Jake went into the guest bedroom and sat down on the bed. He looked around the small room at the flowery décor and the girly comforter on the full-sized bed with matching pillows. Man, he couldn’t wait to get his shit from his place. So many things were changing, but it scared him to think the changes were coming too little, too late for Eli.
He had every right to walk away, and the only person to blame was Jake. He’d been such a fucking coward for so damn long. He never knew how badly he wanted all of it until he’d had no choice but to take it. And the worst part was, if all the awful shit hadn’t happened, would he even have the balls to go after Eli? Now that he had the boys and was living this life he always thought wasn’t for him, he was starting to think maybe he could have Eli too.
He couldn’t deny it anymore. He wanted him so damn badly. Always had.
The whole thing was such a fucking mess that he’d created. Yet, seeing Eli with the boys, seeing how he already loved them, there was no going back now—for any of them. So all he could do was wait and hope like hell that Eli didn’t give up on him.
Jake stood, stretching his arms over his head. He grabbed a pair of boxer briefs out of his drawer and padded down the hallway to the bathroom. Pulling the curtain back, he started the shower. The small room filled with steam pretty quickly as Jake stripped down and stepped into the tub, pulling the curtain closed behind him. Standing under the hot water, he leaned his hands on the tile, his head hanging in exhaustion as rivers trailed down his back.
When the curtain pulled back, Jake’s head shot up. “Eli…”
Eli’s stare was intense, his breathing fast and shallow. “You sure you want all of it?” He yanked his shirt over his head. “Because I can’t go through this shit again.” He unbuttoned his pants, and the fact that he continued to undress, before Jake even had a chance to answer, showed Jake just how much faith Eli still had in him.
“I’m so damn sure, Eli. I’m sorry. I—” Eli stepped into the shower, crushing his mouth on Jake’s as he backed him against the tile wall. Jake felt the tension release from his aching muscles. Eli always had that calming effect on him. Eli pressed his wet, naked body against Jake’s, and Jake immediately wrapped his arms around him. He’d never let him go again, if he could help it. And, wow, that thought almost floored him.
The relief he felt that Eli didn’t leave was staggering. He’d come to depend on him so much, but the need for him was stronger than anything else. Jake needed him.
He grabbed the body wash and put some in his hand, gliding it all over Eli’s smooth, tattooed skin, washing him. He’d never wanted to take care of someone before, but Eli wasn’t just someone.
He was everything.
Jesus, Jake. What the fuck’s come over you?
But when Eli sighed in pleasure, and took Jake’s face with his hands for a slow kiss, Jake knew what it was.
He helped to rinse the soap from Eli’s skin, quickly washed himself, and reached behind him and shut the water off. As much as he wanted Eli, the small shower was barely big enough for Jake on his own, never mind all that Jake wanted to do to Eli. “Come on.” Both men stepped out of the tub. Jake grabbed two towels off the shelf and handed one to Eli.
They watched each other as they dried off, and the heat that was always between them was fiercer than it had ever been before. Jake dropped his towel on the floor, took Eli’s and dropped it in a heap on top, and grabbed his hand. He led Eli down the hall, both of them still naked, into the guest bedroom, closing them inside.
“It’s gonna be a tight squeeze with the two of us in that bed.” Jake walked Eli back toward the mattress.
“Don’t care. Wanna feel you inside me again. It’s been too damn long.” Eli kissed him, sweeping his tongue into Jake’s mouth, as their hard cocks bounced between them. Jake reached around Eli and yanked the comforter off the bed. Eli sat down, pulled Jake forward, and locked eyes with him as he held Jake’s cock and licked slowly from the base to the tip before taking it to the back of his throat.
“Fuck, Eli.” Jake threaded his fingers in Eli’s dark hair, watched as his shaft moved in and out between Eli’s stretched lips, felt his strong hands gripping the back of his thighs. God, he was fucking gorgeous. But before it ended all too quickly, Jake pulled back. He pushed on Eli’s chest, and as the man lay down, Jake kneeled between his thighs and took him in his mouth. The taste of Eli on his tongue almost made him bust. The sounds he made, and how he pumped his hips up, taking what he wanted from Jake—he’d fucking missed all of it.
Jake popped Eli out of his mouth, rose up and grabbed Eli under his arms, moving his body further up the mattress toward the headboard. As Jake climbed over him, Eli gripped Jake’s hips and yanked him down, their hard cocks settling next to each other. Immediately, Jake began to pump his hips, sliding their wet shafts together.
“You always fit so perfectly underneath me.” Jake leaned in and kissed Eli’s neck, continuing the movement of his hips.
“Careful, you’ll come off as sappy and romantic,” Eli teased.
Jake stopped the movement and pulled his head back, meeting Eli’s eyes. “That a bad thing?” Jake kissed Eli softly. “We’ve fucked against walls, over counters, in cars and showers, had laundry room blowjobs…I’m taking my time tonight.”
Eli’s gaze bore into Jake’s like he was looking for the punchline or the just kidding to come at any moment. You did that to him. Well, he wasn’t going to find it. Jake kissed Eli long and slow, letting Eli take what he needed.
Jake dragged his mouth across Eli’s stubbled jaw, leaving a trail with his tongue. They’d never gone this slowly before, so Jake was going to savor every inch of Eli’s body. He kissed Eli’s tan skin, drawing a line with his tongue from the curve in Eli’s neck where it met his shoulder, to his left nipple. He flicked the bead with his tongue and grazed it with his teeth as Eli moaned.
Their cocks were leaking between them, but he still hadn’t had his fill of Eli’s warm skin. So he used his mouth, tasting every inch, every curve, every tattoo. He used his tongue, making a design on Eli’s body, claiming him in a way he never had before. Because no matter how hard he’d tried to fight it, he was drawn to Eli, tethered to him in a way he couldn’t explain but didn’t want to deny anymore.
“Jake, you’re driving me fucking crazy, man,” Eli said through panting breaths. “Need you. Need you inside me.”
Jake crawled up over Eli’s body, lining their mouths up, and tasted him again then pulled back. “Jake. Always Jake. I don’t care if you’re pissed off at me, sick of me, or whatever. Always Jake to you. Never Novak. Got it?” Eli smiled and nodded his head, kissing Jake again.
Jake broke the kiss and reached for his wallet on the nightstand.
Eli glanced back, watching Jake pick up his wallet, then averted his eyes. “You know, I used to wonder…” He paused then added, “Never mind. It’s stupid.”
“What?”
“Nothin’.”
“Uh uh. No more of that shit between us.” Jake wouldn’t let Eli look away, placing a hand on his face. “You used to wonder what?” Jake opened his wallet and took out the condom.
Eli nudged his head toward the foil packet. “How many times you had to refill that after your nights out with Ryder. See? I told you it was stup—”
Jake kissed Eli, feeling him relax underneath him. When he pulled away, he looked right into Eli’s half-lidded gaze. “The only times I had to refill it was after I was with you.” Jake leaned their foreheads together, internally cursing himself for the knee-jerk reactions he’d caused Eli to have over the simplest things. “I was such an asshole. Can’t guarantee I won’t have my moments, but—”
Eli pulled Jake’s face down, silencing him with his mouth and a sweep of his tongue. When they broke apart, Eli took the packet from Jake’s hand and opened it. Jake reached in the nightstand drawer for the bottle of lube he kept in there. After coating his palm and suiting up, Jake kept his eyes locked on Eli’s as he slid a finger inside him. By the time he had two inside, Eli was moaning, pressing his head back into the mattress and squeezing is eyes shut.
He’d barely gotten in the third when Eli grabbed his hand. “Can’t wait anymore. Do it.” He pushed Jake’s hand away and wrapped his hand around Jake’s shaft, guiding it into his hole. “Fuck, I missed this.” Jake slowly pumped his hips, working his way inside Eli’s warm body.
When he was in to the root, feeling Eli clench his muscles around his cock, he took Eli’s hands and thread their fingers together, bringing them over Eli’s head on the pillow. Jake thrust over and over again, eliciting sounds from Eli he hadn’t heard in months. It was fucking amazing. He alternated kissing Eli and pulling back to watch the pleasure transform his face as Jake hit that spot inside of him that drove him crazy.
The pace quickly changed from slow and gentle to reckless and desperate as Jake slammed into Eli’s body over and over again. He let go of Eli’s left hand, reaching between their sweaty bodies, and took hold of his cock. He stroked him fast while hitting his prostate and reveled in the needy sounds Eli made as he neared his orgasm.
“Oh God, Jake. Right there. Right— Oh fuck…” Eli’s head tilted back, the muscles in his neck straining, his eyes closed tightly, and his words trailing off as Jake felt warm liquid release from Eli’s cock and drip down his hand. Eli’s body clenched around Jake’s shaft, and Jake shouted his release as he twitched and thrust in a jerky rhythm.
He collapsed on top of Eli, utterly exhausted and completely blissed-out. He felt Eli’s chest move up and down under his cheek as they both tried to catch their breath. Eli’s hand stroked through Jake’s sweaty hair, and Jake absorbed every minute of it until necessity had him pulling out of Eli to get rid of the condom.
He went down the hall to the bathroom to get something to clean them up with. By the time he got back, Eli was sitting on the edge of the bed—and Jake knew why. “You’re not going anywhere.”
Eli stared at him. “You know this is weird, right? Like a complete one-eighty? I’m not sayin’ I’m not happy about it, just…”
“Cautious. Yeah, I figured. You have every right to be.” Jake crossed the room and stood in front of Eli, first cleaning him up, then running a hand through his dark hair. Eli closed his eyes and leaned into his touch.
He glanced back up with those gorgeous eyes. “What makes a guy change in a matter of months?”
Jake sighed and sat down on the bed next to Eli. “Loss. That sounds stupid, but it’s true. I couldn’t help losing Kevin and Maggie. But you? I’m not willing to lose you too. I’d be a fucking idiot to lose you.”
Eli smirked, pushing on Jake’s arm. “Yeah, you would.”
Jake grabbed Eli’s hand and yanked him down with him. They got under the sheet, and Jake wasted no time pulling Eli back against his chest then wrapping an arm over his waist to keep him snug against his body. He sighed against Eli’s neck, pressing his lips to warm skin as Eli took Jake’s hand and intertwined their fingers.
Of all the scenarios Jake played out in his mind on how this night would go, having Eli lying in his bed, in his arms, with no walls between them, was not one of them.
But he was so damn grateful.
“Uncle J! Eli!” Dylan called up the stairs, startling both men awake.
Eli was draped across Jake’s chest and lifted his head in a daze. “What? What’s going on?” He had a red mark on his cheek from where it was pressed to Jake’s chest for most of the night, his hair stuck up every which way, and his eyes were half-lidded.
He was gorgeous.
“Dylan, give your Uncle J some time to get downstairs,” Jake heard Avery yell, loud enough to carry up the stairs. “Let’s go start breakfast.”
Jake looked at the time on his phone. Shit, it was after ten. He hadn’t slept this well in months. “We gotta get up. The boys are home.”
Eli sat up quickly, looking around the room in a panic. “Where are my clothes?”
Jake chuckled. “The bathroom, remember?”
Flinging himself back on the bed, Eli covered his eyes with his arm. “Right. I knew that.”
“Hang on. I’ll get dressed then get them for you.” Jake sat up, stopping when Eli grabbed his arm. Jake looked down at him, wondering why the fuck he’d denied himself this man for so long. He leaned down and kissed him, and when he pulled back, Eli had a goofy smile on his face. “What?”
“This is just…different.” Then Eli’s eyes widened comically. “What are you going to tell the boys? And my clothes will be the same as last night. Shit, maybe I shouldn’t have stayed.”
“Hey, I’ll handle it, okay?” Jake leaned down and kissed him again before getting dressed. He threw Eli a clean T-shirt from his drawer then went and got his clothes from the bathroom. When he came back in the room, he had to remind himself the boys were downstairs. Eli had just gotten out of bed, stark naked, making Jake’s mouth water. “Jesus, get dressed before I drag you back into that bed.” Eli laughed as Jake tossed his clothes to him in a heap, some landing on his head. “You think I’m joking.”
Eli yanked away the shirt that landed on his face and threw it on the bed. After he finished dressing, and Jake gave him a spare toothbrush to use from the “guest” basket Maggie had always kept stocked, they made their way downstairs.
There was a lot of clanking going on and voices coming from the kitchen. Jake and Eli walked into the room and all movement stopped as three sets of eyes landed on them.
Nick raised an eyebrow at Jake, crossing his arms over his chest. “Now, is he your boyfriend?”
Jake could see Eli tense up next to him, so before the man could go and say something to cover anything up, Jake replied, “Yeah, at least, he is as far as I’m concerned.” Jake looked to his left and rolled his lips in, biting them so he wouldn’t laugh at Eli’s shocked face. “Eli?”
Did he just say what I think he said? “Huh?” Eli looked back at the boys and Avery, who happened to be wearing huge grins. When he turned to Jake again, the amused man from moments before was replaced with a guy who looked nervous as hell. Is he afraid I’m gonna say no?
Jake rubbed his palms on his jeans, his brows drawing together nervously. “What do ya say?”
Eli grabbed his hand and smiled. “I say hell yeah.”
“About damn time,” Avery declared, and the boys nodded their heads in agreement.
Jake barked out a laugh, pulling Eli’s hand to draw him closer for a quick kiss. When he released him, Jake went over to the counter, looking at everything that was laid out. He lifted a spoon that was in one of the bowls of batter. “Pancakes?”
Eli seemed stuck where he was, watching Jake with his nephews and truly felt like he was a part of that now. And to think, he’d almost walked away the night before. How could he ever think he could walk away from all this?
“Eli, do ya wanna help?” Dylan asked. “We’re making pancakes in the shape of ghosts, bats, and pumpkins.”
“Sooo…basically ghosts, bats, and regular pancakes.” Nick rolled his eyes.
Dylan looked down at the griddle. “No, ‘cause I’m gonna add a stem, so shut it. Right, Uncle Avery?”
“To the stem part, yes. To the ‘shut it’ part, nope.” Avery laughed.
“Why don’t you use the mini chocolate chips to make jack-o-lanterns?” Jake suggested, popping a few in his mouth.
The boys looked at the bag of chocolate when Nick said, “Mom used to put chocolate chips in our pancakes.” Avery and Jake stopped what they were doing and looked at the boys.
Eli saw Jake searching for something to say to that, so he crossed the room and stood next to Jake. “Then it’s perfect. That’s exactly how you can keep your parents around; do little things that remind you of them and the happy memories you’ll always have.”
Both boys smiled. Nick nodded his head in agreement while Dylan grabbed the chocolate chips and made the first jack-o-lantern.
Jake pulled Eli to him, wrapping an arm around his neck as he kissed the side of his head. “Thank you.”
Eli drew Jake even closer with an arm around his waist, completely blown away that they no longer had to hide or deny their feelings. It felt like a new beginning for all of them.