Seventeen Tanner

It had been a long fucking week. What started out as a handful of showings turned into a full-blown hunt across the entire county with a rather intense client. Thankfully, the business had company vehicles because I would have stranded Wyatt at the office well past closing time several days in a row if I'd taken his car.

For the past three days, I'd been home well after dark, starving and exhausted. Wyatt, being rather thoughtful, always had food waiting for me. We usually retired to his bed or mine, both of us just lying in one another's presence for a while. I was too tired to fuck, and he didn't push the issue. Of course, it meant that every time we cuddled, I could feel his raging boner pressed up against my leg, but I didn't mind. Instead, we took to putting in a quickie before work each morning. That was enough to tide us over but not enough to really scratch the itch.

But the weekend came eventually, and even though I had more showings on Saturday, the Sunday after was left purposely free. June was quickly approaching, and I wasn't about to spend the nicest days of the year showing stuffy people through even stuffier houses. I loved their money when a sale was made, but getting rich people to actually buy anything was a fucking nightmare. The house could be perfect, but if the crown molding was not up to their standards, they were no longer interested.

It was exhausting.

But as Sunday morning rolled around, I found myself waking up in Wyatt's bed. Sunlight streamed through the tall windows in the living room, its glow radiating up to the open loft. However, as I rolled over to throw my arm over Wyatt's chest, I realized the bed was empty. It wasn't like him to be up before me, especially on the weekend. However, I brushed it off as soon as I heard the water running from the bathroom downstairs.

We'd planned a bit of an outing to another remote beach to the south. Wyatt said it was one of the best he'd been to for rock picking, and being a bit of an indoor kid, I didn't exactly know what that meant. However, it sounded whimsical and fun. Besides, spending the day with him was what mattered to me.

I'd never admit it out loud, but I was growing rather fond of the guy. It wasn't because I didn't want him to know but because I knew things between us were temporary. If I told him the truth, he might think there was hope.

My phone buzzed on the bedside table next to me, pulling me from my thoughts. I reached over, swiping the screen open to read the message.

Dad: Have you made any sales yet? What are your totals for the month so far?

Me: None so far. I've got two potentials lined up. Just working through the listings with them.

Dad: How many times do I have to tell you? You don't let people choose what they're going to buy. A real salesman gets the sale regardless of whether they want it or not. DO BETTER

I sighed. Then again, if I didn't make a sale soon, my father would probably just disown me out of sheer spite. When that happened, I'd be homeless, even more broke, and completely worthless to anyone. Wyatt might want to keep me, but how could I do that to him? What would I say?

Hey, be my boyfriend, and oh, by the way, I need you to pay my bills now. Thanks.

That was a shitty thing to do to anyone, and I couldn't ask that of him. No… even if my dad did disown me, I would still leave. Wyatt deserved to have someone with means and someone who was far less broken than me. Our arrangement felt good for now, but like milk, the expiration date was quickly approaching. For the moment, I could pretend I didn't have a lifetime of abuse trauma dragging behind me. And I couldn't ask him to accept that baggage too. It was bad enough that I had to deal with it.

I began to type once more.

Me: Don't worry. I'll make the sale this week.

Dad: Good. Don't disappoint me again.

I began to type ‘fuck you' back but quickly deleted it. Whatever had crawled up my father's ass and died twenty years ago was beyond me. There was a brief moment in my childhood when I remembered him smiling and full of life. But now, he was just a grumpy old man without a warm or caring word in his entire body. I was astonished at how much I'd grown to hate him. And yet, I couldn't bring myself to stand up to him either.

I hated that about myself.

"Good morning," a naked Wyatt said as he crested the top of the stairs. He stopped. "You okay?"

"What? Yeah," I replied, shaking my head. "I'm fine. Why?"

"You just looked… I don't know… super grumpy there for a moment, dude."

"Sorry. My dad texted me about sales, and I was just lost in thought for a moment."

"Anything I can do to help?"

"Not unless you can force the client to buy something they don't want. Apparently, my dad thinks that's a reasonable ask."

Wyatt stared at me for a long moment. "It's scary how similar our lives are sometimes." He stepped up in front of me, his naked body still slick with moisture. He kneeled down, wrapping his arms around my waist and pulling me close. It was a strangely intimate gesture, and I couldn't help hugging him back. My fingers dug into his back as I pulled him against me, resting my cheek on the top of his head.

"Why do things always have to be so hard…" I sighed.

"I wish I knew," he replied, giving me a squeeze before pulling back. "But let's not think about it today, alright?"

I nodded.

"We're gonna spend the whole day at the beach, and then we're gonna go eat shitty bar food, and it's gonna be great." He glanced up at me, his deep blue eyes sparkling. "Right?"

"Right."

"Good." He reached up, pulling me in for a kiss. "Now grab your shit and let's out of here."

"I just have one question," I said, holding him back before he could get away. "Why are you better at being gay than I am?"

Wyatt's face crinkled, his brows pressed together in confusion. "I… what?"

"You always know what to say to make me feel better, you take me on all these dates, and you always think about me even in the smallest of situations. What is up with that?"

He smiled, reaching up and booping me on the nose. "I think you're confusing being gay with being decent." He gave me another kiss. "I just like giving you the care you deserve."

I wasn't expecting the sudden leap of my heart at those words. Pounding immediately filled my ears as butterflies danced in my stomach. Nobody had ever said anything like that to me in my life. Usually, it was others telling me how I'd disappointed them, not how I deserved to be taken care of.

Try as I might, I couldn't form a response. All I could do was stare at him, a thousand emotions rushing through my body.

"Come on," Wyatt smiled as he took my hand. Let's get out of here. We'll grab a coffee on the way."

All I could do was nod. I didn't know what I'd done to bring such a gorgeous and caring man into my life. But I was certain, come the end of summer, I'd be heartbroken to leave him. I never thought I'd find someone that would be so easy to fall for.

But now that I'd realized I was in danger of loving him, it was already too late. I'd leaped off the cliff already. All that was left now was the crash when reality caught up with me.