Chapter 6
Six
D oug
Doug’s stomach dropped in the split second it took for Luther to smile after that comment. It must have shown on his face, because Luther nudged Doug’s foot under the table.
“I’m teasing, sorry. I haven’t been on a date in years, so I’m a little rusty.”
“Years?” Embarrassment forgotten, Doug leaned closer. “Wait, was it because of your service?”
Luther shrugged. “Only because I was deployed for most of the last four years of my career, and then I was injured.” He cleared his throat and his smile turned sad.
“I’m sorry.” Doug crossed his leg and found Luther’s calf with his foot. He ran his foot along the curve. “I would imagine it would have been tough to be out in the Marines?”
Luther shrugged, still with that hint of a smile. “It’s all right. I was discreet. The guys in my unit knew. I didn’t really care if people found out. I think it helped that people knew I had their backs. Over there, you needed that.”
“I bet,” Doug murmured. “I was never deployed abroad but I saw stuff…I handled information, knew what was happening on the ground. I can’t… Still can’t talk about it, but yeah, it stayed with me.”
Luther’s smile slipped and his gaze became laser focused, honed in on this shared experience of theirs. Different, but the same. A period of their lives where they saw and heard unspeakable things.
“You can ask me anything,” he said in a low voice. They were both leaning forward, the intensity pulling them together despite the table between them. Doug still had his foot linked behind Luther’s calf, Luther’s other foot was planted against Doug’s. Their knees touched. Above the table, passersby would think they were just having a deep conversation, but their entangled limbs below the surface kept them grounded in the moment.
“What was your MOS?”
“K-9,” Luther said, clearing his throat again. He took a sip of water and his gaze flicked around the restaurant, likely to see if anyone was invested in their conversation. “MP first, then Military Dog Handler course at Lackland Air Force Base.”
“That’s…wow, I’ve heard that’s an amazing experience.”
Luther looked down at his food. “Most important thing I’ve ever done, before Mila anyway.”
“Do you think that’s something you’d want to do as a civilian?”
Luther’s face fell and he ate a few bites before he answered. “I don’t know if I could work with dogs again.”
Doug didn’t give a damn. He reached under the small table and put a hand on Luther’s knee. “Hey, sorry. We don’t have to talk about anything?— ”
“It’s okay. I’d rather get it over with.” He cleared his throat again. Man, he was struggling, but Doug admired his willingness to be so open. He wondered what he’d done to deserve such an honor. “I lost my dog in the accident that ended my career.”
Doug’s breath caught. What was an amazing experience for many often turned into a crushing loss if they lost their K-9 companions.
“Two huge losses,” he said quietly. He fanned himself to keep the tears from spilling.
Luther gazed at him with his head tilted, a smile ghosting his lips.
“Thank you. And now we hit on why I was such an asshole the day we met.”
“What? No, you weren’t. Really.”
Luther ate a bite of his fruit and cut up a bit of his waffle. Doug worried his food would be getting cold and felt bad keeping him talking, though he didn’t want him to stop, now that he’d started.
“No, no. I insist,” Luther said, smiling around his food. “Besides having a particularly difficult pain management day, I wasn’t quite prepared for what felt like your blasé attitude about leaving the service. I’ve since changed my opinion.”
Doug sat back and put his hands on the table. “Blasé? Because I did my six and quit?”
“Which is completely understandable. It wasn’t what you wanted for your life. We kind of committed ourselves to serving our country so people could have the freedom to make choices like that.”
“But Luther, I?—”
“It’s none of my business why you left, Doug. Really. It’s not my place to feel any kind of way about it. It was just hard to hear that when I’d been all kinds ofsalty that I didn’t get my choice. ”
Doug had worried they were going to be back at an impasse again, but Luther had spilled his whole guts out on the table. Doug had never met a Marine who was this emotionally mature and open about their beliefs. Not that they weren’t out there, but frankly, most of the men he’d met along his journey weren’t very mature, period. Himself, at times, included.
“You wanted a career.”
“Yeah,” Luther said, just above a whisper. “I’ve had the last two years and some change to get used to the fact that it isn’t happening. Now I’m just trying to get strong enough to be able to do something else.”
“The art is a necessity then, huh?”
Luther nodded. “Well, we’re making it, but I want more for Mila. The market will hopefully help with extras.”
Doug’s face heated, and he leaned forward, folding his elbows on the table. “I know this is going to sound all kinds of wrong. Firstly, I think that’s beautiful, and she’s lucky to have you. Second…that’s really hot.”
Luther burst out laughing, and his cheeks turned the most lovely shade of red. It was splotchy, like the insides of a pomegranate, and Doug wondered if Luther’s skin would taste as tart and sweet.
“That’s…thank you.” He rubbed at his face, but that only succeeded in making his skin redder, and his blush was…perfect. “To be honest, I was similarly torn watching you do her makeup.” He pressed his lips together as if he weren’t sure he should admit what he was about to admit. “It was sweet, and you were so good with her. It was also sexy as hell.”
Doug was fanning himself again, this time for a very different reason.
They stared at each other for several long moments. Their half-eaten breakfasts had lost their attention.
“Do you want…? ”
“Yeah,” Luther admitted. “I was kind of hoping. Is that bad?”
Doug pulled out his wallet, stood from the table, and dropped more than enough cash next to his plate to cover their breakfasts. “I’d say my place, but only if you’re into barnyard animals, and that would be weird.”
Luther snorted. “I’m just around the corner.”
“Good. That way you’re close in case, you know. I…uh, do we need supplies?”
Luther’s brows furrowed. “I hadn’t thought of that.”
“I’ll go,” Doug offered. “Here, just put your address into your contact here, and I’ll meet you. Any requests?”
“Um, whatever you like to drink? I don’t have much at the house. No alcohol, though?—”
“Wouldn’t dream of it,” Doug said. He thoroughly understood the trust involved for Luther to bring someone home, even if Mila wasn’t at the house. Man, he was honored.
They split up in the parking lot, exchanging heated glances, and Doug ran over to the Rite Aid across from the restaurant. He wandered a few aisles impatiently before he found the necessary supplies. It had been a while since he’d needed to make such a purchase. He had a fleeting thought that wow , he hadn’t even kissed Luther yet. Would they be physically compatible? Doug was vers, it depended on the partner, and usually he could tell what was expected, but Luther didn’t give off any particular energy. Hell, maybe he just needed a hug and all this would be for nothing. He hadn’t asked Luther what his specific disability was, and he certainly didn’t want to do anything to make him uncomfortable.
Jesus, he was having a crisis of conscience in the fucking condom aisle.
He brought his purchases up to the counter and realized his worst nightmare.
The old guy at the register, bless his heart, moved at a glacial pace as he scanned the bottles of root beer, 7Up, and Diet Coke Doug had put on the conveyor belt. Then he got to the two bottles of lube—Doug didn’t know if Luther would prefer water or silicone-based—and he peered at Doug over his glasses before scanning and placing them in the bagging area.
Then, of course, the condoms wouldn’t ring up.
“Do you happen to recall the price on these?” the man asked.
“No, sorry.”
“Mm-hm.”
The old man pushed his glasses up to his forehead and brought the condoms so close to his face, Doug thought he might kiss the box. He started calling out the numbers on the bar code one at a time and typing them in.
Meanwhile, there was a line of five people behind Doug who were growing more impatient with each passing minute. Luther probably wouldn’t have had any issues. Luther had it so together, he was such an adult . Not that Doug wasn’t. At thirty, he ran a successful business and had amassed a decent-sized investment portfolio. But he had no home; he’d lived out of his car and short-term rentals for the past three years since he’d set out on his own. Seeing the life Luther had built had Doug feeling…inadequate, and this confounding condom fiasco wasn’t helping.
The old man tried three times before he called Irv—no lie, the other employee’s name was Irv—and sent the younger man to Aisle Nine to find the price.
“Apologize for the delay,” the old man finally said. Then he smiled.
Doug was incredibly tempted to make some blatantly homosexual crack, but that would not help the cause.
Irv was triumphant in finding the price and he and the old man—his name was Dave—took several more tries before they got it entered. Doug tapped his credit card, grabbed the bag and darted out the door as quickly as possible without looking like he’d just shoplifted and was making a getaway.
Nothing like a little condom ridicule to put him back in the teenage terror mindset.
He jogged to his Honda Pilot and tossed the bag into the passenger seat, taking a moment to run his fingers through his hair and let out a growl of frustration. The trip took way too long.
He pulled up Luther’s address and started the car, grateful that he lived only a couple of blocks away. He had to pass the house a couple of times before he found a place to park. He dashed out of the car, then had to run back and grab the bag from the store. He was speed-walking up the path when Luther opened the front door.
“Get lost?”
He leaned against the doorframe, his arms crossed over his chest, making his biceps pop, and he had a crooked smile going that stopped Doug in his tracks. That smile made everything he’d just been through worth it.
“I was thwarted by an old man and a faulty barcode. I could have used a Marine, actually.”
Luther pushed off the doorjamb and gestured for Doug to enter.
“Come on in and use a Marine, then.”
Doug was so focused on Luther’s mouth that he tripped going up the last step and had to catch himself on the door frame so he wouldn’t crash into Luther.
“Steady there, Airman Doug,” Luther chuckled.
Doug made it inside and turned as Luther shut the door, leaning his back against it.
“My sister is out for the day. I have to leave at two-fifteen to pick up Mila.”
It was currently ten-forty a.m.
Doug exhaled and grinned. “And I’m yours for the duration.”
Luther pushed away from the door and Doug noticed he was barefoot. That made him the same height as Doug, who was wearing slip-on loafers. He kicked them off in case this was a no-shoe household. Luther stood before him, so close their chests brushed, causing Doug to suck in a breath. He thought, this is it. He ran his tongue over his lips as a shiver ran through him?—
And Luther slid the bag out of his hand.
He stepped into the kitchen area, set the bag on the counter and peeked inside.
“Thanks, man. I haven’t had root beer in a while.” He pulled the bottle out, twisted the cap off and took a long sip, drawing Doug’s gaze to the movement in his throat. All that tawny skin Doug couldn’t wait to get his hands on, but he remained motionless. He wanted Luther to make the call.
“That one was for me,” Doug teased.
Luther tipped his head back and took another drink, licking his lips before he set the bottle on the counter next to him, keeping his hand on it.
“Come and get it.”
Doug was so turned on, he was vibrating. Luther was an entirely different enigma in his own space, and Doug thought he just might be in over his head. He took a step closer.
“Before I do, and I will, I want to make it clear that I’m down for anything, even if that means just talking, or maybe getting a tour of your studio.”
Luther gazed at him thoughtfully, but Doug couldn’t read his expression.He took a chance, approached the counter, and reached for the bottle. Luther let him take it, and Doug leaned his front against the counter and took his own long drink.
Luther moved behind him, crowding him. He leaned close and ran his nose along the side of Doug’s throat, his breath hot against his skin, the movement stirring the hair on the back of his neck. He pressed his chest against Doug’s back and put his hands on either side of his on the counter, letting Doug feel that even though they were close to the same size, Luther was bigger. Stronger, despite any physical limitations he might have. And that energy Doug hadn’t been able to read earlier? Luther was definitely serving take-charge, as if the alpha male side of him the Corps shaped and molded wasn’t completely gone. What a delightful surprise.
Luther kept his hips at a distance as he nibbled and kissed Doug’s neck moving from one side to the other, until Doug shuddered and broke out in goose bumps.
“Ticklish?” Luther asked, his soft, calm voice close to his ear.
“I guess so,” he admitted, letting his head fall forward. He wanted to turn, wanted to kiss Luther, but he wasn’t giving him room to maneuver. He sucked in a breath as Luther planted a hand on the waistband of his jeans. “Or I’m just really turned on. Luther,” Doug moaned. He tried to push his hips back into him, but Luther held him in place. He was really fucking strong.
“Give me a minute,” Luther said, his voice a little huskier. “It’s been a really long time since I’ve touched someone.”
Doug wondered if it had been since his accident, but he certainly didn’t want to bring it up.
Luther ran the fingers of his other hand through the back of Doug’s hair, gently pulling his head back. “You’re beautiful, you know that?”
Doug chuckled. He hadn’t expected him to say that.
“Thank you. You’re kind of pretty yourself.”
“I thought you were gorgeous with your makeup on,” Luther breathed. “But today you’re… more .”
Luther’s fingers tightened in his hair, but not painfully. Doug gasped and his back arched.
“Listen,” Luther started, his voice lower, shaky. “I don’t know how this is going to work, okay? I mean, I know my dick works, but my…I fractured my pelvis in the accident. Was in a pelvic external fixator for eight weeks. The doctors told me I’d be lucky if I ever walked again, among other things I don’t want to even think about. Bottom line is, I’ve got arthritis, nerve damage, and I can’t bear a lot of weight. My legs get weak.”
Doug hated that Luther felt like he had to tell him these things, but he didn’t want to interrupt him and say it didn’t matter, because it did. The more Doug knew, the better he could take care of him.
“The good news for you,” Luther continued, this time pressing his pelvis into Doug’s ass, eliciting a moan from him, “is that I love to give more than receive, so whatever happens, I’m going to work hard.” He said that last with a little extra emphasis. “I’m gonna make you feel good, Doug.”
“Jesus Christ, you’re turning me inside out and we still have our clothes on.”
Luther gave a very satisfied chuckle, and Doug’s knees buckled. Luther shifted his weight and slid his hand down the front of Doug’s hip bone, digging his fingers in enough to make him want to beg, but for what he didn’t know.
“Is that what you want?” Luther asked. “Clothes off?”
Doug swallowed hard, trying not to pant. “I want to kiss you.”
Luther spoke against Doug’s ear. “Kissing, huh? I suppose that’s all right. Especially since you’ll taste sweet after drinking my root beer.”
“ My root beer,” Doug retorted, and this time Luther let him turn around.
Up this close, Doug could barely breathe. Luther’s gaze was so intense, somewhere between laser focused on completing his mission, curiosity and lust. Doug wanted to hand over all the decisions to this man. He had a feeling it would be that much sweeter.
Instead of kissing him, though, Luther took him by the hand and stepped back.
“Grab the root beer.”
Doug snatched the bottle off the counter and reached for the plastic bag with a spare finger as Luther tugged him forward and down the hallway, toward what Doug hoped would be a nice, soft, horizontal surface for them to continue this parlay.