The next morning, Callahan woke up alone, with bruises shaped like fingerprints on the inside of his thighs. He stretched out, finding he’d slept in the bed after all. His toes stuck out from the far end of the tangled sheets, and he kicked them off with a grunt. His body was sore from use in a way it hadn’t been in longer than he was willing to admit.
It had been years since Callahan had been intimate with someone. Being alone didn’t bother him, as even if he had wanted them, he worked a lot and didn’t have much time for relationship kinds of things. He watched the way Sebastian and Daniella struggled to find happiness with each other, and he was thankful it wasn’t a struggle he had to endure.
Callahan got up and grabbed a pair of sweats out of his suitcase and pulled them on, not bothering with underwear. He’d expected to find Jace in the living room or the kitchen, or maybe even on the balcony, but the room was empty. Without thinking, he ran back into the bedroom, sucking in a relieved breath when he confirmed Jace’s suitcase was still in the closet.
He covered his face with his hands, blushing in silent embarrassment and thankful Jace wasn’t there to see. The radio dock vibrated, and he leaned over to disconnect his phone. The unit hadn’t charged it and he was treacherously close to a dead battery. He needed to find his charger before the battery died, and he swiped his screen open to see a text from Sebastian just before the screen turned black.
“Shit,” he muttered under his breath. He’d just started looking for his charge cord when someone knocked at the door.
“Who’s there?” he called, tossing his phone onto the table and heading toward the sound.
“Bloody Mary delivery,” Sebastian said from the other side.
Callahan opened the door and stepped to the side, letting Sebastian and his travel tray of drinks into the room.
“Lovers quarrel?” he asked, looking around before setting the drinks and a white paper bag that smelled like bacon on the table.
“Why would you say that?”
Sebastian gave him a look, then gathered up a pile of sheets from the couch and thrust them against Callahan’s chest.
“Put a shirt on, too,” Sebastian said.
Callahan frowned down at the pile of bedding, which smelled just like the cologne Jace had worn the night before. He didn’t remember much from last night, but he remembered coming all over himself as Jace’s cock slammed into his prostate over and over and over again. He remembered the way Jace had held his legs apart, making room for his dick to slide deeper into Callahan’s ass. And he remembered the way Jace’s entire body had seized and stilled when he’d filled the condom as he came.
He turned and went into the bedroom, throwing the sheets onto the bed and taking a shirt out of the closet. His fingers brushed over the column of his throat and his mind filled with the memory of the way Jace had angled his back, face pointing toward the ceiling as his orgasm tore him apart.
“No quarrel,” he said, clearing his throat and joining Sebastian on the couch.
Sebastian handed him a cup and a straw, then set to work on taking food out of the bag. As he’d hoped, there was a breakfast bagel inside, thick and juicy bacon spilling out of the sides.
“Where is he then?” Sebastian asked. “I got breakfast for the three of us.”
“He’s…he’s out.”
Sebastian gave him a doubtful look over the edge of his cup.
“Besides,” Callahan said, taking a hearty swallow of what turned out to be a very mediocre Bloody Mary. “I thought you weren’t talking to me until I got my shit together.”
“I’d assumed that college education of yours had given you the problem solving skills to sort it out before bed, but if the sheets on the couch are of any indication, I’ve misjudged you.”
“We slept together,” he admitted, setting down his drink and leaning back against the couch. He rubbed the corners of his eyes with his fingers and waited for Sebastian’s rebuke.
“I had a feeling.” Sebastian mirrored his posture. “How did that come about?”
“I don’t know. I just…I wanted another chance with him. I asked him for an hour.”
“That’s all?” Sebastian chuckled and Callahan flushed again at the memory of how many hours they’d actually spent in bed together.
“I just want to get out of this weekend unscathed.”
“That’s selfish.”
Callahan picked up his drink and swirled the ice around with his straw. He frowned down at the red mixture, then held the straw out of the way and took another drink.
“How so?” he asked.
“You should be worried about gettinghimout of here unscathed. If you have to throw yourself down on the grenade that is my brother, then you need to be prepared to do it.”
