Risk Is a Four-Letter Word (7 page)

"We've got it, Zeke. We've got her number.
Finally."
Eric felt like jumping up and down.
Except you're not five years old
, he
told himself.
And Zeke would never let
you live it down if you started hopping around like a little kid
.

"I thought you'd be more excited about the
huge commission we just got from the lovely Daniela," Zeke said.

Eric shook his head.
"Nope.
You can't distract me that easily."

Zeke chuckled, snatching the card from his hand
and tucking it into his jeans pocket, right next to the generous swell of his
cock.
"How about now?"

Eric cocked his head. "Do you really think
I'm not going to go after it?"

"I'm counting on it." Zeke laughed.

Eric grinned and stalked his lover, pinning him
against the long workbench they'd built along the west wall of the barn. Late
afternoon sunlight streamed into the windows they'd put above the workspace,
lighting Zeke's hair with deep red highlights. Eric leaned in and kissed him lightly
on the lips. When he stepped back, he flourished the card he'd stolen from
Zeke's jeans. "Ha!"

Zeke shook his head good-naturedly. "You
distracted me."

"Damn straight, I did."

Zeke guffawed. "You're no straighter than
I am."

Eric grinned. "Yeah, don't I know
it.
" A moment later the smile slid off his face when he
remembered he wanted to talk to Zeke about telling his mom about them.

Zeke walked over and touched Eric's shoulder.
"What's wrong?"

Eric glanced at Zeke then away. "We can't
keep this a secret any more. I don't want to live like this."

Zeke pursed his lips thoughtfully. "I know
this has been bothering you a lot."

Eric shrugged. "The last conversation I had
with my mom didn't go well. She's still trying to fix me up with her
girlfriends' daughters. I almost told her about us and then chickened out."

"I know your mom isn't going to take it well
but remember
,
I've got your back. We're in this
together," Zeke said.

Eric sighed and ran his hand through his hair,
pacing. He wished he didn't have to have this conversation. "I know."

"I was waiting for you to decide before I
told anyone," Zeke said, his voice warm. "I can wait longer.
As long as you need.
We don't have to tell anyone if you
don't want to. You know my mom and sister will be fine with it."

"Your dad won't," Eric pointed out.

"He doesn't matter." Zeke's voice
turned hard. "He walked out on the family years ago. I'm more worried
about you."

Eric shook his head violently then thrust
Carrie's card into Zeke's hands. He walked back to the workbench so he could
stare out the window. The sun was just dropping into the tree line across the
meadow. For February, it was a strangely beautiful day. "I don't want to
wait or pretend or lie anymore. That's not who I am. It's killing me to not be
able to hug you in front of my family.
In front of yours.
I love your mom and sister."

"We can just tell my mom and Sherry. We
don't have to tell your parents."

Eric spun around. "No. They'll have to
deal with it. And I think my dad will be fine with it. At least I hope he will.
I'm okay with it whatever happens. It's just--
" He
broke off, taking a deep breath. "What about Carrie?"

Zeke rubbed his eyes and walked over.
"What about her?"

Eric glared at Zeke for a moment. "I don't
want to give up on her."

"No one's asking you to. I like her as
much as you do, remember?" Zeke slung his arm over Eric's shoulders and
hugged him close. "We'll figure something out."

Eric sighed and leaned into Zeke. Thank God
he'd had the good sense to fall for his friend. He didn't think anyone else
would understand his fascination with Carrie quite so well. Only Zeke would
understand his bizarre desire to have two lovers. "I'm sorry."

"I know what you're thinking and you're
acting like a fucking moron again," Zeke said with a hint of laughter in
his voice. "I want her as much as you do. And if that's too weird for most
people, they can just fuck off. They don't get a say in how I live my
life." Eric
frowned
Zeke's body suddenly tensed.
"In
who
I love."

Holy shit
.
Did Zeke just say what Eric thought he did? He swallowed, twisting
to see Zeke's face. The man was serious. "You love me?"

Zeke nodded.

"Thank fucking God," Eric muttered,
pulling him into a hug. He buried his face in Zeke's neck. His heart thumped
once, twice, banging on his ribs. Eric he wasn't sure if it was relief or
excitement.
Maybe both?

"I take it this means you're okay with
that?" Zeke asked, running his hands through Eric's hair.

"Yeah.
Yeah, I'm okay with it. I fucking love you, too." Eric leaned
in and kissed Zeke desperately. It quickly flared out of control and Zeke
didn't resist when Eric slid his tongue inside. Zeke tasted so good. His strong
body felt so fucking right against his. For the past few months, ever since
they'd begun this crazy affair, they'd had to create a hands-off policy during
work hours or they'd never get anything done. Eric was intentionally blowing
that policy to bits right now and he was beyond fucking relieved Zeke was
willing to go with it. Eric needed something real to hang onto.
Needed Zeke to make him feel whole.
Loved.

Eric kissed Zeke again and again, threading his
hands into Zeke's soft, curly hair. Zeke ground his erection against Eric's
hip, knocking some tools to the floor. Eric didn't give a shit. He shifted them
so Zeke was against the bench then slid his thigh between his lover's legs.
Zeke took shameless advantage of the new position, humping Eric desperately.
The thick leather of Zeke's belt rubbed right up against Eric's cock and he
moaned every time Zeke thrust against him. Just when Eric was afraid he would
come in his pants like a teenager, he heard someone banging on the back door.

"What the fuck?" Zeke lifted his head
away, looking around blearily. "Who would come to the back door?"

"Ignore it. I locked it. Whoever it is
will go away," Eric muttered, kissing Zeke again. Zeke opened up to him so
beautifully that the sound of a key going into the lock faded into
insignificance. When the door abruptly opened, they jerked apart and stared at
each other in horror. Eric was too aroused to move. His hips twitched against
Zeke's, making them both shudder.

"Eric, since when do you and Zeke keep the
back door locked? I had to use my key and--" Eric's mom stopped midsentence
when she caught sight of them.

"Oh shit," Zeke muttered, staring at the
back of the shop. Eric flinched at the dismay on Zeke's face and slowly turned
around.
Shit. Why in the hell is my
mother here?
Just behind her was Andy, his younger brother. Eric swallowed.
Zeke was right. The shit had indeed hit the fan. His dick had never deflated so
fast in his life.

"Uh, Mom.
What are you doing here?" Eric stepped away from Zeke, heart
in his throat. His mom's face went from shock to disbelief. Thankfully his
brother seemed to have figured the situation out. He gave Eric a thumbs-up from
behind their mother and relief washed through Eric. At least Andy was okay with
it. Thank God for awesome little brothers.

"I was hoping you could glue the leg back
onto this stool," she said, voice shaky. Eric looked at the stool Andy had
put down near the door. One of the legs was broken off. It would be easy to fix
as long as the leg hadn't splintered, but Eric was fatalistically certain the wood
was fucked all to hell and back. He and Zeke would probably likely have to make
an entirely new leg in order to repair the stool. Eric sighed.

His mother's expression firmed. "I
certainly didn't expect to walk in on--" She stuttered then forged on.
"Walk in on
that
!"

Eric glanced at Zeke. His lover looked back at
him with a faintly worried yet supportive expression. Zeke had known Eric's
mother since he was a kid. He'd been to family gatherings and on vacations with
them. Eric's mom and dad always treated Zeke like another son. Eric was
suddenly angry. What right did she have to barge in through a locked door and
look at them like that? Zeke was okay as Eric's friend, but not as his lover?
It didn't take her long to throw Zeke under the bus. Eric felt like hitting
something.

"We were kissing, Mom. Not setting fire to
a church.
Kissing.
You may have heard of it?"
Eric leaned back against the workbench. "Also, the door was locked."

"You-- how could you?" His mom stared
accusingly at Zeke. "I treated you like my own son." She looked like
she was going to cry.

"I know you did. Does me loving your son
as more than a friend really change all that?" Zeke quietly asked.

Eric's mom swallowed then squared her
shoulders. "Is this a joke?"

"Mom, maybe we should go," Andy said,
tugging on her sleeve.

She shook him off. "No. I want to know
what's really going on here."

"Mom, Zeke and I love each other. That's
all. Nothing more complicated than that." Eric thought of Carrie and
dismissed her from his mind. No sense trying to bring her into this before
they'd even managed to get her on a date. He cringed at the thought of trying
to explain her to his mother.

"So what, you're gay now?
Since when?"
His mom sounded angrier.

"We consider ourselves bisexual. We like
both men and women," Zeke explained calmly.

Eric shot him a grateful look.

"Bisexual?
What does that even mean? You can't decide?"

"What? No! Mom it doesn't work like
that." Eric tried to make her understand. "Being bi means that the
outside packaging doesn't matter. I fall in love with the person, not their
gender. And I was born this way. It's not a new thing. I didn't suddenly wake
up and decide, 'Oh, I think I'll date guys now.' No. It's not a joke." He
slashed his hand down.

Eric's mom clenched her fists and he knew she
wasn't even listening. "I can't talk to you right now. What you're doing
is wrong. It's unnatural." She spun on her heels and stalked out before
Eric could say another word. Andy made the universal sign for "I'll call
you" with his thumb and fingers then followed her.

Eric blew out a sigh. "That went well.
Not." His stomach rolled.

Zeke shifted uncomfortably. "Andy was fine
with it."

"Andy was never the problem. I knew he'd
be fine. I'm so sorry."

Zeke rubbed his eyes. Eric watched him,
worried. He hated that his mother had hurt Zeke, too.
Himself?
Well he'd expected it. He knew how she'd react. He'd been bracing for it. It
was her lashing out at Zeke that made him want to punch something.

"I know," Zeke finally said. He
gripped Eric's arm. "Whatever happens, we'll get through it.

Tears threatened and Eric blinked.
Dammit
. He pulled
Zeke into a hug.
"Yeah.
I know."

Chapter Five

The fifth time Carrie encountered Zeke and
Eric, the snow was falling so thickly she had trouble seeing further than a few
feet in front of her. It wasn't just snowing, it was freaking
blizzarding
.
Is
blizzarding
even a word
? She gunned the engine one more
time just to listen to the tires spin. Her car didn't move. She was stuck on a
back road in rural
New Jersey
,
trying to get home. Why did these things always happen to her? She looked out
the windshield in despair and shut the car off. It was one in the morning.
She'd been out to dinner with a client in
Manhattan
.
Of course it ran late. In the city the snow was a mild slushy annoyance, but
once she got off the interstate and onto Route 23, she quickly realized she
might have a problem.

Yeah.
A problem
.
Carrie snorted.
Just a teeny tiny little problem
.
She pulled out her cell
phone.
Low battery.
Low signal.
Of course
.
Who would she call anyway? Her sister was home with the kids and couldn't leave
them. Her brother-in-law was still overseas. Her mother lived forty-five
minutes away and she couldn't drive in this kind of snow anyway.
Because no one can drive in this kind of
snow
, Carrie thought. She'd have to walk to the nearest house and beg for
shelter.
Dammit
.

She pulled on her hat, thankful she'd thought
to stick it in the car this morning along with her snow boots. She slid on the
thick socks she'd brought then yanked the heavy footwear on, shivering. She
zipped up her coat and tucked her cell phone into the inside pocket. Something
crackled against the plastic. Carrie frowned and fished out a slip of paper.
Zeke and Eric's address and phone number. She was supposed to be meeting them
tomorrow night for dinner and rather than go out to a restaurant, Zeke had volunteered
to cook. She could hardly wait. She'd been looking forward to going out with
them since she'd brought Daniela to their place a couple weeks ago.