Diana DeRicci Tougher to Love

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his lips, as if puzzled.
Never. I told you, I have responsibilities at home, a business
that is my only means of support, and now Terra. I m not going to
jeopardize any of that.
So you ve been sacrificing any happiness on whether or not
the townspeople would care or hate you. He harrumphed.
My family has been in Jasper since my great-grandparents.
We have history, I have history.
Caleb rocked his head. I know. So what you re saying is now
or never?
Well, no
Then you are willing to give us a chance?
It took Ian about three seconds to answer, however painfully
honest it was. He wasn t going to jump into something right this
second, no matter how badly he ached to do it and not care about
the consequences. That only left one real choice. I want to, he
answered quietly.
Then that means you re going to have to either let me come
to your place or you come to mine, even if it s just to hang out. You
do remember how to do that, don t you?
Ian raked a hand through his hair. Even though he hadn t
moved, it felt as though Caleb were blocking him, caging him when
he was the one standing in the middle of the kitchen. Don t be an
ass.
Can t let the neighbors get the wrong idea, you know, Caleb
muttered sarcastically.
Ian didn t flinch, but he heard the message loud and clear.
Caleb didn t hide his orientation. Guilty by association. A gay man
pretending to be straight with his gay friend for the nosy-Nellies
around town. He scrubbed his face with his palms, suddenly feeling
exhausted.
I can t do it like you do, Caleb.
When Caleb didn t answer, Ian sought him from behind his
hands, dropping them when he felt like he might be hiding a little
too much.
Can t do what? he asked with a private rasp. Be happy?
Only you know how to do that. Can t be gay? Didn t think it was a
choice, but if you know different, I d love to hear it
Caleb, he snarled lowly.
Can t be open about us? Well, that s disappointing, because
I d love to just go down to the Husker and have a beer some time.
Believe it or not, I do know how to behave in public. I m not averse
to doing things, going places, but if you can t do even that&
What? Ian glared now.
Then it s more than being in the closet. Caleb straightened,
blatant disappointment shadowing those sky-blue pools. I thought
we were also friends, and friends do those kinds of things.
We are friends.
Caleb hummed, studying Ian. That s good to know.
He wondered if he was still measuring up, and somehow
doubted it. But&
Caleb put a hand on Ian s shoulder. Why don t we just start
there? Don t get me wrong, the only place I want you is in my bed.
Yes, I m optimistic, and I don t give in to challenges easily. He
leaned forward until he could whisper into Ian s ear. Believe me,
there is no one I want more than you.
Ian clenched a fist to forcefully release it, his heart doing that
kicked danced again. When was your last boyfriend?
Three years ago. Des Moines.
And you were& public?
Well, we did live together. We went out to eat, grabbed a
beer, hung out with friends. If you re asking if we made out in
public, the answer is no.
Ian felt himself cracking. Caleb was offering something he
hadn t had, hadn t tasted, touched or experienced in almost a
decade. His chin sank forward. One step at a time, okay? He could
go to the Husker, play some pool, down a couple. It didn t mean
anyone would see something that wasn t there, right? Just two fellas
not sitting at home watching paint dry.
Caleb wrapped an arm around Ian s shoulders and brought
them together. Not asking to move in or to even sleep over, but I
do want to spend time with you. As a friend, and as your lover.
Ian trembled again, and for a wholly different reason. Caleb
scared the shit out of him. Yet as heat infiltrated his skin where they
touched chest to chest, arms entwined, Ian felt himself being pulled
toward Caleb, like a meteor circling closer by an unfathomable
gravitational pull.
Chapter Seven
I made the coffee this morning.
Ian yawned and dragged himself into the kitchen. Thanks.
He sat at the table and a moment later, Terra took the chair
opposite him to eat her cereal. Last week of school?
She nodded, chomping and slurping. She wiped her mouth
with a napkin. Friday will probably be an early release day.
Ian sipped his coffee, not quite in full motion. He licked his
lips. You make good coffee.
She smiled then scooped her bowl into her hands to down
the milk. Finished, she took her bowl to the sink. Then what she
was getting at, hit him.
Friday was the last day of school. Crap.
She couldn t stay at home all day. She d go out of her ever-
lovin mind. He sucked down the last of his go-juice and pushed
back from the table. How would you like to come to the shop in the
mornings? Help out a little? It wasn t much, and he couldn t think
of a single thing she could do, but maybe it would be enough to
keep them both from going stir-crazy. Her at home and him
worrying about her.
Like a summer job?
He wasn t awake enough yet to really answer that. Let s talk
about it tonight. You don t want to be late.
She left him to go dress for school, and he did the same for
work. As had become their routine, he dropped her off at the high
school on the way to his shop.
It was times like this that he really missed his sister. He had
no idea what to do with Terra, knew trouble would be too easy to
find if he left her alone, and honestly wondered how Maria had
managed raising his niece. The girl s father was an unknown and
though Maria had tried to do right by her daughter, she hadn t been
the strongest of moral examples, thus hooking up with Striker. That
had proved to be a fatal mistake.
He let out a breath, slowing his ride under the tree where he
parked. After pulling off his helmet and shaking his hair loose, he
settled the helmet to hang on the handlebars with Terra s hooked
on the seat in back. He refused to let her ride without one. Ian
didn t take those kinds of risks. Period.
It wasn t quite lunchtime when the cop cruiser pulled up to
his open bay doors. He swallowed, his heart tripping, watching
Caleb climb out of the vehicle. It had been a few weeks since their
weekend at the lake, and their kiss. He hadn t forgotten it. Caleb
had been out of town for a week and a half recertifying for some
state protocol something or other. Ian left the law to the lawman.
It was good to see him back, though. Good to see him period.
It wasn t fair how the man affected him, though he straightened
when he snagged on a livid blue gaze.
What s got your tail in a twist? he asked, trying to joke the
man out of his fury.
Striker.
Shit, Ian cursed.
Caleb s hand was flexing. Ian had never seen him so ready to
unload, and he doubted a soul would be left standing when he did.
Come into the office. Caleb followed without an argument.
Ian shut the door to the shop outside. His office was close to
soundproof, and no one would be able to interrupt that they didn t
see first. What?
Caleb s lip lifted in a snarl, though he kept his distance from
Ian, pacing in short bursts within the confines of the inner office.
The fucker did it again. The son of a bitch got away with it again.
Ian leaned against the work counter where the phone, fax [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]

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