Total pages in book: 82
Estimated words: 77980 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 390(@200wpm)___ 312(@250wpm)___ 260(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 77980 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 390(@200wpm)___ 312(@250wpm)___ 260(@300wpm)
When his phone rang on the nightstand, August rolled over to grab it, seeing Reese’s name on the screen.
“It’s okay. I’m awake,” Clint said, reading his mind. August hadn’t wanted it to wake him. “I was just relaxing here and letting you watch me.”
“Brat,” August teased, lying back down and answering Reese’s call. “Hey, kid. How’s it going? I can’t wait to see you tomorrow.”
Clint lay quiet beside him, watching August the way August had been watching him.
“Good. I can’t wait to see you too. Guess what, though? I have a surprise. Pop is going to fly back with me and stay in Harmony for a few days! He wants to see where we live and spend more time with me!”
Frustration made the muscles in August’s stomach tighten. Couldn’t Lewis have talked to him first? Asked if it was okay, or the two of them could’ve made a plan together. “That’s great,” August said, trying to play it off so Reese wasn’t pulled into the middle of this, but he wasn’t happy with Lewis at all. “How long is he staying?”
Clint frowned.
“Pop, how long are you staying?” Reese asked, and then, “Three or four days, probably,” he said to August.
That was doable. August could handle Lewis there for a few days, though he had to admit, he’d been looking forward to time with Reese, and maybe with both Reese and Clint too…because he and Clint were in love. He felt silly that he couldn’t stop thinking about that, but it felt too damn good. “All right. Sounds good. Do I still need to pick the two of you up, or is Pop getting a car?”
Reese asked Lewis, who said it was fine if August just picked them up. Reese reminded him they also had a going-away party for Scout to go to tomorrow, which meant Lewis would likely attend too. He and Reese got off the phone a few minutes later, discomfort making August’s limbs stiff.
“Lewis is coming here?” Clint asked.
“Yeah, apparently he is.” Something didn’t sit right with August when he heard that. Not that he hated Lewis; he didn’t. And not that he didn’t want Reese to have more time with him, because he did. But Lewis taking so much time off for Reese to visit was unusual, and then planning on coming to Harmony on top of that…well, August knew something was going on, and he didn’t like it at all.
Clint brushed the back of his hand against August’s face. “You okay?”
He wasn’t. Worry sat heavy in his gut, but Clint touching him helped.
He was being silly, he told himself again. He was being August, making a big deal out of something that didn’t call for it. He told himself to relax. That it was a good thing Lewis was trying to spend more time with Reese. “Yeah, I’m fine.”
He kissed his way down Clint’s chest, sucked him until he was hard in August’s mouth, swallowed his load, then lay there, head on Clint’s thigh, trying not to worry.
“Hey, Dad!” Reese threw his arms around August the second he spotted him.
“Hey, kiddo. It’s so good to see you. I missed you like crazy.” He kissed the top of Reese’s head.
“I missed you too.”
He knew he could have stayed in the car and had Reese and Lewis come outside, but August had already planned to meet Reese inside before Lewis decided to come, and honestly, he’d been too anxious to wait.
He looked at Lewis, who gave him a small smile. When he and Reese parted, Lewis hugged him too. “It’s nice to see you, August. You look good.”
“Thanks. You too,” he replied, and it was true. Lewis always looked good, and on some level, it was nice to see him. He’d spent a large part of his life with this man. He was the other father of August’s son. He would always care about Lewis, and they would always be a part of each other’s lives.
“Come on. Let’s go get your bag.” August nodded toward the carousel, and the three of them stood there together waiting for Reese’s suitcase.
When it came around, August grabbed it, Reese having his carry-on, and then they made it out to the parking area and his SUV. He couldn’t deny that things felt slightly tense and awkward, but Reese didn’t seem to notice, rambling on and on about his trip as they drove back toward Briar County.
“How is Zachary?” August asked when they were almost home. Reese had mentioned he wasn’t around at all over the trip, and now with Lewis being here, it made August even more curious.
“We, um…we actually broke up,” Lewis admitted, rubbing a hand over his face.
“He just moved in not that long ago!” August replied. So Zachary hadn’t really been out of town at all.
“Zachary was a dick. I hated him,” Reese said.