Chapter 17
Chapter Seventeen
Roland
The house felt too quiet without her.
Roland stood at the window, arms crossed tight, watching the path where Levi had walked Sydney back to the main building.
The night had settled soft and cool over the Ranch, shadows long beneath the outside lights.
The snow from the previous day had all but melted away, but it wouldn’t be long before the weather would turn completely and the cold would settle in, blanketing the Ranch and all its inhabitants in its clean—if slightly cold—embrace.
Inside, everything felt sharp, too empty. They’d spent all day together, and it was with a huge amount of reluctance that Roland had agreed that it was probably best if Sydney didn’t spend another night with them. Not so soon. Especially not after all the emotional upheaval of the last few days.
He turned from the window, pacing the length of the living room.
The blanket she’d curled up with still lay crumpled on the couch, carrying the faintest trace of the lavender and vanilla perfume Roland had started to recognize as pure Sydney.
A hair tie sat forgotten on the armrest, small and unassuming, but it made his chest ache.
Little things that showed that she was here, starting to make her mark on them. Roland could only hope that those marks would be permanent. That they’d have time to get more than a few cups, bowls and juice boxes.
His mind wouldn’t stop spinning. He thought of the way she’d looked at them.
She was so open and sweet, but always with a flicker of fear beneath it all.
Exactly like the nickname he’d picked for her, she was like a bird perched on their hands, trusting for a moment but ready to fly at the first wrong move.
What if she’s only letting us in because she feels she has to? Or even worse, what if we break this before it even begins?
The sound of boots in the hall broke his spiral. Heavy, steady. Levi’s. The jingle of keys, the creak of the door.
And then he was there, filling the doorway, windblown, solid, his gaze warm but sharp the moment he saw Roland.
“Hey,” Levi’s voice was low, soothing. “You alright?”
Roland didn’t answer. Couldn’t. His throat was too tight. He crossed the room in a few strides, fingers catching at Levi’s sleeve, just needing to feel him there.
Levi shrugged out of his jacket, draping it over a chair without looking away. “Hey now, Ro. What’s all this? Come here, babe.”
Roland went willingly, folding into his arms, his face pressed to the broad plane of Levi’s chest. The steady beat of Levi’s heart beneath his ear eased something in him, but not enough. Not yet.
“I’m worried about her,” he said, voice low and rough.
Levi held him closer, one big hand rubbing slow circles between his shoulder blades. “I know.”
Roland’s fingers clenched in the back of Levi’s shirt.
“She’s trying so hard. Fuck, she’s so brave, Levi.
She’s letting herself lean on us, bit by bit.
But I can feel it. There’s still something she’s holding back.
Something she’s scared to let us see. Not to mention that she was reaching out to Nanny J about counseling. I don’t know how to help her.”
Levi tipped Roland’s chin up, thumb brushing the edge of his jaw, the touch light but grounding. “Ro. You are helping. Just by being here. By being you.”
“But what if it’s not enough?” What if he wasn’t enough?
Levi’s brow furrowed, but his voice stayed soft.
“Babe. I know it feels like this should move fast. We’re used to that, in this life.
Fuck, I had you practically living with me after our first weekend together.
When it clicks, it clicks. But think about it.
We’ve known her for what? A week? Two? And of that time we’ve been courting her for no more than three days.
In that time, she’s had her world turned upside down.
She trusted the wrong man, got hurt, landed in a foreign country, in a place she doesn’t know, with people she’s only just met.
And yet, she’s already trying to trust us. ”
Roland’s breath hitched.
“She’s letting us in,” Levi went on, “as much as she can. And she’ll let us in more. But it’s gonna take time. There’s no shortcut, Ro. No magic fix. We just have to love her, be steady and patient, and be here when she’s ready.”
Roland looked at him, really looked as he let Levi’s words penetrate. He watched the man who always kept him steady, who always saw him. And the rush of love was so fierce it almost knocked him breathless.
“I don’t deserve you,” Roland whispered.
Levi’s mouth curved, soft and sure. “You got me anyway.”
It was their usual tease, as both men firmly believed that neither of them deserved the other, so instead of constantly bickering over who had it better, they turned it around to make it healthier. Happier.
The kiss that followed wasn’t hurried. It wasn’t a clash of mouths or a desperate scramble.
It was slow, deep, a promise in itself. Roland felt Levi’s fingers slide into his hair, felt the warmth of his hand at his back, anchoring him.
He tasted salt, his own tears, maybe, or the shared ache between them.
And under it all, heat slowly stirred. As it always would when he held Levi in his embrace.
Roland’s hands found the hem of Levi’s shirt, sliding beneath to the warm skin of his waist, tracing the lines of muscle he knew by heart. Levi made a low sound, pulling him closer, until their bodies met fully, chest to chest, hip to hip.
Roland’s breath shuddered out. “Can you see it?” His voice was rough, his heart pounding. “What it will be like? When she’s ours? Truly ours?”
Levi’s eyes darkened, his hand firm at Roland’s hip. “I think about it every damn minute.”
Roland let the fantasy unfurl between them. The three of them together, Sydney safe between them, loved, cherished, their girl in every way that mattered.
Levi kissed him again, deeper this time, with more reverence. When they finally parted, their foreheads rested together, breathing the same air, hearts beating in sync.
“Do you think she’d like it, being tucked between the two of us? Both of us filling her at the same time?” Roland asked, pressing the aching bulge of his erection against that of his partner’s.
“Fuck, Ro. Keep talking dirty to me, and I’ll have to take you to the bedroom and show you how much I like it.” Levi dug his face into Roland’s neck, biting down on the sensitive skin there, drawing a long moan from him.
“She also hasn’t shied away from us kissing, or touching. I bet our naughty Little would like to watch me go down on you. Watch as I let you fuck my face,” Roland teased as Levi grabbed his ass and ground back against him.
“That’s it,” Levi growled as he grabbed Roland’s hand and pulled him to the bedroom they shared. “Time for you to put your money where your mouth is.”
Roland laughed, the sound hoarse and hungry. “I feel like you’re not paying attention, lover boy. I was kind of hoping for something else in my mouth.”
That time, Levi’s only response was to unbuckle his belt and push Roland down onto his knees.
Within mere moments he had his aching erection out, the bulbous head of his cock red and tipped with the first showings of pre-cum.
Roland didn’t tease.
In one movement he took Levi’s thick cock in his mouth, the musky taste of him making Roland moan.
With practiced moves of two men who were used to the same song and dance, but could never get tired of it, Roland held onto Levi’s hips as the latter slowly started thrusting into his mouth.
Roland’s erection was a painful pulse against his denim, but he wouldn’t touch it. Not then. He would wait until he’d tasted all of Levi’s cum before he’d push his boyfriend down on the bed, and show him exactly how much he loved him.
Levi’s fingers tightening in Roland’s hair was the only warning he got before he felt the first spurts of hot cum hit the back of his throat.
He drank it down. Every last drop.
And then he slowly got up, looked his partner in the eye and told him. “Get the lube. I feel like fucking you until we both can’t see straight. And if we’re lucky, maybe next time, we’ll have a pretty Little joining us.”