In A Fix - Mary Calmes Page 0,69
what I was expecting. It was obvious Dallas meant a lot to everyone, and the way it had initially come across was that there was friction between the Whitney brothers and the Bauer siblings, but they were actually a functioning family that could do Sunday dinners and holidays and trips together if Lawrence and Dallas could find their middle ground.
“Well, I think it’s a bit too early for me to wade into anything on your behalf, but whatever is best for Dallas, I will, of course, do.”
“Yes. Yes, of course,” he agreed readily, as Evan joined us.
“You two need to come get some food,” he informed us. “Jackie wants everyone eating.”
Lawrence put his hand on his boyfriend’s back, and the three of us got in line at the table, where Jackie had laid out an amazing-looking spread. Cate had told me that everyone usually ate outside by the pool, under the fairy lights out there, but today, the temperature was going to keep us all inside. Anywhere we wanted to sit was fair game.
“I need to talk to you a sec,” Dallas growled as he walked up beside me, taking hold of my hand and tugging me after him to the glass doors that looked out on the patio. When he turned to me, opening his hand to release mine, I held on instead, which surprised him enough to lift his head and meet my gaze.
“I got the story on Evan and Lawrence.”
“Oh, okay,” he said, his voice high and thready, clearly embarrassed. “Then you know I’m apparently the guy who gets cheated on, and then is the schmuck who reacts badly and becomes the laughingstock of his family and their friends.”
“I don’t know about any of that,” I told him, leaning in, my hand on the side of his neck, my thumb sliding over his strong jawline, and then higher, to his mouth. I loved the feel of him, the rough stubble and his soft, full lips. “But I do know that everyone’s crazy about you, and they miss seeing you and spending time with you.”
His breath caught as I put my other hand on his hip.
“I would miss spending time with you,” I assured him, watching the tension dissipate, his stance relaxing as he exhaled. “So that’s why I’m going to make sure I don’t miss out on even a second whenever we’re together.”
He nodded quickly.
“Tell me, though, did you top when you were with Evan?”
More nodding.
“Did you enjoy that?”
All that beautiful storm-washed blue was on me. “I like to bottom, but most guys see me and expect…something else.”
Of course they did. He was all hot, sexy alpha male. They expected to be put over the kitchen table.
“If you want that, you––”
“No,” he rasped, his voice thick and rough, the catch easy to hear. “Please don’t change anything.” And then he had a thought, and I saw it flicker almost painfully across his features. “Shit. I didn’t even think about what you might need me to––”
“I don’t,” I declared firmly so he could hear how adamant I was. “You don’t need to do anything different. I love having you under me. I love how you respond to me, and I love being inside you.”
He jolted in my hands, and because he was obviously raw from the honesty we’d just shared, I stepped into him and wrapped him in my arms. There was a choked gasp, and he hugged me back, face in the side of my neck, trembling.
“Honey?” Jackie said, appearing beside us, looking at her son. “Are you all right?”
“He’s fine,” I assured her, giving him a final clench before I stepped free. “It’s just that sometimes we have to face the past to get on with the future, don’t you agree?”
Her eyes were suddenly swimming. “I do agree.”
“Oh, for crissakes, Mother,” Dallas groaned, grabbing her and crushing her against him. “Don’t be such a sap.”
She clung to him, telling him over and over how much she loved and adored him.
“Yes, dear, I know,” he goaded her, kissing her cheek before he let her go. “And I feel the same, as you damn well know.”
She nodded quickly, grabbed his hand, and led him back over to the table. She passed him a plate, then me, and explained what was on the table, never taking her hand off her son.
Eleven
Everyone was surprised that Dallas turned down more drinks during dinner, and after, and when I volunteered to do the dishes, Evan was right there with me, drying as