Texas #4_Texas Christmas (6 page)

“Are you staying?” Riley asked gently. He didn’t seem to be judging Liam, but then he didn’t know the full story.

“I want to,” Liam heard himself say. Talk about instinct. He wanted to be here with these men and the horses.

“I’m really pleased.” Riley sat at the table and rocked his twin softly. What Liam wanted to say seemed evil compared to the innocence of the tiny baby.

“I know you and Jack decide things together, so you can see…so…you understand and can judge what you want to do.”

Riley paused for a second and tilted his head in thought. “I don’t need to know a thing. Jack’s word is good enough for me.”

All Liam could think was that one day he wanted what Riley and Jack had.

He wanted it so freaking bad.

With the twins bathed and in bed and Hayley working on a project for art at the kitchen table, Riley finally had time to pin his husband down. He’d seen the panic in Liam’s expression and the temper in Jack, and both things scared him. He decided he was turning into an overprotective daddy here, but he kind of needed to know Jack had everything in hand. He found him in the small office off their bedroom staring at a computer screen and frowning.

“Hey,” Riley said before leaning and hugging Jack from behind. Jack pressed back into the hold.

“Hey, yourself.”

“
Whatcha
working on?”

“Just an idea.”

Riley peered at the screen over Jack’s shoulder and smiled. He knew what was in Jack’s head, and he didn’t doubt for one minute that Jack would be able to carry it off: a center for kid and horses, focusing in on children like Max who thrived in and around the horses.

“What would you call it?”

“I have no idea,” Jack huffed a laugh. “Some play on the D’s name or on kids and horses, I don’t know. I’m just costing it up.”

Riley bit his tongue to say the usual ‘you don’t need to cost anything’. Jack didn’t need or want his money. He recalled the last fight they’d had about Riley wanting to have one account between them so Jack could just take what he wanted. Of course, the fight had ended with angry sex that had morphed into hot sex that even now had Riley hardening in his pants. They’d apologized and talked into the early hours, but at the end of things Jack was his own man. Riley had managed to get Jack to accept the money to fix the roads and the renovations, but this was different. This was Jack’s project.

“What can I do to help?” Riley asked instead. “I can fix your spreadsheet if you like.”

Jack peered at the screen. “What’s wrong with my spreadsheet?” he asked suspiciously.

Riley pointed to a cell in the right column. “You’re multiplying, not dividing,” he said with a smirk. Jack cursed him under his breath but that changed to an
oomph
as Riley stole a heady kiss. When they separated, Jack pressed a few buttons and saved the spreadsheet.

“I need more kissing,” Jack said.

Riley gripped Jack’s hand and dragged him to the very handy bed in their room. “Horizontal kissing is best,” Riley teased.

They tumbled onto the wide mattress and tussled for position until finally Riley had Jack’s hands pinned to the sheet and used his legs to stop Jack from moving.

“Hayley is still awake,” Riley said regretfully.

“Just kiss me quickly, then,” Jack demanded.

They kissed deeply, and at some point Riley relaxed his hold on Jack’s hands. They ended up lying next to each other, staring up at the ceiling. There would be time for full-on sex later. Now was for taking the time just to
be
.

“
Whatcha
looking at?” Hayley said from the doorway.

Riley grinned over at their daughter and sidled away from Jack. “Come see,” he said.

Dutifully she climbed onto their bed and lay between them, arranging her coltish limbs so that she too could stare up at the ceiling.

“I can’t see anything.”

“Up there, that’s your room,” Jack explained. “The builders said it was nearly finished.”

“What’s it like?” Hayley asked.

“Big, with wide windows and views of the horses and your own bathroom.”

“That’s pretty cool,” she said. “Where are the twins’ rooms?”

Riley gestured toward the door. “Over the kitchen.”

“And Max?”

“In the middle.” Riley dropped his hand.

“When’s he coming?”

Riley smiled to himself. “Soon, babe. Soon.”

* * * * *

Eleven o’clock became twelve before Riley got away from writing the latest report on the shale deposits. Jack had long since disappeared off to bed to read, and Riley didn’t expect him to still be awake. He tucked Hayley in and kissed her forehead, his heart so full of love it near burst. She had a book opened on her quilt, and Riley marked the page with the birthday card she was using before checking the title. A book about horses. He chuckled and placed it on the bedside table. She and Jack would talk for hours about Red and everything it meant to work with horses, not to mention the severe case of hero worship she had on Robbie. The twins were both asleep, and if the last couple of nights were anything to go by, they could well sleep in until six in the morning. That meant he and Jack had nearly an entire night on their own. Pushing the door shut, then locking it temporarily, Riley turned to face his husband and smiled down at a very-asleep Jack.

A very sleepy but still incredibly tempting Jack lying diagonally on the bed on top of the quilt. His dark hair was rumpled over his forehead, and his ridiculously long eyelashes fanned on his sun-toned skin. Generous lips were softly parted in sleep, and his book, a more detailed version of the one Hayley had been reading, was flat, spine up, on his chest. Riley moved it carefully, and ignoring a soft huff of protest from Jack at the movement, he placed it on the side. Jack hadn’t exactly woken up, and Riley took his time just staring. Jack was always in motion, and to have the time to simply observe was a luxury that Riley was happy to use.

He was in sleep pants and nothing else. He insisted he had to wear something in case Hayley ever came in. Long and made of soft gray cotton, they fit every contour of his thighs and had settled to frame his groin. From the waist up, Riley could trace a path with his eyes from face to navel and to the treasure trail that promised so much. He could just tug the pants lower… He climbed onto the bed, thankful the firm mattress didn’t dip as he did so. He wanted nothing but his mouth to wake up Jack. Gently he settled next to Jack and pressed his lips against Jack’s covered cock. To his amusement just that gentle touch had Jack’s cock interested, and under his ministrations his husband was hardening nicely. A quick check showed him Jack was fast asleep still, although he wriggled a little in his sleep. Riley eased the band of the pants down a little, and the head of Jack’s cock was there for Riley to taste. He couldn’t resist, and he licked a stripe from the tip to base as he peeled back the pants.

Jack mumbled something in his sleep but didn’t wake up. Riley knew he would eventually, but for the time being he was happy to taste. They were always so quiet when they made love in the house, exploring and learning each other’s bodies to the point that he could get off just by Jack concentrating on his nipples.

He was hard and he pushed his own sweats off and shimmied out of them until he was naked himself. He wanted to be ready when Jack woke up. In a smooth move, he swallowed half of Jack’s dick and pressed a hand against his lover’s hip to stop him from moving.

“Riley,” Jack murmured. Then he added a long drawn-out hum of appreciation.

Riley continued with his exploring from Jack’s heavy cock to the weight of his balls to the curly dark hair at the base of his cock. He teased and pulled, and Jack writhed under his touch.

Jack ran his hands through Riley’s hair. On another moan he managed to get Riley to switch around so that Riley’s cock was inches from Jack’s mouth. This was the best part of a sleepy blow job, and as Jack’s hot mouth closed around his length, Riley barely held back the groan he wanted to release. Jack had the lube at his end, and he took some to loosen Riley before passing the whole tube to Riley. Riley could hardly concentrate on lube when Jack’s fingers slid inside him. There was no slow push; Jack wanted inside and Riley was happy to go with the flow on this one. Still he used lube to press his own fingers in and around Jack’s hole and used the other hand to press Jack flat and allow himself to balance. Jack pushed up against his hand.

“Riley,” he demanded, low and husky. Riley heard the demand and nearly lost it there and then. Easing his lips from Jack’s cock, he waited until Jack removed his fingers and then turned to straddle Jack. His favorite position was riding Jack and when Jack slid home easily, Riley was so close to coming he had to picture anything that wasn’t sex with his husband just to be able to hold back.

He pushed down, Jack up, and the utter perfection of the connection had Riley groaning.

“Did I hurt you?” Jack asked urgently.

Riley shook his head. “Never.” Then he screwed down on Jack’s cock again and again until he had nowhere left to run. Arching his back, he came hard and hot on Jack’s skin, with Jack coming not long after. Boneless, he slid down to hug Jack tightly, heedless of the mess between them. They would worry about that later.

“You’d never hurt me,” Riley repeated softly. “You can only ever love me.”

“I do,” Jack mumbled sleepily. “Always.”

Marcus didn’t even bother with an excuse to see Liam today. He bypassed the house and made his way straight to the stables. Liam wasn’t there at the front, but following the sound of voices, he found Liam and Robbie, heads close, poring over paperwork on a desk. He heard Liam’s laugh, and jealousy knifed through him—he’d never made Liam laugh like that; all he’d done is incite Liam’s cutting tongue. Added to that, he’d had another damn
no
to his last text. He was desperate to take Liam out somewhere they could be together and talk. He pushed the jealousy down ruthlessly. He had no right to feel it, and hell, he’d seen Robbie with Eli. Marcus had nothing to worry about.

Robbie straightened and left the desk and gave Marcus a smile as he passed him.

“Marcus,” he said with a tilt of his Stetson.

“Robbie.”

Liam looked up at them both and a not-altogether-inviting grimace crossed his expression.
Great.
Marcus was already up against a brick wall here, why not add in disgust in the eyes of the guy he was trying to impress.

“What do you want?” Liam asked. He folded up paperwork and pushed it in to a file box. Then he put the box on the high shelf, and Marcus got an eyeful of that wonderful strip of skin between leather belt and navel.

“Just to visit.”

“I said no,” Liam pointed out. He looked tired as Marcus moved closer. Tired and pale. Was he not well?

“Are you okay?”

Liam narrowed his eyes. “Why would you say that?”

“You look a bit…” Marcus waved his hand to finish the statement.

“Whatever. I need to finish with Hatty,” he said pointedly. “Jack and Riley aren’t here.”

“I’ll just…stand with you and Hatty.”

“You think that you’re gonna stand and stare at me again?”

Marcus could think of nothing better, but he wisely chose not to say that. “I can wait until you finish with Hatty. To talk to you.”

“Talk about what.”

“You. Me. Life.”

“Seems to me you’d be talking at me and that you like the sound of your own voice,” Liam said. He was still frowning. “Nothing to say about me, and life is good. Are we done now?”

He stalked past Marcus. Marcus wanted to reach out and touch Liam, just once to grab hold of his shirt and kiss the man senseless.

“Just one meal,” he called after him, then turned and followed him toward one of the stables. Inside was one of the small horses that he’d seen the kids ride. This was clearly Hatty.

Liam picked up a shovel and shook his head. “No.”

Marcus sighed. “I’ve asked you ten times now, and every time you say no.”

“And every time you ask me, it ratchets up one at a time. No, I won’t go out with you. No, I don’t want to talk to you. No. Just no. One day you’ll get the message.”

“What message?” Marcus asked for clarification on that one. It was a new addition to the normal ‘No’ speech he got from Liam.

“The one that says I don’t go for tiny guys with no manners who don’t understand the word no.”

Oh, this was new. Liam was actually talking to him. He could work with this.

“Tiny? Who says I’m tiny?” he teased.

“Itty-bitty man who doesn’t like to get dirty,” Liam snapped.

“I like to get dirty.”

“You have crap all over your jacket.”

Marcus fell for that one. He looked down to his unblemished jacket, worried he’d find his favorite smart jacket was ruined. “No I don’t,” he said, bemused.

“Close thing, though? I’m covered in shit and dust. You get near me, you’re getting all sorts on your fancy clothes.”

Marcus grinned at the thought of Liam covering him, not in shit and dust, but naked and heavy and pressing him into the mattress. His cock certainly liked the idea. Good thing he’d worn the longer-length jacket in his air-conditioned office and car.

He felt he should change the subject. “Anyway, back to the small thing.”

“Oh Jesus,” Liam said tiredly, “do you never stop?”

“I have it on good authority that I am a reasonable length, and it would be nothing that would leave you lacking for something to play with.”

Liam dropped the shovel in exasperation. “Holy fuck, man! Don’t give me visuals.”

“Maybe I should show you.” Marcus moved back and away from the gate and made to touch his pants.

“No,” Liam snapped. He crossed to Marcus and stayed his hand with one of his own. Leaning in close. “One kiss. That was all we had. It was an awful, clumsy, bad kiss, and I hate that it happened and the memories it dredged up from a shitty time.”

Liam’s pale silver eyes shone with emotion. Yes, it had been one kiss, but Marcus wouldn’t call it clumsy or bad, he would call it a freaking epiphany, albeit one tinged with guilt since Liam obviously didn’t feel the same way.