Cut & Run (40 page)

Ty simply nodded and went to a cabinet near the refrigerator to retrieve a glass. He filled it from a bottle that sat on the counter and handed it wordlessly to Zane. Reaching over to the jacket, Zane dug into the pocket and pulled out a battered bottle of Tylenol, got a couple pills, and swallowed them down.

“Tough guy, huh?” Ty asked sarcastically. “I bet you got all kinds of action with that routine in Miami,” he muttered as he watched with a frown.

Zane lowered the glass and looked at Ty appraisingly as he tucked the bottle away. “Depends on what kind of action you’re talking about,” he said, being deliberately vague. Ty could be talking about fighting “action.”

Possibly. If Ty were true to form … that wouldn’t be it.

Ty just raised one eyebrow and shrugged. “If you got called
papi
more than once, then I want blood tests before I touch you again,” he said as he turned to the sink behind him and began washing his hands.

Chuckling, Zane pushed off his stool and reached out to snag Ty around the waist and start pulling. “Not even once. Didn’t pay anybody, either.”

Ty huffed a laugh and let himself be pulled closer, swatting the faucet off before he was out of reach and pulling away only enough to make it seem like an effort. “Bucking the trend, then,” he drawled. “How proud you must be.”

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“Mmmmm.” Zane reached out with his other arm to drag Ty closer, facing him, then slid his lips along the curve of Ty’s neck. “I got some ass,”

he admitted before scraping his teeth on Ty’s skin for a moment. Then he added, “No men.”

Ty lowered his chin until his cheek brushed against Zane’s, and he frowned and nodded. “Good,” he replied softly.

Closing his eyes, Zane inhaled Ty’s scent slowly and let himself fall under the sound of his voice. It aroused him like nothing else. “The ass? Or the no men?” he rasped, moving slightly to rub their cheeks together.

“I don’t care,” Ty breathed in answer as he turned his head and pressed his lips to Zane’s in an open-mouthed, hungry kiss.

Zane’s hand closed around the back of Ty’s neck as the other man beat him to the kiss, one he joined with just as much desire. Christ, he’d missed this, missed Ty. He’d never expected it, and he’d lied to himself about how much it had hurt to be without him, unable to understand how he’d grown so attached to this man in the space of seven hectic, awful days. His other hand tightened around Ty’s waist, hauling him up against his body.

Ty flailed briefly, trying not to grab the upper arm he had just bandaged, and he groaned softly into the kiss. He had tried not to think about their brief stint in New York together. Parts of it he still didn’t remember, and that just made it worse as he tried to force the memories out. Now, though, it all seemed to come rushing back and he let it, wrapping his arms around Zane and pulling him closer until there was no room left between them.

Ty’s soft sounds made Zane’s gut cramp with more than just passion; it was powerful enough for him to shudder. Emotion he’d packed away in a tiny little box somewhere inside broke free, and everything he’d tried to deny bubbled up. Once the kiss finally broke he dropped his head to Ty’s shoulder, turning his face into Ty’s neck, and he clutched him tightly, unwilling to let go. Not just yet. Not until the lonely ache that had been building the past four months faded.

Ty gave a little whuff of surprise when Zane clung to him, but he slowly slid his arms around him and hugged him, resting his chin against Zane’s cheek. “You okay?” he asked in a whisper.

Zane slowly nodded, waiting a few heartbeats before admitting, “I am now,” in a matching whisper. There was so much he wanted to say but didn’t dare.

Ty closed his eyes as the answer sent a shiver through him. He had 244 | Madeleine Urban & Abigail Roux

been afraid of this. Terrified of this. He had known Zane had meant something more to him than just a weeklong partnership or a few wild fucks.

He had known, given the chance, that Zane could mean quite a lot to him.

Now, it seemed that Zane returned at least a portion of that feeling. Maybe more. And Ty didn’t know how to handle it. He didn’t even know if he
wanted
it.

He swallowed heavily and slid his hand up Zane’s back into his hair, cradling his head as he ran his fingers through the short, messy curls.

“You need a haircut,” he murmured finally, unable to say what he really wanted.

Zane shrugged slightly, not willing to move unless Ty pushed him away. He was trying to memorize the feel of the other man’s body against his.

“And a shower,” Ty continued in a soft voice. He turned his head and pressed his nose and mouth against Zane’s cheek gently. “And some sleep, I bet.”

Zane knew he was exhausted, but he was so used to it he hardly felt it anymore. He’d been numb until he saw Ty again. Or maybe he’d lost his mind. “All of the above?” he answered. “And food?”

“Yeah,” Ty laughed as he smiled against Zane’s skin. “What do you want to eat?”

“Anything but Cuban,” Zane said immediately before grinning and gnawing a little on Ty’s shoulder.

Ty laughed again, louder this time as another shiver ran through him.

“I don’t have any Cuban in me, but I doubt I’ll taste great,” he warned as he pulled away. “How about pizza?” he suggested. “I’ll go get it while you shower.”

“I suppose,” Zane said reluctantly, meaning Ty leaving rather than the food choice.

“You don’t sulk as well as I do,” Ty informed him dispassionately as he moved away.

“I just need practice,” Zane objected, leaning forward to snag Ty’s arm before he got too far away. “How about a counter offer?”

“Depends on which counter you’re talking about,” Ty answered warily as he looked from Zane’s hand up to his eyes.

Zane tugged gently. “How about you shower with me, and then we’ll both go get pizza?” It was overt, Zane knew. An outright play for attention.

Cut & Run | 245

But now that he had Ty this close he didn’t want to let him out of reach. He could feel the heat spiraling between them and all he wanted to do was stoke the flames.

Ty raised an eyebrow and stepped closer with the tug. “You want me to shower with you?” he asked in amusement. “Need help reaching your back, do you?” he asked with a smirk.

“And other places,” Zane said, looking Ty up and down significantly.

“I can go next door and ask the lady neighbor for her loofah,” Ty teased gently. “Bubble bath, maybe?”

“Whatever gets you in there with me,” Zane responded earnestly.

“Subtle, Garrett,” Ty laughed softly. “Man, you really did shed the fake layer, didn’t you?” he observed.

Zane shrugged. “Somebody reminded me it was best to be myself,”

he said seriously, tugging on Ty’s arm again. “He seemed rather fond of me that way.”

“Must have been a genius you were dealing with,” Ty said cheekily as he remained a few steps away.

“Yeah, I have to admit, he was pretty smart, though I teased him otherwise,” Zane said, curling his arms back around Ty and relaxing as he moved closer. “I regretted that, later. The teasing, I mean.”

Ty frowned and leaned back so he could look into Zane’s eyes without going cross-eyed. “One of the advantages of teasing a man with a cracked head is that he doesn’t remember it after,” he offered.

Zane’s face went still. “How much do you remember?” he asked quietly, eyes filled with silent questions.

Ty licked his lips nervously and shrugged. He hated when people asked him that. He hated admitting when he couldn’t recall something.

“Enough that I know kissing me wasn’t a really weird thing for you to do,” he answered vaguely.

Rather than being surprised or confused, Zane looked disappointed.

So, Ty remembered they’d had a good time. Sort of. But that was all, apparently. Zane nodded and offered a small, forced smile. At least he had that. It would do while he figured out how to make the longing for that fire between them to stop.

Ty watched his reaction carefully, confused by it. “What am I missing?” he asked in frustration. He had worked for weeks to regain the 246 | Madeleine Urban & Abigail Roux

memories he had lost. He knew he was still missing quite a few, some that he would never get back, but until right then he hadn’t come across any holes that had seemed important, either to him or to someone else.

Zane swallowed hard as he slid his hand to take Ty’s and lace their fingers together. “Are you feeling this, too?” he asked, echoing what they’d asked each other months ago, only to have it pushed aside. But not forgotten.

Ty watched their fingers intertwine, fighting back the fluttering in his stomach when Zane spoke. He jerked his head up sharply and met Zane’s eyes. That one he did remember, although he had regretted that conversation for months, blushing furiously whenever he thought of it even when he was alone. He shook his head and swallowed. “No,” he answered hoarsely, echoing the answer he had given before.

Slowly, Zane raised his other hand to cup Ty’s reddening cheek. “Me, either,” he breathed before leaning forward to kiss Ty gently.

Ty groaned plaintively to break the kiss, and he took a step back to put some distance between them. “Jesus Christ, Zane,” he muttered in exasperation. “I was horrible to you. Why are you even here?”

Zane clamped down on the emotion swirling inside him, forcing himself to be as reasonable as he could. Some insane declaration would get them nowhere but upset and blustering. “I missed you,” he admitted hoarsely.

“All the damn time.”

Instead of asking why in the hell Zane had missed someone who’d been so shitty to him for the majority of their time together, Ty decided to accept it as a gift and shook his head, moving closer again. “I missed you, too,” he admitted.

A small smile pulled at Zane’s lips as Ty stepped back into his reach.

“Missed a pansy-assed poster boy?” he teased as he pulled Ty to him.

“I had a head injury,” Ty answered defensively, mumbling against Zane’s cheek.

“You called me that
before
the head injury,” Zane needled.

“Exactly,” Ty affirmed with a small smile against Zane’s skin.

Ty’s lips against him made Zane happier than he could remember being in some time. Four months’ time, if he was honest, which he really tried to avoid.

Ty turned his head, breathing in Zane’s scent. “Why don’t you go back to the shower idea,” he suggested softly, pulling away gently again.

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Zane kept hold of Ty’s hand even as the other man backed away. He felt both relieved and scared, and it was a toss-up as to which was stronger.

“Your shower idea? Or my shower idea?”

Ty snorted softly and looked back down at their joined hands. “Which do you prefer?” he asked with a small smile.

“My idea,” Zane admitted, tilting his head to one side as he raised their combined fists. “But that won’t get me food anytime soon.”

Ty grinned mischievously, acknowledging the obvious joke he could make and passing it over. “Tell you what,” he murmured as he tugged at their hands and brought Zane closer. “You go shower, and I’ll order pizza and change the sheets on the bed,” he offered.

The purr started low in Zane’s chest and built as he stepped right up against Ty for one more enveloping kiss. “Deal,” he murmured.

Ty grinned against his lips and gently extricated himself. “What do you want on your pizza?” he asked as he moved away before Zane could snag him again.

“Anything but onions and fish,” Zane said as he reached for the jacket. “I’m gonna duck outside for a smoke first, okay?”

“Those things’ll kill you,” Ty admonished as he headed for the phone.

Zane had the cigarette between his lips already as he headed for the back porch. “I think the bullets will get me first,” he said wryly as he stepped out and pulled the door shut behind him.

Ty stared after him for a moment, unsettled. He wasn’t sure what it was about the situation that left him feeling odd. He sighed heavily and dialed the nearest pizza joint, placing the order and giving his phone number for delivery. Then he headed up the narrow stairs to the bedroom at the front of the little row house and began yanking the sheets off the bed. They smelled like the girl from the bar and expensive cigars and possibly Mike’s Hard Lemonade. Ty was a little hazy on the details. Regardless, Zane didn’t really need to catch a whiff of any of those things.

Taking his time with the smoke, Zane stared off into the city that sprawled out down the hill from the roofs of the brownstones. He spent a few long minutes picking apart his own feelings—why he felt simultaneously steadier and shakier than he had in months. Steadier, because he was with Ty.

It had to be. But just the implications shook him. He had no idea how he had become so dependent on the other man without even seeing it happening.

How did he do something about it? More importantly … did he
want
to do 248 | Madeleine Urban & Abigail Roux

something about it?

Christ. He shook his head. Zane didn’t even know what “it” was. But he knew he was afraid it would disappear. He didn’t want to watch Ty walk away again. He finished the cigarette, stubbed it out on the concrete, and dropped it into the planter that looked like it had been used for that purpose before. Zane briefly wondered who had been smoking out here if Ty was so against cigarettes, and he drew in a deep breath. He knew Ty’s habits. It didn’t bear thinking. Shower first. Then he’d see what other emotions reared their heads. Hopefully they’d be ones he understood.

He found Ty upstairs, searching for the spare set of sheets and muttering to himself as he rummaged through the top shelf of the closet.

Zane stopped in the doorway. “Towels in here?” he asked, taking in the length of Ty’s body and pushing back the desire that revived inside.

Ty glanced over his shoulder and shook his head. “Bathroom,” he answered. “I was just looking for clean sheets.”

Zane nodded and glanced into the closet briefly. He was surprised to see an old, beat-up motorcycle helmet sitting on the top shelf. He didn’t say anything about it or even show that he saw it, but he looked at Ty curiously as he wandered away. The bathroom was easy to find. He stripped down, then frowned at the fresh bandage.