Page 162

Along with that realization came the memory of the evening and all the sweet, passionate, unbelievable sex. Oscar had come over with the intention of carrying his brother’s words in his heart and acknowledging his feelings for Troy openly and honestly. It still scared the living shit out of him, staring at Troy’s beautiful face and knowing he had once again committed to a relationship with him.

And the sex, oh, the sex had been perfect. Maybe not classically romantic. It hadn’t been hearts and flowers. Sex with Troy was rarely lovemaking, but then again, it rarely was with Oscar. Troy approached sex with the same approach he took with just about everything in life, full-blown enthusiasm andwild abandon. Nothing could get Oscar harder or make him want to bury himself in the man faster than the wicked gleam in Troy’s eyes as he put himself on display for Oscar or teased him mercilessly.

No one knew when Oscar was holding himself back from saying something or when something was truly bothering him rather than just irritating him. Their relationship had lasted only a year, but in that time, Troy had learned Oscar inside and out. He had always been so frustrated with Oscar’s lack of willingness to out himself, but he’d stayed with Oscar, with all the warmth and zest for life he carried with him.

And damn, Oscar had thrown that away.

Oscar reached out, brushing a finger lightly over Troy’s forehead. “I’m sorry.”

Troy’s brow creased, and his voice came out thick and quiet. “For what?”

Oscar blinked, then let out a light, startled laugh. “Fuck, I always forget how lightly you sleep.”

Troy’s eyes opened, the bright blue glowing in the moonlight and stealing Oscar’s breath. “I’ve been awake the whole time you’ve been watching me sleep.”

“You know, that sounds creepy when you say it aloud,” Oscar complained.

Troy smiled, taking Oscar’s hand to kiss his fingers. “It’s not, not at all. Now, what are you sorry for?”

Oscar’s heart beat faster as he took in Troy’s sleepy expression, the gentle smile on his face, and the faint look of worry in his eyes. Troy was so much like the storm from years ago, unpredictable and wild, but there was a warmth Oscar cleaved to and had once found himself beginning to rely on. It was so much like his life before the military, when the only safe place he had against the world was in his brother’s home.

Oscar shook his head. “Was just thinking aloud.”

“Thinking can be pretty dangerous,” Troy chided.

“Tell me about it.”

Troy wriggled closer, peering up at Oscar. “But you don’t have to be sorry.”

Oscar raised a brow while wrapping an arm around Troy’s waist and drawing him closer. “Oh? And what was I sorry about then?”

Troy smiled. “We don’t have to keep obsessing over the past anymore, Oscar. I mean, yeah, that stuff hurt, and it’s going to sit at the back of our heads every now and again, but that doesn’t mean we have to keep picking at it like a scab. We decided to give this another chance, and I mean to do just that. So maybe, instead of obsessing over what went wrong once upon a time, we can focus on what’s good right in front of us.”

Oscar chuckled. “That easy, huh?”

“Why shouldn’t it be? Pretty sure worrying was what got us into this mess in the first place.”

Oscar bent down, kissing Troy gently. Only then did he realize there was tension in Troy’s body following their conversation. As if by magic, the tightness in his jaw lessened as their lips met, and he melted against Oscar. Troy let out a low whimper, trying to wrap his leg around him.

Oscar grunted when the pressure pushed against his hip, drawing him back. “Ah, careful.”

Troy pulled back, looking down and wincing. “Shit, sorry.”

Oscar shook his head. “It’s okay, but I think the meds have worn off, and I might have done some hip work earlier.”

Troy smiled. “More than a little.”

“Okay, a lot of hip work.”

Troy carefully nudged Oscar onto his back and slid over so he could straddle his thighs. Oscar looked up in awe of Troy as he perched above him. Troy had always been beautiful in Oscar’s eyes, from the first moment he’d seen him after knockinghim and someone else over in some stupid fight. Troy’s eyes always trapped Oscar’s gaze, and his body had always been a wonderland of pleasure, with even a flash of his bare skin from beneath a shirt being enough to send Oscar’s heart racing and his mind wandering.

“Well,” Troy began, running a hand over Oscar’s chest. “Maybe that means I should be doing the hip work next time.”

Oscar raised a brow, his groin stirring. “That so?”

“I mean, you already fucked me pretty good. I think it’s only fair that next time, you get to lay back while I do all the work,” Troy said, rolling his hips teasingly.

Oscar felt himself grow hard, pressing against the back of Troy’s ass as he imagined just what that would look like. From the pleased smirk on Troy’s face, the other man was more than aware of what he was doing and was going to milk it for all it was worth.