Total pages in book: 82
Estimated words: 77980 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 390(@200wpm)___ 312(@250wpm)___ 260(@300wpm)
Estimated words: 77980 (not accurate)
Estimated Reading Time in minutes: 390(@200wpm)___ 312(@250wpm)___ 260(@300wpm)
August’s heart sputtered, then kicked into gear again. He wouldn’t ever get tired of hearing Clint say things like that about him. “Speaking of kissing…” He grabbed Clint’s wrist and tugged him closer. August leaned against the house. They were hidden, since Reese’s room was on the other side. And it was dark, just the stars sending little pinpricks of light.
“Yes, speaking of kissing is right.” Clint smiled and kissed him, then flicked his tongue out, asking for entrance. August gave it to him, let Clint invade his mouth, their bodies pressed tightly together.
August held Clint’s face, Clint’s body rutting against his. He wished they were naked, that all those things he thought earlier could happen, that they could go to bed together, then get up and have breakfast together with Reese.
“I want you all the time,” Clint said, his mouth trailing down August’s throat.
How, he wondered? How did Clint want him that much? “You too.”
They pressed their foreheads together, Clint’s hand on August’s face now. “You were sad tonight.”
He wasn’t surprised Clint caught on, and there was no use denying it. “I just get up in my head sometimes.”
“It’s a pretty head.” Clint kissed his temple.
“That sort of sounds like you want to keep it in your freezer.”
Clint chuckled. “I got an idea. How about we put Butter in, grab a bunch of blankets and pillows, and lie in the back of the truck. Do friends do that kind of thing?”
“These ones do,” August said. There were still fireworks going off in the distance. Maybe this was a bad idea, or maybe it didn’t matter at all, but August wanted it. He maybe needed it.
So they put the dog inside, grabbed their drinks and supplies, and sat in the back of Clint’s truck at midnight, hearing pops and crackles in the background and looking up at the stars.
Clint lay on his back, August on his side, head propped up on his hand. He looked down at Clint, played with his hair and teased his stubble. “I liked being married,” he admitted.
Clint frowned. “Is this where you tell me you’re still in love with your ex?”
“What? No. God no. I liked being part of a unit, though the longer Lewis and I were together, the less we felt like one. But I was watching Roe and Holden tonight, and I realized how much I missed that, how much I want it again.” He wanted it with Clint.
He saw the questions swimming in Clint’s gaze.
“I’m not saying with just anyone. I’m not on the husband hunt, if that’s how it sounds, but I just…”
“Like having someone you care about by your side,” Clint finished for him, and yes, that was exactly how August felt.
“I do. Maybe that’s not a popular thing to want.”
“I think it is. Most people just don’t admit it, or see it. You’ve always been good at knowing who you are, August. Even when you didn’t realize it yourself. That’s what drew me to you.”
He wasn’t so sure about that. He was pretty sure Clint made it okay for him to be himself. “I can see that future with you. I hope that doesn’t scare you, but I’m too old and stubborn to play games or deny it.”
“You are pretty old,” Clint replied with a grin, then sobered. “I’ve never been that for anyone, but there’s no use pretending I’ve ever been the same with you as I am with anyone else. Don’t know why that’s the way it is for me when it comes to you, but always has been and always will be, I guess.”
August was speechless, too many emotions clogging up his throat for him to speak. So he leaned down and kissed Clint instead, soft and slow, tried to show him the things he was still trying to put into words. Eventually, he said, “I’m going to start feeling Reese out for a good time to tell him we’re together. I’m not saying I’ll do it tomorrow, but soon. I hope that doesn’t seem unfair to you. I just need to time things in the way that feels best for him.”
“It’s not unfair. That’s what a good father does.”
They sat out there cuddling and talking until almost four that morning. August felt like a kid again. Like he’d sneaked out to spend time with a boy, which he guessed was exactly what he’d done. Only he hadn’t been hiding from his parents, but his son.
When Clint was gone and he quietly crept into his house and bed, August wondered if in one way or another, he’d somehow spent almost his whole life in love with Clint Jones.
CHAPTER EIGHTEEN
Clint
“This line right here is real good. You’re a natural. Your pop is gonna love this,” Clint said as he and Reese were finishing up one of his projects to take back to Florida with him.