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Grady had no idea why he found this man as attractive as he did. Why even now, he had to stop himself from leaning forward to kiss him. Why he was all Grady could think about. Why Gradyneededhim in a way that he didn’t want to acknowledge. Needing someone only led to heartbreak because eventually everyone left. His mother, even his father, though it hadn’t been his fault. Kyle. Mal. Grady gave out his heart, and no one ever kept it.
“See?” Lake said, smiling drunkenly at him.
“Mhmm.”
Lake stroked his fingers through Grady’s beard and then down to his chest, settling there. “You smell nice.”
His voice was still quiet, and Grady liked the way it sounded, with the silence of the night surrounding them. It was like a secret they were sharing.
“I showered today,” Grady said, chuckling. “It helps.”
“No,” Lake said, shaking his head lightly. “You smell like you, not soap.” He lazily caressed Grady’s chest with the tips of his fingers, not moving his hand. “Deep underneath. Where you hide.”
Grady took Lake’s hand and kissed his palm, resting his lips there for a long moment. He kept hold of it as he drifted asleep.
Lakeabsentlystirredhiscoffee with a spoon, the dull throb at the back of his head letting him know what anidiothe’d been the night before. Drinking that heavily on a Sunday night when he had work in the morning hadn’t been one of his brightest moves. He would have to tell his CO why he couldn’t fly that day and probably spend the rest of it knee-deep in paperwork because there was nothing else that he could do that wouldn’t just exacerbate the headache.
It wasn’t the first time he’d gone to work hungover, but it hadn’t happened since his early twenties, when he could bounce back a hell of a lot fucking easier. No one told him that he’d beoldat thirty-one.
“Good morning,” Grady murmured behind him. He kissed Lake on the cheek on his way past to get his own coffee.
Lake just grunted in response. His heart was in turmoil, and staring into his mug hadn’t held the answers he’d sought. Avery had been right; Lake needed to be up-front about how he felt because otherwise they were going to keep going on like this, and how could he expect Grady to give him what he needed if he didn’taskfor it?
Grady watched him over the rim of his mug as he took his first careful sip. “How are you feeling?”
“Like I drank a lot of vodka last night,” Lake said wryly. “You didn’t have to come over. I’m sorry I called you.”
Grady didn’t respond straightaway. He put his mug down and circled the bench, tugging Lake into his arms. “You canalwayscall me, and I’ll always come.”
Lake swallowed hard. He wished those words meant how they sounded. Did Grady even realise how he sounded?
Lake sighed as he pulled away. He needed a clear head for this, and whenever Grady was close to him, a clearanythingwas the last thing he had.
Grady frowned as Lake put distance between them. “What’s wrong?”
“What does that mean?” Lake asked.
“What does what mean?” Grady braced himself with one hand on the bench. The movement stretched his T-shirt across his broad chest. Lake knew he would need to go home to get changed into a suit for work. He loved Grady in a suit, but somehow this version was better. The laid-back, relaxed version of him where he was justhimself.
Lake forced himself to look up into Grady’s face. As if looking at his sexy-as-sin beard and those soulful olive eyes was any better for his train of thought.
“You say things like that, and you make me want so many things with you.”
Grady hesitated, the same haunted look in his eyes that always appeared whenever Lake brought anything up that had to do withfeelings. “Lake…”
“I hate that they hurt you, and I hate that they made you so wary of love. If you would justtrustme, I would take care of it, Grady.”
Grady closed his eyes and let out a shuddering breath. “What do you want from me?”
“I don’t think that I’m being vague here. I wanteverythingfrom you. I want to be able to introduce you to people as my boyfriend. I want to take you home and introduce you to my parents.”
Grady blanched. “C’mon Lake, be serious.”
“Iambeing serious!” He wasn’t going to let Grady keep ignoring what was right in front of both of them. If Grady was going to treat him like a boyfriend, the least he could do was use the title. Acknowledge the depth of what they had. Those men had hurt Grady, but Lake had never given him a reason not to trust him. And he planned on never giving him a reason.
“Lake, up until a few weeks ago, you didn’t even know you liked men. I’m flattered, but—”
“I love you.”
