29. Sutton
Sutton
I longed to hide away and never come up for air, but real life kept interrupting the bubble of happiness I’d gotten caught in.
Jimmy made my head spin, oftentimes causing me to forget about reality. He distracted me in the best ways possible, and I fell harder with every passing minute we shared together.
He finally agreed to get a change of clothes from The Moose, and while I wanted to tell him to let the room go and stay with me until he decided his long-term plans, I feared opening a can of worms I wasn’t yet ready to face.
The discussion of what we were doing and for how long hovered like storm clouds, suggesting slashing rain would leave me out in the cold. Alone.
But the warmth of his lithe body, the twinkle in his eyes, the laughter we shared while doing a whole lot of nothing made it easy to ignore the warning signs.
I didn’t want anyone intruding in on our peace, but I’d already invited Jamie and Chaz over the following Sunday afternoon.
While my son and I had chatted throughout the week at work, I’d kept personal shit on the quiet side, but Babs clued him in on the fact that I’d taken Jimmy home with me last weekend and that he hadn’t left.
Jamie showed up with a six-pack of Stella, Chaz on his heels.
I gave them both a bear hug, clapping them on the backs while welcoming them in out of the cold. October had brought in fall and the smell of decayed leaves and woodsmoke from those around town heating their home with firewood.
My favorite time of year and the best scents to fill a man’s nose.
“Jimmy’s still upstairs getting ready.” I made the excuse for my perpetually late lover.
“It’s just us,” Jamie said, putting the beer in the fridge.
“Yeah, but he likes to get all pretty for me,” I said, heat settling in my cheeks.
Chaz snickered. “And you love it.”
“Goddamned right I do,” I said with a sigh and smile.
Jamie clasped my shoulder but didn’t speak as Jimmy flounced down the stairs.
“Hey,” he said, breathless, blue eyes sparkling, pink staining his cheeks. He’d slickened his lips with gloss, and I drank in the sight of him in his tight maroon crop top and skin-hugging jeans.
Jamie and Chaz greeted Jimmy while I swallowed back a groan, turning toward the oven.
I seriously needed to get to the store for groceries, but those damned distractions lately…
Pulling a tray of frozen dough rolls from the oven, I glanced over to find Jimmy reaching into the overhead cabinet for bowls and plates.
His shirt rode high, teasing me with a swath of pale skin, his plump little ass making my mouth water more than the scent of fresh bread and the stew I’d had in the crockpot all afternoon.
My son and his fiancé made Jimmy feel as though he belonged, neither of them asking any hard questions or prodding into personal territory.
It was Chaz opening up after dinner while we sat in the living room that erased any questions in my mind over their acceptance of Jimmy possibly becoming a part of our small family.
“My marriage had been on the rocks even though I denied it,” Chaz said when the topic of how he and Jamie got together came up.
I hadn’t shared the heartache Chaz had gone through with Jimmy since it wasn’t my story to tell, but reliving it now hurt almost as much as it had the day I’d gotten the call about his wife being in the car accident that had claimed her life.
Chaz left out the part about her being pregnant with another man’s child, and I had to respect him for looking after the memory of her even though she’d betrayed him. But he hadn’t been an angel either, having an affair with Jamie behind her back.
Tears slid down Jimmy’s cheeks over the story, which caused my heart to ache.
I tugged him against my side, kissing his temple when Jamie did the same to Chaz. “Anyone want another beer?” I asked, pushing to my feet. The heavy talk had made me thirst for another.
No one did, so I went to the kitchen, popping the cap and enjoying a cooling swallow.
“Did your dad ever blame you for your mom leaving town?” Jimmy’s quiet question drew me up beyond sight of the living room entryway. While I wasn’t one for eavesdropping, I wondered where this topic had come from—or why Jimmy would even wonder such a thing.
I hadn’t told him the reasons behind Darla’s taking off, so he’d probably only heard the gossip that had littered the town.
“Never,” Jamie stated. “I had nothing to do with her shitty choices. Neither did Dad.”
I moved into the room, settling into my vacated seat.
Jimmy sidled up against me, and I gave him the arm around his shoulders he needed.
He studied his hands clasped atop his lap.
“My mom died in childbirth. Dad said it was my fault.” Tears laced his voice, but none of us interrupted.
The fact he opened up with my son and Chaz with what he’d already shared with me caused gratitude to swell in my heart and made me hopeful our future was cementing together.
He explained why he’d always gotten into so much trouble with the law and, most importantly, why he’d never returned for his father’s burial.
Chaz nodded, understanding in his dark eyes. “Ever consider talking to someone?” he asked, leaning forward, elbows on his knees.
Jamie ran a hand over his back, gaze glued to Chaz’s profile, the love in his eyes no longer causing jealousy to stir inside me.
“No.” Jimmy cleared his throat. “I—I don’t mind you guys knowing, but to really dig deep and relive that shit?” He shivered and shook his head.
I soothed my fingertips along his forearm that used to be streaked red from scratching.
“Talking about it hurts,” Chaz stated, glancing between us, “but it’s so goddamned worth it. Even though you can’t set shit right with your old man, you can still figure out a way to move on. Find peace of your own.”
Jimmy shrugged, and I recognized him shutting down.
“I don’t have anything but a couple of Snickers bars for dessert,” I announced.
A soft laugh left Jimmy, and he glanced at me, his eyes wet.
“The first time I remember seeing Jimmy was a hot September afternoon,” I said, not taking my eyes off him.
But rather than focus on the trauma that had brought me to the Riley home all those years ago, I told the tale of how we had shared a chocolate bar, how over his teenage years we’d often done the same.
I’d kept a box in my bottom desk drawer for the nights he hung out on the jail cell cot and a few stashed in my glove compartment during the cooler months for whenever I ran across him in town.
Twice in the week we’d been holed up I’d tasted chocolate and peanuts on his tongue, licking deep and trying to swallow him whole.
That led to the story of two best friends lying beneath the stars, admitting their feelings for each other, which brought up the topic of Dex.
“I have a love/hate relationship with that man,” Jimmy muttered, his forehead dented. “He’s so… handsy with you. Can’t stand it.” His pout had me chuckling.
“He’s a manipulative little shit,” I stated, eyeing him with an intentional stare.
Jimmy huffed, crossing his arms with a petulant scowl, and I chuckled.
“He got what he hoped for though, didn’t he?”
“What’s that?” Jimmy muttered.
“The two of us together.”
Jimmy whipped his head toward me, studying my face. “That’s what he’s been playing at?”
“He wants what’s best for me,” I assured Jimmy, hoping he would read between the lines—that he would offer me something in return.
“Well.” Jamie shot to his feet, pulling Chaz along with him. “We’ve got that…thing to take care of at home, right?”
Chaz gave him a strange look, and Jamie rolled his eyes. “Oh. That.” Chaz huffed a laugh, and five minutes later, Jimmy and I were alone in the entryway after seeing the two boys off.
“So,” I said, checking out the bumps of rings through Jimmy’s nipples. “Want to share that Snickers bar?”
“Only if you’ll let me suck the cum from your balls afterwards to help wash down all that sugar.”
I grabbed Jimmy, tossed him over my shoulder, and strode toward the stairs. “Deal.”