Beau seemed bigger in the house than he had at the shop. No matter where he stood, Connor was conscious of Beau’s body, of his energy. He could swear the man radiated heat. Beau was an inch or so taller than Connor and wider. The mermaid hair worked on him. Just like the fit of his T-shirt over his muscled chest and arms worked on him. His arms were huge.

Connor kept his eyes locked on Beau’s ass as they walked around the side of the house to the backyard. Sweet baby Jesus, his butt and thighs were amazing. Did all hockey players get asses like that? How did he even find jeans to fit him?

Outside, twilight lingered in the air. The days were growing longer with spring’s approach and sunset lingered on the South Texas plains.

“Pretty here,” Beau said, breathing deeply and taking in the way the sunset painted the puffy clouds red, pink, and orange.

“It grows on you,” Connor said. “Like your hair.”

“You like my hair?” Beau asked.

“It’s a’ight,” Connor admitted.

“Holy cow,” Beau said under his breath, stopping dead as they turned the corner and Beau got his first full glimpse of the property.

The house was on the very edge of town, the backyard blending seamlessly into high grasses and scrub. Early bluebonnets, tall, red-tipped Indian paintbrushes, and delicate pink and purple phlox spread across the yard. Pink-tinged sunlight glinted off the slow-moving creek that marked the end of the property.

As pretty as they were, the beauty of the wildflowers his mother had loved paled in comparison to the majesty of the giant Southern live oak dominating the yard. Reaching almost forty feet high, its branches twisted and curled in the air, swooping down almost to the ground before climbing back up to the sky. With a trunk a good four feet wide, the branches spread across eighty feet of the yard, shiny new green leaves a bright contrast with the dark bark.

“You like?” Connor asked with a grin.

Beau walked carefully toward the tree, neck craning as he tried to follow the twisting path of the branches in the fading light. “That is a gorgeous tree.” Resting his hand on the thick branch hovering nearest to the ground, he bounced it gently, as if testing the strength.

“You can sit on it,” Connor said. “It’s real strong.”

Beau flashed his bright white teeth in a big smile, his dimple popping out. “You gonna sit with me?”

“Not while the kids are awake. Play your cards right, though.” He smiled back. It felt good to flirt. It had been a long time since he’d been able to be this open. Maybe he never had. “Come on, let me show you the trailer.”

The thirty-foot travel trailer stood in the middle of the yard, tire tracks showing where it had been towed and dropped. Somewhere in the paperwork there was probably information on who had put it there. Connor wasn’t sure if his step-dad Brent had bought the trailer or rented it or if FEMA owned it. He added that to his mental list of things to take care of.

Beau gave a low whistle of appreciation when he walked in. “Damn, this is nicer than some apartments I’ve lived in. Definitely nicer than the team house. I don’t blame you for sleeping here.”

“I don’t sleep here,” Connor said, stepping further in. “I tried, but Benji freaked out when I wasn’t in the house in the middle of the night. I made a room in the attic, and now I just use this as a big closet.”

Connor unbuttoned his jacket, watching through the folding door of the tiny bedroom as Beau explored the inside of his potential future home. “The house was uninhabitable after Harvey. My parents and the kids lived in here until they could move back in.”

It looked huge now that it was empty, but Connor could only imagine how tight it had been for six people. He pictured his brothers and sisters arguing over who got the top bunk in the rack of three. He should ask them about it.

Beau opened the tiny fridge.

He should ask the kids about a lot of things. Since he’d gotten back, he’d tried to spend one-on-one time with each of the kids, getting to know them as they were now instead of the babies and small children they were in his memory.

Six-year-old Benji was the easiest to get to know. His youngest brother was a chatterbox and a very sweet boy. He said exactly what he was thinking, every time, and he questioned everything. So many things in life were new to him, Connor loved seeing the world through his eyes.

Micah, at eleven, was the most difficult. Connor hadn’t had a lot of experience with girls in general, and she was quiet. He didn’t know if that was a result of all the trauma, if it was her normal personality, or a combination of both. Micah observed the goings-on more than participating. She read a lot and got good grades in school, but it seemed like she might be getting overlooked in the crowd.

Fiona was fourteen going on forty, as his mom would have said. She seemed the most self-sufficient of the four. Connor had to stop himself from treating her like an extra parent sometimes. She deserved to be a kid.

Sean, well, Sean was a sixteen-year-old boy who swung between wanting to spend every second with Connor and wanting to deck him. That was going to come to a head at some point, he was sure of it.

Beau ran some water in the sink and checked out the small four-burner stovetop. “I can’t imagine cooking for four kids in here,” he called into the bedroom. His eyebrows raised when he saw Connor stepping out of his uniform pants, leaving him in a white undershirt and non-regulation red boxer briefs.

Yeah, Connor could have shut the door, but that would have been rude, right? He didn’t make eye contact with Beau as he hung up his dress pants, but he didn’t cover up, either.

He’d like to lie to himself and say nothing was going to happen between him and Beau but he knew himself better. He was a red-blooded Texan and a grown man. There really wasn’t any reason not to. After all, Beau wouldn’t be sticking around long enough to be a problem.

Besides, it had been a while since anyone had looked at him with that heat in their eyes. Longer still since he’d felt such a strong rush of attraction so quickly.

Hidden Creek had a few gay bars he could go to for a quick hookup or maybe something more, but getting away from four kids wasn’t that easy. Plus, this was a small town. He didn’t need everyone all up in his business more than they already were.

With his luck, the Walrus would come sniffing around the house while he was out drinking and grinding up against some guy on the dance floor.

Say he did manage to find a hookup, it’s not like he could bring them home. So, not surprisingly, it had been just him and his hand for the last couple of months.

Really, having Beau around was perfect. If he were up for some fun, Connor had no objections.

Beau didn’t say anything, just watched appreciatively as the energy between them crackled in the air. Even the anticipation was delicious.

“We should head back,” Connor said after he’d put on a pair of faded blue jeans and a worn green henley. Beau had actually taken a step forward, hands twitching by his thighs, when Connor stripped off his white undershirt. It was gratifying to know someone appreciated the time he spent working out.

Beau held the door for him as they left, his body brushing quite nicely against Connor’s as he passed through the narrow doorway.

* * *

Back in the house, the kids had set up a reception in the kitchen. Piles of gummy bears, potato chips, and Milk Duds covered mismatched paper party plates. Leftover My Little Pony plates sat next to some Transformers napkins. A threadbare stuffed dog and several plastic Pokémon sat in front of one plate.

Connor was touched to see a stuffed elephant he had sent Benji a few years ago occupying a place of honor at the head of the table. A few Barbie dolls with questionable fashion choices and hair that appeared to have been done with an egg beater had their own spots.

“Sean,” Connor said, “Can you make sure Benji doesn’t feed Mac and Cheese any gummy bears?”

Sean crossed his arms and glared. “Why can’t you do it?”

Connor took a slow breath and counted backward from five. He wasn’t going to get into it with Sean in front of Beau. It had been easier to order around forty armed Marines than it was to get Sean to do anything. “Because I need show Beau around the house and talk about what needs to be done,” he said calmly.

“I can do it,” Sean said quickly. “You can watch Benji.”

Out of the corner of his eye, Connor saw Benji walk up to Beau. Narrowing his eyes and crossing his arms over his chest, the boy studied Beau.

“Who are you?” Benji asked.

“My name is Beau Hopper. I’m a hockey player, and I’ll be helping your brother get the house fixed up.”

“How do you know our brother?” Fiona asked, eyes narrowed.

Beau looked over at him and quirked one corner of his lips in a smile. Those lips would look amazing wrapped around Connor’s cock.

“I brought my minivan to the shop, and he had the audacity to laugh at her,” he said, faking a pout.

Connor snorted. “Sorry, it’s just Lady Gaga’s not a name I would have picked for a minivan.”

“No more dissing Lady Gaga, Connor. You swore on Stefani Joanne, remember?” Beau winked at him.

The wink alone would have been enough to send a shiver down his spine. Combined with the way his name sounded on Beau’s tongue, he was nearly ready to drop to his knees. If Beau didn’t drop first. Either worked for him; he wasn’t picky.

“So, you want to see the rest of the house?” he asked, eager to get Beau alone, maybe cop a quick feel.

“Sure thing,” Beau answered. “Where should we start?”

“I can show you my bedroom,” Sean said quickly.

“I told you, look after the guinea pigs,” Connor said.

“But—”

“No buts,” Connor said. “You stay here. Beau, after you.”

He did his best not to stare at Beau’s ass as he walked upstairs, but there it was, right in his face. It was almost too easy.

The second floor was less finished than the first. There was no carpeting, just tarps on the hall floor. The walls hadn’t been touched for the most part, but they hadn’t been painted in the last decade either. There were water marks from where the roof had leaked during the storm. Faded marks from the ghost of old pictures and lighting fixtures stained the walls.

It was a long hallway, with three doors on either side.

“There are five bedrooms up here, but only two of them are finished,” Connor said.

“This one’s mine.” Sean pushed past them to open the first door on the right.

“I told you to stay downstairs,” Connor said with a sigh.

Ignoring him, Sean held the door open. “I have to share it with Benji,” he grumbled.

The room was small. Barely big enough for two twin beds, a dresser, and the guinea pig cage. Really, the cage was too small for two pigs, but until they finished the rest of the house, they couldn’t do anything about it. He’d find a way to make it up to Sean. Now that he had some help, maybe he’d be able to make some of the more ambitious changes he’d planned.

Sean kicked the cage, making it rattle. “Mac and Cheese are loud at night. Sometimes Benji comes and crawls in my bed and won’t let me kick him out. This is my side of the room. I play football and baseball,” he said, as if it wasn’t obvious.

A Texas state flag hung on the wall, and a number of football and baseball trophies were precisely placed on the floating shelf beside his bed. Team photos were pinned to the wall.

Benji’s bed was covered in stuffed animals, his blankets kicked onto the floor as usual.

“The boys’ room is pretty finished, so it won’t need too much.” Connor turned and led Beau to the next room, Sean trailing behind them. “Neither will the girls’ room. But I need to get them all into their own rooms, according to the state.” He rolled his eyes. As if kids didn’t share rooms every day in every town across America. Once again, he was being held to a higher standard than normal parents.

He opened the door to reveal a room divided in two by a line of blue painter’s tape. One wall was plastered with band posters. Small Polaroid pictures of Fiona and her friends were clothes-pinned to a string stretching across the wall. A laptop sat on a nightstand. Somewhere under the mound of clothes was Fiona’s bed. He would have to remind her to put them away. Again.

Micah’s side was much tidier. Ravenclaw-patterned sheets were folded meticulously back over her Hogwarts crest bedspread. A bookshelf stuffed with books stood against the wall. A map of Middle-earth took up the remaining wall space.

“As you can see, they’re very territorial.” He glanced over at Beau and found him staring back. Heat flooded his cheeks, and he looked away quickly. “Anyway, these are the only two bedrooms that are livable.”

From there, the projects began. Walls had been insulated, and most of the new sheetrock was up. The electric wiring needed to be finished and the floors put in. One of the upstairs bathrooms was mostly usable. “The toilet works, as long as you pour water from the bucket into the tank,” Sean said from the doorway. “And the shower works.” The cabinetry was in place and two sinks sat on the floor waiting to be installed.

“We’ll need to put another toilet in,” Connor said. “And probably a second sink.”

“Wow, the hurricane really did some damage,” Beau said.

“Only some of it is from the storm,” Connor corrected him. “Mostly the downstairs and the roof damage. That’s fixed already. No, my mom and Brent figured they might as well take advantage of the situation and do all the remodeling they wanted to do. I think they were thinking of making a bed and breakfast when the kids moved out.”

Beau shook his head to himself as he walked into the room, taking a closer look at the work still left to be done. Connor took a step closer to Beau, wishing Sean had stayed downstairs. A little privacy would have been nice.

“Looks like you’ve already done a lot,” Beau said. “I don’t know how you do it. All this work, plus working at the shop, plus taking care of the kids?”

“I’m a master multitasker.” Connor said. “And I’m pretty good with my hands.”

“I bet you are.” Beau smiled back.

Sean cleared his throat. “The other bedrooms?”

Connor gritted his teeth and sighed. “Yes. The other bedrooms.”

The next three bedrooms were completely unlivable. They hadn’t had money to buy doors, so the rooms stood open. Two of the bedrooms had flooring put in and one had insulation, but there was still so much to do.

Everywhere Connor looked, there was another project. Another closet that needed to be put in, another room that needed insulation and wiring and sheetrock. A hand on his shoulder made him look up and over at Beau.

“You okay?” Beau asked, his voice kind.

Connor nodded. “Yeah. Yeah, I’ll be fine. It’s just a lot of projects.”

“Just take it one at a time. It’s okay. I’m used to projects.” Beau squeezed his shoulder and gave him a reassuring smile. “Show me the downstairs?”

Sean led the way, thundering down the steps like he couldn’t get away fast enough. They picked up more kids on the way to the master bedroom on the ground floor.

“There’s a half bathroom down here that works,” Connor pointed to a door off the hall.

“How come we’ve never seen you around?” Fiona asked, as if she was personally aware of every individual in Hidden Creek.

“Why is your hair blue?” Benji asked.

Micah smiled shyly from the couch. She was the quietest of the crowd. Connor made a mental note to find something they could do together, just the two of them.

“Guys,” Connor said firmly. “Give him some breathing room.”

Beau just laughed. “It’s okay. I only moved about four months ago.”

“Do you have any brothers and sisters?” Micah asked from the couch.

“No, but I have a bunch of cousins,” Beau answered.

“Are your parents still alive?” Benji asked. He peered up at Beau with big brown eyes that made Connor want to pull him into a hug.

“Yes, they are.”

“You’re lucky,” he mumbled.

“Yeah,” Beau said with a nod. “I know.”

“Do you have a girlfriend?” Benji asked.

Connor grinned as Beau shook his head. “No, no girlfriend.”

“Boyfriend?” Fiona asked, flicking a glance over at Connor.

“Guys. Leave him alone.”

Beau followed her gaze and held it for a moment. “No. I move around too much.”

“So the master bedroom,” Sean said. “It’s through here.”

He pushed past Fiona and Beau through the door leading to the bedroom. Connor knew better than to call him out. It would only lead to a fight.

The master bedroom was the least finished room in the house. Subflooring only spanned half the room, and there was a tarp-covered hole in the wall where the window should have been. When it was finished, it would be perfect, with a walk-in closet and an attached master bathroom. For the moment, it was just a shell.

“There’s a lot that needs doing,” Connor said, pulling the door closed behind him. “But for now, it’s the lowest priority.”

He led the group back into the living room, where Micah still sat on the couch, curled up with Mac and Cheese. “Flooring, insulation, windows, plumbing. You sure you can handle all of this?”

Beau shrugged. “It’ll be a challenge, but I’ve never shied away from those. It looks pretty much like I expected a house that went through a hurricane to look like.”

“We rode in a helicopter,” Benji said. “It came and rescued us from school. It was so cool!”

“Yeah, but the water was really loud. And I hated seeing the horses,” Fiona said.

Beau frowned. “The horses?”

Connor wished he hadn’t asked.

“There were horses that were tied up, and they couldn’t get free when the water started coming. We—we had to watch them…” She trailed off, biting her lip.

“That must have been really sad,” Beau said. “I’m sorry.”

Fiona nodded and, to Connor’s surprise, Sean hugged her against him.

“So, what do you guys think? Can I move my stuff in tonight?” Beau asked quickly.

“Yes!” Benji shouted. Figured. Benji had never met a person he didn’t like. Except for the Walrus.

Connor was grateful for Beau changing the subject, but he didn’t want the man to feel obligated. They hadn’t discussed any terms. “You sure you want to?” Connor asked. “I’m not sure you’re getting the better part of this bargain.”

Beau shoved his hands in his pockets and shrugged. “Yeah, why not? Could be fun being around these guys.” He winked at the kids. Micah giggled from behind her hand.

Connor exhaled. This might work out well all around.