“Like I said before, it’s not really like that. You know me, man. It’s not as though I’ve put a lot of thought into settling down and starting a family someday. I’m not adverse to it if it happens, but I’m not out there looking for it, either. But I guess if I’m thinking about my future, it matters less if it’s a man or a woman and more how they make me feel and how I feel about them. Sexually, I love being with men and I enjoy being with women, too. There are differences—things about a man I fucking love and I enjoy the softness of a woman sometimes, too. But if we’re talking, what, love? Then I guess that’s what matters—who I fall in love with. The rest is just details.”

He envied the way Braden saw the world, the fact that he didn’t play by any set of rules other than his own.

“Life is short.” He brushed a finger over the back of Wes’s neck. “I want to be around people who make me happy, and who I do the same thing to. Someone who can handle me,” he laughed. “You and I both know that person might not be out there, and I’m okay with that, too. There’s a whole lotta fun to be had in this world, Wesley.”

Braden pulled back. On reflex, Wes fisted his hand in Braden’s shirt, not wanting him to break the connection. Braden didn’t let go of him, though, just looked him in the eyes and said, “You wanna have some fun with me tonight? I’m definitely in the mood to have fun with you.”

Like he seemed to do so much around Braden, he laughed. “I’m not sure if you’re up for the challenge. Once I start to sober up after drinking, all I want to do is go to sleep.” He got drunk quick and sobered quick. He’d always been that way.

“I promise you, I’m up for it. Come on. Let’s go home so I can show you just how up to it I am.” He put his mouth to Wes’s ear. “The faster we get out of here, the faster I can fuck you.”

Wes’s blood ran hot, and shot straight to his dick. That sounded like the kind of fun he needed to have.

Chapter Fourteen

Wes had his hands all over Braden as he drove to Wes’s house. “I could get used to this side of you,” he said into the darkened truck.

“Always talking.” Wes’s hand slid up Braden’s inner thigh and cupped the bulge between his legs.

“Fuck!” The truck jerked slightly. “It’s snowing. You’re going to make me wreck the truck, and I’ll have to explain to the officers that my hard-on felt more important than keeping my ass on the road.”

At that, Wes jerked back. Somehow, Braden knew exactly why. “Hey.” He reached over to pat Wes’s chest with the back of his hand. “I’m kidding. I’m not going to wreck. We’re good.”

Wes played it off like that wasn’t what he’d been upset about, but he also kept his distance from Braden the rest of the ride, too. Braden and his fucking mouth.

The second they got inside, Wes kissed him, though. Fuck yes. Braden pushed his tongue past Wes’s lips as they stumbled backward, toward the room. He pulled at Wes’s jacket, ripping it off and tossing it to the floor.

His mouth went right back on Wes’s the second it was gone, but then he realized he needed to get the shirt out of the way, too. “Fuck. You make me lose my head.” He chuckled as he shoved his hands under Wes’s shirt and pushed it up his body. Braden finally got rid of it, his heart beating crazy with lust as he tried to kiss Wes again. Only this time, Wes did stumble, falling back onto the bed. Braden went down with him, both of them laughing.

“You’re not allowed to move anymore, ya drunk bastard. Lay there and let me do what I want to you.”

Braden let his tongue circle around Wes’s bellybutton before he licked his way up the man’s chest and his hand slid down to cover the bulge behind his fly.

Wes hissed. “Fuck.”

Yeah, he liked hearing that word out of Wes’s mouth, and knowing he was responsible for it.

“Fuck!” Wes said again.

Braden stilled, suddenly not liking the sound of the word. “What?”

“My cell is in your truck. I need to get it in case Jess wakes up in the middle of the night or something.”

Those words made Braden pause. He wasn’t sure why they hit him right in the chest, but they did. They hit him so hard it felt like they knocked the wind out of him. How easy would it be to leave the phone out there? She was with her aunt. Or they could fuck and then get it, but Wes wouldn’t do that. Wouldn’t do it because of how much he loved the little girl and wanted to do right by her. Had he ever been that selfless?