The Tin Star (14 page)

Neither of them stirred.

Jamie sighed. He’d known it wouldn’t be that easy, but he had had to at least give it a try. He pushed away from the door. Once he got Ethan in bed, he wasn’t coming back downstairs, so John would have to be taken care of first. He toed his brother’s arm with his socked foot. “Come on, John. Time for bed.”

John snuffled and rolled over, turning his back to Jamie.

Jamie groaned and slowly bent over. He shook John’s shoulder. “Rise and shine!”

“Wha? Whaz wrong?” John sat up blinking.

“Nothing, but you can’t sleep on the floor. Go up to bed.”

John stared blankly at the fireplace.

Jamie waited a few seconds and when it became apparent that his brother wasn’t going anywhere, he grabbed him under the arm and started pulling him to his feet. When John finally stood up, he turned his head and looked at Jamie.

“Hey, Jamie.”

“Hey, John.”

He just stood there shakily. Jamie pushed at his brother’s back to get him moving. He managed to nudge John all the way to the guest room before John started to drop.

“Shit!” Jamie slid his shoulder under his brother’s arm and grabbed his waist.

John jerked upright and blinked at him. “Hey, Jamie.”

“Hey, John.”

Jamie maneuvered his brother inside the room and to the bed. “Sit down, John.”

His sibling more than complied. He fell flat on his back in the middle of the bed.

Jamie had removed John’s boots and his shirt, and was trying to tug his jeans off when his brother opened his eyes again. “Hey, Jamie.”

“Didn’t we do this already?”

“Huh?”

“Nothing.” Jamie finished tugging his brother’s jeans off, leaving him in his underwear. He tried to get John off the top of the covers and under them, but finally gave it up as a lost cause and grabbed the opposite corner, pulling the comforter over him.

He went back downstairs for Ethan, who was right where he’d left him -- on his back with one arm flung out to the side and the other resting on his abdomen. Jamie leaned down and patted his cheeks. “Come on, Ethan. Time to get up.”

Brown eyes blinked open for a moment, then shut. “Jamie, baby, I don’t think I can get it up.”

Jamie chuckled. “I’m not asking you to, Cowboy. I just want
you
to get upstairs.”

Chapter Ten

“Oh, damn.” Ethan blinked open his eyes and grabbed his head. What the hell had they been thinkin’, to drink that much last night? His eyes finally focused enough to see the ceiling over his bed. Maybe the ceiling would quit spinning any minute now. He turned his head slowly and glanced at the clock on the nightstand. 8:52 a.m.

Ethan realized there was an arm slung over his belly and followed it over to Jamie, who was sound asleep on his stomach. Jamie’s black hair was sleep-tousled, he had a morning’s growth of stubble on his cheeks and bags under those closed baby blues, but he somehow still managed to look good enough to eat. He hadn’t thought Jamie had drunk as much as he and John, but he was still unconscious, so maybe he’d imbibed more than Ethan had thought.

A chuckle came from the doorway. “Oh, hell, that hurts. Gives new meaning to ‘only hurts when I laugh,’ don’t it?”

Ethan slowly rolled onto his side, facing the door and looked at John. “Damn. You look as bad as I feel.” And he did, too. His friend’s shirt was unbuttoned and untucked, his jeans unsnapped, his hair was all over the place, and he had bags under his eyes as well. But there were two cups of coffee in his hands. “You made coffee?”

John walked in and set a cup on the nightstand. “Nope, Jamie apparently set the timer on the coffeemaker. Here. You got aspirins in the bathroom?”

Ethan moved Jamie’s arm off and sat upright. “Yeah, medicine cabinet. Bring me some, too. Hell, bring the whole bottle.”

He’d taken his first sip of coffee when John came back out of the bathroom and handed him two aspirins, then set the bottle to the side.

“Thanks. How long you been up?” He tossed the pills in his mouth and washed them down with another sip of coffee.

“About ten minutes. Long enough to go huntin’ for coffee and aspirin, and to let Fred out.” John sprawled into the chair next to the bed. “Why the hell did we drink that much? Next time I decide to tie one on, would you kindly remind me that I’m not twenty-one anymore?”

Ethan chuckled, then wished he hadn’t. “Yeah, well the kid
is
twenty-one and, from the looks of it, he didn’t fare any better than we did. And if I remember correctly, I did tell you it was a bad idea.” He peered at Jamie, then back at John.

“I didn’t think he’d downed as much as we did. Hell, he must have put my ass to bed. Can’t imagine I made it there myself.”

The man in question reached out toward Ethan. When he found Ethan, he turned onto his side and scooted closer, nuzzling his face into Ethan’s hip and wrapping his arm around Ethan’s thigh.

Ethan reached down and brushed the hair out of Jamie’s face. His brain woke up and shouted, “Hey! John is in the room,” before he could caress Jamie’s cheek. He pulled his hand back and glanced up at John to see his reaction. His friend had always been supportive of him, but Jamie was his baby brother.

John had been watching Jamie. He looked up and met Ethan’s gaze as he took a sip of coffee. “How do you do it?”

“Do what?”

“How do you keep from killing each other?”

Ethan quirked an eyebrow and barely stopped a laugh from escaping. “Well, we try to keep all the guns put up. And Jamie isn’t allowed to play with knives.”

John smiled. “Oh, ha ha! Very funny! You know what I mean.” He took another swallow and shrugged. “I guess it’s none of my business. I was just curious, is all.” He paused, got a real thoughtful look on his face, then said, “It’s just that Jamie isn’t always easy to live with, and you sure as hell aren’t, and you’re both pretty damned hard-headed. The two of you have always gotten along, but I never thought ...”

“After living with you for four years, I can handle anything.” Ethan shrugged. “I don’t know. We just seem to go together.” He glanced down at Jamie, who was now smiling in his sleep. Ethan smiled, too, before he could help himself. “To be honest, I think that this is it, the real deal. And it just amazes me that he’s been right under my nose all along.”

Jamie’s hand started drifting, and Ethan had to switch his coffee cup into his other hand before he could stop Jamie’s progress. Somehow he didn’t think John was ready to see his brother with a handful of cock.

John chuckled.

Ethan was so surprised that he jerked and spilt hot coffee on his bare chest. “Shit! That’s hot.”

John chuckled louder, but got up and went into the bathroom. He came back with a hand towel and tossed it at Ethan. “Here.”

Ethan grabbed the towel and wiped off his chest with one hand, while balancing the cup in his other. He was reaching across to put the towel on the nightstand when Jamie’s questing hand wrapped around his prick.

He jumped. “Son of a bitch!” The cup tilted in his hand.

John laughed in earnest now. He got up and rescued Ethan’s coffee and set it on the table.

Ethan dropped the towel and removed Jamie’s hand, mumbling, “Thanks.”

John sat back down, still chuckling. “Damn, Ethan, I haven’t seen you blush that red since Brent Fuller pantsed you in P.E class in the fifth grade.”

Ethan chuckled. “I’d forgotten all about that. Man, that kid was a jackass. If he wasn’t giving people wedgies, he was yanking our pants down! Wonder whatever happened to him.”

“Don’t know, but he kept his distance from us after you socked him a good one in the nose.”

Their laughter disturbed Jamie; he rolled over and faced the other way. Ethan had to catch the covers to keep from being exposed.

When their chuckles died down. Ethan grabbed his coffee from the nightstand and brought it to his lips.

“Does it hurt?” John asked with a straight face.

Ethan’s eyes widened and he coughed. It was a damn good thing he hadn’t taken a sip yet. He knew John well enough to have followed his train of thought. He should have recognized from the mischievous twinkle in John’s eyes that he was fixin’ to spring one on him.

“Jesus! What is it with you Killians? First
you
get me drunk. Then I wake up with one hell of a hangover. Then
your brother
tries to molest me in his sleep, making me singe my chest hairs. And now you try to get me to choke to death.”

John bit his bottom lip, trying without much success to hide his amusement.

Ethan grinned suddenly. “No. Yes. Sometimes. I don’t know. It depends. What do you want me to say, John? Do you really want me to answer that question?”

“Nah, not really, just trying to throw you off balance. We’ve got a bunch of years together, man, been here for each other through a lot of shit. It’s my job to keep you on your toes.” John chuckled, then sobered. “Do you remember when we were kids and how I always tried to get you to marry Jules, so you’d be my brother? Well, I guess I got my wish after all, even if it’s Jamie and not Julia.”

Ethan blinked, caught off-guard by the emotion he felt, and stared up at the ceiling. “Fuck you! You
are
trying to kill me!”

John laughed. “Sorry.”

Ethan smiled, looked at John. “Go home! Don’t you have a ranch to run?”

John nodded, stood up and slapped Ethan on the shoulder. “Fine, be that way. I can tell when I’m not wanted. Besides, my teeth are fuzzy.”

“Gross.”

John turned toward the door. “Yeah, it is. My damned breath is about to gag even me.” He turned back to Ethan once he was outside the door. His eyes twinkled. “You know, our new foreman isn’t bad looking for a guy. Maybe I’ll give it a shot. You gonna answer all my questions if I do?”

“Get the hell out of here and stop messing with me! You better behave or I
will
answer all your questions ... in graphic detail!” He gave John a great big smile. “Later, that is, when I’m not naked in bed with your brother.” Ethan batted his eyelashes innocently.

John groaned and left.

Ethan lay back down and pulled Jamie into his body. His warm breath tickled Jamie’s ear. “How long have you been awake?”

Jamie grinned. He hadn’t thought Ethan was aware he’d been playing possum. “Long enough to find out my brother might have a crush on the new foreman. That is seriously disturbing, by the way.”

Ethan chuckled and nipped his ear, making him jump. “You think it’s disturbing; how do you think the new foreman would feel if he knew?”

Jamie snorted and pressed his hips back into the cradle of Ethan’s.
Ooh, hard cock!
“True, very true. Please tell me he was joking.”

“He was.”

“Thank God!”

Ethan kissed his ear with a chuckle. “How very un-open-minded of you, Blue Eyes.”

He smiled and proceeded to show Ethan just how open-minded he was by reaching back and squeezing the stiff prick nestled against his backside.

Ethan groaned, reached down, and caught Jamie’s cock in his fist.

Jamie couldn’t decide whether to buck up into that hand or push back against the cock in his own palm. Ethan made the decision for him by disengaging Jamie’s hand from his cock, sliding the rigid organ between Jamie’s legs, then pulling on Jamie’s penis.

Jamie shuddered and he might have whimpered, but he wouldn’t swear to it.

Ethan chuckled in his ear. “What do you want, Jamie?”

“Fuck me.”

“Ah, baby, anything you want.” Ethan let go of him and leaned over Jamie toward the nightstand, snagging the lube from inside the drawer. He fumbled around behind Jamie for a few seconds; then Jamie felt a cold slickness smear across his anus, a finger stroking against the tight opening.

Jamie shivered in sheer pleasure from the caress. He moaned and pressed back against the teasing digit that was seeking penetration.

A hand clamped down on his hip. “Easy. Slow down, I’m not going anywhere.”

He relaxed, sighing in bliss as the finger continued to rub and tease.

“You know, baby, one of these days, you’re going to have to fuck
me
.” One long finger slid inside him.

Jamie whimpered and pressed back, pushing it deeper. “’Kay. More.” A second finger joined the first, plunging in and out slowly. “You like it, Ethan?”

The hot breath against his temple tickled. “Yeah, love the way you feel around my fingers, around my cock.”

He shook his head. God, those fingers felt good, filling him, fucking him. “No, not that. Do you like to be fucked? Do you like someone inside you?”

Ethan moaned in his ear. Another finger slipped in, burning for just a second, before giving way to pleasure. “Oh, yeah, babe, I like it. Not as much as you, though. I don’t think I’ve ever met anyone that loves it as much as you do, but yeah, I like it.” His fingers stilled. “Are you ready for me?”

Jamie nodded. “Oh, please!”

“Umm, love it when you beg.”

The fingers disappeared. He felt the head of Ethan’s cock press against him as Ethan used his fingers to spread him open.

“Love it when you fuck me.” Jamie bucked backward and felt the tip slide in. “Yes!” He pushed back slowly until he felt Ethan’s pubes against his ass.

Ethan hissed out a breath. “I know you do, Blue Eyes. Never had a lover that could get off with penetration alone until you.”

“Really?” A shudder wracked Jamie’s body, and he squeezed Ethan with his muscles.

“AH!” Ethan started to pull slowly out, his hand clamping around Jamie’s hip. “Really. You’re so fucking sexy riding my cock.” He pushed back in.

Jamie let out a ragged moan. He tried to move, but Ethan held him still, torturing him with long, drawn-out thrusts.

“What’s the matter, Blue Eyes?”

Damned ornery cowboy!
“Ethan, damn it!”

Ethan chuckled in his ear, then reached down, gripped his cock, and squeezed.
Oh, yeah!
Abruptly the thrusting ceased, and Ethan backed all the way out of him.

He opened his mouth to protest but was pulled over onto his back. Ethan’s mouth slanted down over his, and his smooth, hard chest pressed against him. Jamie spread his legs invitingly. He wanted more; he felt very empty, and his cock was stiff with want. Ethan continued to lave his lips, the inside of his mouth, his teeth. “Ethan, please.”