Page 12 of A Sugary Life

The excitement that lit their faces had Phoenix ready to do anything. They gathered their things and followed the path back to the house. By the time they made it to the pool, the pair were looking a little run down. They still spent a good half an hour swimming before falling asleep on a lounge together.

Shay repositioned an umbrella to keep them shaded while Phoenix covered them with a towel. They sat in a two-person lounge beside them under their own umbrella and held hands.

Shay kissed Phoenix’s hand. “And you said I’d be a good dad. Look at you.”

Phoenix chewed his bottom lip and watched the pair sleep. “I don’t know what it is.” He lowered his voice to a whisper. “I’m really falling in love with these boys.”

For a moment, Shay watched them sleeping peacefully. “Yeah.” He looked Phoenix’s way. “So, random crazy idea. After we get married, let’s adopt them.”

Phoenix’s eyebrows hit his hairline, but his gut-check reaction wasn’t what he would have expected. “We’re getting married?”

Shay’s scowl had Phoenix fighting back laughter. “Of course we are. Did you not know that?”

A chuckle sneaked from Phoenix. He stroked Shay’s arm. “Of course. I’m just messing with you. Obviously, I thought I’d at least get a ring and a proposal, but yeah. There was never any doubt we’d get married.” Phoenix went back to chewing his bottom lip. He was a little terrified by how badly he wanted the picture Shay painted. “They’re six. Aren’t we a little young for this? We don’t even share a place. How would we even manage everything? There’re so many variables. I mean, would Zander even consider us for this? We don’t even have our shit together. There’s so much to think about.”

Shay nodded along, looking as if he took every word seriously. “Do we want to start genuinely looking into this, though?” He looked the boys’ way before focusing on Phoenix again. He looked torn. It was obvious they equally wanted this little family, but the full picture looked bigger than them.

“Maybe they wouldn’t even want us. This whole discussion might be for nothing.”

They kept holding each other’s gaze. Neither of them wanted to be the one who made the final call.

Tobie started screaming in his sleep. Graham dove into action, comforting him. He looked panicked. This job was too much for a kid. Someone should have noticed that about Shay.

They stood. Each of them grabbed a boy and went back to their lounge. With the two boys between them, they cuddled together like the unit it felt like they were. Tobie snuggled close to Phoenix. He went back to sleep, but his little breaths were still stuttering. Graham held tightly to Shay’s arm, but his gaze never left Tobie.

Shay did his best to comfort him. “He’s okay, big guy. You can take a break. Phoenix and I will keep you safe.”

Graham nodded. His little cheek squished against Shay’s bicep. His eyes were already closed.

Phoenix and Shay exchanged a smile. There was nothing to talk about. These were their boys.

They went their separate ways to shower. Shay wished things had been a little clearer about if he would see Phoenix again tonight. They hadn’t talked about whether they would share a room now. While from the outside, most people would think they were moving too fast, for Shay, it was like those five years never happened. He still loved Phoenix with every fiber of his being. Nothing had changed other than Shay losing the shame and guilt he felt over being gay. Maybe he moved too fast for Phoenix. It was possible Phoenix needed more time to see he could trust that Shay had changed. Damn. He had to let Phoenix lead this time around. That was the only way Phoenix wouldn’t doubt their relationship.

When Shay emerged from his bathroom, he found Phoenix relaxing in bed and playing on his phone. Butterflies stirred in his stomach at just the sight of him. He wore a pair of baggy sleep shorts and nothing else. Every time he saw Phoenix, love swelled inside him. It was so big that Shay half expected his chest to burst.

Phoenix looked up. “Hey.” His gaze swept Shay’s body. Heat flared in his expression. He focused on Shay’s face again. “I realized when I got to my room that we hadn’t discussed where we would hang and sleep or whatnot. But I figured you were more settled than I am and it’d be easier for me to stay here.”

Hope soared inside Shay. He joined Phoenix in bed. “I hope this staying you’re referring to is meant to be permanent.” Wow. Shay hadn’t made it five minutes without rushing Phoenix.

Phoenix’s forehead furrowed. “You said we’re getting married. That’s pretty damn permanent.”

Shay kissed him. It was meant to be a sweet kiss, but he couldn’t stop himself from seeking Phoenix’s tongue. He had spent too many years longing to do exactly this. Shay couldn’t stop. Phoenix pushed until he had Shay on his back. He straddled Shay and went right back to kissing him. Their thin sleep shorts hid nothing. They might as well have been nude. That was a good idea.

Shay pushed Phoenix’s shorts down his hips. “I want these. Give them to me.”

Phoenix chuckled. He tried to reclaim Shay’s mouth.

Shay refused. “I’m serious. They match my eyes. Let me have them.”

Phoenix sat back on his heels and stared down at Shay, smiling. “You haven’t been anywhere to buy lube yet.”

Shay growled and flipped Phoenix beneath him. “I don’t need that bullshit to make you feel good.” After last night, Shay had several ideas he wanted to try that had nothing to do with penetration. “But,” Shay said, dragging out the word. “Delivery services to the rescue. I ordered some this morning, and it was delivered while we were at the beach.”

Phoenix pressed his lips together as if fighting back a smile or laughter.

“What?” He always confused Shay.

A giggle escaped Phoenix. His face turned red. “I immediately pictured Yaro getting stuck dropping lube at the door.”