Speechless (Pier 70 #3) (5 page)

Four

Monday, July 4
th

TEAGUE MANAGED TO ignore Hudson all day on Saturday. Not once did he leave his apartment, for fear of running into the giant asshole. At one point, when he saw Hudson leave, he’d been tempted but then feared he would run into the man when he came back, so he had nixed that idea.

Yep, safe to say he was acting like a big fucking chickenshit.

On top of that, he hadn’t had a single thing to drink since the two swallows of beer he’d had two seconds before Hudson had kissed the ever-loving fuck out of him.

He wanted to say his resistance to alcohol wasn’t because of what Hudson was offering, but he wasn’t sure that was the case. However, pretending he didn’t want what Hudson was offering was a hell of a lot more difficult than not drinking. He’d managed to push away the urge to drink by dumping the rest of the beer one by one down the sink. Ten seconds after that, the regret had sunk in.

Then, when the urge struck him again, he’d started jacking off. That had helped three times. After that, he’d feared he would have calluses on his dick, and that wouldn’t help him in any way. So, he’d had a porn marathon last night. And yes, it was possible to watch porn without jerking off. Mostly. And it also helped to keep his mind off Hudson.

Okay, that part was a lie. No matter how hard he tried, whether his eyes were opened or closed, whether the TV was on or off, he thought about Hudson. He thought about that kiss; he thought about what Hudson was offering him. And he was slowly going insane.

Sunday had gone much the same way except he had managed to help Cam with a couple of appointments due to how busy they were because of the holiday weekend traffic. Which was why he was thankful it was now Monday and that it was almost over. He was spending the day working, and no doubt they would be slammed. They always were on the Fourth of July.

Rather than going straight to the boat repair shop, he headed for the main office.

The sun was up and shining brightly, the breeze warm. They were in for record heat today, which wasn’t at all surprising. As he walked around the building to the front door, Teague took a deep breath of humid air, let it out slowly, and steeled himself for a busy day.

He opened the door and…

“Oh, shit,” Cam said by way of greeting, a huge smile on his face. “I thought you avoided this place like the plague?”

It was true, Teague hated anything that involved paperwork, so he did whatever was necessary to avoid it. Which usually meant he didn’t make an appearance in the office unless it was to grab keys or check on an appointment.

“I try,” he replied, forcing a smile.

“What’s up? How was your weekend?” Cam leaned his elbows on the counter, looking interested in what Teague had to say.

“Good.”

“Anything exciting happen?”

Exciting? Was that how he would describe what had happened between him and Hudson? Nah. Probably not.

Teague shook his head. Now that he was standing there, he felt like an idiot. He didn’t know what to say to Cam, or anyone for that matter. He should’ve expected the questions, but he’d been too caught up in his own issues to prepare himself. He’d actually stopped in as a way to avoid Hudson for a little while longer—another chickenshit move.

“Got any appointments today?” he asked, hoping Cam would take the hint.

“As a matter of fact…” Cam peered down at the appointment book in front of him. “Dare’s out today, so if you’re interested in taking a couple, that’ll be great.”

“Absolutely.” Shit. He was pretty sure he said that with far too much enthusiasm.

Since Cam was quite perceptive, Teague figured he’d noted it, as well.

“Awesome.” There was a hint of curiosity in Cam’s blue eyes, but thankfully, he didn’t put voice to it. “We’ve got one coming in at ten and another at three. You want to take those and I’ll divvy out the others between me and Roan?”

“Sounds like a plan.”

“I’ll hit you up on the radio when they get here.”

Teague nodded, knowing he needed to go back outside and head down to the shop. It was only eight, so he had a couple of hours to kill before the first appointment.

“You okay?” Cam’s tone lacked the lightheartedness it’d had a minute ago. He actually sounded concerned.

“Fantastic,” Teague lied.

“The apartment good? No issues?”

Smiling a true smile for the first time in a couple of days, Teague nodded. “It’s great, man. Really great. And thanks again for letting me have it.”

“Glad it all worked out.”

Teague wasn’t about to tell Cam that this was the first place he’d had of his own. The first place he’d ever lived where he didn’t have to worry about being tossed out the next day for whatever reason. Whether it was a foster family who decided he was too much trouble or one of his buddies who had a better offer and needed him to get lost, he always found himself waiting for someone to send him on his way. But not anymore. As long as he paid the rent and utilities, he could probably live there forever if he was so inclined.

The back door opened and Roan walked in, which was Teague’s signal to leave. It wasn’t that he didn’t want to chat it up with Roan, but he knew the guy would likely start tossing out personal questions. Unlike Cam, he was prone to speak his mind when he was curious. Which was fairly often. Even though Teague had noticed that Roan was the master of avoidance when it came to answering personal questions, he didn’t have a problem dishing them out.

“Hey, hit me up when the appointment’s here.”

Cam nodded. “Oh, and if you’re not busy, you can check out the Jet Skis, make sure they’re not having any issues. We’re gonna be slammed because it’s the Fourth. Everyone’ll want to be out on the water.”

Teague knew that Cam would usually handle that when Dare wasn’t available, so it was obvious Cam was giving him an out this morning. He briefly wondered whether or not he had a sign on his forehead that said
I don’t want to be around Hudson if at all possible
. Then again, maybe he had that on his forehead every damn day.

“I’ll take care of it,” he told Cam before spinning around and heading for the door. The risk of paperwork magnified when Roan showed up, and Teague could already feel the hives coming on.

“Hey!” Roan called after him.

Reluctantly, Teague turned back around, his hand on the door as he geared up to make his exit.

“Could you give me a hand with the fireworks later?”

Oh, shit. He’d forgotten about that. Every year the marina put on a huge pyrotechnic show. Roan usually managed everything from buying the fireworks to setting up, even making sure the music was in sync. Teague had been so caught up in thoughts of… Never mind. He’d been otherwise preoccupied, and he hadn’t been paying much attention to the festivities that would take place.

For him it was just another day.

“Sure.”

“Cool. Thanks, man.”

Without wasting another breath, Teague pushed open the door—ignoring the irritating dog growls that sounded thanks to Dare’s tweak on the door sensor—and headed down to the pier. He had shit to do, and the best part about it, he wouldn’t have any time to think about Hudson.

And that would ultimately make for a great fucking day.

BY FOUR O’CLOCK, it was clear Teague was avoiding him.

Not that Hudson hadn’t expected it. There were days, sometimes a solid week, when Hudson wouldn’t see Teague at all. The kid had the ability to keep busy and avoid the repair shop like no one else. Only a few times had it actually impacted business, because no matter how he tried to play it, Hudson couldn’t handle all the work all the time.

But Teague’s disappearing act didn’t bother him in the least. Not today, anyway. After spending all weekend wondering if Teague would send a message or knock on his door, telling him he was ready to take him up on his offer, Hudson was a little out of sorts.

He wasn’t complaining, actually. For the first time in a really long time, he felt something inside him. Something a hell of a lot like anticipation. It’d been years since he’d felt like this. Years since he’d wanted something enough that he held out hope.

The whole reason he was working today—technically a holiday for the repair shop—was proof that he was having difficulty sitting still. Now that he was all caught up for the next two days, he wasn’t sure what he would do with himself tomorrow, but he’d have plenty of time to figure that out then. Right now, he was ready to hit the gym, take a shower, have some dinner, then hang with the guys out on the lake to watch the fireworks.

As he made his way toward the main office, he saw Teague tying up one of the Jet Skis. He stopped for a second, watching the kid work, admiring the sleek lines of his well-defined body. It wasn’t unusual to see Teague strutting around without a shirt on—temperatures in Texas required less clothing, for the most part—but it wasn’t often that Hudson had a chance to watch him without being caught.

The kid was all golden hair and sun-bronzed skin, his face hidden behind his sunglasses. Teague reminded him of a surfer, lean and muscular but not bulky. His blond hair was a little shaggier than normal, and because he’d been working out in the sun so much this summer, his skin had tanned to perfection.

As though he sensed someone watching him, Teague stopped what he was doing, his head popping up as he peered around. Hudson didn’t bother moving, didn’t try to hide the fact that he was ogling him. He would’ve been busted either way, and he wasn’t about to let Teague think he was backing down from the challenge he’d offered. Whether or not Teague accepted was all on him now. It didn’t matter to Hudson one way or the other.

Liar.

He could practically hear his brother giving him shit. AJ had always called Hudson to the carpet, never letting him get away with anything, especially when it came to things he denied himself, of which there were many. Relationships and alcohol, for example. It’d become somewhat of a game between them. AJ would attempt to predict what Hudson was avoiding at the time, and Hudson would pretend he was wrong. Truth was, the guy was pretty damn good at guessing.

When it came to Teague, Hudson figured his attraction was obvious. Well, to everyone except Teague, but that was due to the fact he’d worked hard to hide it from the kid. Despite his inability to ignore his intense desire for the guy, he had been successfully avoiding Teague for two solid years. Until recently.

Sometimes temptation was too great to ignore.

He watched as Teague turned away, giving Hudson his back. The sight made his mouth water as his brain was suddenly overwhelmed by carnal thoughts. He imagined what Teague would feel like beneath him, Hudson’s hands gripping those sexy shoulders as he plowed into him from behind…

“Yo, man. What’s up?”

Hudson spun around, his lewd thoughts rattling right out of his head at the sound of his brother’s voice. Fuck, he hoped his face wasn’t as red as it felt.

Smiling, Hudson jerked his chin at AJ in greeting, then followed by signing his question:
What brings you by?

“You invited me, remember? Fireworks and shit?”

Right. He remembered now.

AJ’s gaze slid past Hudson, and he knew that his brother noticed who he’d been looking at. Luckily, AJ didn’t say anything, which was a first.

“You wanna hit the gym, then grab some dinner?”

AJ knew him so well. Hudson nodded, then replied with his hands:
Just need to change first.

Falling into step with his brother, Hudson ignored the urge to glance back at Teague one more time. He was being an idiot. Based on the way Teague was ignoring him, he should’ve taken the hint by now. It appeared the kid was turning him down on his offer, and that should’ve brought some relief, but it didn’t. Not at all.

“Hey, you heard from Milly lately?” AJ inquired as they made their way up the stairs to the second-floor apartment.

Hudson shook his head.

Ever since they’d returned from the cruise, AJ had mentioned Milly’s name at least a few dozen times. What his brother had thought was a good thing on the cruise had halted the instant they’d hit dry land. Not that Hudson knew all the details—he didn’t
want
to know all the details. Looked as though his big brother was infatuated with the woman.