“What does it look like now? Where your old house was?”
“Nice. Lived in. There’s a split level there. Pretty flowers at the top of the lawn. A basketball net nailed above the garage, and hopscotch drawn on the sidewalk with that erasable chalk. They would like that. My parents.” He leaned over and kissed Rafa’s cheek. “They’d like you too.”
“I wish I could have met them.” Rafa caressed Shane’s chest, still marveling that he could do this now. He could lie here in bed with Shane and touch him and talk to him, and it was allowed. “You’ll just have to tell me all about them.”
“I’d like that.”
Other thoughts inevitably returned, and Rafa sighed. There was no good time to bring it up, and he might as well get it over with. “I’m sorry about Alan. I know it must have been really hard for you. He was your friend.”
Shane’s jaw tightened, and he watched his fingers on Rafa’s belly. “Yeah. But you’re the one who got hurt because of him. Could have gotten killed. Worse.” He flattened his palm on Rafa’s stomach as if he could hold him there and keep him from harm.
“I’m fine. The shrink says I have a remarkable capacity to look at the glass as half full. In a weird way, I’m glad it happened. Or else I might not be here right now. We might not be here together.”
“Maybe not.” Shane sighed. “I guess good things can come out of bad. I just wish it could have been different.”
“Me too.” He hesitated. “Have you talked to his wife?”
“Jules is doing as well as she can, I guess. Her husband’s going away for life, and it’s going to take time to come to terms with what he did. But she’s got enough money to take Dylan to Sweden to try the new treatment. That’s something, at least.”
“That’s great. How did she get it? Um, I assume not from the kidnappers.”
“No, the FBI tracked down that cash fast.” Shane shrugged, caressing Rafa’s belly and running his fingers through the trail of hair there. “I guess she raised enough money.”
“How did you afford it?”
Shane’s gaze shot up. “Why do you think it was me?”
Rolling his eyes, Rafa snagged Shane’s hand and lifted it to kiss his palm. “You don’t fool me.”
A little smile tugged up Shane’s lips for a moment before sadness settled over him again. “I had money from the insurance settlement for the fire. I hardly touched it. Didn’t feel right. I’ve never been a big spender. I have plenty of savings, and now I can make good money as a consultant. Set my own hours. I don’t need a million from the insurance company. And no matter how wrong Alan was, Dylan deserves a chance.” His brows drew together. “Does that bother you? After what Alan did? That I helped his family?”
“Of course not.” Rafa toyed with Shane’s fingers. “They aren’t to blame. And he was desperate. Suicidal. Maybe I’m a sucker, but I forgive him.”
Shane leaned over and kissed him softly. “What you are is a good man.” He snuggled closer, sliding down to lay his head on Rafa’s chest, their legs tangling.
Smiling to himself, Rafa ran his palm over Shane’s head. The afternoon sun warmed the room, and his eyes drooped.
He wasn’t sure how long it had been when Shane said, “We need to talk to your parents.”
Oh, right. That. His parents were definitely going to object. Rafa pushed away the swell of anxiety. “They’ll have to deal with it. They dealt with me being gay. They can handle this too. I’m an adult. I get to make my own decisions.” He grinned to himself. “Besides, I’ll have my own bodyguard. How can they argue with that?”
Shane flipped over and crawled up Rafa’s body, covering him and returning his grin. “Well, I’m out of the protection business, but I guess I can make an exception. What’s your codename going to be?”
“I dunno.” A giddy whirl of happiness bubbled through him. “I always thought it should have been Virgin, but I guess that’s out.”
Laughing, Shane kissed him. “We’ll just have to stick with Valor.”
“No.” Rafa snorted. “That never fit.”
Shane regarded him seriously. “It did.”
And as Shane kissed him again, Rafa could actually believe it.
Chapter Twenty-Two
Blinking as he woke, Shane stretched his legs, his feet rubbing against warm flesh. As he focused on Rafa flopped on his back beside him, lips parted as he enjoyed a well-earned nap, warmth rushed through him. Rafa’s curls stuck up and tumbled over his forehead, and Shane propped his head on his hand, barely resisting the urge to reach out and touch.
That Rafa was actually here—in Shane’s bed, no less—was more than he’d dreamed possible. In the mid-afternoon sunlight, he watched Rafa’s chest rise and fall. There were flakes of dried semen caught in the sparse hair on his pecs, and Shane smiled to himself as he wondered how many more times he could get Rafa to come before nightfall.