A Subtle Breeze by Bailey Bradford (libby ebook reader .txt) 📕

So, what should he do? Throw Brendon out, leave him to spend the summer at Gloria’s? Zeke believed the man when he said he was staying for the summer—at least. No doubt Brendon wouldn’t bother trying to hide his sexuality, and while it wasn’t like he was anywhere even close to flaming, the rumors would start once he turned down a couple of dates with some of the town’s beauties. Zeke knew what would happen then, and wasn’t that a good enough reason there for him to keep Brendon close?

Cursing soundly, he finished up and headed back to the house, confusion and desire swirling around in his head. Well, he might not know what to do about the confusion, but for the other, he was going to slip back into bed beside Brendon and lose himself in the depths of the man’s body.

Zeke’s dick filled with blood and pressed hard against the seam of his jeans. He reached for the back door and caught a whiff of something…bacon? His stomach growled, reminding him that supper had gone forgotten last night, and breakfast hadn’t occurred to him. Was Enessa back, then? Disappointment surged through Zeke as he slipped into the house. He had hoped for a little more time with—

Brendon stood in the kitchen, wearing nothing but jeans, flipping bacon as it sizzled in a cast iron skillet. Pancakes were stacked on a platter, kept warm by the heat of the stove. Zeke felt a rush of relief at seeing the man, so much so that it actually felt like his heart grew lighter in his chest. He knew he had to have the silliest grin ever on his face, but he just couldn’t help it.

“Morning,” Zeke said, not wanting to startle Brendon as he was scooping the bacon out of the skillet. Brendon grinned at him over his shoulder.

“Morning, Zeke. Heard you come in the back door, but I wasn’t sure…” Brendon trailed off, grin faltering as he looked away, and Zeke felt like pure shit. He walked over to Brendon and pressed up against his back, wrapping him in a tight hug. Zeke closed his eyes and buried his face against Brendon’s neck, soaking in the scent of him.

“I thought you’d still be asleep, babe.” He nibbled on the strong column of Brendon’s neck, tonguing the artery that pulsed beneath his lips. The spicy taste sent a bolt of fire zinging straight to Zeke’s cock, snuggled tight against the crack of the firm ass he’d been thinking of filling.

“Mmm, needed food,” Brendon answered, pushing against Zeke’s erection. “And you need to eat, too.” He waved the plate of bacon in one hand and grabbed the platter of pancakes with the other. “Wouldn’t want all my hard work to go to waste, would you?”

Zeke grunted and stepped back enough to let Brendon turn in his arms, then startled the man with a hungry kiss.

“You know, that’s really not fair when I have my hands full,” Brendon pointed out, trying not to tip either of the plates he was holding and feeling a little breathless from the affection. He’d really expected to be kept at a distance this morning, not held snug, not licked and kissed senseless.

“I think it’s perfectly fair,” Zeke argued playfully, “because all I’ve thought about since waking up is getting my hands—and a few other parts—on you.” He gave Brendon’s ass a firm squeeze before releasing him. Zeke swiped the bacon and placed it on the table. Plates and utensils had already been set out, so Zeke poured them each a glass of milk before he sat. A comfortable silence filled the kitchen, broken only by the occasional sound of the men enjoying their meal. They were almost through with breakfast when Brendon’s phone rang displaying Gloria’s number on the caller ID. He thought about excusing himself from the table but discarded the idea. He didn’t want Zeke to sneak off on him.

“Hey, Gloria, what’s up?” Brendon watched Zeke, noting the stillness that came over the man. Was he expecting trouble? Or was he always this paranoid? Not that he didn’t have his reasons, but Brendon found it sad all the same.

“Oh, nothing much, just wanted to make sure everything was okay?” Gloria’s cheery voice could be heard across the kitchen, so he knew Zeke heard every word, though the man didn’t relax. Brendon got up and walked over to stand behind him, placing a hand on Zeke’s tense shoulder, massaging as best he could.

“Everything here is just fine, Gloria. You and Nessa heading over?” God, he hoped not. He needed some time with Zeke to show the man what they could have together.

“Actually, Bren, if it’s okay with you and Zeke, we thought we’d head over to the Dallas-Fort Worth area for a few days. Sort of take a mini-vacation and, you know, give you two a chance to get to know each other. Um, if…ah, y’all haven’t already?”

Brendon was glad he was standing behind Zeke so the man couldn’t see the grin splitting his face. No way was he going to answer the question Gloria was hinting at, though, it just wasn’t her business. Besides, what he and Zeke had shared was too new and fragile to pull out and pass around for examination.

“That’s fine with me.” Better than, really. “Zeke? You okay with it?” And there, didn’t Gloria just get an answer to her earlier question? Damn it, he would have smacked himself on the forehead but he didn’t want to stop touching Zeke. Brendon watched Zeke’s head bob hesitantly up and down. Yes! “He’s good with it. Y’all stopping by here first?” He crossed his fingers. Please, please, let them just go.

Gloria laughed, loud enough that Brendon jerked the phone away from his ear. “Don’t sound so thrilled with the idea, Bren! And, no, Nessa has clothes with her, plus we plan on having a shopping spree or three. You two have fun—and lots of it!” Her laughter boomed through the