Granted, since they were working together, they’d find other things to chat about, but Ethan didn’t think they’d ever have an issue with finding something.
“How about you? You go to the gym?”
Beau nodded, chewing before speaking. “Yeah. Forced myself to leave. Trying to make up for the last couple of days I missed.”
“Are you trying to tell me I’m not giving you enough of a workout? If that’s the case, I’ll have to double my efforts.”
Ethan remembered the last encounter less than an hour before and he was suddenly looking forward to a replay. Immediately.
“Well, in that case, no, you’re not working me nearly hard enough.” Beau’s brown eyes glittered with humor and desire.
Ethan set his beer on the counter and moved around to stand behind Beau. Placing his hands on Beau’s bulky shoulders, he dug his fingers in and his dick rose to the occasion when Beau groaned.
“Feel good?”
“You have no idea,” Beau grumbled, his head falling forward on his shoulders.
Ethan stared at Beau’s neck. His hair was a little long, just the right length in Ethan’s opinion because he loved driving his fingers into all of that blond silk and holding him close. He massaged Beau’s shoulders then up to his neck and back down until he couldn’t resist the urge to lean in and press his lips against Beau’s strong neck.
Beau groaned, louder this time, his hand coming back behind him to clasp onto Ethan’s thigh. The physical contact was such a rush, the way Beau always touched him back as though being close to him was as important to him as it was to Ethan.
“You taste good,” Ethan mumbled against his skin, using his tongue to lick softly, sliding up to Beau’s ear. “I plan to taste the rest of you later.”
“I’ll hold you to that,” Beau said gruffly.
Before they could get carried away, the timer on the oven dinged and in answer, Beau’s stomach growled loudly making Ethan laugh.
“I think I’m gonna have to feed you more,” Ethan said absently.
“Wow. A promise of more food and more sex all in one night. I’m pretty sure it’s not my birthday.”
Ethan laughed, feeling unusually light for the first time in a long time.
Chapter Thirty Eight
The following Tuesday afternoon, Beau found himself at the gym. The workload that day had been lighter than usual and he’d snuck out early so he could attempt to get a couple of hours in. Ethan had kissed him firmly and sent him on his way, insisting he had something to finish up, but refusing to let Beau help.
So when his phone rang and he noticed it was Ethan’s cell phone, he answered quickly. “Where are you?” Beau asked by way of a greeting.
“I’ve got an errand to run. You still at the gym?” Ethan responded.
“Yeah.”
“I’ll be gone for an hour or so, but when I get home I’ll make dinner.”
Beau’s heart did that strange twisting thing he’d been getting familiar with for the last few days. Home. He loved the sound of that. And since he’d practically moved in with Ethan over the course of the last week, hearing it still made him smile.
“I’ll probably be here for another hour,” Beau said, grabbing his towel and swiping it across his forehead.
“See you at home then.”
With that, Beau hung up the phone and glanced around the gym. No one was there except for him. Not even the owner who tended to hang out in the evening. That was one of the reasons Beau enjoyed working out at that time of day. He figured most people were heading home for dinner which gave him some time to himself.
Too bad he was having a hard time focusing on what he was supposed to be doing.
Glancing down at the phone he was still holding, Beau looked back up at the reflection in the mirror. For the last several days, he’d been contemplating making that one phone call. The one that would give him closure, one way or the other. He didn’t bank on the outcome being a good one, but he knew it was inevitable.
Grabbing hold of the courage before it eluded him yet again, Beau dialed the number he knew by heart.
“Hello?”
Beau closed his eyes at the sound of his mother’s voice. At least he wouldn’t have to deal with his father right off.
“Mom,” he replied.
“Beau,” she answered, sounding oddly happy to hear from him. Or maybe that was just what Beau wanted to hear.
“You mind if I stop by in a bit?”
“For what?”
Now that was what he expected from his mother. They acted as though it wasn’t normal for him just to want to stop by and say hello. Another reason he’d stopped doing so over the years. It made him uncomfortable, and it was bad enough that he already felt like an outsider by his own family.