Unfortunate Son (27 page)

Evan appreciated the offer, but he shook his head. “Thanks, Dad, but I already have a place to stay.”

He glanced at Riley, who smiled at him. “Yes, I told Evan I’m happy to keep an eye on him for a few days.” He turned that smile on his parents, and Evan could almost see them melt under the onslaught. “I’ll take good care of him, Mr. and Mrs. Day. I promise.”

Charles turned his head to look at his wife, who lifted her chin, silently urging him on. He looked back at Riley. “It looks like you’re going to be a part of our son’s life,” he said, his words slow but firm. “Please, call us Charles and Gwen.”

Evan blinked in surprise. That was much more than he’d expected from his parents. Welcoming Evan back, working on rebuilding their relationship—that had been hard enough to accept. But to have them welcome Riley as well? Evan didn’t know what to say.

Except…. “Thanks, Dad.” The words came out in a whisper, but they filled the room like a roar.

Riley laid a hand on Evan’s shoulder, and Evan shivered, suddenly cold. Riley squeezed lightly. “Maybe we should go,” he told Charles. “I think our patients both need to get a little more rest.”

Evan almost protested, but his body was starting to throb again, and the idea of a nap sounded like heaven. He nodded and stood, Charles following suit a second later.

Evan stepped over and bent carefully to kiss his mother’s cheek. “Feel better,” he said, and she lifted a hand to squeeze his arm.

“I love you, my darling,” she murmured back, and Evan had to force himself to pull away.

“Mr.—I mean, Charles.” Riley held out his hand, and Charles didn’t hesitate before shaking it. Riley turned to Gwen. “Gwen, I hope you’ll recover quickly. Please feel free to call if you need anything at all.”

She gave him a shadow of her usual smile. “I will. Take care of Evan for us.”

“I will.” Riley turned to Evan, who stood looking at his dad.

“Riley,” he said, “could you give me a minute?”

He turned to Riley. Riley’s gaze searched Evan’s, and after a long moment, he gave a small smile and nodded. “I’ll wait in the car.”

“Thank you.” Evan squeezed Riley’s hand and then let go, and Riley went outside, pulling the door closed behind himself. Evan took in a deep breath and blew it out.

“Evan—”

“Yes,” Evan interrupted. “Yes, I’ll take the money. Yes, I’ll use it to pay for college first. And yes, I’ll give you both another chance. I can’t make any long-term promises, but I….” He trailed off and had to swallow to be able to go on. “I want my family back.”

Despite his best efforts, his voice broke and tears filled his eyes. He bit his lip to try to get himself under control, but in another moment, his father pulled him into a hug.

“It’s okay, son.” Charles’s usually deep, booming voice sounded like a shadow of itself. “We’ll figure it out, okay?”

Evan nodded, wrapped his uninjured arm around his father’s waist, and took the comfort being offered. In that moment, he felt like the young boy he’d once been, the one who’d idolized his older brother and adored his father, the man who’d taught him to throw a baseball and catch a fish and taken him camping and to Disney World. The memories flooded back, buried so long beneath pain and anger, and he shook as they flowed through his mind.

He’d lost so much, but he was getting so much of it back again.

A choked sob came from somewhere nearby, and Evan forced himself to pull back far enough to look at his mom. She was crying openly, and Evan slid away from his father’s embrace and took the few steps to the side of the sofa. He dropped gingerly to his knees and reached for her, drawing her into a gentle but heartfelt hug, mindful of both her injuries and his own.

Eventually, they collected themselves, and Evan gave her another lingering kiss on the cheek before he pushed carefully to his feet. Once he was standing, his father stepped in front of him, looked him in the eye, and held out a hand to shake. “I’m proud of you, son.”

Evan copied his father’s posture and accepted his hand. “Thank you, sir.”

They held their positions for a long moment before Evan released Charles’s hand and took a half step back. “I’ll see you soon.”

Charles nodded. “We’ll look forward to it.”

As Evan walked down the sidewalk toward Riley’s car, he was happy to realize that he looked forward to it too. But what made him smile was seeing Riley leaning against the side of the car, watching him approach. Their gazes locked, and Evan flushed as he saw Riley’s eyes dilate. He didn’t stop until he was inches away, and without a pause he pulled Riley into a kiss.

Riley went willingly, opening his mouth to let Evan inside, wrapping his arms around Evan’s shoulders. Evan pressed Riley against the car, careful not to bump his injured arm, and rotated his hips against Riley’s. The reaction he felt made him smile into the kiss, and Riley’s lips curved up.

Evan pulled back and lifted an eyebrow. “Take me home?” he asked, knowing the answer.

Riley slid his hands down Evan’s arms, ghosting lightly over the cast, and tangled their fingers together. “Home,” he agreed.

R
ILEY
BARELY
paused to breathe on the drive back to his place. He talked about the job interview Mikey had just done, the design work he was doing for a friend, anything other than Evan’s hospital stay or the way his hand kept finding its way to Evan’s leg, each time another inch closer to his crotch. Evan sat back and let Riley’s lilting voice and gentle touch flow over him, warming him from the inside out.

Evan’s phone buzzed in his pocket just as Riley pulled into his parking place, and he pulled it out just long enough to see it wasn’t his parents and hit ignore. He didn’t really care who it was. That was why God gave him voice mail. He unfolded himself from the car to find Riley waiting for him, Evan’s duffel bag in his hand. Evan moved to Riley’s side and jumped when Riley squeezed his left buttcheek.

“I like these jeans,” he said, his voice as casual as his fingers weren’t. “They’ll go nicely with the rug on my bedroom floor.”

Jesus
. Riley had never been one to mince words about what he wanted, but with everything that had happened, Riley’s open display of want shot through Evan like a drug. He followed Riley inside like a puppy, and the second he’d locked the door of his loft, Riley grabbed Evan’s uninjured hand and led him down the hallway. Evan had hardly set foot into the bedroom before Riley pinned to the wall with his body.

“Get your clothes off,” he said against Evan’s lips. “I want to see it all before I get inside it.”

Riley kissed him then, hard, and it took a few seconds for Evan’s brain to catch up with Riley’s words. His body and cock jerked at the realization that he had Riley in top mode, ready to take charge and make things happen. Aches and pains forgotten, Evan and his cock were fully on board with that plan.

Riley started pushing at his clothes with one hand, and Evan reached out to still him while deepening their kiss. Riley made a sound of protest low in his throat but didn’t pull away, which Evan took as a victory. He wanted Riley to fuck him so much he could taste it, but first, he wanted to kiss.

He kissed Riley thoroughly, soft and hard, rough and gentle, bodies rubbing together until their cocks were stiff and their breathing ragged. Evan slid his hand into Riley’s hair, the curling strands smooth as silk against his skin. He shivered, the movement making his finger tighten, and Riley groaned into their kiss at the inadvertent but sharp tug.

Evan smiled against Riley’s mouth. “Like that, huh?” he murmured, giving another little pull. The length was perfect, just enough to get a good grip on, and the even louder moan Riley let out and the jerk of his cock against Evan’s thigh told the story without words.

In a flash, though, Riley turned the tables. He ducked away from Evan’s touch and grabbed Evan’s wrist to hold it against the wall. He didn’t touch Evan’s injured hand, but he pressed his full weight into Evan’s body, grinding against him, not giving an inch.

“Yeah, I like that,” he muttered, his usually soft voice gone raspy with arousal. “But I’m the one in charge tonight.”

A full-body shudder went through Evan, and he surrendered to Riley’s lead. Riley kissed him, touched him, undressed them both, and when Riley led him to the bed, Evan went to lie down, ready to take Riley’s weight on top of him despite the way his body still ached from his injuries.

“No.” Riley stopped him with a hand and climbed onto the mattress next to him. He lay back, propping his head up with several pillows. “I want to watch you ride me.”

And Evan did. Riley got him ready, helped him balance with his one good arm, and guided his cock to Evan’s hole, but once Evan had Riley inside, he let his body take over. Riley ran his hands down his legs, up to tweak his nipples, and Evan tilted his head down to meet Riley’s gaze. Riley’s lips curled in a wicked smile and he thrust his hips, holding Evan steady as he fucked up into him. Evan couldn’t look away from Riley’s eyes, gone dark with arousal and soft with emotion. A million unsaid words flowed between them. Time stretched out as if nothing else existed, holding them there together in a cloud of sensation, until Evan couldn’t stand it any longer and reached for his dick.

Riley got there first. “Come on,” he murmured, licking his lips as he tightened his fingers around Evan. “I want to feel you come on my cock.”

Evan moaned and rocked faster, his orgasm hovering just out of his reach. He leaned forward, still unwilling to look away from Riley’s face, and braced his good arm in the center of Riley’s slim chest.

“Riley,” he gasped. “Oh God.”

“Yeah.” Riley lightened his touch and focused in on the tip of Evan’s throbbing cock. “Yeahhhhh….”

Evan groaned and jerked, his body shuddering as his climax rushed through him. He shot hard, and Riley’s fingers loosened even more but didn’t move away. Evan shivered as the last vestiges of his orgasm slid over him, his skin flushing and goose bumps popping out everywhere.

When he opened his eyes—he didn’t remember closing them—Riley smiled up at him. “That was one of the hottest things I’ve ever seen,” he said, and Evan laughed roughly. He realized then that Riley was still hot and hard inside him and he tightened his inner muscles, watching as Riley’s eyes widened and a soft groan left his mouth.

“It’s your turn,” Evan said, rocking his hips, ignoring the twinges of overstimulation and the body aches that were making themselves known again despite the flood of endorphins. “Want to watch you like you watched me.”

Riley wrapped both hands around Evan’s hips. “It won’t take me long.”

Riley thrust up into Evan, and Evan tried to look everywhere at once, at the sweat-dampened curls across Riley’s forehead, the half-lidded eyes, the full red lips parted to let moans escape. Evan wanted to touch, wanted to run his fingers across Riley’s slim chest, twist and pluck his pink nipples, but more than that, he wanted to keep his balance so Riley could take what he needed.

More than anything, Evan wanted to see Riley come apart beneath him.

In just minutes, Riley’s mouth opened wider, the rhythm of his hips stuttered, and then he came, shouting, jerking so hard Evan was almost unseated. He grabbed Riley’s forearm with his good hand to steady them both, but he never looked away from Riley’s face, his youthful features darkly beautiful in the throes of pleasure.

Gorgeous
, Evan thought, and he smiled.

L
ATER
,
AFTER
they’d cleaned up and eaten a quick dinner so Evan could take his pain meds—Riley insisted, after their activities, and with the way he felt, Evan wasn’t about to argue
—
Riley drew Evan back into bed, but this time with nothing more than rest in mind.

“We have plenty of time for sex.” Riley plumped the pillows and straightened the covers, his movements as brisk as his words. “You just got out of the hospital. You need to rest.”

“Yes, dear.” Evan got the reaction he’d hoped for with that, a huffed-out breath and an eye roll, but he’d also seen the curl of a smile touch the corner of Riley’s mouth.

“Get in bed,” Riley ordered. “Or I’ll throw you in and hold you down.”

Evan laughed at the teasing words. “Promises, promises,” he shot back, stretching out on the mattress and feeling his body start to relax immediately. He sighed. “God, it feels like a year since I’ve slept in a real bed.”

Riley slid in beside him and curled in close. “Hospitals do seem to be designed to keep you from getting any rest.”

Evan rolled onto his side and wrapped an arm around Riley’s waist, tugging him even closer. “They’re trying to get you out the door fast. They don’t want you to get too comfortable.”

Riley brushed his nose against Evan’s. “Well, my goal is the exact opposite. You just settle in and stay a while, okay?”

Evan smiled and kissed Riley, deep and sweet. “There’s no place I’d rather be.”

Wayward Son

by Shae Connor

Book Two in the Sons series

Family isn't just about blood—it's about heart.

After his move to Atlanta and away from the influence of his conservative parents, Mikey O’Malley finally feels free to be himself: art student, aspiring animator, and out gay man. He has friends, a new job, and not one, but two men interested in him. Cory Lassiter and Jimmy Black have been a happy couple for years, occasionally bringing a twink into their bed, but only for a brief roll in the hay. When Mikey meets the pair, the attraction is immediate, and it runs three ways. Mikey just can’t believe they’d have room in their lives for a permanent addition.