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Fox glanced up at him with lava-gray eyes, the silvery brilliance causing Bull’s breath to hitch. There was so much in Fox’s haunted gaze that he couldn’t keep track of every emotion he saw, but the most prevalent of them all… was pain.
“What’s the matter?” Bull whispered.
Fox stared up at him, and Bull’s heart began to race as he cupped both of his reddened cheeks. In all of the haste and excitement, he realized that Fox had rushed out of the house without having time to put on a coat or hat, and he was beginning to tremble as the adrenaline of the mission drained away. Bull recognized all of it, but fuck, he didn’t know what to do to fix it.
Fox didn’t have a chance to say anything before Dale and Rid were standing beside him, Dale staring in the same manner as Bull, but Rid didn’t pick up on the somber vibe.
He motioned excitedly with his hands. “Man. That was awesome! I mean the way you made the lights shut off and then how you snuck out the door. Wow. You are freaking amaz—”
Bull ground his molars, and Dale was quick to jump in. “Yo.” His foreman gripped Rid by his bicep and hauled him closer until their faces were inches apart. “I thought you said you’d show me what a dorm room looks like.”
Rid smiled slow and sexy. “Oh yeah.”
Dale turned to Bull, giving him a look of concern before he led a still-tipsy Rid away, giving them the privacy they needed. Bull had no doubt Dale would want full details in the morning about what happened since neither of them had ever seen Fox appear so shaken.
“Come on, let’s go inside.” Bull kept Fox close to his side as they went into the house. It only took Amelia a momma-bear’s second to rush up to Fox and began to check him over.
“Amelia, Amelia.” His dad stopped her fawning. “Enough of that.”
“What’s wrong? Something’s wrong,” she huffed.
Bull gazed down at Fox and saw he was barely paying them attention as he stared at the top of the stairs as if something were up there waiting for him.
“I thought you said it was Robby, Bull?” Amelia asked him, appearing just as confused as all of them. “I know that boy’s mother. He’s a sniveling little man-child. No match for you. What could he possibly do to…”
“You all right, son?” Pop asked, touching Fox’s shoulder. “You look like you seen a ghost out there.”
When Fox jumped, they each took some sort of audible breath as Bull gazed at his father, needing help. What do I do? He could feel where Fox’s body had gone tight, his neck and shoulder appearing tense, his pretty gray eyes unseeing.
“I’m sorry.” Fox shook his head, sounding broken. “I’m fine, really. Robby is fine—he was fixing the fence. It’s no prob—” Fox frowned, his lips still parted as if he’d lost his train of thought in the middle of speaking it. “I, um…”
“Mandel.” Bull tried to hug him, because that was how they let the other know they were good; they could feel each other through their embrace. But Fox slipped out of his hold and headed towards the stairs.
“It’s been a long day. I’ll see you all in the morning. Good night,” Fox said robotically, already at the top of the stairs.
Bull stood there a long moment until his father shook him out of his fog. “Bull, go be with him.”
“What the hell happened?”
“I don’t know. But I’m sure he’ll tell you when he’s ready.”
“Or you can just ask him so we’ll know what is actually going on,” Amelia argued.
Bull pinched the throb in the center of his forehead.
“Son, the good lord gave you the blessing of being attracted to men. And that means not having to discuss your darn feelings every time you get upset,” his father said, causing Amelia to glare at him. “Let Fox tell you when he’s ready. For now, all you gotta do is just be there.”
Bull nodded. That seemed like something he could manage because he didn’t know what to say or do. After his family had gone to bed, he made sure his house was locked up and all lights were off. When he got upstairs, he heard the shower running in the hall bathroom. He stood at the door a moment, contemplating if he should try to join him or wait for Fox in the bedroom.
Deciding he wasn’t waiting, Bull stepped into the already steaming room, quietly closing the door behind him. Fox had his back to him as he leaned against the ivory-tiled wall with his forehead against his arm. Fuck. Bull’s nerves kicked in as he removed his clothes, but he stepped into the large shower and slowly wrapped his arms around the man he’d come to care for more than any other. Comparing him to his ex-fiancé was like comparing a lamb to a wolf. It wasn’t even fair.
