Page 38 of His Secret Betrayal (Cedarwood Valley Duology #2)

Alek

“ C aleb!” If you had told me twenty years ago that I would be chasing after my grown-ass son— supposedly grown —through a parking lot, I would have laughed.

I would have assumed this was the kind of behavior kids grow out of after, I don’t know, they grow the fuck up.

I also realize that, as his dad, I’m not above gently bullying my own son.

I will make him accept my relationship with Luke.

And if bullying doesn’t work, I’ ll resort to bribery.

Shaking my head to clear my wayward thoughts as I reach Caleb, I pant out his name again just as he’s tugging the door of his Jeep open. My palm comes down on the shiny surface, slamming it shut. He pivots to face me, his mouth flattened.

Despite Luke’s obvious panic, his reaction isn’t all that alarming to me.

Caleb has a flair for the dramatics when he’s feeling blindsided, and I think he’s more shocked than mad.

Honestly, I watched this kid wail and scream on the dirty floor of a toy store once when I told him he couldn’t have a candy bar before supper.

Twenty-four-year-old Caleb has nothing on his six-year-old self.

“I can’t look at you right now,” he snaps, despite the fact that he’s looking at me.

“Too bad,” I grit out before snapping my fingers and pointing to my own vehicle. “Get in.”

He crosses his arms. “Why?”

I smile grimly. “Because we’re going to have lunch at that shitty all-day breakfast diner you love so much. I’m going to talk, and you’re going to listen.”

His lips curl into a sneer. “Can’t I just ignore you for a week and then we’ll pretend like this never happened?”

I sigh. “Get your ass in the car, Caleb.”

“Why him?” Caleb mutters, frowning as he drizzles syrup onto a waffle. “He’s my best friend. You realize how weird that is, right?”

Shifting on the red, plastic booth beneath me, I grimace as I eye the fried eggs, hash browns, and toast in front of me.

They look cold and…lumpy. Beside me, on the brown, sticky tabletop, is a cup of black coffee.

Which is, unfortunately, the only thing I like here.

Using a fork to push my food around, my lips curl at the way the toast soaks up the grease.

Meanwhile, Caleb chows down on his waffle like a man who got lost in the woods and hasn’t had a proper meal in three days.

“I’m sorry you had to find out like that.”

I’m actually more sorry Luke and I didn’t get to finish what we started. Ever since the day I showed him my scars, and he got on his pretty knees for me, I’ve been insatiable.

“That was gross,” Caleb grouches under his breath, pausing between bites and peering down at his waffle like it betrayed him.

“Yeah, well, your timing is shit,” I add, giving him a pointed look. “I was going to tell you when the time was right, but I’m going to need you to get on board with Luke and me being a thing real fast, son, because he isn’t going anywhere.”

“Fine,” Caleb grits out, returning to his waffle with a gusto that has my clenched fingers relaxing around my own fork. We eat in silence for a few minutes, me giving him a chance to process the new information while I pick at my food. Eventually, Caleb eats his last bite and pushes his plate away.

“I didn’t know Luke was interested in guys,” Caleb says in a hushed breath, something like hurt laced in his tone.

My heart gives a sympathetic lurch, and I reach across the table to squeeze his arm. “Be patient with him. He’s still figuring it out, okay? He needs some time to explore this part of himself on his own terms. Him not telling you has nothing to do with you.”

Caleb shrugs. “I know, but I wouldn’t have judged him for it.”

“I think he knows that too, but fear is a powerful thing.”

“I’m judging the fuck out of him for sleeping with my dad though,” he mumbles .

I ignore the sliver of amusement running through me, pushing down the urge to chuckle at his petulant tone. “Also, I need you to keep this between the three of us for now, since Luke isn’t out yet.”

His lips twist into a worried frown. “I get that, but I don’t like that he’s keeping you a secret either.”

I arch an eyebrow. “A few minutes ago, you were upset that we’re together, and now you’re upset because we’re not in the open?”

He throws his hands up and whisper-shouts, “Seeing my dad’s tongue down my best friend’s throat was a shock to the system, okay?”

“Will this be on one check or two?”

We both jump, Caleb groaning into his hands as the waitress stares at us with a wide-eyed expression.

“Seriously, fuck this day,” Caleb mutters.

Fifteen minutes later, I’m still snickering as I pull into the driveway next to Luke’s Honda and make my way inside.

As soon as the door clicks shut behind me, his head whips up from where he’s hunched over a sketch pad at the kitchen table.

His shoulders hike up, almost defensively, before mumbling an unintelligible greeting and refocusing on his art.

The way his tongue pokes out in concentration is adorable, but my stomach twists at the tightness around his mouth.

Has he been sitting at home, worried, this entire time?

“I spoke with Caleb,” I say softly, hating the way he refuses to meet my gaze.

“If you have bad news, I don’t want to hear it right now.”

Approaching him slowly, cautiously, half afraid he’ll bolt, my own muscles tense at the sight of his rigid posture. My hands rest on his shoulders, where I begin kneading and massaging the tight muscles. After a moment, his shoulders slump and he releases a breathy sigh.

Something about the subtle relaxation makes me want to continue petting and stroking, crooning sweet nothings in his ear until he’s putty in my hands. Until his hands begin sweeping along my body in return, seeking pleasure while he whines into my kisses.

First, we have to talk.

I tsk at him, although there’s no real heat behind it. “I thought I told you I would handle it.”

He scoffs. “Pretty sure son trumps pathetic, clingy boyfriend.”

My lips tug into a frown, displeasure rippling through me like a dark cloud.

Threading my fingers through his dark blonde strands, I tug his head back.

My lips seal over his in a possessive, domineering kiss that tells him in no uncertain terms that I don’t see him as pathetic or clingy.

He’s mine, and I don’t like it when he doesn’t handle what’s mine with care.

I give his lips a nip before pulling away.

“Two things,” I mutter darkly. “First of all, everything with Caleb is fine.”

He blinks. “What?”

I smirk. “He was more shocked than anything, and I’m sure it’ll take a while to get used to seeing us together. But he seemed to accept it by the time we left the diner.”

His entire chest deflates, a whoosh of relief escaping him as he blinks up at me, those long lashes fluttering. “Thank fuck.”

“Second of all,” I continue, the steely rumble in my voice making his eyes widen. “You’re going to stop talking about yourself like that.”

He swallows before softly admitting, “I—she gets in my head sometimes.”

God, that woman really isn’t fit to be a mother.

“And I did trust you to handle it, but I was still afraid it wouldn’t be enough to save us,” he continues.

Unable to help myself—I fucking hate that forlorn look on his face—I sweep him into my arms before sitting back down on the chair with him in my lap and my chest plastered to his back. He makes a surprised little yelp but relaxes into my hold when my arms snake around his waist.

I nip playfully at his ear. “This isn’t one of those smutty romance books you like to read. There isn’t going to be a third-act break-up here. We get to control the narrative, and I’m keeping you.”

“Alek,” he whispers, turning his head until his lips are brushing over mine. “I’ve never met anyone like you. I don’t think I’ll ever want to give you up.”

The whispered confession does something funny inside me, the words exploding like confetti in my chest. Maybe it makes me a selfish bastard to saddle myself with a man nineteen years younger than me, but when it comes to Luke Parker, I am greedy.

I’ll hoard any piece of himself he chooses to give me, because he makes me feel things I’ve never felt before.

Love is addicting like that.

“Then don’t,” I say.

We stay seated at the kitchen table, my arms wrapped around him and my face buried in his hair for a long time. Both of us are silent, content to bask in each other’s presence.

“Tell me what you need from me tonight and I’ll give it to you,” I whisper. I’ll do and be anything he needs. There’s no burden too heavy to bear, no secret too scandalous to keep, no dark part of him I won’t accept.

“If we lay down for a while…will you hold me?” he asks.

“Always.”