Chapter 10
Chapter Ten
Bax woke up stiff as a board, but in a damn good mood. The last few weeks had been like a dream, Jason riding like the champ he was, the events going smooth as silk. He even liked the hotel, even if they were in North Carolina, where touching and shit had to be cut right off in any public area.
Even careful touching.
Jason was starting to feel the rides, bruises popping up here and there, the sports tape on one knee, the other shoulder. He sure hadn’t missed that.
A few people were starting to push too. Ace kept trying to get Jason cornered. It was like watching a very frustrated border collie when they thwarted the damn man.
Which, okay, was possibly more fun than color TV, especially when Dillon and Emmy got in on it. There was this delicate dance with them, where Coke and Balta were more like a polka band with lots of accordion.
Jase had ridden one of two, and it was Sunday again. Time for the short go.
Bax took a deep breath, then reached for Jase, wanting to get a little kiss in before it was time to get up and hit the strategy meeting with the guys.
“Mmm…can’t we just skip today?”
“Nope. If you place today, we can take a few events off, huh?” Bax had already talked to Coke about it.
He wanted to not go up north for the next two events, where more people had cameras and only a handful of riders really got attention.
Those Yankees took Jason’s lack of autograph sessions personally.
They needed to go see Momma, they needed to rest—and they needed to plan for the next leg of their life.
“The numbers make it work still?”
“They do. You’re chugging along. You get top four and we’re golden.”
“That’s what I want. Ace is pushing. He called twice last night.”
“Yeah.” Bax shook his head, then laughed when he realized Jase couldn’t see. “What are we gonna do about him?”
“Call him from Momma’s?”
“Now, there you go. Just tell him you never got the chance to catch up with him.” Jason was so much smarter than him.
“That way you, Momma or Jack can holler if I get in trouble.”
“We can.” Bax rubbed his hands up and down Jason’s back. He loved how Jason was taking control, grabbing onto the bull rope and hanging on.
That needed to be a trend. Jason was gonna have a lot to learn after this season.
Still, Andy approved of this new, confident, re-energized Jason. He wanted the man bad, in fact, but if they got busy, they would lose track of time.
And Jason was always hotter after a ride.
He grinned, his body liking that idea a lot.
Jason stretched, sliding against him. “You’re happy.”
“Yeah. I can wait.” He could. They probably needed a shower.
“It can be my reward for riding…or not riding. Either or.”
“It can.” Every bit of him was Jason’s. Period.
“Good deal. You want to go down for breakfast? Go out? Order up?”
“Let’s order up.” Just to hide a little while longer. They could do that, right? The breakfast places at the host hotel were always like bear traps.
“Excellent. I want pancakes then.” Yeah, Mini never ordered messy food in public.
Bax felt so damn honored that Jason would get all sticky with him.
“Two sets of pancakes, two sets of sausage and two coffees?”
“Perfect.”
“Cool.” Bax called it in, chatting with the lady taking his order, whose name was Lilah, and she was about to get off work after the night shift and go babysit her grandkids.
Jason padded off to the bathroom, and Bax got lost for a second, just trying to figure out when he and Jason had started figuring this shit out—hotels and weird bathrooms and how to deal.
He would probably just sit down and cry, but his Mini counted steps and felt things and had learned so much. Dillon was good for that, always doing research online, making calls. The guy had a damn organized brain for a clown.
And Jase was determined, dammit. He wanted this. Bax wasn’t sure what this was exactly, but that was okay.
Grinning, he shook his head. He’d always been a bit of a follower. He’d let Jason pick the path, then, by damn, he would do all he could to help make that path clear, even if it took a machete and a flamethrower.
Maybe that was why things were working now. Jason had always been the one in front, and when the accident had happened, he’d been thrust into the position of making the decisions.
Bax listened to the water run, stretching hard. His knee popped when he got up to grab some clothes so he could be dressed when the food came, and he grimaced. Man, he was becoming one of them old has-beens.
“Looking forward to heading to Momma’s, Bax? I sure am. I want to start searching for properties online with you.”
“I am.” The way Jason said that made his heart thunder. Living together. Like permanently. Buying their own damn land. Hoo-yeah.
Jason walked out, naked as a jaybird, then headed toward the window where his jeans and tighty-whities were on the chair.
Bax stared, because well, why wouldn’t he? The bruises on Jason’s back made him frown, because they were awfully close to the kidneys, but the rest? That was all smiles for Bax. “You ready to ride today?”
“I am. I’m more ready for my time off. I’m tender in the back. Not terrible, just tender.” Jase’s eyes lit up with laughter. “You know me. I’ll leave it in sports medicine.”
“I know.” Jason would get a bunch of attention from Doc’s assistant, who he thought Dillon had let in on the game, and he’d be right as rain in time for the ride.
Jason got dressed and started packing. They’d get on the road tonight, stop a few hours out and get there in the morning.
The knock came at the door, so Bax got the tray and left the tip, then set up breakfast. “Come on. Eat your gooey stuff.”
“I’m so in. Tell me when I can deal with the butter. Is it on top?”
“It is. Like a ball. One of those they make with the scoop. Just on the one.”
Jason found it with his fingers and slipped it in between, chuckling with mischief. “Ta da!”
“There you go. Syrup is to the top right in a creamer thing. The little metal ones. I moved the actual cream so you won’t mix them up.” He wanted to lick Jason’s fingers.
“Thanks, Bax.” Jason dipped his fingers in the syrup, playing with Andy.
He cleared his throat. “You’re a mean man, Jason Scott.”
“Wanna taste, Andy Baxter?”
“I do. Give me some sweet stuff, Mini.” He leaned, knowing Jason knew right where he was.
Jason painted his lips with that sticky finger then brought them together in a playful kiss.
They needed to take this good mood into the ride today. Keep the wave going. Jason rode better when he was confident and relaxed.
He kissed Jason easily, slowly, making sure he got all the syrup. He loved this, how Jason opened up, offered him everything like it was easy. Bax guessed it was. Loving Jason was easy as falling off a bull, so maybe it worked both ways.
“I do like breakfasts like this.” Jason leaned back and cut a clumsy bite of pancake, humming as he managed to get it in his mouth.
“Me too, babe. I love pancakes.” I love that you trust me.
“You and me both, cowboy.” Jason got him, heard him—and Bax knew it.
He kissed that mouth one more time before stealing a bite. Good thing he still worked out with Jase.
“They’re good, huh? The butter is the best part.”
“It is. All melty.” Hotel butter was the best. Some things just didn’t taste the same at home.
His phone buzzed, and he grabbed it, checking his texts. Coke. Shit.
Coming up.
“Dammit.”
“What?” Jason was already starting to frown. “Is someone coming up? Tell them we need ten minutes.”
“I’ll try, but it’s Gramps.”
Give us a few to get dressed.
No problem. I’ll grab coffees.
“He’s getting coffee. That will take half an hour.”
Thx
“Thank you. I got pancakes, and I want to finish them, dammit.”
“I want that too.” Gramps was a good guy, but he worried about Mini too damn much. He had all this pent-up guilt.
“Gramps is fucking obsessed.” And it sounded like Mini was getting tired of it.
“He means well.” Bax leaned over to fork up pancakes and syrup. “Open up, baby.”
Those lips parted like a dream, making his belly tight for a second. Then he popped the bite in, and Jason hummed, smiling again.
The mood swings were disappearing these days. That meant things in that hard head were improving, he thought.
He kept hoping that Mini would wake up and suddenly see again, but it ain’t happened yet.
Most likely wouldn’t. He’d been reading and reading online. Braille. Seeing-eye dogs. Canes. Adaptive tech and shit. Jason could have it all soon as he won.
Then they had a whole fucking lifetime to be together.
“Hey, can a guy get another bite?” Jason did the ahhh mouth.
“So demanding.” Feeding him did go faster.
“That’s me. Demanding. Feed me. Love up on me.”
“Tell me which way to go at the elevator. Hold my hand.” He flicked his fingers against Jason’s arm. He couldn’t just wink no more, but he liked being physical.
“Tell me which way to go? Drive me all around.”
Okay, this was getting less funny.
Bax hoisted up to lean over the table. “Kiss me some more, Mini. That’s my favorite.” He pressed his lips to Jason’s.
There was his smile again, just like the sun coming out. Good man.
“You just don’t let Gramps get to you.” Bax said. “You focus on riding.”
“You got it. I’m the cowboy with the plan…uh…boy.”
“Nice rhyme.” He laughed out loud, and they finished up breakfast just in time for the knock on the door. Bax checked them both to make sure they were presentable before going to let Coke in.
“Hey, y’all. How goes it?” Coke carried four coffees in a carrier. “Dillon’s on his way up.”
“Cool. Just finished up breakfast.”
Coke glanced at Bax, his eyebrows rising. Yeah, so he’d said they were getting dressed. Sue him. Gramps didn’t say a word though, which was good. It wasn’t none of anyone’s what they did.
The second knock came not much later, and Bax let Dillon in. The guy always had five times the energy of everyone else in the room.