Page 30 of Part & Parcel

Kelly’s hand settled on his hip, and he turned his head to look over his shoulder. Nick propped himself on his elbow, watching him with a curious frown. The mood had shifted imperceptibly, and Kelly was no longer smiling.

“What?” Nick asked with sudden dread.

Kelly shook his head. “It’s been a long time, babe.”

“Are you . . . do we need to wait?”

Kelly winced, shifting nervously. “It’s just that the drawer’s empty.”

Nick’s eyes darted to the bedside drawer where Kelly had always stored his condoms, lube, and a pocketKama Sutrathat had been meant as a prank but had gotten some mileage over the years. “Emptyempty?”

“I mean, there’s still a bunch of condoms in there,” Kelly said in a rush. “They’re probably expired. But no lube.”

Nick grunted. In his haste to pack this afternoon, he certainly hadn’t tossed any into his bag. It had been weeks since he had fucked Kelly; there was no way he’d think of doing it without lubricant of some sort.

He clucked his tongue, one eyebrow raised. “Been busy this week, huh?” he teased, and bent to press a kiss to Kelly’s chest.

“The lube and the iPad full of videos got a workout, okay, don’t judge me.” Kelly grasped at Nick’s hair, his fingers curling.

Nick hummed as he continued kissing his way down Kelly’s body. He tugged Kelly to lay flat and positioned himself so he was putting all his weight on his hip instead of his knees. He brushed his lips over Kelly’s taut muscles, licking his way down his ribs. “Good thing your boyfriend is industrious,” Nick said against the six-shooter tattooed on Kelly’s hip bone.

Kelly barked a laugh. “That’s a big word for someone with their mouth about to be full.”

Kelly wasn’t quite awake as he stumbled around the kitchen, gathering breakfast foods in the hope that Nick might feel like fixing it when he woke. He hadn’t been grocery shopping in the last few days because he’d been expecting to head back to Boston soon. So he’d gotten up early with every intention of going shopping, but as he’d been making a list of what they needed, he’d discovered his travel toiletry kit in the downstairs bathroom, complete with a brand-new bottle of KY.

Shopping could wait until this afternoon as long as there was enough food for Nick to work his magic with for breakfast.

He was scrambling around in the lower cabinets, trying to find Nick some tea, when he heard a thump from upstairs. He bumped his head on the top of the cabinet he’d been scrounging in, and it knocked him to his knees. He withdrew his head and shoulders, rubbing his head and cussing up a storm.

“You okay?” he called. He held his breath waiting for a reply, still vigorously rubbing his head to ease the sting.

“Yeah,” Nick finally called back. “Can you give me a hand when you get a chance?”

Kelly took the steps two at a time and found Nick sitting on the edge of the bed, shoulders slumped. He pointed toward the bathroom, where his cane rested against the armoire beside the door.

“I got cocky last night, forgot how fucking sore I am in the morning.”

“You were definitely cocky last night,” Kelly reminded as he retrieved the cane for him.

“So were you.”

Kelly snickered. His fingers searched the silver head of the cane for some sort of hidden switch or button since Nick had confirmed that this particular cane was hiding something.

“Want me to show you how to do it?” Nick asked.

“No,” Kelly grunted. He turned it over, unable to find anything that might indicate the cane was anything other than just a cane, and then he shoved it in Nick’s hands. “Yes.”

Nick smiled gently. He showed Kelly a small button under the handle, hidden amidst the engraving where the shaft met the silver. Then he pushed at Kelly’s belly, moving him out of the way. He clicked the button, and a five-inch blade deployed from the tip of the cane with a melodramaticclink.

Kelly huffed as he looked from the cane to Nick’s sparkling eyes. “There’s a word for what you are.”

“Awesome?”

“Not the word I was thinking of.”

Nick shrugged as he returned the blade to its hiding spot. He stood with a wince and a grunt, and Kelly took an impulsive step toward him to hug him. Nick froze in surprise, his arms out to the side and his body tense. Then he relaxed and wrapped his arms around Kelly, resting his chin on Kelly’s shoulder.

“Of all the stupid fucking things we’ve done over the years, I think fighting right after I almost lost you has to be the stupidest,” Kelly grumbled against Nick’s shoulder.

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