come here. Maybe the change in scenery for a day or two will do him some good. I know his record. If a furlough for personal reasons is a problem for whatever reason, I can see if a business-related consultation would be a better reason.”
He couldn’t have controlled the bubble of hope if he tried. “You can do that?”
“I’m evaluating buildings for security. He could…provide some insight. I don’t know…I’ll find a way to spin it.” Gabriel raised his hand. “Don’t get too excited. There’s no guarantee it can happen. Since we’re not his family, it might require us to jump through a few hoops. And maybe living in a hotel is an automatic rejection. But we won’t know unless we try.”
“You really don’t have to do that. I know you’re not his biggest fan.”
“At first,” Gabriel said with a laugh as he signed. “Only because I didn’t know what he was up to. Until I figured out he was too busy wondering if I was good enough for you.” He pressed another kiss to Ben’s cheek before he continued signing, “I can’t hate the guy for wanting to protect you.”
Ben blew out a shaky breath, clearly seeing the love staring back at him.
“I don’t expect to be the only person who matters in your life,” Gabriel signed, stopping to brush away the hair from Ben’s eyes. “I just want to be one of them.”
There weren’t enough memory pieces in his mind to remember this moment…this feeling. “You matter most,” he signed, then sealed their lips in a kiss. He traced every curve of Gabriel’s body as their unhurried kiss continued.
After breaking away from the kiss, he absently slid his hand down Gabriel’s chest with a sigh.
He stilled when his wrist was captured. He stared into Gabriel’s eyes as his hand was guided back up Gabriel’s chest, over his beating heart. The heartbeat thumping under Ben’s palm was strong and steady.
“You matter most to me too,” Gabriel said before leaning in.
Ben’s vision blurred as their mouths pressed together in another kiss. The pulse under his palm beat faster. Harder.
For him.
Gabriel’s heart was as big as the man himself.
And there wasn’t a doubt in Ben’s mind that it belonged to him.
Father’s Day
Bull tugged at his tie and took a step back, staring at his reflection for the hundredth time. He used the hair product that didn’t make his head itch and did that sweep thing in the front the way Serg had explained months ago. His hair was longer, but with the industrial-grade goop, it still worked.
He leaned in and scowled at the microscopic speck on his dark suit. Brushing it off, he pulled at his cuffs and rolled his shoulders, shaking off the building tension. He took a deep breath and exhaled, willing the tightness in his shoulders to fade and the negative what-ifs in his mind to vanish. Maybe going into this dinner, hoping things might be different was proof he had officially lost his damn mind. There was no reason to believe tonight would be different. But he couldn’t stop his silly heart from wishing his dad would give him a pat on the back or an attaboy like he used to when he was a kid.
With a growl, he pulled at the tie’s knot and loosened it, yanking it from around his shirt collar. If he was going to dinner, he was going to be himself. Not the prim and proper illusion he hoped would earn his father’s approval.
Ben leaned against the doorframe of the bathroom. Damn, the man looked good enough to eat. With the short notice and long list of cake orders to fill for different Pride celebrations, Ben hadn’t had time for much this week, let alone time to shop for a suit. Thankfully, Matt had a closet full of them and somehow convinced Ben to take one.
The sleek black suit fit him like a glove and matched his dark hair. Wearing nothing else but a crisp white shirt, he looked sharp yet casual and ready to strut his sexy ass down the catwalk.
“Don’t wear the tie,” Ben signed. “This isn’t work. It’s dinner with your father.”
Bull nodded, even though his body felt the weight of a high-stress assignment. Faking his best half smile, he couldn’t resist the urge to tease. “And we’ll match if I don’t wear one.”
Ben pushed off the doorframe. “I know you’re worried. But we agreed, if things don’t go well, we leave. No questions asked. Okay?”