Authors: E. M. Leya
Evan used his fork to cut through it and rolled the cheese around his fork to keep it from dropping on the table. "Yeah, but we don't talk much. They don't agree with my lifestyle."
"That can't be easy."
"It's been that way so long now that I don't even think about it." Evan took a bite of the lasagna. "This is really good." He spoke with his mouth still half full.
Travis agreed with a nod. "Better than I thought it would be. I tend to over salt things."
"I would never notice. I have my own salt addiction."
Travis watched Evan, taking in the brown eyes that stared back at him as he thought about how much they had in common despite coming from such different backgrounds. He reached across the table, seeking Evan's hand. "I'm glad you’re here. I know the circumstances that brought us together might not be the best, but I can't help feeling grateful that God brought you here. I haven't even thought about dating in a long while, and then suddenly you appear out of nowhere. I think you were sent to help me through all this, just as much as to help Jason."
Evan smiled as he linked his hand with Travis's. "I have struggled so much with what this is between us. I don't want to hurt Jason more if we start dating and it doesn't work out."
Travis frowned. "He does like you. I like you. I don't want to think that it couldn't work."
Evan pulled his hand back and reached for his wine. "But we did just meet. Nothing is guaranteed. It's always good at first." He took a long drink, watching Travis over the rim of the glass.
"True. And maybe it's just been so long since I met anyone I was interested in, that I have my hopes up. Still, it's worth all the risk to me to find out. But you're right about Jason. I don't want him hurt any more than he has been. I don't see a way to keep him from becoming more attached to you though."
"Me neither. Just something we need to be aware of and watch." Evan stabbed a piece of lettuce with his fork. "It's strange coming over with Jason here. So many cases I work the parents try to keep the kids away from me. Maybe they're afraid what will be said or what I might see, but here, you never once hesitated to have Jason around me."
Travis grinned. "Want me to warn him off you? Make you more at home?"
"No." Evan laughed. "I would never wish that. I enjoy it. He's a good kid."
"My sister did a great job with him."
"That she did."
Travis set his fork down. "Are most your cases rough ones?"
"Unfortunately. I'm handling two others right now alongside yours. One the child is being held in protective care while I investigate the family. I don't think he will be allowed to go back. The father tried to attack me the other day in anger. If he will go after me, I have no doubt that he will go after his child."
Travis sat up straight. "He went after you? Did he hurt you?"
"No. I was able to leave the house and get the police there before he got to that point. He hit the wall beside my head in anger and I turned for the door."
"Evan, you can't put yourself at risk like that." Travis didn't like the thought that Evan might be hurt. "How can they send you to places where you might be in danger?"
"We never know until we get there." Evan sighed. "It's part of the job. Like I said, it's a nice break to come here. Sadly most the cases I handle aren't custody cases but abuse."
Travis frowned. He didn't want to think about the things Evan must see. "Why do you do this? It has to eat at you seeing so many bad things."
"I like to think I'm helping save a child. Most the time I think I do." Evan finished off his wine. "If I can keep one child from danger, it's worth it all."
Travis's admiration for Evan grew. He didn't know if he would have the emotional patience to deal with what Evan did. "You want more?" He nodded to the lasagna.
"No, that was more than enough. Thank you for that."
"My pleasure. Now would you like a movie, a horseback ride, a walk or something else?" Travis stood and took both plates to the sink, leaving them to wash later.
Evan stood and came up behind Travis and wrapped his arms around him from behind, pulling Travis back against his chest. "Can we go for a walk and then come back for a movie?"
Travis relaxed in Evan's arms, bringing his own arms up over Evan's. He closed his eyes, enjoying the feel of Evan's breath against his neck. "We can do both." He slowly turned in his arms, wrapping his arms around Evan's waist. He dipped his head and brushed his mouth over Evan's jaw. "You ready to go?"
Evan tightened his arms around Travis and nodded as he turned his head, catching Travis's mouth with his own, speaking against his lips. "Just one kiss first."
Travis was more than happy with that answer as his lips moved over Evan's, and he lost himself in the taste and feel of the man in his arms. He stepped back until he felt the counter behind him, forcing his hips forward and groaned as Evan pressed against him.
Travis brushed his fingers up through Evan's hair as he bent his head back and the kiss grew stronger. Evan's thigh pressed between his legs. He groaned as he felt his hardness against his thigh, swaying his own hips to try and rub his own growing arousal against it.
Evan licked at his lips and then moved down to run his mouth over Travis's jaw. They were both breathing heavy as Travis pulled Evan's shirt from where it was tucked at his waist and slid his hand up under it and over his back.
They needed to stop or this would quickly go somewhere they didn't need this to go right now. Just a bit more, just a few more minutes, he thought as Evan's teeth nipped at his earlobe. He bent his head and ran his tongue over his shoulder and sucked softly against the skin as he gently scratched his fingers down his back.
"Can't… Need to stop." Evan pulled back slightly as he stared up at Travis with a heated gaze.
"I know." Travis sighed, moving his hands to Evan's hips. "Not on the first date, right?" He grinned playfully.
"Wouldn't want you to think I'm easy." Evan relaxed forward, hugging Travis tightly.
"Never. I would never think you easy. But I agree we need to wait. I don't want to take this to the next level…" He shook his head. "Okay, I want to, but it's best we get the rest of this stuff over with before we seal the deal."
"Exactly. When we do, and I have no doubt we will, I want to be able to say we are a couple. I don't want Jason seeing me spend the night and risk ruining the case either. And if we go that far right now, we both know we won't be able to hold back next time when Jason is home, and how do we explain why I am here at breakfast." Evan stepped back. "Fresh air should help us clear our heads." He held out his hand. "Walk?"
Travis took his hand. "Waiting is going to kill me."
"But I promise it will be worth the wait." Evan tugged him out the door.
Travis hefted two large bags of grain from the back of his pick-up and piled them on the stack of other bags. He watched Jason in the distance chasing one of the cats around the back of the barn. He smiled. It was just over a month now since Jason had come to stay with him. It was easy to forget he hadn't always been here.
The thought brought a still raw ache to his chest as he thought about his sister. He missed her more now than he had when she first had died. They said time healed all wounds, but he was finding it to be more painful the longer he went on without her. He hoped the pain would soon ease and he could look back on his memories and smile.
He wiped the sweat from his brow with the back of his hand, and reached for the water bottle that sat on the side of his truck bed. Taking a long swallow he checked his watch. He needed to get dinner started soon. He'd promised Jason they could have breakfast for dinner tonight and he had to admit that waffles sounded really good.
The sound of an approaching car had him peering down the drive to see Evan's small car throwing up a trail of dust as he made his way to the house.
He smiled as he dusted off his hands and shut the tailgate. He hadn't planned on seeing him tonight. Even though the two of them spent several evenings a week together, tonight they hadn't planned anything.
As Evan parked, Travis made his way to the car to greet him. "Hey, didn't plan on seeing you." He welcomed the way Evan stepped into his arms as soon as he was out of the car for a strong hug and a quick kiss.
"I needed to talk to you about something." Evan stepped back frowning. "I was called —"
"Evan!" Jason raced across the yard and jumped into Evan's arms.
Evan picked him up and held him. "Hey, you. What kind of trouble you getting into today?"
"No trouble. Was trying to catch the old mean cat, but he got away."
"You mean that big tabby?" Evan shifted Jason to his hip.
"What does tabby mean?" Jason tilted his head slightly.
"Tabby means that brownish-gray striped cat."
"Yep, that's the one. He ran under the fence where I'm not allowed to go." Jason sighed.
"Well, maybe you'll catch him next time." Evan glanced over at Travis and gave him an uneasy smile.
"You want to stay for dinner?" Travis asked, seeing the tension in Evan's eyes.
"We're having waffles," Jason informed him.
"Mmm, that sounds good." He nodded to Travis. "I'll stay."
"Yay. See, Uncle Trav, we have to have bacon, too. Evan likes it." Jason squirmed to get down.
Evan set him down and smiled. "Yeah Travis, we have to have bacon."
Travis stepped close, tossing his arm around Evan's shoulder. "Fine, you two win. We can have bacon, but you both have to help me cook."
"Deal." Jason jumped up and down, excited.
"Why don't you go wash up and meet us back in the kitchen. Make sure you use soap." Travis traced his fingertips over Evan's shoulder as Jason ran for the house.
"You okay?" Travis turned to face him.
"No." Evan brushed his hand over his face. "They know."
"Who knows what?"
"My boss called me in to his office today. They know about us." Evan sighed.
Travis's heart skipped. He was worried about the case, but he was more worried about Evan. "You lost your job?"
"I received a warning and was taken off your case, but since we go to court in two days, they are taking most of my recommendations into consideration, but also informing the judge of the conflict of interest." Evan looked miserable. "I'm so sorry."
Travis drew Evan against his chest. "You have nothing to be sorry about. We knew this could happen and we chose to take that risk." He met Evan's stare. "Are you okay?"
"Yeah, just feel horrible. If you lose Jason…" He pulled away, taking several steps back.
"Evan, you did all you could. The fact that they are still allowing your recommendation at all is huge. I don't blame you at all. We both made the choice to be together. How did they find out?" Travis braced a hip against Evan's car.
"They had a picture of us here on the ranch. Someone had to be spying on us."
"What?" Travis pushed away from the car. "Who?" He thought about his ranch hands, but couldn't imagine any of them reporting them. "We were so careful when we were out. No one was around."
"It was taken that day we went for a walk. It shows us holding hands as we walk past the barn."
Travis stared at him in shock. "There's no way. We would have seen someone. That was the day I sent everyone home early." Travis rubbed his fingers over his short hair.
"I don't know how they got it. I walked into work this morning and was about to head out on another case when they called me in."
"You two coming?" Jason yelled from the front door.
"We'll be right there." Travis called back. "Feed Flossie while you wait."
"You want me to go?" Evan shoved his hands in his pockets.
"No. Why would you think that?" Travis reached for him and pulled him close. "Do you think everything we have shared the last few weeks is only because of this case? Do you think I would risk Jason for just some fling I was willing to let go so easily?" He grasped Evan's shoulders. "I told you when we started this, no matter what happened I wanted this."
"I just feel so bad." Evan sighed. "If this causes you to lose Jason, I will never forgive myself."
"Hey, stop. You didn't do this alone. I was more than willing take things personal between us. You are not to blame for this. I trust God to handle this. I don't think He would put Jason in a place he wouldn't be happy. We have to trust God to do His thing. If that means Jason goes to the Steeles, then so be it. I might not like it, and it might kill me to have him go, but I never for one minute would change anything that you and I have shared over the last month."
"Uncle Travis…" Jason called again.
"We better go get dinner made. We can talk about this all later." Travis took Evan's hand. "What's done is done. It can't be changed. No point in us worrying about it."
As they made their way to the house, Evan looked around them. "I just wish they had told me how they got the photo."
"Me, too." Travis smiled, seeing Jason in the kitchen with the eggs and milk sitting on the counter.
"I got things out for you." Jason looked at them proud.
"Good work." Travis ruffled his hair. "You wash your hands?"
"Yep."
"Okay then, grab your stool and let's get this done."
"Can I make them colored?" Jason asked.
"Colored?" Travis looked at him confused as he pulled out a large bowl and then reached for the waffle iron.
"My mom used to make me green ones."
Travis looked at Evan, hoping he would know what Jason meant.
Evan shrugged, looking as lost as Travis was.
"How did she do that?" Travis pulled a measuring cup from the cupboard.
"She would put color in it. Little bottles of paint."
"Food coloring." Evan grinned.
"Ah, I don't know if I have any," Travis handed Jason a spoon. "I promise, next time we go to the store, we can get some."
They spent the next hour cooking and eating. Evan sat quiet most the meal, only really talking when someone spoke to him. Travis hated that Evan felt responsible for this.