A Restored Man (23 page)

"Why do you want to see me in a suit?"

"Seriously? You'd look hot in a suit. I'd probably want to rip it off."

"So what's the point of wearing the suit?" Ty asked, tugging Cole closer.

"Foreplay."

Ty burst into laughter and touched his forehead to Cole's. "You're impossible."

"You should do that more often."

"What's that? Foreplay?"

"Laugh." Cole smiled. "And wear suits. But I would totally be on board with foreplay, too," he finished, waggling his eyebrows. His focus shifted to the doorway. Within seconds, he stilled and the smile slid off his face.

Ty turned and saw Aidan standing there, watching them. His expression oddly void of any tell of what he was thinking except for one thing clearly screaming from his eyes…shock.

He sighed. His first time outside of the shop to spend time with Cole and now he had to deal with his overprotective brother. He didn't want to let go of Cole, but under the circumstances, he thought it best to avoid another potential black eye. He tried to release his hold but Cole refused to allow him to pull away. Cole finally shifted his focus from Aidan back to Ty, his eyes burning with a determination that hadn't been there moments before.

"Why don't the two of you get started on setting the table?" Cole said.

Ty held Cole's gaze and wondered what the hell he was doing. No one pushed Aidan. Period.

A hint of a smile ghosted across Cole's face then vanished. He leaned up and whispered, "It'll be fine."

He didn't know what Cole was up to, but he was willing to play along—at least for a little while.

* * * * *

I haven't heard him laugh in almost two years.

Aidan's words still haunted Cole. He wasn't going to kid himself, seeing those hazel eyes staring down at him freaked him the hell out. But something was different. Aidan's eyes didn't hold anger or aggravation toward him as they usually did. Instead, Aidan was surprised. Stupefied was probably more accurate. There was no way he could be that surprised at seeing Cole and Ty together, he had made it clear that first week how well they had gotten along—how they had joked and laughed.

Ty had laughed. Loud enough to have probably echoed through the house.

Cole could be completely wrong, but he imagined Aidan not only missed hearing the sound, but couldn't resist seeing Ty's happiness with his own eyes. Sure, he probably wanted to kill Cole later for getting this close to his brother, but for now, it was obvious the surprise of hearing Ty's laughter overshadowed everything else.

Aidan stood still, unmoving, other than his eyes shifting slowly between them. An emotion raced across Aidan's face. Cole sucked at reading people most times, but he knew pain when he saw it. He had experienced it firsthand with his family. The grief. The loss of someone special, the loss of a close bond. He could see it now, clearly, in Aidan's expression. It was pain and hope, struggling. He couldn't imagine living his life hearing Ty's easy laugh then having it suddenly stop. It was hard enough losing a loved one, but losing both parents and possibly a brother in one day was enough to rip someone apart. Aidan was too hard to break, but it had obviously left a few chips in his armor.

Cole mastered the art of pushing and was carefully perfecting the art of knowing when to stop before he crossed the line. These two stubborn Calloways needed a nudge.

Ty stroked Cole's waist with his fingers then released him. "Where do you guys keep the plates and stuff?"

Cole looked over to Aidan. "Aidan knows," he said and turned to grab the basket for the bread.

"I'll grab the plates," Aidan said, his voice lower than usual. He pointed over to the drawers on the opposite side of the kitchen. "The silverware's over there."

Aidan walked over to the counter area where Cole stood to reach the plates in the cabinet above. "Thanks," he said under his breath and bumped Cole's shoulder.

Cole looked over and smiled.

"How many in total?" Ty asked, pulling the forks and knives.

"Five," Cole responded. "Get dessert spoons, too."

"Luke's not here today?" Aidan asked.

Cole shook his head. "With family this weekend."

"You made dessert, too?" Ty asked.

Cole looked over to him. Ty's hopeful expression mirrored a child's on Christmas morning. "Yeah, and it's better than that chocolate bar shit you eat."

Ty turned and laughed.

Aidan closed his eyes and gripped the cabinet door handle.

"You keep doing that and he's going to think something's wrong," Cole whispered to Aidan.

Aidan took a deep breath and nodded.

"What dessert did you make?" Ty asked, glancing over his shoulder.

Cole sighed when he saw Ty's expression. That fricken shy look was going to make his balls explode. "If you really want to know, you'll have to pry it out of me."

Ty was going to say something, but stopped when he looked over to Aidan.

Cole wiped his hands on the towel and slung it over his shoulder. He crossed his arms and raised an eyebrow. "If he was going to hit me again, he would have done it already. I think he's warming up to the idea of me being his future brother-in-law."

"I don't think there's enough liquor in the world to soften that blow," Aidan mumbled.

Ty laughed.

Aidan looked over to Ty with a poor attempt at a scowl.

Ty laughed harder. "He'll grow on you."

"Like mold," Aidan responded.

Ty couldn't stop laughing.

Aidan shook his head. He was putting up a front, feigning irritation, but he definitely was not going to win any acting awards with his smile trying to force its way through. "How can you stand it? He's got one hell of a fucking mouth on him."

"Yeah, he does," Ty said with a smile.

"I don't need a visual," Aidan said, setting the plates on the table.

Cole chuckled. "Oh, I can give you a visual if you want."

Ty was laughing so hard he was bent over, grabbing his midsection.

Aidan couldn't stand it anymore. He looked up and let the smile break free.

"Well, damn. So that's what a genuine smile on Aidan Calloway's face looks like," Cole said.

Ty stopped laughing and looked at his brother, a smile still lingering on his brother's face. He dropped the silverware at the table then walked over to Aidan. He stood in front of him for a moment then wrapped his arms around Aidan's neck and hugged him.

Aidan instantly wrapped his arms around his brother in a hug, one around his waist, the other gripping his head. Aidan screwed his eyes shut and tightened his hold. "I missed you."

Ty pulled away and looked at his brother. "Me too," he said, smiling.

Aidan grabbed him by the back of the neck and pulled him close again.

"Fuck this," Cole said, throwing the towel on the counter and walking over to them. He threw his arms around both of the Calloway brothers.

"You're totally ruining this," Aidan said.

Both Ty and Cole chuckled.

"You guys are impossible," Aidan said, struggling to squeeze himself out of the hug as Ty and Cole tightened their hold.

Matt walked into the kitchen followed closely by Julian. "I can only hold him off for so long," he said, thumbing over his shoulder at Julian. "Let's have dinner."

They quietly ate except for the occasional joke directed at either Julian or Aidan. Aidan was especially amicable so everyone had to take advantage of his good spirit. He smiled more than Cole had ever seen. Cole couldn't resist teasing him—who knew when he'd get the chance to do that again and survive unscathed—but he did it more so because he just wanted to hear Ty laugh and see him so happy with his brother.

"Okay, guys, this has been fun but I'm guessing we need to back off Aidan while we still can," Julian said, rising from his seat.

They cleared the table in record time and Aidan left while still on an obvious emotional high.

"We're going to bed. Curfew's at nine," Julian said.

"Don't forget to lock up," Matt said before Julian herded him upstairs. "It was nice meeting you, Ty."

"They're nice," Ty said, taking a seat on the living room couch.

"Yeah, they are," Cole said, landing on the couch with a bounce.

Ty grabbed the television remote and leaned back.

Cole snatched the control from his hand. "There's no way in hell I've got you for only a few minutes and you're going to watch TV."

Ty smiled. "What did you have in mind?"

Cole grinned and inched closer to Ty. "That's a dangerous question. You know I've always got a billion things going on up here," he said, tapping his temple. He reached over and placed his hand on Ty's knee.

"They're right upstairs," Ty whispered.

Cole nodded. "I know. And we're down here." He reached higher, grazing the inside of Ty's upper thigh.

Ty closed his eyes and inhaled sharply. "What do you think you're doing?" he asked when Cole's hand cupped his growing hard-on.

"I'm just checking if you really do still have your balls intact," Cole teased, leaning in to kiss the side of Ty's neck.

"Yes, it's all still there and working just fine. I don't need the Dr. Renzo checkup." Ty turned his face slightly and met Cole's lips in a brief kiss.

"I know you're not sleeping with me…tonight. But I'm going to drive you fucking crazy until you do," Cole said, brushing his mouth against Ty's then licking the inside edge of his upper lip.

Ty closed his eyes and moaned. His body relaxed onto the couch, letting Cole explore. Cole extended the tip of his tongue and teasingly outlined those full lips that haunted his every waking thought. He kneaded Ty's growing arousal with one hand and wrapped his other hand behind Ty's neck.

"Just kiss me already," Ty said, before a choked whimper escaped.

Cole smiled, loving that desperate sound. "Not yet," he said, sucking Ty's bottom lip and pushing his body slightly against him.

Ty reached out and tried to remove Cole's beanie.

Cole immediately withdrew. "No."

"You've got to take that thing off eventually," Ty said, leaning up on his elbows.

"I told you. You sleep with me, you can take it off," Cole said, staring down at him.

Ty relaxed onto the couch again and scowled. "I'm not liking you very much right now."

Cole chuckled and lowered his body onto Ty's, hovering over him, aligning his hard-on with an equally hard arousal. Cole pushed his lower body in a slow, sweeping motion, groaning with the friction.

Ty's body arched and he threw his head back onto the couch, extending his neck. He reached out and gripped Cole's broad shoulders, digging his fingers firmly into the muscles to push himself into each sweep of Cole's hips.

Cole peppered kisses along the side of Ty's neck, then ran the tip of his tongue upward, sucking the earlobe into his mouth.

An almost quiet, desperate whimper escaped Ty. He turned his face, desire clearly burning in his eyes. "K-k-kiss me," he said, then looked away as a flush of heat colored his cheeks.

Cole was a quick study and knew better than to shine a spotlight on the random stutter. "You didn't ask nicely," he teased, nearing Ty's mouth just enough to let their breaths mingle.

"Kiss me," Ty said again, his tone and words both steady and strong this time.

"You forgot the magic word," Cole said slowly, brushing his lips teasingly against him.

Ty groaned. "Kiss me now or you're never kissing me again," he said with a hint of anger in his tone.

Cole half smiled and shook his head slowly. "That's not very nice," he said, rolling his hips against Ty. "
I
might be able to hold out, can you?"

Ty gripped the back of Cole's head and pulled him down with such force Cole almost lost his balance on the couch. He drove his tongue aggressively into Cole's mouth, not waiting for an invitation. Cole threaded his hands through Ty's hair, gripping and guiding Ty's head at the angle he wanted, making it crystal clear who was in control. Cole devoured Ty's mouth, tasting, biting, sucking, each swipe of his tongue a promise of more to come. He pushed his body harder against Ty's, trying to find a rhythm that would satisfy the heat coursing through his veins.

Ty broke free from the kiss and gripped Cole's ass, pulling him toward his open legs. "We should stop," he said breathlessly.

"We should," Cole said, slowing the rhythm to a lazy, deep slide. "But I don't want to." He reluctantly inched away, not wanting to lose full contact.

Ty's grip loosened and he slid his hands up Cole's back. He pulled Cole to him and held him close. "You're officially driving me crazy. Happy?"

Cole smiled against the side of Ty's neck. "Yes."

Ty wrapped his arms tighter around Cole, brushing the tips of his fingers up and down Cole's bicep. "Can we just stay like this for the last five minutes I have with you tonight?"

Cole lifted his head and looked at Ty. "Anything you want," he said, before placing a tender kiss on Ty's lips. He shifted slightly to position himself more comfortably in Ty's embrace. He sighed and rested his head on Ty's shoulder.

"Thanks for tonight."

"I'm glad you liked the dinner," Cole said, nuzzling Ty's neck. "You can come over during the week too when it's my turn to cook."

"I'd like that. I was referring to my brother, though. I think Aidan and I have tried to find our way back to each other, but we just couldn't seem to manage on our own for the last two years. It took you a whole…what…two minutes?" he asked rhetorically as he continued to brush his fingers against Cole's skin.

"I can't imagine what it would be like to not hear your laugh," Cole said. He closed his eyes and reveled in the heat of the slight, rhythmic graze of Ty's fingertips against his arm.

"It's just a laugh."

"I swear. I'm getting you the biggest, ugliest rubber boots I can find."

Ty chuckled. "I wasn't fishing. I haven't had much to laugh or smile about lately. It just gets hard trying to find a positive when I'm dealing with so much negative."

"I know. But stop dwelling on it. It happened, you can't change it. You need to focus on what's ahead and not let that other stuff pull you back into the abyss. We've got about a minute left. Let's not blow it," Cole said, kissing Ty's cheek and pushing up to stand. He offered Ty a hand to help him up.