By Any Other Name (10 page)

Giving him a fleeting smile, she turned and hurried from the room. Andy braced himself for the explosion he fully expected in three, two, one—

The bellow was loud enough that Andy kept a weather eye on the door as he twisted his torso to face a red faced, clenched jawed, narrow eyed Michael.

“Ukk. Short-sighted, much? Perhaps giving the poor woman a few minutes where you didn’t say terrible things about her to her face or dip your every utterance in venom would allow her to make the apology you seem to think she owes you. I don’t know, maybe she does. Maybe she’s a slavering monster who ought to be put down for the safety of the rest of mankind. All I know is if you don’t take the time to find out you’ll hate yourself. At least you have a living, breathing woman to work your issues out with. Not all of us have that luxury, you insensitive ass.”

He was shouting wildly. The echoes of sound reverberating back from the walls and Michael’s suddenly slack-jawed mien, coupled with the way the bigger man held his hands up as though to stave off the attack of a rabid animal made the increase in both Andy’s volume and his intensity painfully obvious. Well, hell, he needed another trip up to the huggie jacket domain of the hospital like he needed a hole in the head. A. Hole in his head. In Michael’s head, that’s where Ronald Dieterman had wanted to put a hole. Raising a shaking hand to his mouth, Andy blinked furiously to keep the blurriness in his eyes from spilling onto his face.

“Oh. Michael. I’m sorry. I-you were so still, and that man kept talking about how he was only going to put a hole in your head and there was blood running down your neck. I-don’t throw away the chance to know why. Don’t. I’m sorry I yelled. You—I’d give anything to take back the last words I said to my mother. I called her a bitch. She said I couldn’t spend the night at Sasha Zelinko’s house, and I called her a bitch. They were the last words I ever spoke to her.”

A burning lump filled his entire throat. Andy turned his face away while his hands pulled futilely at the covers, seeking to pull them high enough to hide behind. Silence reigned in the room for a long beat of Andy’s bruised heart, and then there was a creak and a thudding noise. A few seconds later, Michael’s big hands gripped his shoulder and the side of his face, turning him back toward the other man. Michael opened his firm pink lips, swayed in place, lifted the hand he’d placed on Andy’s shoulder to run it over his own stubble covered jaw and then shrugged.

“I think you better scoot over. I’m still kinda dizzy.”
Noting that Michael’s cheeks were nearly as pale as they’d been last night when the paramedics wheeled him out of Devon’s tiny apartment, Andy hastily scooted over to the far side of the bed.
“Get in here, Dumkopf.”
While the words were harsh, Andy hoped Michael would recognize the soft tone he used for what it was. When Michael gave the lazy half smile that always tied Andy’s innards into lusty knots, he knew he was forgiven. Collapsing onto the bed, Michael grunted and twisted his long frame onto the narrow bed. He reached over Andy with one arm, scooping his hand under Andy to drag him closer. Laughter bubbled up out of Andy’s chest as he relaxed into the furnace-like heat Michael put off. Pressing his face into the crook of Michael’s neck, Andy drenched himself in Michael’s unique scent.
“I was so scared, Michael.”
Grunting again, Michael squeezed Andy so hard he could hear his ribs creaking. He relented when Andy gasped.
“Yeah. I heard. I’m not leaving though. There’s nothing you, or anyone else can do to make me. Not one damn thing. Get that through your pretty head, and things will be a lot simpler.”
Burying his face farther into the sweetly scented crook of Michael’s neck, Andy whispered the question he couldn’t keep back despite how much he hated appearing weak enough to concern himself with such things.
“Did you mean it?”
Michael didn’t miss a beat.
“Yes. But I’ll give you a year or two to get used to the idea. I’m giving up my apartment as soon as they let me out of here though. I don’t give a shit what you tell anyone else, but you’re through pretending with me. I’m sleeping in your bed every night, fixing anything that’s broken on your car or your house, and you can just deal with it.”
Smiling, Andy snuggled in a hair closer. “I broke my wings.”
A chuckle rumbled through Michael.
“You mean the ones from your costume for the party?”
Andy nodded. Michael made a low humming noise, sliding his fingers along the curve of Andy’s hip bone.
“I can fix that.”
Turning his head, Andy pressed a feather light kiss to the hollow place where Michael’s collar bones met.
“Okay. It’s nobody’s business what we do but ours. If they ask you, I don’t care what you tell them… I just don’t want to make any big announcements. Just-can we just be for a while? IDavid lives with you though. Um, I have an extra room. Or there’s the little apartment over my garage. It needs some work.”
Michael’s fingers stilled for a second, and Andy’s heart stood still.
“That’s perfect, Andy. He can stay in the house while we fix up the apartment for him, and then he can move… but he’ll still be close enough for me to keep an eye on him.”
Andy’s eyelids drooped as a wave of exhaustion washed over him. A yawn wracked his frame and spread his jaw wide open. There was just one more question he needed answered before he could give in to the dark call and let himself drift on the midnight tides of sleep.
“And your mom?”
Michael grunted, squeezing him again. Andy was no fool. He could feel the bunched muscle difference this time.
“Please, Michael.”
A gust of air blew through the hair at the top of Andy’s head.
“Fine, babe, you win. I’ll listen; hear what she has to say. I’m not doing it today though. When she comes back I’ll ask her to set something up through Lynn.”
Andy lifted his face in a shameless bid for a kiss. Michael proved he wasn’t a complete Dumkopf by rolling Andy onto his back as he pressed his lips down over Andy’s. A hint of tongue promised more when they were somewhere private, and Andy took that for what it was worth.
Michael always kept his promises.