Cooper

When the penthouse security is locked up tighter than Fort Knox, I head to our suite and rap lightly on the closed door before opening it. There’s no answer, but I wasn’t expecting one. He’s likely in the shower. There’s a single light on in the room—the lamp on the nightstand. The door to the bathroom is ajar, and I can hear the water running. I smile, imagining Sam getting ready for bed. I imagine his nerves getting the best of him. This is just our second time to have sex since reuniting, and the anticipation is likely killing the both of us.

The room is already tidy, so all I have to do is pull down the sheets. I’ll leave the nightlight on so he can see when he comes out of the bathroom.

I head for the closet to ditch my boots and socks in the closet, along with my T-shirt. I leave on my jeans that hang low on my hips because he thinks they’re hot.

While he’s in the separate shower room, I take care of business and brush my teeth. I already showered before the folks arrived for dinner this evening, so I’m fresh as a daisy and ready for my guy. Then I head back into the bedroom to wait for him.

The water shuts off before long, signaling that his shower is over, and I wait for him to appear, perhaps with nothing more than a towel around his waist. I wait, and wait, but there’s no sign of him, which is odd. I sit on the side of the bed, giving him a little more time, but still he doesn’t show. After giving him another ten minutes, I know something’s wrong.

I find him seated on the wooden sauna bench outside the walk-in shower, wearing nothing but a towel wrapped around his hips. He’s just sitting there, leaning forward, his elbows on his thighs, staring numbly at the tile at his feet. “Sam?”

He glances up at me from beneath his dark lashes, but he says nothing.

At the haunted look in his eyes, my heart rate kicks into overdrive. “What’s wrong?”

“This is all my fault.”

I crouch down in front of him, laying my hands on his knees to balance myself. “What is?”

“All the extra security on the building. I know Shane’s worried about Beth, and I don’t blame him. God, if anything happened to her because of me—”

“Whoa, stop right there, kid,” I say, looking up into his eyes. His gaze is anywhere but on me. “Sam, look at me. How is any of this your fault?”

“The only reason you went down there to confront those assholes was because I pushed you into it.”

“That’s not true.”

“Yes, it is! I gave you an ultimatum. I told you if you couldn’t open up, we were through. It’s because of me that you went down there in the first place.”

I sigh. “Sam, this was something I’ve been needing to do for years. I just kept sweeping it under the rug because I didn’t want to face it. And honestly, I should have done it years ago. None of this is your fault.”

He lowers his head into his hands and grips his tousled wet hair, tugging on the strands.

“I’ll get your comb,” I say, patting his knees as I rise. I grab his comb off the counter and begin combing through his mop of tangled hair, gathering the long top layers into a bun and securing it with a hair tie I find lying on his pile of discarded clothing. When I’m done, I run my fingers gently through his undercut, smoothing the strands. I hate that he’s hurting because of me. “Honestly, baby, this is not your fault.”

“Shane probably thinks it is.”

I grasp his chin and force him to look up at me. “No, he doesn’t.”

His eyes fill with tears. “They’re planning to name the baby after me. I don’t deserve that. If anything happened to Beth, or to the baby—”

“Nothing’s going to happen to Beth. Shane will move her to Kenilworth if it becomes necessary. Nothing can touch her there.” I reach for his hands and pull him to his feet. “Come to bed. We don’t have to have sex. Just let me hold you, okay? This is our first night together in our bed. It should be a happy time, and I’m not going to let you beat yourself up for something that’s not your fault.”

His towel falls to the floor, revealing a body that’s nothing short of a work of art. As I look my fill at those long, muscled limbs dusted with auburn hair, his gorgeous dick starts to harden. My gaze sweeps upward, past abs and a chest that is cut with muscles that look like they could have been sculpted.

“Come on.” I lead him to the bed and, after shucking off my jeans, I climb in after him. “Come here, baby,” I say, pulling him into my arms. He lays his head on my chest, and I wrap my arms around him. Shane’s not the only one with someone to protect. If the shit hits the fan, I’ll hogtie Sam myself and send him to Kenilworth right along with Beth, whether he likes it or not.

Absently, I stroke Sam’s back, running my blunt nails along his spine. He shivers and groans, pressing his face into my chest.

He teases my nipple with the tip of his tongue, making it tighten. And when he licks the tight little point, the sharp pleasure draws a cry out of me. He comes up onto his elbow and leans over me to tongue circles around the peak before drawing it into his warm, wet mouth.

“Jesus, Sam!” I gasp, my back arching off the mattress.

“I want you to fuck me,” he says, shifting so he can kiss his way down the center of my torso. He skims his tongue down my abs, stopping to tease my belly button, then continues down to the thatch of hair at the base of my cock. He grips me firmly and licks his way up the shaft to the crown and over the tip.

I exhale a rough breath as heat and aching pleasure sweep through me. “Slow down, baby,” I gasp as he works me into a frenzy. “I’m already so close, and you’re nowhere near ready for me.”

Sam lunges up and opens the nightstand drawer, pulling out the bottle of lube, which he hands to me. “Make me ready. I want you.”

He rolls over onto his belly, wrapping his arms around his pillow and opening his legs.

“Are you sure?” I say. “We don’t have to—”

“Yes. Make me ready.”

I kneel between his open thighs and take my time lubing him up, stretching him slowly. I slide one slick finger into his body, relishing his groans as I make small teasing circles inside. When he’s ready, I add a second finger, gently opening him up and stretching those tight muscles. When my finger glides repeatedly over his prostate, he groans, pressing his face into the pillow to muffle the sound.

Impatient, Sam suddenly rises up onto his knees and presses me down onto my back. He grabs the lube and slicks up my cock. Then he throws his leg over my hips and hovers with his ass poised right above my erection. His expression is breathtaking as he reaches behind himself to position my cock at his opening.

I skim my hands over his thighs, murmuring encouragement as he sinks down on me, slowly working the head of my cock inside. When he starts to move, I run my hands up and down his chest, stopping to tease his nipples and piercings. I love watching him work himself on me, rising and falling on my shaft, his teeth gritted with a mixture of pleasure, tension, and a tiny bite of discomfort as he waits for his body to fully accommodate me.

“You okay?” I say, gripping his taut thighs.

He nods, breathless, now moving faster as his body gradually opens for me. He grips his own cock, stroking himself firmly as he watches my face. We’re both groaning now, both of us straining and close.

I sit up, wrapping one arm around him to hold him close to me. Then I turn us so that he’s lying on his back beneath me. His thighs open, cradling me as we lie missionary style.

He relaxes beneath me, and I sink deep with a satisfied groan. He answers my groans with his own, and soon we’re both breathing hard. I start to move, slowly at first. I withdraw and add more lube, just to be sure he’s comfortable. Then I feed myself back into him, all the way, and he exhales, forcing himself to relax as his body adjusts to being penetrated.

He pulls me down for a kiss, and I drink in his moans. I cup my hands around his head and gaze into his beautiful brown eyes, gauging his arousal. He slips his hand between us and pulls on his cock, stroking himself in time with my short, quick thrusts. I know when I’m brushing against his prostate because his eyes widen and his breaths shallow until he’s fairly panting.

With a loud cry, I rise up and arch my back, filling him with spurt after spurt of liquid heat. My thrusts turn slow and gentle as I lose myself in him. He tugs and strokes himself until he joins me, crying out as he comes in wild spurts on his stomach and chest. Once he’s finished, I pull out and sink down beside him, and we hold each other.

After a quick clean-up, I tuck him into bed with me, spooning behind him. I trail kisses along his shoulder and up his throat, feeling his pulse pounding beneath my lips. I smile, breathing in his intoxicating scent. “I love you.”

He cradles my arm tightly to his chest. “I love you, too,” he says, yawning.

* * *

The next morning, I leave sleeping beauty to his well-deserved rest and grab a quick shower before pulling on a pair of jeans and a T-shirt. I head to the kitchen to start the coffee. The kids like using the Keurig machine and drinking their fussy caramel mocha lattes, but I’m old school. I like grinding my own beans and making coffee the old-fashioned way. It’s just about six a.m., so Shane should be coming out of their room any second now for his morning caffeine fix on his way out the door. He usually grabs breakfast at the café in the McIntyre Security building.

A half-hour later, when he hasn’t appeared, I glance down the hallway that leads to their suite and see the light on in his home office. I head down that way and quietly rap on the door.

“Come in,” he says.

I push the door open to find him seated at his desk, working on his laptop. He’s wearing a white dress shirt, unbuttoned at the neck, sans tie, and his suit jacket is hanging on a hook on the wall behind his chair. “What are you still doing here?”

He leans back in his chair and motions me inside. “Have a seat. I have a proposition for you.”

I take one of the seats in front of his desk, leaning back and getting comfortable. “What did you have in mind?”

“I was thinking this morning that one of us should be here at all times, until Stevens is apprehended. I don’t want to leave Beth here without protection. She’ll be working here from home until further notice.”

“Sam will be here too, you know.”

“I know. But, technically, he’s not back to work yet.”

“He can still fire a gun.”

Shane nods. “I’m sure he can, but he’ll be concentrating on physical training. I’d feel better if one of us was here at all times. I imagine you have work to do this morning at the shooting range, so I’ll work from home for half a day while you take care of business at the range. Then you could come home for the afternoon.”

I nod. “That sounds good. I am a little backlogged at the range. I need to catch up on scheduling some assessments, and I can easily do that from home this afternoon.”

“Good. Why don’t we keep this schedule, working half days here at home, until this blows over.”

“That works. Hey, while I’ve got you, I was wondering if you could help me with something.”

He looks surprised. “Of course. What is it?”

I scrub my hand over my beard, not sure exactly how to start this conversation. It feels awkward at my age to be asking these questions. “As you know, Sam wants me to act more like a boyfriend. The truth is, I’m not sure how to do that. I’ve never seriously dated anyone before Sam. It’s always been temporary hook-ups, you know, with no long-term expectations on either side. This is kinda new territory for me.”

Shane grins as his brow furrows. “Are you asking me for dating advice?”

“Don’t sound so shocked. Yes. I need some advice. I’ve never done this before.”

“Just do things for him. Make him feel special.”

“Such as?”

Shane laughs. “Really? Do I have to spell it out?”

“Yes, please, because I’m clueless.”

He shakes his head. “Ask him out to dinner. Make reservations somewhere nice. Wear a jacket, dress up. Open doors for him. How about Tavern on Rush? Take him there for a nice steak dinner and some wine. Do it tonight. I’ll get you a table, and I’ll arrange for someone to drive you. Take the Mercedes. Go all out.”

“That’s it?”

He laughs at me again. “It’s not that hard, Cooper. Just plan things for the two of you to do together. If the weather’s decent, you could take him for a walk along the lake—that’s romantic. Beth loves it when we do that. Or take him to the park. When I plan stuff like that for Beth, she looks at me like I’m some kind of god. Take him shopping at his favorite store. Take him to a pub to listen to music, or to a concert. They just want to know that we’re thinking of them…thinking about what they might like to do. They want us to make them feel special. It’s not that hard. And honestly, if you just make an effort, he’ll be happy.”

“Tonight’s Saturday. I guess that would be as good a night as any to take him out to dinner.”

“It would be perfect. Just let me arrange for a driver and security. Under the circumstances, I think it would be prudent if you had someone watching your back so you can relax and concentrate on Sam. I’ll call Killian, see if he’s available.”

“Killian Deveraux? Hell, are you trying to make me look bad?”

Shane laughs. “Relax. Sam doesn’t have eyes for anyone but you.”

“Yeah, but Killian? He’s too damn pretty. He would turn anyone’s head.”

“Trust me. You don’t have to worry. Also, ask Beth for some ideas. She knows Sam well. She knows what he likes.”

“I will. Thanks.” I rise from my chair. “I’ll go put in half a day at the shooting range, then I’ll come back to spell you for the afternoon.”