“I’d like to try the mountain again. I’m strong enough. Hell, Carter does it. I ought to be in better shape, huh?” The touch never stopped, teasing him, the tablecloth not so much as twitching.
“Carter is pretty good, he’s solid and smart. I think he thinks I’m reckless, which maybe I am, a little. He likes the game, I like the rush. We ride together well, though. The last time he actually started pointing out routes he thought I’d like.” He slid his hand over Troy’s, tangled their fingers and winked. “Naughty. I think you’re right, you’re stronger. And you’re… I don’t know what the word is. More free? Looser? Carter is really left-brain about it. I think you’d be more in tune.”
“Yeah. I got on a two-thousand-pound bull every weekend on purpose. You wouldn’t believe it about me now, but I understand liking the rush.” Troy squeezed his fingers.
“Are you kidding? I totally believe it. You maybe think a little safer, but you still like the rush. You can fly, baby I’ve seen it.”
Something in what he said made Troy light up, and that attention snapped right to him. God, that was heady, knowing how much Troy cared.
He returned the look, unable to keep the heat in. “We’re going to tear up that mountain.”
“We are. We’ll tear all sorts of things up together. Soon, huh?”
“Soon. It’ll go by quickly, you’ll see. We’ll make it work.” The server walked by and he flagged her down, canceled Troy’s beer and ordered his boy a margarita instead. “There. We can start by tearing up some tequila.”
“Thank you, Sir.” Troy pinked, and the smile he gave Saul was so pleased, warm and happy.
Going out was such a good idea. They’d both enjoyed their Friday night dates before he’d moved in, and given how well this evening was going, he’d make sure they kept up the tradition.
Their food arrived and he dug in like he hadn’t eaten in days, but he kept an eye on Troy.
Troy ate hearty for about half of his first empanada, then he began to slow down, focusing more on that margarita.
“Good, right? This was a great choice. I haven’t been in here before.” Half an empanada was more than Troy had eaten in one sitting since they’d gotten him home. He wasn’t going to nag his boy about it.
“I love it here. I spent a year or so coming every Monday for lunch, trying all the different things on the menu.”
“Oh, that’s cool. That’s something a chef would do, you know.” He sipped his margarita. He’d eaten enough that he wasn’t getting much of a buzz, but man, it tasted good. “You’re a good cook, Troy. I hope you don’t think I’m putting that down. I love that diner. It’s simple food, maybe, but you do it well. I’ve been going for years, and I’ve never left unhappy.”
“I am a good cook. It’s about keeping all your balls up in the air and paying attention, you know? Try to make sure your people are happy and taken care of.”
“You’ve got that down.” He wasn’t talking about cooking, and he could tell Troy got it.
“Thank you.” Troy leaned back, and Saul thought he could see the little bulge in his boy’s belly. “So good.”
“Stuffed, huh? We can take home a doggie bag and have it for dinner tomorrow night too.” He wanted a kiss for dessert. Truthfully, he wanted more than that, but he was on the same six-week wait as his sub.
“Works for me. My eyes were bigger than my stomach. It was damn good food, though, Sir. Thanks for the invite.”
“I had a feeling. It’s much richer than what you’ve been eating lately too. And thank you for saving your energy so we could enjoy the time.” He waved for the check and a couple of to-go containers. He wasn’t rushing them, but he wanted to get Troy home and upstairs before his boy got too tired, so they could end the night on a high note.
“I wanted us to have a good evening. You deserve it.”
“Thank you. We both do. It’s been a stressful week, right?” He paid the tab, packed up their food, then stood up and offered Troy a hand. “How about we snuggle and watch a movie in bed?”
“That sounds perfect.” Troy stood, moving slower now, his boy sweating the barest bit.
“I thought so.” He offered his arm, like had on previous dates, just to be something familiar, romantic even. Polite, like mom taught him. And if it happened to give his boy some extra stability, that could stay between them. He leaned in, smiling. “You’ve got this.”
“I totally do. I’m okay.” Troy held on, though, didn’t he? Held on and came with him. By the time they reached the car, Troy was leaning hard.
He waited a second for Troy get his breath. He helped his boy in, then ran around to the driver’s side. He was watching Troy carefully, but kept things light. “You’re a total stud.” He tucked the pillow over Troy’s chest and fastened the seatbelt.
“Thank you, Sir.” Troy stroked his wrist. “Thank you for being here.”
“I’m where I belong, boy.” Yeah, that sounded like his boy needed pain meds. He didn’t waste time, and made sure to take the shortest route home, pushing the speed limit the whole way.
Troy didn’t say much. He rested back into the seat, breathing a little shallow, but the heart monitor never went off.
He kind of felt like the trip inside from the truck was enough of an effort. “Do you want to just crash on the couch for a while? The stairs might be too much.”
“I think I’ll try to go up. The idea of snuggling is too good to pass up.” Troy kissed his cheek. “I’m okay. I want to be with you.”
He started to ask if Troy was sure, but that was a stupid question. He heard what Troy wanted. His boy was just going to have to dig deep. “I’ll reward you with some meds when we get up there. And maybe a kiss.” He winked, teasing. “Let’s go.”
“Maybe, huh?” Troy took the stairs slowly, one at a time, and that damn heart monitor was beginning to beep by the top.
He got them clear of the top step and let Troy lean on him for a second, but he didn’t want to stay there long. He steered Troy toward the bed, sat his boy down and knelt where he could peer into Troy’s eyes. “You’re good. Look at me and breathe.”
“Breathe. In and out.” Troy nodded, focused on his gaze, watching him close. “I hear you.”
“Good boy.” He stayed put, breathing with Troy until the monitor went quiet. “There you go. Better, right? I’ll get you a pain pill. A whole one so you can sleep. Okay?” He got to his feet. “Sit tight. Undress if you can, I’ll be back to help.”
He jogged back down the stairs into the kitchen, grabbed a pill and a couple bottles of water, took a second to put their doggie bag in the fridge, and then headed back up to his boy.
Troy was undressed and was pulling back the sheets and comforter. Stubborn boy. Beautiful stubborn boy.
He leaned in the bedroom doorway, eyes on Troy, watching his sub, his lover, move. Even tired and in pain Troy was graceful; no wasted effort, no hesitation.
Saul was looking forward to getting his arms around that tired boy.
“Naughty,” he chastised softly, but he didn’t really mean it. As much as he wished Troy would take it easy, his knew his boy wanted… needed to serve, and there was precious little Troy could physically do to take care of him right now. This small gesture was good for his boy too. “Thank you, boy. Climb on in. I’ve got your happy pill.”