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This is UsChapter 1Hollis leaned against the bathroom door and handed Ian a mug of coffee.
“Thanks.” Ian set the cup down and went back to shaving. He leaned over the counter, the position making his ass poke out enticingly. Like Hollis, he wore only boxers—his navy blue—and Hollis could no more resist reaching out to cup that perfect butt than he could stop breathing. Ian paused, razor in the air, and winked at Hollis in the mirror.
“I’d rather stay in bed with you today.” Hollis stepped close and nestled his body against that gorgeous ass. It was his favorite place to be. He ran his hands down Ian’s chest, then wrapped one arm tight around his waist while he cupped his cock with his free hand. It jerked behind the cotton. A faint love bite showed on his shoulder, and Hollis put his mouth there first. A memory of him making the mark that morning made him growl into Ian’s damp hair. Ian sitting astride him, shiny with sweat, his eyes hooded and hot…
“As much as I want to continue this, I have to meet the liquor delivery at Rialto in half an hour, and I’m already going to be late because someone kept me in bed longer than I’d planned.” Still, he tilted his head to the side when Hollis nestled in.
Hollis kissed the soft skin behind his ear. He smelled of shampoo and shaving cream and it took a hell of a lot of willpower to step away from him. “I feel bad about you missing the Memorial Day trip. You should have gone.”
“I’m excited about helping you with the house. We’ll get a lot more done with two pairs of hands.”
“I still hate you missing a three-day party with your family.”
Ian had started shaving again, but he stopped, brown eyes locking with Hollis’s in the mirror. “You’re my family, too.” He set the razor down, turned, and leaned against the counter. “You come first now, Hollis. I love them all. They’re better than brothers. But you and me? We are a family, too. All on our own. My love for them is nothing like what I feel for you.”
Hollis stared at the earnest, pretty face he wanted to look at every day for the rest of his life, his heart swelling in his chest. Ian never held back, never skimped on affection nor words—he laid everything out because he said one could never know when the world could be ripped out from under them. Hollis knew that came from not only his past, but the loss of his friends, Mel and Sam. Ian talked about them sometimes, and the pain in his voice always got to Hollis. He’d never, ever, thought he could be so gone over a man like this. “I love you, too.”
“You make everything in my life feel brighter and more exciting,” Ian continued. “It’s like this house, you know? It was my place before you, but now it feels like a real home. You make it feel that way.”
His heart skipped a beat and he stepped back into Ian and kissed him, sliding his tongue into his mouth, not caring that shaving cream smeared onto his cheek and chin. He deepened the kiss and Ian moaned into his mouth. Before it got out of hand, Hollis pulled back and stared down at him. “Thank you.”
“Are you kidding? Thank you. I have everything I need in this world now. I have a successful business, good friends, and now I have love and the hottest sex I’ve had in my life. I’m set.” He pushed Hollis slightly away and smirked as he wiped the shaving cream off Hollis’s face. “Now leave this room before I say to hell with it for more of that hot sex. We need this delivery to happen today for the holiday weekend.”
“Okay, okay.” He held up his hands, amused that Ian used “we” when it came to the restaurant. “I’m off to get dressed and head to the house. Kitchen demo is on the agenda today, so wear something you can get dirty.” He paused on his way out of the bathroom and looked back. “Do you even own anything like that, GQ?”
Ian picked up his razor. “Get out of here.”
Hollis’s grin felt permanent as he watched his boyfriend for another moment. His words meant so much to Hollis because he knew the absolute hell Ian had lived through as a teen. To know that he gave Ian as much as the man gave him was everything. He had turned into a complete sap.
“Quicker I get my work done, the quicker I’ll have those pastries you love,” Ian taunted. “I even ordered extra.”
“Guess it’s good we’ll be doing a lot of physical labor this weekend.” Hollis loved the chocolate cream-filled puff pastries Ian served at his restaurant. They’d made a habit of having them for breakfast on Saturday mornings. Hollis walked to the closet he shared with Ian and pulled out an old Radiohead concert T-shirt and a pair of jeans with a hole high in the back of the thigh area. There was no reason he and Ian couldn’t take a fun break later in the afternoon and these jeans would do it. Every time he put them on at home, Ian couldn’t resist sliding his fingers inside.
