I nodded in agreement. “He’s type 1 diabetic, he needs food.”
Fallon rose and straightened and I was relieved to see his boner had gone down, the same as mine. He gave Auntie a wide grin. “Your nephew is worse than my mom.”
She harrumphed and clucked her tongue in a way I was used to, slapping her hands on her hips. Today she wore a yellow blouse with flowers strewn across the material, and white jeans. Even though it was cold outside, she liked to dress tropical inside, as though this was the Virgin Islands, not Maine. “Then your mother is no mom. Come eat. Now.”
I smirked at him. No one argued with Auntie, and even though Fallon had only been here a few days, he seemed to understand the lay of the land because his eyes widened. He rushed over to the stool again, taking a seat and biting into his sandwich.
Auntie grabbed my hat from the floor and passed it to me with the same high-browed expression I’d inherited from her side. She didn’t say anything about what we’d been doing, but she didn’t need to. She knew what we’d been up to. “Eat. Then work.”
I nodded. “Yes, Auntie.”
She put the groceries away before she left the kitchen in a flurry, and I took the stool next to Fallon, dragging my sandwich over from the opposite side of the island. It only took two bites before I’d nearly devoured the food.
“So....” Fallon gave me a glance from the corner of his eye, and his grin sent warning bells through me. “Is there any place for us to fuck? Hell, I’d even take sucking you off as an option while I beat myself.”
I grunted, but heat slid through me, heading south again. Forget what I’d thought earlier—Vail wasn’t going to murder me. Fallon would kill me off first.
“Depends,” I grunted out. “Want to fuck in nature or in the bedroom?”
His grin turned feral and he didn’t hesitate. “Nature.”
I laughed.
2
FALLON MAHER
The windfrom the day I’d arrived had died down, but it was still balls-fucking-cold outside. Somehow, when I’d asked Aspen for an outdoor adventure, I’d forgotten about the fact that Maine was normally way below freezing this time of year, even during the daytime. Good old New York City was cold, but I could get by with a long-sleeved shirt and a jacket if I rushed from place to place.
“It’s too quiet,” I grumbled, and Aspen laughed as we walked along a flagstone path. I couldn’t stop looking at him; we’d been away from each other too long. Even though he was bundled up for the cold, there was no hiding his strong, broad shoulders. His umber cheeks looked soft and touchable, and the spray of freckles there made me stare longer than I might have otherwise. His brown eyes were a deep color but shone brightly and made me feel warm all the way to my toes when he focused on me too long, and I was so stupid about him recently it was difficult to hold his gaze without going hot all over. He caught me staring and smirked, and I quickly turned my attention to my shoes.
My muscles were warm with the exercise, and I loved stretching my legs as I worked to keep up with him. I couldn’t argue; it was beautiful here. Snow had dusted the massive old pine trees that towered along the path and it was pretty as a Christmas card. Pinecones stuck out here and there and made me feel giddy. In the city I saw greenery as decorations for the holidays, but it was unreal seeing living, growing things everywhere. Even deep in Central Park you could hear city sounds. Out here it was only me and Aspen moving and breathing.
“You’re as bad as Vail.”
“It’s unnatural, is all I’m saying.” I strained my ears, but all I could hear was us. “I’m a city boy, always have been.” I tugged at the coat Aspen had wrapped me up in. Heavy and gray, the material reminded me of ski gear. He’d also put one of his sweaters on me for “layers,” which was wild, that it was so cold here I had to have more than one line of defense. He was bundled up but not quite as much as me, maybe because he was used to the weather.
Near the path in thick bushes that were missing their leaves, a red bird fluttered and settled to stare at us. Its triangular red beak was neat, and the black mask it wore made it look like a birdy bandit. Its feathers ruffled, making it puff up round and fat. Aspen drew me closer with an arm over my shoulders and pointed.
“What is it?” I whispered.
He turned toward me with his eyebrows raised. “You’re not a baseball fan?”
Sighing, I tilted my head back to give him a big wink as I poked the brim of his cap up. “I love all sorts of balls.”
He huffed. “That’s a cardinal. Like the St. Louis Cardinals?”
“Oh!” I shuffled closer, but the bird spread its wings and soared up to a high branch on one of the pine trees and out of sight. “Oops.”
He snickered, and we walked on. I didn’t mind exercise, in fact working out was probably my favorite way to wind down, but I couldn’t focus on the burn in my body. I wasn’t alone with Aspen often, and all I could think about washim. He was bigger than me, which admittedly didn’t take a lot, but it was nice. If he fought, he would be one of those heavyweight competitors who trained to hone skills instead of putting on weight or muscle.
But he didn’t fight, and I liked that he didn’t seem to be looking for a way to prove himself like every other person I knew. His easy self-confidence was a good kind of weird, and something I wished I had myself. I didn’t know how to deal with him because he always seemed so rock steady while I was constantly confused.
And even worse, his hand was close to mine. I had gloves on and so did he, but I wanted to touch my fingers to his. I burned with the need to do it. We’d literally come outside looking for a place to fuck, at my suggestion, and I still couldn’t make myself grab his hand. I held in a sigh. Our boots crunched through the snow, and each step I took counted down the minutes until there would be other people around, stealing his attention, forcing me to pretend to be someone I’m not.
Someone who’s confident.
Someone who’s not afraid of anything.
