The Right One - Felice Stevens Page 0,65
so hurt over his childhood.” Peter and Marla exchanged a look. “What? You know it’s true.”
“Dude. Leo never told me a thing about his family.” His smile gleamed bright. “And you said what about not being special?” He clapped Morgan on the back, sending him two steps forward and setting his teeth rattling. “We’re gonna go now. We shouldn’t be home too late. There’s stuff in the fridge; have anything you want.”
“No problem. See you when you get home.”
PJ came running down the stairs, and after a flurry of good-bye hugs and kisses, Marla and Peter finally left. Morgan let the little boy pick out the story he wanted, and true to Marla’s words, he was ready to go to bed once Morgan had read it to him.
He’d settled on the couch with a rare can of soda and a bag of pretzels and immersed himself in some historical fiction movie about the Tudors when the bell rang. Checking his watch, he frowned. Who came to someone’s house at almost nine at night? But the bell ringing had turned to knocking, and fearful that the kids would wake up, Morgan hurried to see who it was. He peered through the peephole, and opened the door to Leo’s, “What’re you doing here?”
Leo stood glowering on the porch, hair windblown, eyes glittering like blue fire, more desirable to Morgan than ever.
And annoyed. As usual. Did he mention that?
“Nice to see you too. Peter and Marla went to a concert and asked me to babysit.”
Leo brushed past him into the house, filling it with his presence. Peter might be taller and at least twenty pounds heavier than Leo, but it was Leo who crowded against him even when he stood a distance away. Morgan smelled his skin, could feel his breath, and it took everything in him not to reach out and run his fingers over the rough bristles on Leo’s cheek.
“And they asked you.” Leo tossed his helmet onto the couch. “A stranger.”
“Who should they ask, you?” Morgan laughed and walked into the kitchen, his heart pounding. He stood by the sink, took a glass out, and ran the cold water.
Ignoring his question, Leo followed him. “Didn’t you have a date?”
Morgan filled the glass and drank before answering. “Yeah, I did. We had a great time.” Willing his hands to stop shaking, Morgan put the glass in the sink and faced Leo. He wouldn’t give in, no matter how much he wanted to touch Leo and kiss him. Morgan couldn’t fix Leo’s brokenness—Leo had to be willing to do that for himself, but instead, he walked through life pretending all was well and that he wasn’t hurting and in need of help.
“And yet here you are, babysitting. Guess it didn’t work out.”
If he could’ve wiped that smirk off Leo’s face, he would’ve.
“Oh, yeah? How do you know? Maybe we were so into each other, we ditched finishing the drink and I took him home and we fucked ourselves silly. Derrick’s a great guy, sweet and nice. Everything you’re not.”
Was that a childish jab? Hell yeah, but Leo’s self-assurance that he and Derrick didn’t work out grated, and he’d wanted to strike back.
Angry blue eyes met his. “Is that what happened?”
“It’s none of your business who I date or sleep with or anything else. We’re not together, remember? You’re not interested in me.”
Leo’s face turned grimmer. “I never said that.”
“Right. You said we were blowing off steam, that you’re not the right one for me, and that you’re not boyfriend material. Pick one. That’s so different.”
“We were having fun. No strings, keeping it light and casual. I thought you were okay with that.”
“I tried. Really. I was hoping I could be casual about everything for a change—dating, sex, relationships, even though we said we weren’t in one. Turns out I’m not wired that way. I can’t sleep with someone without having feelings for them. That’s not me. Maybe it makes me stupid.”
“You’re not stupid, Morgan. Anything but.”
Sure he was. Because if Leo touched him right then, Morgan would give him anything he wanted. Resisting the urge, he gripped his hands together and figured to hell with it. Get everything out in the open so it would be easier to move on.
“Meanwhile, I find out you’ve had a boyfriend. So I guess you can be that kind of guy. Just not with me.”
The shutters slammed down, and Leo gave him his back. “Fucking Peter can’t shut up.”
Morgan left the kitchen. He was there to