Total pages in book: 58
Estimated words: 55171 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 276(@200wpm)___ 221(@250wpm)___ 184(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 55171 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 276(@200wpm)___ 221(@250wpm)___ 184(@300wpm)
“That’s not why you’re blushing.” Ken sounded smug.
Cal sat down and smiled, reaching out to cover Brady’s hand where it lay on the table. Brady fought against his instincts and kept it there. “I understand. I should have waited to take you out, but once I get an idea in my head I’m like a dog with a bone.”
Ken snorted. “Or a terrier with a boner.”
“Stop,” Brady demanded. Realizing Cal thought he was talking to him, he hurried to add, “I mean, there’s no need to apologize. Though I was surprised when you called.”
“Why?”
“Well, I wasn’t that fun to be around at the office, and you have to admit we don’t have much in common.”
“Good recovery.”
Cal’s smile widened and Brady could practically see the wheels turning and the calculation in his eyes. “I get it. I think I understand what’s been off between us.”
That I don’t like you?
“You’re right. In many ways we’re different people. Opposites.” Cal sent him an endearing smile, his brown hair swooping down to cover one brown eye in a way that reminded Brady his date wasn’t unattractive. “You’re a veteran of the police force and our country’s military. You don’t have to make deals or soothe ruffled feathers. You don’t have to impress anyone and you probably don’t understand why other people do. People who have to make their living at it, like I do.”
Ken chuckled. “He’s aiming for humble and insightful now. A true sign of desperation.”
“I’m not planning on staying in that position long, mind you, but my career goals aren’t the issue here. The issue is we’re both just people who want something more than we have. Someone who could belong to us.” Cal sent him a look of admiration. “What you said in that video really spoke to me, Brady. Your cousin Owen should appreciate what he has.”
“Oh he does,” Brady assured him. “He’s been going through a rough patch with the transition, that’s all. It’s understandable.”
Cal shrugged. “I suppose. I’ve been out of the closet since before I got my first paper route so I have to admit, when Stephen told me about his straight brother finding love and playing house with a talented man like Jeremy Porter, I was dubious. I mean just imagining that alpha male construction worker, who never met a woman he couldn’t bang, deciding to experiment on a whim…” Cal shook his head, bemused. “It doesn’t seem fair that he made zero effort and still got to take home the grand prize.”
“Oh hell,” Ken groaned through the earpiece. “You’re going to hit him, aren’t you?”
Brady frowned dangerously, his need to defend his cousin making him forget himself, but Cal quickly backtracked. “I’m sorry, I spoke without thinking. And I’m not saying I’m not happy for two people in love. I am. But I’m human too and humans are inherently selfish creatures. I was thinking about me. Thinking about wanting what Owen and Jeremy have, just like you do.”
Once he’d forced down his cutting response and taken a calming breath, Brady didn’t have to lie. “I wouldn’t mind knowing what that felt like. Last night I—I shouldn’t have said anything to Owen. I wouldn’t have if I wasn’t drunk, because I’ve lived with those two and seen how good they are together day in and day out. What they have is pretty damn rare.”
And it had been decades in the making. Owen and Jeremy had been best friends since their school days and knew each other better than anyone else ever could. When they’d added sex and romance to the mix, it just made it that much sweeter.
Brady didn’t know anyone that well. He and his brothers had been raised more like a sports team or a military unit, with a firm hand and a short leash. Brady never had the opportunity to form relationships, outside of family, that he could trust. Not until he enlisted, and by then he was set in his ways. He would die for any of the men he fought beside, but he hesitated when it came to giving his heart.
And now? After all the things he’d seen and done, he just wasn’t sure that kind of love was ever going to be in the cards for him. But he couldn’t pretend he didn’t want it to be.
“My parents love each other like that,” Cal offered, looking nervous and desperate to get out of what he’d stepped in. “They’ve been in love since middle school. Never had a moment’s doubt that they were meant for each other, or that their child would be the first gay president. They wanted me to make my mark on the world. Unfortunately I shattered that last dream when I told them I’d never campaign for an eight-year temp job as a human piñata. There are other ways to power, and those ways include large amounts of cash and less bad press.”