Arik pushed Kellus’s cell phone number as confusion turned to concern. What if something had happened? Waiting for Kellus to answer felt like the longest five rings of his life. When he got voicemail, he left a quick message, then tried again. The second call had no answer either.
Grabbing his jacket, he went straight out the front door. Within minutes of leaving, he was barreling down the tollway. There was seriously no easy way to get to Fort Worth from where he lived. He took the way Kellus would have taken, fearful that something might have happened en route.
When he got as far as Kellus’s neighborhood, he forced himself to slow down. Seconds later, his headlight skimmed the For Sale sign in front of Kellus’s house, then he spotted his vehicle in the driveway. He pulled in right behind the car, trying to remember if Kellus mentioned selling his house or not. He’d been pretty shocked when Kellus suggested they move in together. He would have thought he’d have months of waiting before Kellus gave in, but he guessed this showed how serious his guy was, possibly even how sure he was that this would last.
Arik walked to the front porch and used his key to unlock the door. Thankfully the alarm didn’t go off. Since John hadn’t been around and his thugs had died in the crash, maybe Kellus didn’t see the need in setting it. It still wasn’t safe. He’d talk to him about everything in the morning. Pulling off his tie, Arik began untucking his shirttails from his trousers as he walked to the bedroom, continuing to undress as he went. When he made it to the bedroom door, he smiled. Just seeing Kellus’s sleeping form somehow chased away all the earlier doubt. Kel’s bed was a king, not his Vera Wang, but that was all right. He climbed on, startling Kellus as he stretched out beside him.
“It’s me. I came home early.”
“Arik?” Kellus’s initial startle turned to a sigh, and he snuggled deeper into the pillow.
“Yeah. I missed you. You weren’t at our place—I like saying that by the way—so I came here.” When Kellus started to turn, Arik held him in place, curled in behind him and kissed the back of his warm neck. “Sleep. You haven’t done a lot of that.”
He smiled into Kellus’s hair when his guy took his words to heart. Kellus was back asleep almost instantly.
Early the next morning, the smell of coffee woke him, but the sight of Kellus leaving the bedroom in nothing but a pair of athletic shorts had Arik whipping the bedcovers back, and grabbing his pants, tugging them on as he went after Kellus. Good-morning sex was on his mind, but this was the first time he’d stayed at Kellus’s place. He wasn’t exactly sure running around naked was a good idea. When he got to the kitchen, he saw that Kellus must have been up awhile. He had breakfast spread out across the kitchen bar while he poured coffee into two cups. Arik slid right up behind him, kissing his neck as he wrapped his arms around his waist. “Good morning, handsome.”
“Good morning,” Kellus said, angling his head to better reach Arik’s waiting lips. “You surprised me.”
“You scared me when you weren’t at home. I worried something had happened,” Arik said, only stepping back when Kellus turned to hand him a cup of coffee.
“I was exhausted.”
“I saw that. You were out. How could you not be exhausted?” He leaned in and kissed Kel’s cheek, just happy to be there. The substantial worry and fear about his ability to keep this man had faded yesterday morning. In its place was an intense happiness, overflowing his heart with so much love.
“I’ve been busy.” Kellus scanned his face, then smiled at what he saw, before motioning for him to go over to the bar.
“I saw that too. The house is up for sale. Did you tell me about that?”
“I don’t remember. Maybe when we talked about me moving in.”
“Perhaps. I was having a day,” Arik said, taking a drink of coffee as he studied the food on the kitchen bar.
“I pulled out everything I had here for breakfast. It’s all on the healthy side.”
“I like healthy,” Arik lied, plastering a big fake grin on his face.
“No, you don’t.” Kellus shook his head and laughed out loud. His grin turned sincere as he watched Kellus laugh. His guy seemed lighter than he had in weeks. That knowledge warmed his heart.
“I do when I eat with you.” Arik reached for a whole-wheat bagel, putting it in the toaster, then moved to the kitchen table and sat his coffee cup down. Papers littered the tabletop. He carefully pushed several aside, looking at the Realtor’s contract. “Do you mind?” he asked, holding the contract up.