and the sharp edge of his jaw, and the way his mouth settled in a half-smile when he wasn’t trying to look a certain way.
Archer.
Julian still wanted him. “Yes,” he finally said. “Yes, we do.”
“If you want me to leave…”
“I can’t do this here,” Julian told him, then gave in to the urge that given up since the walked outside, and he pulled Archer’s knuckles to his mouth, kissing them. “I’m not ready to let you go. I just…” He bit his lip. “Five questions a day?”
Archer lowed his lashes, then nodded. “Five questions.”
Julian led the way to the car, and they made the short drive back to the cottage in almost total silence.
Chapter 19
Archer only just managed to control his adrenaline so he wasn’t shivering like he was out in a snowstorm, but his jaw and fists ached from how tight he was clenching down to keep it that way. Julian had kissed his hand—he’d kissed his hand and looked at him with wide eyes with something like want and wonder—but there was no way he could escape the truth.
Fucking Kent. It was no surprise that Archer hadn’t realized Bryce was Kent’s brother. Kent’s family was never around, he knew about Rachel only vaguely, and he’d escaped the circus of his brother’s first campaign the moment he had graduated. But of course Rex had kept his team updated on his little brother.
Of course Rachel and Kent knew about him.
And of fucking course one of Kent’s many siblings was the man who had torn Julian’s life to shreds after discarding him like roadkill he’d refused to swerve for. Archer was terrified and he was furious, and he wasn’t quite sure what to do with those emotions as he followed Julian inside the cottage.
It felt smaller than before, four narrow walls closing in on him as Julian turned on the lights and then stood with his backside resting against the arm of the sofa. Archer stood just a few feet from the door, arms wrapped around his middle, and he couldn’t decide if he should be prepared to bolt or not.
He could easily make it to the main road—hoof it to a gas station and wait there until he could either get a car or he could get ahold of Rex who would no doubt eviscerate him, but he’d still rescue him. He dragged a hand down his face, then forced himself to look at Julian and gather his courage to hold himself to the promise he made.
“First question?”
Julian’s mouth quirked up at the corner. “Is Archer your real name?”
He bowed his head, then nodded. “Archer Liam Dawson.”
“Dawson,” Julian echoed, and then there was that moment—the one Archer had seen several times before now. “Rex Dawson.”
Archer pulled his top lip between his teeth, bit down hard enough to hurt, then let it go. “He was in his twenties when I was born.” He took a step further into the room, and he stopped when Julian went tense. “My mom thought I was menopause, and then nine months later,” he flopped his arms at his sides loosely. “They died when I was six, but I barely noticed because they hadn’t wanted me in the first place so I never really saw them as a kid. Rex got custody—he was just getting started in his career, but he did…he did a really good job.”
Julian gnawed on his lip, then used his feet to toe out of his shoes and he shuffled up higher onto the armrest so his feet barely grazed the floor. “Were you really in Paris?”
“Yes,” Archer said. He took another step closer, and this time tension eased from Julian’s shoulders. “That’s two.”
“Astrophysics?”
“Apart from Rex, it’s the only thing that’s ever really mattered to me,” he answered, and his heart thumped because in that moment, oddly, it felt dishonest.
“Three,” Julian breathed out. He looked away for a long moment, his tongue dragging along his lower lip, and Archer hated that in spite of the stress, he still wanted this. He knew the question was coming—it had to be, and he had promised to answer them all honestly. When Julian slipped off the sofa, Archer froze until the other man was directly in front of him. The bare tips of his toes brushed along Archer’s shoes, and his hands were balled into fists at his sides. “Does your brother know?”
“What?” Archer asked, his voice threatening to give out, but he knew Julian wouldn’t be able to hear him that way. “Does he