reached over to start the water. He laughed quietly as Julian leaned over the sink to scrub his teeth, and he snagged the bottle of mouth wash as he waited for the water to heat up. When he spit his mouthful into the stream Julian started, he straightened up, and found himself crowded against the wall with hands at his hips, and Julian wearing an almost predatory smile that he was fairly sure he’d never get tired of.
“Now?” he asked.
Julian bit his lip, then nodded. He didn’t answer with words, instead leaning in to capture Archer in a toe-curling kiss. He broke apart after just a second, then trailed his lips across his jaw and nipped at his ear. “Archer.”
It was another punch to the sternum, to hear Julian say his name, but this time it came with more comfort than fear. “Come on. We need to get clean and then head for breakfast. Isn’t there a lot of shit to do today?”
Julian pulled a face, then sighed. “I’m sorry, I only caught part of that.”
Archer tugged him close once they were under the spray, and he leaned up toward his ear. “I’m going to learn sign language.” Julian opened his mouth, probably to argue, so Archer grabbed his hand instead and poured a liberal dollop of shampoo into his palm. “Don’t.”
Julian rolled his eyes, but Archer didn’t miss the pink flush in his cheeks that had nothing to do with the steam. He busied himself with washing the other man, taking his time in running a soft, bubbly wash cloth over his skin. Julian, at some point during the night, had stopped shying away from Archer’s touch. This time, he leaned into it, stealing kisses as they traded spots to rinse off and keep warm, and although Julian was still hard from not getting his own release that morning, he didn’t seem to mind or want more.
Archer spent more time fussing with his hair as Julian dressed, and he appeared in the bathroom doorway a few minutes later with his hearing aids in. “You look good,” he said, tugging on a stray lock of Archer’s damp hair.
Archer rolled his eyes. “The sea air does me no favors, but at least my hair isn’t curly like my brother’s.”
Something flashed in Julian’s eyes, but before Archer could regret calling attention to what his lover now knew, he leaned his shoulder against the door and smiled. “He must love you a lot to do what he did after your parents died.”
“He did a lot for me before they were gone,” Archer confessed. His stomach twisted with guilt—at how readily he had dismissed Rex wanting him around in favor of his own career, and how quickly he was willing to compromise for a man he barely knew. But maybe that was how love always started. “He was more of a parent to me than they were. I felt guilty for a long time for not grieving harder for them.”
“I don’t,” Julian said, then stopped to take a breath. “I don’t know how hard I’ll grieve when my mother finally dies.”
Archer set his comb down, then closed the short distance between them and held Julian by the waist. “You deserve better.”
Julian looked down at his feet, then met his gaze with a ferocity that nearly sent Archer a step back. His fingers dug in tighter at Julian’s waist, and he let himself be pulled into another kiss—this one lingering until Archer felt something buzzing in Julian’s pocket.
Julian swore against his mouth, then pulled back to retrieve his phone, his face falling as he read whatever was on the screen. “Fuck. I was supposed to meet my dad for breakfast. He wanted to talk.”
Archer smiled at him. “Go. I’ll get myself something and find a way to keep occupied until you’re done.” Julian hesitated, so Archer surged in and kissed him one last time. “Go. Today’s going to be a circus anyway with the rehearsal.”
Julian held him a little tighter, sighing as he pressed their foreheads together. “Don’t go far?”
“I won’t.” Archer let him go, then watched him turn and hurry out the door, slamming it behind him. When he was alone, Archer sagged, then walked over to the bed and fell face first onto the comforter that smelled like them.
It would be too easy to burrow down in it, to lose himself in the memories of the night before, and the echo of Julian moving against him, kissing him, and coming. Instead, he grabbed