Page 13 of Off Limits

“I'm not his father,” I replied with a bite.

“Then who the fuck are you?”

“The man who's paying for your cab home.” I retrieved a twenty from my wallet, which I plastered into his hand before spinning him to face the door.

“Wait a minute; we were gonna-”

“And now you're not,” I cut him off. I couldn't bear to hear his plans with Gavin. I guided him out the door before closing and locking it behind him. Good riddance.

When I turned around, I found Gavin glaring at me with fire in his stare. “What the hell, Richmond?” Even though he was pissed at me, I still savored hearing my name from his lips.

“I couldn't stand seeing you with someone else,” I answered honestly, but it didn't calm him down.

“Well, too fucking bad!” He firmly poked my chest as he added, “You don't get to decide who's in my life when you've made it clear you don't want to be in it! I'd rather hook up with a stranger and know it means nothing to both of us.” I could hear the pain in his voice, and I hated that I was the one who put it there.

“What happened between us wasn’t meaningless,” I argued. “It meant a lot to me; you mean a lot to me.”

Gavin broke his glare to rub his palm across his forehead. “I’m too drunk for this conversation. Or maybe not drunk enough.”

“This isn’t the best time,” I agreed. I wanted his mind to be clear when we spoke. I wanted to hear his true feelings, and for him to understand mine. “You need rest, and we can talk in the morning. I’ll help you to bed.” I placed my hand on his lower back to steady and guide him, but Gavin pushed me away. He understandably didn’t want my touch.

“I can do it myself.” He spun on his heel and staggered down the hallway. I wanted to care for him; to tuck him in and caress his hair until he fell asleep, but I knew he needed space. My presence would only make him angrier.

Once his bedroom door shut, I made my way back to the recliner, where I would wait until Gavin awoke. I wasn’t leaving this place, or allowing him to slip away again, until I apologized and bared my soul to him. I had a feeling it was going to be a long night.

Chapter Six

Gavin

I woke up with a splitting headache and foggy memories of the previous night. I remembered going to the club and dancing with a man who had slate gray eyes, similar to Richmond's. I hoped it would be enough to pretend he was the man I actually wanted, so I invited him home with me.

We shared an Uber back here, but then the guy was run off…by Richmond? That didn't make any sense, but I could almost swear to it. I vaguely remembered Richmond telling me I meant something to him, but then I pushed him? Which also didn't make any sense.

Maybe I dreamed the whole thing. Maybe I sent the club stranger away, but my wishful thinking placed Richmond in my memories when he wasn't actually in my home. Maybe I needed him, so my drunken mind created him.

I decided to ask Wade for clues. He was home last night - I think - so he should know what happened. I sat up too quickly and groaned at the pulsing pain in my head and the churning in my stomach.

I threw my legs over the side of the bed and smiled at the bottle of water and two Tylenol lying on my nightstand. Wade must have been home, and was taking care of me. I swallowed the pills and stood upright, only swaying for a moment. I walked my naked ass to my dresser and pulled out a pair of gray sweatpants, which I stepped into ungracefully.

My legs were heavy and sore as I made my way down the hall, but I still smiled when the scent of bacon hit my nose. Bless you, Wade. Wait…Wade can't cook. The house would be in flames right now.

My feet stopped when I heard a familiar voice ask, “Are you sure you don’t want to stay for breakfast? I'm making plenty.” Richmond. Okay, maybe it wasn't just my imagination.

“Nah,” Wade's voice replied. “The two of you need to talk, and I don't want to be in the way. I'll just grab some bacon and run. He'll probably be awake soon.”

“I'm not so sure; I took some Tylenol into his room earlier and he was pretty out of it.” My heart warmed; it was Richmond looking after me. But why? What was I missing?

“I've had lots of hung over mornings with him,” Wade argued, “I know his routine. He'll be up any minute, so I'll take this and get out of your hair. Good luck and don't say anything stupid.”

“Gee, thanks.”

“You're welcome!”

I waited until I heard the front door open and shut before I shuffled into the kitchen, unsure of what awaited me. I entered the room and found a scene even sweeter than I could've imagined; Richmond was standing in front of the stove, dressed in his clothes from the day before, but barefoot. On the counter to his right was a giant stack of pancakes. On the left was a plate full of bacon.

He looked so damn domestic, it made my heart ache with visions of him cooking for me while I slept in the bed we shared. But I shook them away; he'd made it clear he wanted nothing like that with me. So why was he here?

“Good morning,” he told me over his shoulder when he heard me enter the kitchen. He turned to face me and his jaw dropped when his gaze landed on my nude upper body. He'd yet to see me with my shirt off, and he seemed to enjoy the view.

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