Total pages in book: 97
Estimated words: 92536 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 463(@200wpm)___ 370(@250wpm)___ 308(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 92536 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 463(@200wpm)___ 370(@250wpm)___ 308(@300wpm)
“We,” Liam whispered, silent tears rolling down his cheeks. “We’re not going anywhere.”
“Yeah. We. Ducky’s ass is going back to jail. It’ll be a long time before they let him out now. You’ll be here dancing and showing everyone that the fight is worth it, and I’ll be holding your hand every step of the way.”
“Thank you,” Liam said. He snuggled close and sighed as Tate wrapped his arms around him. “I love you.”
“I love you, too, Luxe,” he said. He’d never forget how Liam felt in his arms at that moment—warm, soft, alive.
After another moment, Liam mumbled, “Talk to your brother. I think he’s ready.” Two seconds later, he was breathing evenly, though still wheezing. The hum of the oxygen tank was a comfortable reminder that Liam was getting what he needed for the moment.
Tate shut his eyes. He might have fallen asleep, or maybe not, but sometime later, he popped his eyes open, feeling a steady gaze on them. His first instinct was to roll on top of Liam and shield him from the threat, but he stopped himself when he saw Randy sitting in the chair beside the bed with a remorseful expression.
“I’m not here to cause trouble,” Randy said when he noticed Tate had woken up. “I just…” He shrugged and stared at his feet.
A quick glance reassured Tate they hadn’t woken Liam. He didn’t offer to get up. Randy could get used to seeing them together and touching, or he could fuck right off.
“Thank you,” Tate said.
Randy’s head popped up, and his eyes widened.
“You put yourself in serious danger to save him.” Tate’s throat thickened. “Thank you.”
Randy shrugged.
No one would claim they were even mediocre communicators, but some things had to be said if they stood a chance at repairing the mess of their relationship.
“He’s important to you,” Randy said with another shrug. “Couldn’t let the guy die.”
“I love him, Randy.”
His brother met his gaze with a nod. “Sucked not talking to you these past few weeks. I wanna… I wanna fix that. Shouldn’ta punched you.”
The punch was the least of it in Tate’s eyes. He’d rather take a hundred punches than hear the hateful crap his brother had spewed.
“Shouldn’ta said all that crap either.”
Tate grunted. Look at that. Maybe Randy really was sorry.
“I got all these things I thought I knew.” Randy tapped the side of his head. “Shit I heard all my life. Shit I believed. But you’re my baby brother. I look at you and try to fit you into a box, and it ain’t working. Don’t know if that makes sense.” He picked at a tear in the tan vinyl on the seat between his spread legs.
They’d been so screwed up by their parents and where they grew up. “It does. Hell, I had a lot of those same ideas. It’s why I stayed in the closet for so long.”
“Yeah.”
“Reason you can’t fit me in any of those boxes is because those ideas are all bullshit.”
Randy lifted his gaze. “Might take me some time to get used to this.” He waved a hand in Liam and Tate’s direction. “But I wanna try. So, maybe you could help me? Whit said she’d help too, but maybe you could tell me if I say shit that’s wrong or offensive so I can fix it. I’d like to see who my real brother is.”
Tate glanced out the window before focusing on his brother again. No pigs had flown by. There didn’t seem to be an icy chill coming from the underworld either. But something must be off with the universe if Randy was saying all this.
“Not sure you want to see all of your real brother.”
Randy wrinkled his nose. “Yeah, I ain’t ready to see you two sword fight or any shit like that, but maybe we could have a few beers when he’s feeling better.”
“Sword fight? What the fuck is it you think we get up to?”
Randy shrugged, but he was grinning. “Don’t wanna know.” He stood. “I’ll let you get back to sleep. Want me to bring you two breakfast later?”
“That’d be great, Rand. Thanks.”
Randy held out his hand. “No problem.”
Instead of slapping his palm the way they normally did, Tate gripped his brother’s hand and squeezed. “Thank you, Randy.”
His brother squeezed his hand back and then left.
Tate went back to holding Liam.
Liam was safe. They’d rebuild his studio, and he’d be the best damn dance teacher in the Midwest. Ducky’s ass would land back in jail, and Randy just might turn himself into a decent human being.
For the first time in his life, Tate had a bright future to look forward to.
EPILOGUE
TWO MONTHS LATER
Liam’s jaw hit the ground. He squeezed Tate’s hand so hard his man flinched.
“Sorry,” he whispered through a tight throat. “It’s just… I didn’t expect this.”
Tate grinned at him with the same smile he’d worn for the past two months. The new smile. The one that developed the day Liam was released from the hospital and had graced those luscious lips so many times since. It was light, happy, free, and full of love. Liam could live on those smiles for the rest of his life.