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He shifted restlessly, then stilled when Colin murmured beside him. He waited until Colin’s breathing had settled once again into the deep rhythm of sleep, then slipped out of bed. He stepped into the bathroom, shutting the door silently behind him, then turned on the light and stared into the mirror.
His reflection stared back at him, scruffy and familiar but for the haunted look in his eyes. He’d yearned for so long to be able to love Colin and be loved back, and while it felt as though his most cherished wish was coming true, it also felt fragile. He was afraid to trust it, the fear tangling with the nerves in his belly and wreaking havoc on his equilibrium.
He wanted this so much, years of desperate longing built up inside him, that he almost didn’t know what to do with it. All he could do was take what Colin was willing to give, give him time and space to figure out what he wanted, and hope that at the end of the day, it would be the same thing Evan wanted.
A lifetime.
He turned away from the mirror with a sigh and turned off the light. When he slid silently back into bed Colin turned, reaching out and draping his arm across Evan’s chest.
Evan closed his eyes and tried to be content with the knowledge that in sleep, when his defenses were down and there was no room for subterfuge, Colin reached for him.
10
Colin crunched his way up the walk to Tuck and Esme’s front porch, a bag slung over his shoulder. “We’re late.”
“Five minutes.” Evan resisted the urge to roll his eyes. “I think they’ll forgive us. And you’re the one who decided we needed to go out of our way for the fancy orange juice.”
“Fresh pressed tastes better,” Colin insisted, a refrain Evan had heard half a dozen times in the last hour, and climbed the porch steps. “You can’t make mimosas with orange juice from concentrate.”
He saidconcentrate, but clearly meantdog shit. Evan cleared the laugh from his throat. “Is there a mimosa police I don’t know about?”
“Yes.” Colin pressed the bell. “Me. What are you grinning at?”
“You. You’re so fucking cute.”
A blush rose to Colin’s cheeks, and he reached up to adjust his glasses. “I don’t know how to respond to that.”
Delighted with him, Evan wrapped a hand around the back of his neck. “Here, I’ll show you.”
Colin’s lips were cool, thanks to the frigid December morning, but they warmed quickly under Evan’s. He’d intended to keep the kiss light, because they were standing on their friends’ front porch and it was freezing and even Evan wasn’t reckless enough to try to bone under such circumstances. But Colin’s lips parted on a deep rumble of surprise and pleasure, and Evan remembered what they’d been doing the last time he heard that sound, and suddenly it didn’t seem too cold. And the porch had a solid brick wall surrounding it, so if they scooted over a few feet and laid down, well, it’s not like they’d be visible from the street.
“We can’t do this here,” Colin groaned, even as his hands slid beneath Evan’s shirt. He wore gloves, the fine grain leather smooth and cold. Evan hissed out a breath when they made contact with his bare skin, then swallowed a groan of his own when Colin pressed closer.
“Jesus.” He lifted his head. “Are you hard already?”
“I can’t help it.” Colin licked his lips, his eyes wide behind fogged-up lenses. “My dick really likes it when you kiss me.”
Caught between laughter and lust, Evan rested his forehead against Colin’s. “Brunch, remember?”
“You started it,” Colin accused with a faint smile that did nothing to cool the fire in Evan’s blood.
“And I’ll finish it,” Evan promised. “Just maybe not on the porch.”
“I appreciate that,” a low voice drawled, and Evan jerked around to find Tuck and Esme framed in the open doorway. Esme was beaming, and Tuck was smirking through the forest of his ginger beard. “We don’t want the neighbors to know we’re friends with a couple of perverts.”
Evan returned the smirk with a sneer. He’d felt Colin’s jerk of surprise, the instinctive step backward. Though it opened up that wound under his heart a little more, he let him go. “If your neighbors don’t like perverts, we’re the least of your problems.”
Tuck opened his mouth to respond, then grunted when his wife slapped her fist into his belly. “Shut up, Tuck. Ignore him,” she instructed them, leaning over to kiss first Evan, then Colin in welcome. “He has no romance in his soul.”
“That’s not true,” Tuck protested. “I romanced you twice last night, and once in the shower this morning.”
Esme just rolled her eyes. “Come on inside, guys. Spence is already here.”
Evan followed Colin inside, grateful to leave the cold behind, and shucked off his coat. “Here,” he said and tossed it to Tuck. “Be useful.”
Tuck fielded it easily and grinned. “Sure you don’t want to hang onto it? You can hold it in your lap.”
Well aware that the episode on the porch had temporarily changed the fit of his jeans, Evan just laughed. “What for? Everyone here has seen my boner before.”
