Clang (16 page)

“What the hell? Dude, come look at this.”

Thomas raised his eyebrow and abandoned the frying pan to take a look out the front window. Cameron was kneeling on his couch, shamelessly spying through the blinds.

“The neighbors are gonna judge us,” Thomas muttered.

“Who cares what the neighbors think? Jackson's moving boxes inside.”

That
was
odd. As they watched, Jackson came back into view, walking down his driveway towards his truck. They both spotted someone next to him: Chase. The wiry little tattooed guy who they'd all met not long ago at that barbecue.

More than that, the guy that Jackson liked...

Thomas
still
hadn't told Cam. It was a testament to how well he could zip his lips when one of his brothers asked him to.

“What's he moving?” Cam murmured, folding his arms on the windowsill.

Thomas sighed and smacked Cam's shoulder. “Okay, enough spying. You can ask him later.”

“He hasn't told us about Chase renting the basement or anything...”

Aha. Perfect excuse.
“Yeah? He said he was planning to reno it. Maybe he's storing stuff for Chase, or Chase is... I don't know, helping him renovate.”

“Those looked like our old moving boxes.”

Cam looked out the window again, trying to get a better glimpse. Thomas kicked Cam in the shin, harder this time.

“Ow! Bastard.”

“Don't snoop around,” Thomas shook his head. “Nobody likes a snoop.”

Cameron rolled his eyes at him. “Ugh. Fine. What do you wanna talk about?”

“How are things going with you and Noah? You two were talking about moving in together...” Thomas seized on the first subject that came to mind as he walked back to the frying pan to finish cooking them lunch.

“Well, yeah. He has to hand in his notice soon if he's moving out in November.”

“Right.” Thomas was familiar with the cost of breaking leases. He'd done it to move back here from Halifax in May, and that thousand bucks had stung. “And?”

He turned off the frying pan heat and picked up his Coke bottle for a sip. Normally it would be a beer, but he'd quietly switched to pop while his big brother was around in solidarity. At least, he hoped it would help Cam feel a little less depressed about all the things he couldn't yet do.

“He's gonna do it.” Cameron was smiling to himself, fidgeting with his own bottle. “Um, he said he's excited, and... we're already planning out where his stuff will go.”

Thomas raised his eyebrows. “Oh! Nice...”

“We want him good and settled before surgery and recovery. It's gonna be hard being around him and not being able to... you know.”

Thomas groaned. “My sympathies, but say no more.”

Cam laughed. “Well, you know, it's been getting worse. I mean, before they told me I wasn't allowed, I was already cutting back, but... we slip sometimes. But, hell. Quickies now and then really don't--”

“No more,” Thomas echoed himself, louder this time and laughing.

“Sorry,” Cameron grinned, moving to the table as Thomas served them both lunch. “But, you know. Of all the shitty things.”

“I bet.” Thomas snorted. “Moving in will keep you distracted. He'll want to repaint and everything.”

As Cameron laughed, Thomas's mind fixed on that phrase: moving in.

That was it: Chase was definitely moving in. Jackson had only been dating him for, what, a week? Two? Jackson was being purposefully vague, but it couldn't have been much longer than that. They hadn't seemed involved when he'd met Chase at the barbecue.

Crap. His brother didn't usually move too fast. This was... not like him. They were gonna have to talk to him about this.

“So, you think we should put in rolling doors? Bilateral, so we can open them up to use as much space as possible?”

“That'd look best.” Cam was leaning on the barbecue as he looked up and down the length of their yards. “It looks awesome when it's open like this, though.”

Thomas cleared his throat. “We can always just... build out our own areas with landscaping to keep them separate.”

Jackson glanced at their younger brother. That was a good point. “Why have fences at all? Except for the outside of our three properties. I mean, none of us want our own zones to defend.”

Cam laughed. “Excuse you, I plan to keep a Super Soaker by my bed.”

Do I make the joke? Nah... he's my brother.
Jackson choked back a laugh and just shook his head. “Okay, so... ditch the partial fences and go for a continuous flow between our yards?”

“We have to keep it
kinda
resale-worthy, in case we decide to ditch these places,” Cam reminded him.

“Right. Well, it doesn't all have to flow. We can still have separate zones within our property boundaries. Thomas can put in a fish pond and reading nook. I can have a massive grilling deck. Cam can have... I don't know, whatever he wants.”

“Noah wants a sunbathing area.”

“Really?” Thomas asked.

Cam smirked. “Yeah. I'll screen
that
in.”

“Oh, God,” Jackson laughed. “Please do. But yeah, we'll each have our own zones so each yard will feel different. We'll keep that landscaping closer to the house and leave the back area free for one continuous flowing lawn from end to end. We can even get a flower bed or something down along the bottom fence to make it feel like it flows.”

Thomas quirked a brow. “Flow isn't a real word anymore.”

“You know what I mean,” Jackson groaned.

“I know,” Thomas laughed. “I like the idea.”

“Me, too,” Cam agreed, clapping his hands. “Almost the same plan with the landscaping, then, but minus the fencing.”

“Makes it a lot cheaper,” Jackson nodded.

Cam glanced at Thomas, then Jackson. “And the yards will be good and open until after the barbecue, right?”

“Oh, shit, right.” Cam and Thomas insisted on organizing this neighborhood barbecue. They said he needed to make better friends with people around who might complain about the forge.

Jackson knew they were right: backyard forges
were
risky. Still, people around here seemed nice enough. If not, he could always go threaten them a little until they magically turned nice.

“So, is Chase gonna be around for that...?” Cam asked.

Oh, boy.
Jackson sank onto the picnic bench and kicked out his legs. He braced his arms against the table behind him. “Yeah, probably. He's moving in.”

Thomas's eyebrows shot up and his little brother stared at him.

Cam asked what Thomas was thinking. “Are you guys dating?”

Would Chase want him to say? Well... they
had
agreed to go out, exclusively. Jackson wasn't going to hide it.

“Yes.”

Cam stumbled against the barbecue for a moment. He stepped forward to slap Jackson's shoulder in a mix of scolding annoyance and pride. “Congratulations. Jesus, you couldn't have hid it better, eh?”

“Sorry,” Jackson laughed. He glanced at Thomas, too. “I was just... nervous about what might happen. I wasn't sure he wanted to date.”

“Aww,” Thomas teased. “And he was shy.”

“I wasn't,” Jackson grumbled, his cheeks hot. What a warm August day it was. He pushed himself up to his feet to start scrawling a new rough plan for their yards.

“He didn't want to tell you and Noah in case you made fun of his
obvious
lovebird act.” Thomas spoke loudly so Jackson couldn't ignore him.

Cam punched Jackson's shoulder again. “Dick. You pays your money, you takes your teasing.”

“I know, I know,” Jackson groaned and rolled his eyes. “Shut up, you two. I gotta get my engineer buddy on the plans for the decks. Come on, show me where you each want your decks.”

He managed to distract them by walking and marking out the rough outlines of where their back decks would go. They planned out how they'd join them together so they never had to shovel between their back doors in the winter or step on muddy ground when running between houses in the spring or autumn. And for summer, there would be even more epic back deck barbecues. They'd just have to build it carefully so they could separate the decks later, if they resold the houses.

Cam didn't shut up for long, though. “So have you been dating for a while? I mean, you met at that show, right?”

“No, not at all. We were thinking about it for a couple weeks,” Jackson shook his head. “Dating officially for about a week now.”

Cam tried to hide his worry, but it was plain. “And he's moving in...?”

“Oh, no, shit. It's not a relationship thing,” Jackson hastily explained. “It's... I don't know how much he wants to say, but he needs a place to stay other than his place right now, so I offered him mine.”

“Ohhh.” Cam drove another stake into the ground and tied string around it. He was marking the walkway to the sundeck Noah wanted. “Is he all right?”

“He will be.”

Cam smiled, and Jackson returned the smile with a sincere one of his own. The worst had to be behind Chase now. Jackson could help him make sure of that.

***

“Pork and... are those sweet potato fries?”

“Good nose,” Jackson complimented, beaming as the front door closed. “Welcome home.” He was just overseeing the last few minutes of the green beans cooking. He'd timed this meal just right.

Chase looked embarrassed but thrilled. He kicked off his shoes and padded through the living room, his nose in the air as he smelled the spicy, sweet pork chop rub that wafted through the kitchen. “You're cookin' supper for me? You didn't have to. I should be cooking for
you
.”

“Yeah, well, you can do breakfast or something,” Jackson waved. “Or maybe lunch. I enjoy this.”

Chase came around the counter and sidled up beside him to kiss him hello. “You do?”

“Mmhmm.” Jackson transferred his spatula to the other hand. He slid his arm around Chase's shoulders and pulled him in for a few slow kisses. Then, he scooted them aside a little. “Watch out, the oil might splatter you.”

“I'll live,” Chase promised with a quiet laugh. He moved where Jackson guided him nonetheless. He kept his firm hold around Jackson's waist. “Did you have a good day?”

Jackson had only once lived with a guy, and it had lasted four months before he'd decided to pick up and move. That had been years ago. The second shot at their relationship had gone miserably. He hadn't lived with anyone since. Jackson had completely forgotten what it felt like to welcome his boyfriend home after a long day of work.

It was a deep-seated contentment. “Very good,” Jackson answered. “We're getting plans drawn up for my master bedroom reno. And the back decks.”

“Yeah? Any forging?”

“Just a little. I'm starting to make fireplace tool sets. They're popular Christmas gifts.”

Chase looked surprised. “Oh, yeah. I suppose they would be. Like pokers and... I don't know, bellows?”

Jackson grinned. “I can't make bellows, but like that, yeah.” He kissed Chase on the lips again, then murmured, “Wanna sit down? I'll bring your plate over.”

“Thanks.” Chase didn't let him go without hooking his fingers through his belt loops. He pulled him close for one more long, slow, soft kiss.

Christ, Jackson wanted that talented mouth all over him. It was going to be goddamn near-impossible to keep his hands off. He
had
to keep his word and show Chase that he wasn't taking advantage of him.

Speaking of which...

“How did work and fencing go?”

Chase grimaced. “Good, overall. I learned a lot at fencing. My muscles hurt. At work, uh, Floyd turned away someone – sounded like my uncle – who was looking for me. He must be going around the local tattoo shops.”

“Ah,” Jackson frowned. He scooped sweet potato fries onto both of their plates, followed by the buttery green beans. Last but not least, he placed a pork chop on each plate and sprinkled a sprig of fresh parsley and some dried herbs on top of each. With a little extra marinade, the plates were ready. “You think you should talk to the cops or what?”

“No. They'll want me to press charges or else they can't do anything.” Chase propped his elbow on the table and chin on his fist. He perked up at the sight of the plates Jackson was carrying over. “Oooh. Wow, those look great!”

“Thanks.” Jackson beamed and set the plates down. He popped the cork on the bubbly fruit spritzer he'd picked up at the store that afternoon. It was non-alcoholic, but it would complement the rich, herby pork well.

Chase was glowing again, his worry from moments ago fading. “You really like cooking, then.”

“Yeah, I do.” Jackson nudged Chase's glass closer and took his own, then picked it up to clink against his. “To... To us.”

“To us,” Chase echoed and clinked their glasses, then sipped. “Mm. This is good.”

“Isn't it?”

They didn't talk much for the first few minutes, except for Chase admiring the meal. Then, they lapsed into an easy conversation. They talked about forging fireplace tools, tattooing snakes, fencing footwork, and what kind of backyard features Jackson wanted.

Jackson cleared up the dishes with Chase's help, thankful for the dishwasher.

“I'll help you wash the pots and pans, too,” Chase told him.

It was only fair, if he was a house guest, to let him work at the normal chores. Jackson nodded. “I'll wash, you dry?”

“Sounds fair. Put those muscles to good work,” Chase teased, and Jackson laughed.

They bantered while they worked, easily falling into a companionable routine. Chase kept brushing against and behind him while putting away dishes. He flicked Jackson's ass with the towel once and Jackson flicked soap at him in return.

“Leave the last pots, you troublemaker,” Jackson waved him off with a laugh. “Molesting me while I work...”

“I aim to please,” Chase winked and leaned in to peck his lips. “But I'm at your service. If you'd rather I fucked off to the living room...”

Jackson laughed again and pressed a little kiss to Chase's lips. “Go find something on the television.”

Chase squeezed his arm and put back the towel, then trotted off around the counter. He headed just around the corner, into the part of the living room with the TV and couch.

Jackson lingered for a few moments to rinse out the sink and cool off. It was damn near irresistible to just take Chase to bed, and Chase was pushing hard. Every little flirtatious gesture and word made that much clear.

I don't think he realizes he's doing it.
Jackson licked his lips.
And I don't want to hurt his feelings when I turn him down. It'll still feel like rejection, even if I said ahead of time I'm not gonna do it.
Had he made a mistake in inviting Chase to live with him this early? Especially out of need rather than the usual cohabiting couple's desire to spend their lives together? Had this been about his own ego?

Jackson prayed it wasn't a mistake. They'd known each other for months, but romance had only started to crop up this month – and be acknowledged in the last few weeks. As far as actually calling each other boyfriends, that was even newer. Yet, already, this relationship was one he'd be crushed to lose.