Chapter Thirteen #2
“Thirty-five,” Maggie replied absently. She worked her bottom lip between her teeth and stared off into space until the elevator stopped on her floor.
“I don’t know,” she said when she pushed the cart into the hallway.
“I haven’t dated for almost seven years.
” That was around the time Owen got arrested and went to jail.
“I’m a little rusty and don’t trust myself after the mistakes I’ve made. ”
“I have faith in you, Mom,” Owen said as they followed with the bulky Christmas tree bag. “And you deserve to find genuine happiness with someone special instead of living alone.”
Maggie hummed, and Tyler figured that would be the end of the conversation, but she surprised him when she stopped outside her apartment door. “Do you really think Stephanie is interested in me romantically?”
“She charged into a parking lot when she found your hatch open and saw you talking to two strange men, and she can’t seem to tear her eyes off you for longer than a few seconds.
” Owen’s words trailed off like maybe he was thinking through what to say next.
“I think you’re interested in her too. Stephanie makes you blush and giggle like you’re twenty again, and it sounds like you’re comfortable enough to confide in her.
” Owen met Tyler’s gaze and held. “You should take a chance because you deserve to know what real love feels like.”
Maggie glanced at them with a sappy smile on her face. She released the cart to clutch both hands to her heart. “You boys really are the best Christmas ever.”
It took Tyler and Owen two more trips to unload the Subaru and grab their bags from the truck. They packed light since they were only spending two nights in Trinidad, so their clothes and toiletries were in one bag and Maggie’s Christmas gifts were in the other.
“The first room on the left is your bedroom, and the guest bathroom is directly across the hall,” Maggie told them.
“Make yourself comfortable while I fix us something to drink.” She rattled off the usual options of water, coffee, and soda, along with some irresistible seasonal offerings. “What sounds good to you?”
“I’ll take a spiced apple cider,” Owen replied.
“Peppermint hot chocolate for me,” Tyler said.
“Perfect.”
Maggie headed into the kitchen, and they went to their bedroom.
“The inside of the building is much nicer than the outside,” Owen mused once they were behind closed doors.
The exterior was drab and square, but the interior was clean, freshly painted, and had new carpet.
Even the shared spaces were tidy and well-kept.
Before Tyler could look around the room, Owen cupped his face and kissed him.
“Thank you so much for being here with me.”
“There’s nowhere else I want to be.” Besides, Owen was making the trek to Texas with him, though their arrival and news might not get the sweet reception Maggie gave them.
Tyler tried hard not to expect an explosion of epic proportions, but it was so hard not to.
If the worst happened, they’d still have their ranch family and Maggie.
“Knock it off,” Owen whispered.
Tyler tried to screw his features into an innocent expression. “What?”
Owen’s scoff said it didn’t work. “I can tell you’re mentally doomsday prepping again. Give your folks the benefit of the doubt until they prove they don’t deserve it. You haven’t even spoken to them about your sexuality yet, and you’re already predicting they’ll reject you.”
The last thing Tyler wanted was for Owen to fret over his emotional health when he should soak up all the love and adoration Maggie could give him. “You’re right.” And he was. “I’m not being fair to myself, them, or you.”
Owen furrowed his brow and scowled. “Me?”
“I’m dragging down the vibe,” Tyler replied. “I won’t do it again.” At least not until bedtime when sleeping in a strange place might keep him awake.
Owen’s expression darkened, and he pressed his body against Tyler’s. “Keep it up, and I’ll put you over my knee.”
He pictured himself bent over Owen’s legs with his pants down and his pink ass primed for more. Lust, white-hot and thrilling, unfurled like a snake low in Tyler’s belly as he imagined the crack of Owen’s palm against his ass and the resulting sting.
Owen let out a soft growl and captured his mouth in a hot, demanding kiss.
He propelled them backward until Tyler’s legs bumped into the back of the bed.
Tyler tried to stay upright because he knew what happened anytime they got vertical on a bed, sofa, or any other surface sturdy enough to hold them.
He slid his hands up Owen’s chest and pressed his palms against firm pecs until Owen broke the kiss.
“We better get back out there before things get out of control in here,” Tyler suggested.
Owen’s face was tight with arousal, and his eyes still hadn’t regained focus. He looked from the bed to Tyler before stepping back and taking a deep breath. “Is spanking something you want to explore?” Owen asked.
“I’m not sure. I’ve never thought about it until now.” Swallowing hard, Tyler added, “But I had a very intense reaction just from the suggestion.”
Owen ran the back of his fingers over Tyler’s semi-erection. “I’ll say.”
Tyler took a shaky breath and stepped into Owen’s caress.
Energy hummed through his body like someone had plugged him into a charger.
His attraction to Owen was stronger and more addictive than the pain pills ever were, but Tyler was in control and weathering his impulses better, as Owen had promised.
“I want to try it.” Tyler closed his eyes as he imagined the heat spreading across his ass cheeks from the slap.
He shook his head as if that would clear the imagery. “If you’re willing.”
Owen cupped the back of his neck and kissed him hard, but not nearly long enough.
“I will give you anything and everything you need. Just tell me when.” Owen pressed one last kiss against his lips before he dropped his hand and stepped away.
“Maybe you should hang out back here for a few minutes to get that”—Owen gestured toward Tyler’s crotch—“under control.”
Tyler looked down at the erection trying to fight its way out of his jeans. He snapped his gaze back up to Owen’s twinkling eyes. “What are you going to tell your mom? Won’t she wonder where I am?”
Owen chuckled as he stepped back toward the door. “I’ll tell her you’re unpacking because you can’t stand living out of a suitcase or a bag, even for a few days.”
Tyler hated digging around for stuff when it only took a few minutes to put things away, which Owen knew from the few occasions they’d traveled overnight for ranch business.
This was their first getaway as a couple, and he wondered what would happen if they were truly alone. Would they try the spanking thing?
Owen paused with his hand on the doorknob. “What are you thinking about?”
“What would you do to me once you had my ass red and hot?” Tyler whispered.
Owen dropped his hand from the knob and retraced his steps back to stand in front of Tyler.
The heat rolling off Owen’s body made Tyler sway into him, making it easy for Owen to press his lips to Tyler’s ear.
“I would put you on your knees and pound that sweet, red ass. I’d feel your heated skin every time I slammed into you. ”
Tyler bit his lip, but a whimper still escaped. “I hurt so bad.”
A dark, low chuckle rumbled from Owen. “Not yet, you don’t.” He reached down between their bodies and squeezed Tyler’s dick through denim. “Rub one out if you can’t calm this guy down with unsexy thoughts.”
“By myself?” Tyler sounded so affronted that it drew laughter from them both.
“Baby, I’d love to help you, but you wouldn’t be able to look my mom in the eyes afterward.”
“Oh god.” That came out louder than Tyler had intended, and he grimaced.
Owen dropped his gaze and blew a kiss at Tyler’s crotch before leaving.
There was no way in hell he was going to whip out his dick and jerk off while Owen distracted his mom.
The mere thought brought blood rushing to his face, but it relieved pressure elsewhere.
By the time he sorted their belongings, Tyler had gotten himself mostly under control.
Maggie and Owen had already unpacked the Christmas tree and were organizing the branches by color-coded tags on the metal limbs.
“The color is faded,” Owen said. “I think it might’ve been orange at one time. Do we have orange limbs?”
Maggie came over to him, and they studied the tag together. They wore identical frustrated expressions. Tyler snuck his phone from his pocket and snapped a picture to capture the adorable moment.
“I think I saw orange already. Check that pile over there,” Maggie said, pointing to the farthest stack from where they stood. “These tags used to have letters stamped on them, but they’re faded too. Boy, I hope this wasn’t a mistake.”
“Nope,” Owen said as he stepped over the sorted branches. “This will be great. If nothing else, we can match these up by size and create a new system.”
Maggie snapped her head up and looked at him with a smile on her face. “You’ve become quite the problem solver.”
“I don’t know about that,” Owen said dismissively. “Just seems like the natural thing to do.”
Owen deflected praise like an Olympic champion, and Tyler was determined to change that.
“Are you just going to stand there and look adorable, or are you going to help?” Owen’s voice snapped Tyler from his musings.
“Help, of course,” Tyler said as he joined the fray.
It took them at least ninety minutes and a couple of rounds of drinks to group the branches and create a new sorting system.
There were six rows of limbs plus the top of the tree.
Maggie brought out her nail polish, and they painted new vibrant colors on the metal rods and jotted down the order on a piece of paper she put inside the tree bag.