Nobody's Son (4 page)

“Gran?” Shaun called as he pushed through the front door.

“In the kitchen, baby.”

Shaun crossed the living room into the kitchen to find Gran with a stack of sandwiches on a plate in front of her. She wore her customary Sunday finery: a flowy dress with bright bunches of flowers on a brown background. She’d probably had on a hat that morning, but the ladies rarely wore those to the evening service.

“They’re doing a little potluck tonight to welcome a new family that just joined this morning,” she told Shaun with a small smile.

“You need some help?” Shaun stepped forward, but Gran shook her head.

“Elsie and Mabel will be here in a few minutes to give me a ride. Just come take some of these for your dinner. I know you’re tired after working and driving all day.”

“Thanks, Gran.” Shaun dropped a kiss on her cheek and reached in the cabinet next to the refrigerator for a small plate. He held it out, and she put four of the diagonally cut sandwich quarters on it.

“There’s chips in the cabinet too,” she said. “You enjoy your dinner.”

“I will. Thanks again.” Shaun gave her another smile and headed downstairs. He tried to brush off the feeling of relief. He’d been sincere in his offer to help, but he needed some time to decompress and think after the day he’d had.

His mind and body gave him a reminder of the scorching kiss he and Con had shared earlier, and he shook his head to dispel the memory. Okay, so maybe thinking wasn’t the best idea right then. Maybe he could find something on TV with a lot of explosions….

MONDAY MORNING
Shaun woke with just one thought:
I have got to meet with this Erwin guy and figure out what’s going on.

The night before, the action movie he’d watched had done little to distract him from his thoughts, but he’d been surprised to find himself dwelling more on his possible father than on Con. He’d considered, and immediately discarded, the idea of talking to his gran. If this guy was playing some kind of prank, the last thing he wanted to do was drag her into it. He’d get the whole story first.

He read back over the texts and resolved to set up a meeting sooner rather than later. He needed to get it over with, one way or the other.

And then he could worry about what was going on with Con.

The catch there was that he’d see Con at work. He spent most of the train ride to his car and the drive to the resort trying to decide how to deal with the man. Dragging him off into his cabin in the middle of the day was a definite no, never mind how much some parts of him liked the idea.

By the time he arrived at the resort, he still didn’t know what to do. Did Con just want a hookup? Did he? And what if Con was looking for something more? Was Shaun ready for what that would mean?

The office was dark and Jimmy’s after-hours sign was still hanging on the door when Shaun walked up. Smirking, Shaun pulled out his keys and let himself in, pausing to take down the sign and flip on the lights on his way behind the desk.

He stowed his backpack in its usual spot below the desk and reached for the mouse to wake up the computer. The silence in the building was a little eerie. Usually there’d be someone talking outside, or noises from the pool, or the phone would be ringing. Weekday mornings were often a little quieter, but it was rare for there to be no sound but his own breathing.

Shaun put himself to work, straightening up and then dusting off the desk, filing some of the leftover paperwork from the day before, even taking out the box of alcohol wipes Jimmy kept in a drawer and giving the telephone a good wipe-down. The nature of the job meant that some days were slow and others insanely busy, but when he still hadn’t seen or heard a soul by nine thirty, he started to wonder if he should go make sure no one had snuck in and smothered Jimmy and his boyfriends in their sleep.

Finally he heard a door close, and a few seconds later, Cory came through the side door into the lobby. “Hey, Shaun.” He wandered over toward the desk. “How’s things?”

“Quiet.” Shaun lifted an eyebrow. “Was just thinking of coming over to find out if you’d all died overnight.”

Cory laughed. “Only in a million little ways, honey.” He winked. “Jimmy’s finally awake and making us something to eat. You should eat with us!”

Shaun smiled but shook his head. “Still have my sandwich from yesterday waiting, but thanks.”

“All right, then. I have some work to take care of, so I’ll be back in the office for a bit.” He looked around. “You haven’t seen our Mr. Brooks, have you?”

“Nope.” Shaun shrugged. “Not a soul until you.”

“Hmmm. Well, if he doesn’t show his handsome face by noon, one of us may need to go roust him out of bed.” He gave Shaun an appraising look. “Maybe not you, though. I get the feeling if we sent you, he’d be more inclined to invite you to join him.”

Shaun opened his mouth but had no idea what to say to that. It didn’t matter. Cory just laughed and waved as he headed down the hall toward the back office. Shaun closed his mouth and sighed at himself as he shook his head. He should be used to Cory’s style. He might not have spent all that much time around him, but he and Jimmy were alike in a lot of ways, and their often dirty senses of humor certainly matched up.

Not five minutes after Cory left, the front door opened, and Con stepped in. “Mornin’,” he mumbled, and Shaun did a double take when he realized how rumpled Con looked. Still gorgeous, but his clothes were wrinkled, and his eyes no better than half-open.

Shaun leaned on the counter. “You look like you need more coffee.”

“Or more sleep.” Con shuffled toward the desk. “Just couldn’t do it last night. Stared at the ceiling ’til I swear it was closing in on me. Tried the walls. Same thing.”

“That’s the worst.” Shaun nodded to the side of the lobby. “I didn’t start up the coffee in here this morning because it’s been deserted, but I can make a pot if you want.”

“Already had two cups. Try to make that my limit, or it’ll keep me up the next night. I’m too old for that shit.”

Shaun chuckled. “I’m too old for that shit, and I know you have a few years on me.”

Con folded his arms on the top of the counter and lowered his chin to rest on top. “I’ll be thirty-four in December, and I feel every minute of it right now.” He blinked slowly at Shaun. “Hope you had a better night than I did.”

Shaun tilted his head. “You look like a hangdog hound.”

“Feel like one.” Con groaned. “But I got a dog-day afternoon ahead of me. Gotta finish running lines in the office and get the server up and running.”

He took a step back and stretched, arms high over his head, and Shaun’s gaze was drawn to the skin exposed as his tank top rode up above the waistband of his shorts.
Damn.
The peek of cut abs and smooth skin went straight to Shaun’s dick, and he forced himself to look away.

He cleared his throat. “Cory said Jimmy was making lunch. I’m sure he’ll have plenty if you’re hungry.”

Con dropped his arms to his sides and then put his hands on his hips. “You joining them?”

“No, gotta stay at the desk. I have a sandwich in the fridge.”

The front door opened, and a guy Shaun recognized as a weekend guest came in, sliding a pair of sunglasses up into his messy blond-tipped hair. The dark circles under his eyes made it look like he’d had about as much sleep as Con, though he was all smiles as he crossed the lobby, so he’d apparently had a lot more fun being awake.

“Checking out of cabin six,” he chirped as he dropped a set of keys on the counter.

“No problem.” Shaun turned to the computer and brought up the appropriate screen, noticing in his periphery as Con headed out the side door toward Jimmy’s. It took just a few minutes to check out the guest, and very shortly after the man left, the side door opened again. This time it was Mikey, who balanced a plate loaded with sandwiches and chips in one hand and had his fingers threaded around the necks of two soft drink bottles with the other.

“You need any help?” Shaun asked, but Mikey just shot him a grin.

“Nope, got it, thanks!” He headed down the hall toward the back office, and Shaun heard voices a few seconds later.
So that’s Mikey and Cory eating together, and Con and Jimmy. And here I stand… feeling sorry for myself for no good reason.

Blowing out a frustrated breath, Shaun went back to work.

“DAMMIT!”

Shaun’s shift was ending, and he’d just turned the desk over to Phillip and was about to head for his car when Con’s muffled curse came from down the hall. A few seconds later, the man himself appeared, holding one hand in the other. “You got a first-aid kit? Edge of an old outlet took a bite outta me.”

Shaun winced on Con’s behalf. “Yep. Go wash up in the bathroom, and I’ll bring it down.”

Con nodded and disappeared back down the hall. Phillip reached under the counter for the small first-aid kit they kept there and passed it over. “Think this’ll be enough?

There were a couple of larger ones around, but Shaun nodded. “Yeah, this one should be plenty.”

He carried the kit down the hall and found Con bent over the sink, hands under the faucet, the water rinsing away dust, bug guts, and whatever else he might’ve picked up digging around under desks and in walls. He added soap and lathered up, and Shaun tucked the kit under his arm and pulled out enough paper towels from the wall dispenser to dry him off when he finished washing.

After he’d rinsed away the soap, Con shut off the water using the backs of his wrists and then turned to Shaun, giving him a smile as he took the towels. “Didn’t know nurse was in your job description, did you?”

A corner of Shaun’s mouth lifted. “Under ‘other duties as assigned’.” He nodded toward Con’s hand. “Gonna let me see how bad you got bit?”

Con finished wiping off that hand and held it out. Blood seeped from a ragged cut, not deep but long, running along the base of Con’s thumb and down the side of his wrist. “Ouch,” Shaun pronounced as he laid the kit on the side of the sink and flicked open the lid. “That’s gonna take more than one Band-Aid. Let me see if there’s some gauze and tape in here.”

“It hardly hurts anymore.” Con dabbed at the blood with the wad of paper towels. “I just don’t want to bleed all over the place while I’m working.”

Shaun found a gauze pad, a spool of medical tape, and a tiny sachet of antibiotic cream. He gave Con a small smile. “Time for surgery, sir.”

Con chuckled as he held his arm out. Shaun applied the cream and then the gauze, nodding for Con to hold it in place as Shaun added the tape. It wasn’t the prettiest bandaging job ever, but Shaun figured it would hold up long enough for the bleeding to stop, at least.

“There. All done.” Shaun looked up to find Con’s gaze intent on him. Shaun cleared his throat, suddenly nervous. “I’ll send you my bill.”

“I’ll pay up now.” Con brought his uninjured hand up to wrap around the side of Shaun’s neck, thumb under his chin, tilting Shaun’s face up to make it easier for Con to kiss him.

This kiss was everything their first kiss wasn’t: soft, gentle, almost hesitant. The sweetness of it nearly took Shaun’s knees out from under him.

The one thing it did have in common with their first kiss: it was over much too soon. Con pulled back but not away.

“Why don’t you come by for a drink after work?” Con murmured. “Just one, ’cause I know you have to drive home.”

A shiver ran through Shaun at the heat in Con’s voice. “Gotta go. Gran’s waiting for me.”

He winced as he realized what he’d said.
Yes, I’m a loser who lives in my grandmother’s basement.
But Con just flashed a smile.

“That’s cool of you, looking after her like that.” He shifted his whole body closer somehow, without moving his feet. “Family’s important to you?”

“Pretty much the only family I’ve got.” The words came out sounding so raw that he chuckled to cover the depth of emotion. “So I gotta keep an eye on her,” he said in a light tone. “Rain check?”

Con studied him for a moment and then stepped away. “I’m gonna hold you to that,” he murmured.

That’s not all I’d like you to hold.
Shaun nodded and stepped toward the door. “See you later this week, I guess?”

Con smiled, slow and easy. “I’ll be here.”

That smile followed Shaun into his car and all the way back home.

THE BASEMENT
where Shaun’s room was—the “terrace level,” as they jokingly called it—was less than half the size of the house above, which sat on a lot that sloped down at one side. The basement was built out from the side of the hill so that from one side, the house looked like it had two stories instead of one. Even with the limited space and the need to leave a laundry room and some storage, there’d been room for a decently sized bedroom and bathroom for Shaun. He had a closet that spanned almost the length of an entire wall, room for not only a queen-sized bed and a wide dresser but also a desk in one corner and the fridge and microwave next to the bathroom door. And since it wasn’t a true basement, he even had windows and a private entrance.

He’d loved the room from the day it was ready. He’d lived there from late in his senior year of high school through his junior year of college, and he’d moved back as soon as he was finished with his last finals. He didn’t care that the distance from the house meant a long commute to work. It was home.

It was where his mom had lived, and he never wanted to leave her.

“SHAUN ROGERS,
you get your skinny butt in here!”

For once, ten-year-old Shaun had no idea what had made his mama mad. He’d been good: doing his homework and keeping his room clean and helping his Grangigi when Mama had to work. He put down his Game Boy and climbed off his bed, trying not to let his feet drag on the carpet as he walked down the hall toward the living room.

His mama stood next to the sofa, a piece of paper in her hand and a stern look on her face. Grangigi sat in her chair with a similar expression, but as Shaun got closer, her mouth twitched into a tiny smile, giving her away.