Lone Wolf Pack 03 - Expecting His Alpha's Child (6 page)

Before he could stop himself, he pinned Parker against the kitchen counter. "I know you said we can't do this with the kids around, but..."

Parker's breath caught and his erection nudged against Finn's leg. "Yes. I mean no. God... Tomorrow. Tomorrow, once I go back to my hotel. Okay?"

Finn nodded and stepped back. It would have probably been an impossible task for him, but he was well aware of his brother standing guard in the hallway outside the kitchen, possibly to prevent the kids from interrupting. Finn appreciated it, but when he claimed his mate, he wanted to be in private.

"Come on," he told Parker. "We should clean this place up."

For the first time, Parker seemed to realize the state of the kitchen. "Oh, my God. Your brother is going to be furious."

"Somehow, I doubt that."

Parker just watched him with a bemused smile as Finn retrieved a mop from the nearby closet. They worked together companionably, and somehow, that meant as much as their heated kisses and touches. It was a promise for more, and it made Finn hope that he could truly have his heart's desire.

When the kitchen was clean, they slumped down on the chairs to rest. "Thanks," Parker told him with a grin. "This was fun. I haven't had a water fight in ages, and it was never like this."

Finn arched a brow. "Oh?"

"I grew up in an orphanage," Parker told him. "When we played... Things could get mean. I was on the smaller side as a kid, and for a while, I was bullied a lot." He smiled, and the sorrowful memories seemed to have no effect on him. "But now, I'm happy."

Finn reached for his mate's hand, loving this generous, beautiful man more than ever before. "So am I."

They ended up talking for hours, and after Parker let go of his previous doubts, he found himself so comfortable with Finn he forgot about the conspicuous absence of his hosts. Gavin and the children reappeared after dinner, but everyone was obviously encouraging closeness between Parker and Finn, and for the most part they were given privacy.

It was, for lack of a better word, nice. Parker's previous attraction to Finn bloomed, but when he went to bed that day, he slept poorly because of the realization that he'd still have to leave soon.

The next day, Parker awoke feeling a mix of anxiety and excitement. As he abandoned his guest room, he ran into Kyle and Jack who seemed to have decided to reenact yesterday's game on their own. Shaking his head at their antics, he made his way to the kitchen, where most of the family was already waiting.

"Hi, Parker," Jessie greeted him. "Please, take a seat. Dad made breakfast."

Unsurprisingly, Parker was seated next to Finn, but he couldn't really mind the meddling of Finn's family. Still, he tried to remind himself that he needed to preserve at least a modicum of professionalism. "I'm going to have to impose on you for a lift to my hotel," he said. "I've already stayed too long."

"Of course
I can drive you," Finn quickly agreed.

Parker had been expecting that. After all, they'd spoken about it the day before. And maybe he should have been embarrassed about it, but the sexual tension had had been building between him and Finn went beyond any shame he could possibly feel.

Parker was many things, but he wasn't a coward. The situation might not be ideal. He was probably getting in too deep. Even so, he didn't think he could help himself.

He might have been able to stop it if it had been only about sexual attraction, but Finn wasn't just some hot guy looking for a good time. He was strong, yet kind, responsible, yet so passionate. He'd come to the aid of his brother-in-law's siblings so naturally. The time they'd spent together the day before something stir in Parker's heart.

That something might have been the cause of why he smiled and nodded. "Thank you," he told Finn. "I'd like that."

After breakfast, they said their goodbyes to the family, promising one more time that they would come visit again soon. Beyond that, they barely spoke to each other after Parker had agreed to go with Finn. The tension between them was almost palpable, so much so that Parker feared what he'd do if he even looked at Finn.

At last, they headed out to the car. Finn slid into the driver's seat, while Parker took shotgun. "Where are you staying?" Finn asked him.

His voice sounded husky, conjuring images that made the otherwise innocent inquiry seem like so much more. Parker shook himself and replied, "It's a smallish bed and breakfast called Amaretto."

"Amaretto?" Finn asked as he started the car. "You mean, like the drink?"

Parker shrugged. "I know, it sounds strange, but the guy who owns it... We're old friends."

They'd been more than that, of course. Jensen was the closest thing he'd had for a brother, at a time when brothers had been in short supply. He'd kept Parker going all throughout their stay at the orphanage. Even after Jensen had been adopted, he and Parker had remained in contact, so his small hotel was the natural choice for when he stayed here.

Finn must have noticed the affection in Parker's voice, because he narrowed his eyes. "Oh?"

That one syllable held a loaded question. Technically speaking, Parker didn't owe him any explanations. Perhaps he should have bristled at the reaction, but instead, he found it almost... endearing. Well, no, maybe endearing wasn't the right word. But it was a sign, a confirmation of what Parker had already sensed—that maybe Finn wanted more than a roll in the hay. If he felt threatened by Parker's old friend... That meant something, right? Or Parker could just be fooling himself. God, he didn't even know anymore.

Too late to go back now. He'd already told Finn bits and pieces of his past, and he had no regrets—and no qualms about saying more. "He and I grew up together in the orphanage," he explained. "The name of his hotel... It's really from this funny story. We were like thirteen years old or something, just brats really. We sneaked into the office of the head of the orphanage. She had a bottle of amaretto. We knew because we'd always see her taking sips, and it smelled sweet, like bitter chocolate—which I loved. So, we sneaked in there and got totally wasted. And between sips, we swore we'd always be friends, and that someday, we'd find futures elsewhere."

Finn's disgruntled expression settled into something sad, but fond. "Let me guess. You wanted to help other children like you. You and Gavin would probably make great friends. He worked as a guidance counselor for high school kids."

"Worked?" Parker repeated. He wasn't surprised to hear about Gavin's chosen profession, but for some reason, that word—or rather, its past tense—stood out. "Did he give it up because of his injury?"

"Temporarily," Finn replied, but his voice sounded tense, and Parker wondered if he'd said something he shouldn't have. "To be honest, I'm not sure if he plans to go back or not. What with the baby, and now his brothers..."

"That makes sense." Parker smiled, hoping to dissolve the sudden discomfort. "You know, I'm a little jealous. Your brother has a beautiful family."

This time, when Finn looked at him, there was no trace of that shadow that had briefly flitted over his face. "He does. Gavin makes him very happy, but you don't have to be jealous. You can have that too."

Parker froze. There was a reply on the tip of his tongue, something that sounded alarmingly like "with you?" But no, that made no sense, because he could not possibly be thinking about starting a family with some guy he'd just met. They had chemistry, yes, an irrationally intense one that could explode into something dangerous. But chemistry alone couldn't form the basis of a long-term relationship.

And yet, this thing between them was more than just chemistry. God, what had he gotten himself into?

He might have said or done something stupid, but Finn took pity on him. "I'm not sure where your friend's hotel is located. Can you direct me there?"

It was silly, but Parker took refuge in that and he focused on giving Finn directions instead of his own confusion. A little while later, they pulled into the parking lot of the bed and breakfast. Now that they didn't have the drive as an excuse, Parker suddenly didn't know what to do. Was he supposed to come out and say, "Hey, I like you, wanna fuck?" Or maybe a euphemism would work better. "Come up for coffee?" Did that even work when the invitation involved a hotel room?

"So... Um... This is me," he stammered in the end. "Thank you for the ride."

Finn smiled at him. "No problem."

Parker was just about to open the car door and beat a hasty retreat in the face of his own inadequacy, but then Finn gently cupped his cheek. "I really want to kiss you right now. Can I kiss you?"

Parker licked his dry lips and pushed back the part of him that still reeled away from the depth of what Finn made him feel. "I'd like that."

Finn pressed their mouths together, the kiss a gentle lip-lock that held both comfort and seduction. Parker's misgivings melted like they'd never been. He reached over and wrapped his arms around Finn's neck. When Finn pulled him past the stick shift and into his lap, Parker went eagerly, craving everything Finn had to offer, needing Finn more than he did his next breath.

To be fair, the kiss wasn't the most comfortable one possible. Finn was a big man, and the space in the car cramped. The wheel dug into Parker's spine, and he ended up hitting the car horn with his ass. Really, when movies depicted couples making out in cars, they probably had either really limber actors or ridiculously large vehicles.

Nonetheless, Parker didn't mind the discomfort. In fact, he'd have probably done something really stupid—such as asked Finn to fuck him right then and there—if a knock hadn't sounded on the car window.

Parker broke away from Finn so fast his head had an unfortunate meeting with the car ceiling. Underneath him, Finn went rigid, and Parker had a moment when he thought the man's eyes were glowing with anger. He must have hit his head harder than he'd realized.

Shaking himself, Parker faced the window, and was unsurprised to see Jensen standing there, arms crossed over his chest, a shit-eating grin on his face. Parker mentally sighed, already anticipating the merciless teasing he'd suffer for this little incident.

Deciding things wouldn't get any better if he hid here with Finn like he actually wanted, Parker opened the car door and managed to slide—or stumble—out. "Hey, Jensen," he greeted his friend.

"And hello to you too," Jensen replied. "You know, when you said you were dropping by, you didn't mention you'll be bringing a boyfriend. Who's the beefcake?"

As he spoke, Jensen wrapped his arms around Parker's shoulders. The beefcake in question was out of the car so fast Parker's head started spinning. Somehow, he managed to extricate Parker from Jensen's hold, although for the life of him, Parker couldn't have said what method he used. He just knew that suddenly, he was flush against Finn's muscular chest instead of in his friend's embrace.

"I'm Finn Simmons," his unexpected captor introduced himself, "Parker's boyfriend. It's a pleasure to meet someone so close to him."

Parker's mind was fixed somewhere around the point of Finn identifying himself as his boyfriend. When the hell had that happened? Finn definitely hadn't consulted him about it, and hell, it shouldn't make Parker feel warm inside like it did. Annoyance. Yes, annoyance, that was it. He should be focusing on annoyance, because he was already falling hard and fast for this man. He didn't need to act even more idiotic about it.

He freed himself from Finn's hold, although the moment he did so, a feeling of loss invaded his chest. It was harder than it should have been to focus on Jensen, but he tried to do it anyway. "Finn was just giving me a lift here. Sorry about the... thing."

He couldn't define it any more accurately than 'thing'. It was embarrassing anyway that his friend had caught him with his proverbial pants down, making out like a horny teenager with a man he'd met a few days ago.

At the last moment, he remembered he hadn't officially introduced Jensen to Finn. "Oh, and Finn, this is my good friend, Jensen Moore."

Finn didn't reply, and Jensen seemed to figure out something was wrong, because his grin faded into a more sedate expression. He shot Finn a skeptical, almost suspicious look, and then shrugged. "Let's go inside," he told Parker. "You can unpack, maybe get some rest if you feel like it."

Parker dared to steal a look at Finn, which was probably a mistake, because the look on Finn's face made his heart race and his mouth go dry. God, Parker wanted him, more than he ever remembered wanting anything or anyone. That scared him. It was a recipe for disaster. Finn might be a good man, but his life was here, with his brother, and their beautiful family—a family to which Parker didn't belong, no matter how much he'd have liked to.

There was a struggle in Finn's gray eyes, making them look stormy, almost surreal. "I... I was wondering if we could talk."

He sounded... hesitant? Parker wasn't sure, because none of the emotions displayed on Finn's face could be easily identified. He realized he was playing hot and cold, which felt immature and more than a little ridiculous.

After all the sexual tension that had been building between them, Parker owed Finn at least one conversation. He'd promised it to Finn, two times now. Even if they didn't take this any further, Parker had to make it clear, since at the end of the day, he still respected and liked the man.

So Parker smiled at Finn and nodded. "Come on. We can have a chat in my room."

Finn's nostrils flared at the word 'come' and Parker belatedly realized he should have offered for them to speak at the bar if he hadn't wanted to pursue anything intimate. Too late now. Withdrawing the offer would only make things awkward, and well... A part of Parker—an uncomfortably large part—didn't want to withdraw it.

Jensen accurately read the tension between Parker and Finn as he slid a key into Parker's palm, and then discreetly took his leave. Parker had no doubt that his friend would later ambush him with questions and reprimands, but for the moment, he respected Parker's choice.