“You know, don’t you?”
“About the job? Yes. Marv ran it by me, but I let him decide. It’s none of my business. He runs Cali.”
“That’s not what I meant. I know you don’t interfere with the overseas operations.”
Liam frowned. Zac often bemused him, but never more so than when he slipped back into the guarded persona he’d had when they’d first met. “What did you mean, then?”
“Jamie loves me.”
Oh. Liam had suspected that to be the case, but he’d kind of assumed Zac knew. “Is that a bad thing? You love him too, don’t you?”
“Not like that. Not like I love you.”
Warmth flooded Liam’s veins. He knew Zac loved him, it was in every gentle touch and soft smile, every bruising kiss and clash of teeth, but Zac didn’t often say it. “You really love me?”
Zac peered up at Liam. “Of course I do.”
“Good. I suppose I should tell you I love you too, eh?”
“Only if it’s true.”
Liam dropped to the floor, covering Zac with his body and capturing his lips in a searching kiss, before he found Zac’s gaze and held it firm. “You know it’s bloody true. Told you enough, haven’t I?”
Zac’s eyes blazed and he licked his lips, then his expression sobered. “I don’t expect you to love me like you did him.”
Liam wished he had the words to explain to Zac that there was nothing Cory would’ve wanted more than for him to love someone the way he loved Zac. Instead, he smiled and mussed Zac’s hair. “And I don’t love you the way I loved Cory. It’s totally different because I love you, and it’s fucking amazing.”
“Even though I’m an unemployed junkie hooker?”
“You’re not unemployed. You’re part of the family like everyone else. And as far as I know, you’ve been clean since long before I met you. At most, you’re a retired hooker, and that’s the reason we found each other, so it ain’t all bad.”
Zac didn’t seem convinced, but Liam had come to accept it would take a long time for Zac to believe he was worthy of the new life he’d worked so hard for. Zac’s past did haunt Liam sometimes, but only because it had nearly taken Zac from him before they’d had a chance to be who they were now. Judgement was for other folk. Not Liam.
“So . . .” Liam pushed Zac’s longer hair out of his eyes. “Has Jamie made a decision?”
“He’s staying.”
“And how do you feel about that?”
Zac shrugged. “Dunno. I mean, it’s not like I’ve seen him in months, is it? What right have I got to feel bad about it?”
“Every right. He’s your friend.”
Zac looked up at Liam. “He was more than a friend for a long time, but you already know that, don’t you?”
Liam couldn’t deny it. He’d spent so long knowing little about what made Zac tick, but that fateful night in the hospital with Jamie, and the weeks that followed, watching Zac recover from his horrific injury and adjust to life in Liam’s world, had given him some clues to the things he might’ve missed otherwise. “I know your relationship is complex.”
“And you don’t mind?”
“Why would I? You are who you are, Zac. We both are.”
“I really do love you.”
Liam smiled. “I know. Now stop chucking that ball around and come to bed with me.”
He led Zac upstairs, tugging him into the bedroom and shutting the door behind them, leaving the dogs to their own devices. He pushed Zac onto the bed and straddled him, unbuttoning his jeans, taking control the way Zac often seemed to want him to, especially when he’d had a challenging day. “What do you want?”
Zac licked his lips. “You know what I want.”
