“No,” Sam said in a rush, then laughed. “I mean, no offense. You know you’re both hot as hell, but you’re my brothers. No, I…it isn’t either one of you.”
“Then who cares,” Derek said.
Sam licked his lips. “Bro code, Derek.”
Derek frowned. “I…what? Bro code?”
“You don’t fucking date your friend’s ex,” Sam clarified, and blushed so hard the tips of his ears went pink.
Derek leaned forward. “Who the fuck has an available ex?”
Sam shifted, looking uncomfortable. “Well…maybe not ex, necessarily, but it was pretty obvious you liked him and…”
Derek’s eyes widened. “Wait. Niko?”
Sam licked his lips, then nodded. “He’s…we’ve gotten together a couple of times, and he co-hosted a wheelchair yoga session at the gym last weekend. He’s also really great with May and I just…I’m sorry. I already told him I’m not in a place where I can date, but I would never do that to you.”
Derek tried to hold back his laughter, but he couldn’t. He covered his face, his body shaking with it, and when he regained some control, he dragged Sam into a hug before righting him back on the sofa. “Fucker. I’m so fucking in love with Basil, Niko never had a chance. I only went on that one date because Sage begged me to, and it didn’t end well.”
Sam’s eyes flickered down. “Yeah. He told me. Honestly part of me can’t help but wonder if he’s only interested because he wants to prove he’s not some ableist asshole. I mean shit, it’s not like I have a whole helluva lot to offer.”
Derek’s jaw tensed. “First of all, he was kind of an ableist asshole, but he’s the kind of guy who could learn to be better. Secondly, you’re a fucking catch, Sam, and if you want to argue, we can take this shit outside and duke it out.”
Sam laughed, rolling his eyes. “The last time you tried to fight me, I floored your ass.”
“I had like half a bottle of tequila, that doesn’t fucking count.”
Sam grinned for a second, but it didn’t last long. “I just mean…I’m…I come with a lot. It’s more than just a chair, and it’s more than just a kid. It’s pain and sometimes it’s me pissing myself and not being able to maintain a fucking erection, and it’s also constant court battles for my girl, and never-ending scrutiny by people who will never see me as an able parent—and sometimes that constant questioning makes me believe it. I can’t saddle someone with that, Der.”
“A person who loves you for you—all of that shit is just going to be part of what they love about you,” Derek told him fiercely. “Believe me, okay? I didn’t think I’d ever meet anyone who’d be willing to put up with all this fucking mess,” he waved his hand up and down his body. “And Basil and I are still new so who the fuck knows if it’s going to end up too much for him, but right now it isn’t. Right now, he just wants me for exactly who I am, and I’m learning to accept that.”
Sam worried his bottom lip with his teeth, then sighed. “I get it, because that’s the shit I’d be telling you if you were freaking out about Basil, but it’s…I just…”
“I get it,” Derek said. “But trust me, if it’s right, it’ll happen. And more than anyone I know, Sam, you deserve it.”
Basil was just finishing countingthe drawer when the lights flashed. He looked up, irritated that he’d forgotten to lock the door, but his entire body lit up with relief when he saw Derek making his way through the rows of spring flowers they’d set out earlier that day. He was a strange juxtaposition—massive and hard angles and sharp ink in contrast to the soft petals and rounded edges of the flora he was walking through, but it looked right. He looked perfect there.
Basil was still a little shaken from his experience in New York. Derek had eventually been able to calm down and sort out the paperwork for his father’s estate. The agent who came by didn’t seem entirely surprised by the chaos that greeted him and didn’t make mention of it that Basil could see. The whole process was done in less than an hour, then they went to a kosher deli for lunch, and eventually met Sage back at the hotel.
The trip was meant to last another two days, but the brothers looked flayed raw and exhausted, so Basil didn’t put up a fight when Sage changed their tickets to that night, and they hopped the red-eye back to Denver. Basil immediately went home with Derek and they curled together under his threadbare blanket and held each other for hours as they slept the day away.
Then life got on as normal. Derek went back to work, and Basilwent back to the shop and they still texted and still got together to work on sign, and Derek kept a close watch on the tattoo, his eyes telling Basil more than his words that the image wasn’t finished.
Basil couldn’t stop thinking about the cottage the brothers had decided to keep and wondered if Derek had meant it about wanting to go there and spend some time. Basil couldn’t imagine it would be soon—couldn’t imagine Derek being ready for it in the near future, but the thought of spending a week away from everyone and everything made him crave with a fierceness he wasn’t expecting.
Now, seeing Derek making his way across the shop floor, he wanted it even more. He smiled as Derek laid his hands on the desk and leaned in, and Basil turned his face up for a kiss.
‘How was your day?’
Basil waved the question off. ‘Fine. Boring. Amaranth booked three weddings next month, so I’ll be crazy then.’
Derek’s shoulders shook with his chuckle. ‘I booked a long-term job. Two grand total and he prepaid.’
Basil’s eyes went wide. ‘Wow. You happy?’
Derek shrugged. ‘It’s a long commitment, but it means I can ask you…’ He stopped and licked his lips. ‘I need to…can we spend the night at yours? I want to talk.’
Basil felt his stomach twist with worry. Logically he knew Derek wouldn’t be asking for a night over, or anything intimate, if he was about to end things, but Basil’s heart was still a little raw and a little afraid. ‘Are we okay?’
