together. Xander led him to the shower and without a word spoken between them, they undressed and cleaned up.

Xander redressed quickly and took the blankets and pillows out to the truck while Wright gathered the food and drinks for them for a few hours. He told Xander he and Tracy tried out a new recipe together and they were all going to have it for supper. Patrick was outside, just getting out of his own truck, when Xander walked out.

"Pulling out the big guns, I see." The two beeps of him locking his door gave Xander a half second to think of a response. He and his brother didn't talk about the intimate details of their lives, but they did still rely on each other. He'd been there for Patrick when he and Tracy had the kids, when their dad passed and he inherited the ranch. Patrick was there for him when his ex broke up with him, easily offered him a spot on the ranch so he didn't have to struggle in the city.

"Am I being ridiculous?" Xander asked. He felt childish even asking, but he couldn't shake the feeling that everything was just… He didn't know. Maybe he was just psyching himself out. It was a habit of his in his personal life. He loved to take care of people, a big reason he became an EMT. He couldn't shake the feeling that maybe he was just enjoying taking care of Wright, or the other way around and Wright was only attracted to him because he was the main one taking care of him.

"What do you mean?" Patrick folded his arms over his chest and leaned against the tailgate of Xander's truck. They had plenty of blankets and pillows to lay comfortably.

"I don't know," Xander admitted. He kicked at the gravel under his feet. A brief memory of Wright curled up in the gravel, bruised badly, crossed his mind and he shook his head to clear it. He looked back up at his brother. "He's nineteen, Patrick. I'm fifteen years older than him. In my head, it feels right. But logically, I can't help but think we're building this bond because of how we met."

Patrick didn't say anything right away and Xander started to worry that he was going to agree. After a long minute, he straightened up and unfolded his arms. "You remember the night I told you I was going to propose to Tracy?"

Xander wasn't expecting that. He nodded, hesitantly. They were high school sweethearts and made it through Tracy going to college before getting married. Xander, being five years younger than Patrick, was still in high school at the time. Patrick had come into his room and sat on the foot of his bed while he was reading a book. His senior year of high school, he'd been sucked into the romance novels. It wasn't exactly a trait that helped to get dates, but he had plenty of book boyfriends. Patrick, however, was a nervous wreck when he showed Xander the ring he'd bought.

"I was nervous as hell. I almost didn't go through with it. But then you reminded me of something. Do you remember what it was? You told me that it was through the little looks we gave each other. Not the heart eyes or the hung the moon and stars looks. It was the small ones, over a shared meal or when we were just sitting on the porch talking." Patrick rested his hand on Xander's shoulder and squeezed.

He hung his head, letting the words sink in. Hoping that Patrick was right. He was having a mild crisis, that was it. Their relationship wasn't typical and they met under serious circumstances. It didn't mean that what he felt wasn't real.

"I'll keep it simple for you. You like him. He definitely likes you. Your first little picnic, walking thing you did? When you were looking through the basket with Tracy, I talked to Wright. It was a short talk, but he was watching you with excitement. It was more than just a crush. Lord knows I've seen that look on Paxton's face more than once. He was also nervous to call it a date and he got excited when I said it was one."

"Thanks," Xander said, a bashful tone overtaking the one word. He looked up just as Wright opened the door and stepped outside. He was wearing one of Xander's shirts, despite having a quarter of the closet and two drawers for himself. He paired it with black sweatpants and the tennis shoes that Tracy had picked up for him that first weekend when she did her grocery shopping. Wright cried when she handed them to her, telling them that he'd never had his own new pair of shoes before.

"That," Patrick said. He nodded his head between both of them. "That's the look I'm talking about. You could be in a crowded room and both of you would find each other instantly. That smile you're wearing tells me everything. You're happy, Xander. Run with it."

"I know my hair is all a mess," Wright said as soon as he was close enough to talk without raising his voice. "But you weren't there to blow dry it and I've actually never used one myself so I didn't realize there are certain ways you're supposed to-"

Xander took a step forward and cut Wright's words off with his lips. His hands came up and cupped his face, his thumbs on his temple and the rest of his fingers cradling his head. It was a moment of hesitation on Wright's end, but then he was kissing him back. He was barely aware of Patrick patting the back of his shoulder and walking away.

When they pulled away from each other, Xander kissed the top of Wright's head and pulled him into a tight hug. "Not that I'm all for this, but um, you just did that. In front of your brother. Probably in front of more than just him."

"Are you okay with that?" Xander asked. He tried not to tense up, waiting for the answer and hoping that he hadn't just messed things up.

"I am," Wright said. He pulled back just enough to look up at Xander. His voice sounded sure, but his expression looked a bit pensive.

"What is it?" Xander asked.

"It's nothing," Wright said too quickly. He smiled but it didn't reach his eyes. Xander pulled back and tilted his head, trying to read Wright's body language and facial expression. He sighed after a moment and started twirling his finger in the hem of his shirt, something that Xander knew he did when he was nervous. He looked down at the ground between them when he spoke again. "It just kind of overwhelmed me for a second when you moved like that. Stalked toward me." He finally looked up and met Xander's eyes. "I know you would never hurt me, but I guess my brain is still stuck in fight-or-flight mode sometimes."

"I'm so sorry," Xander said immediately. He'd been so caught up in his own thoughts he didn't think about how it would look to Wright. He held up his hands, wanting to step forward and wrap him in another hug, but hesitated.

"I don't want you to have to think twice about it," Wright said. He lifted his own arms and wrapped his fingers around the edges of the flannel he was wearing, tugging him closer. He pressed his face against Xander's chest and took a deep breath. "I will always be up for you touching or kissing me, but maybe give me a quick warning or something before. I like the stalking toward the guy in the books, but in reality it's a little scary."

"I will," Xander promised. "I'm sorry if I scared you, even for a second. I just- I couldn't help it. You were talking and being all cute." Xander smiled down at him and moved a hand to brush down some of his hair. Maybe he would want to get it cut tomorrow. "Are you still good to go out tonight?"

"And miss spending hours alone with you in the bed of your truck?" Wright smiled and this time it lit his entire face. Xander held his eyes for a moment before he bent down to kiss him again. This one was much softer, a quick press of lips. "I'm all ready for you to woo me. Again. And again."

Xander huffed out a breath and closed his eyes, looking up at the setting sun. They had maybe an hour before the first stars would start coming out. "You don't get cleared until tomorrow, Wright."

"Sounds like a promise to me." Wright smiled and Xander knew that this was it. These feelings were beyond real. No matter how they started, he couldn't deny the way the young man in his arms made him feel.