Page 13 of Running Back

Rocky realized his slow responses hurt Jakk. He never wanted that. “I grabbed what I need to make you a romantic dinner. Things took a turn when I got that text, but I wanted everything to be perfect for when I told you about my plans for work. Now it can just be a celebration of us moving in together.”

Jakk’s gaze snapped to his. “Are you sure? I never want to pressure you. Knowing you love me is enough. We’re too important to me to do anything to—”

Rocky stood and kissed Jakk, cutting off his nervous chatter. He knew all that and more. Rocky was well aware he could say no and Jakk wouldn’t pressure him. He knew they would be okay, no matter what. It had just taken Rocky a moment to process, but he wanted this and more. He craved experiencing everything with Jakk. They were perfect together. There was no such thing as too much or too soon. They were a set.

Jakk watched Rocky cook with a mixture of elation, wonder, and rage. He was so in love. How dare Eric try to ruin anything else for Jakk? The fucking nerve. It wasn’t even good Photoshop and Eric had been taking digital art classes, for fuck’s sake. If he wanted, he could have made those images impossible to differentiate from reality. He hadn’t even bothered. It was obvious he thought Jakk was dumb and easily manipulated. Maybe he had been when they were together. Those days were gone. Rocky was his. Jakk wouldn’t lose him.

He still couldn’t believe Rocky had hired someone so they could spend more time together. Jakk was even more shocked Rocky had agreed to move in. Rocky had said he loved Jakk. He was over the moon. Jakk couldn’t handle not touching him for another second. He stood and crowded Rocky’s space. Jakk pressed his lips against Rocky’s shoulder blade and held on while Rocky continued cooking, like he hadn’t acquired a leech on his back.

Rocky chuckled when Jakk kept step with his every move without letting go. He bit back a sigh when his phone buzzed in his pocket. Jakk regretfully let go and dug out the device.

Private Number:Good strategy, fucking Rocky to land the best contracts.

Jakk’s eyebrows shot up at the text. He had no clue who sent it or why they would say such a thing.

Jakk:Who is this?

Private Number:Just a colleague wanting to send my congrats. Sometimes you have to take a dick up the ass to get ahead. Everyone knows Rocky will do anything for a blow job. We’ve all been there.

“What the fuck?”

Rocky turned. His gaze dropped to Jakk’s phone before moving to hold his stare. “What’s up?”

With no clue where to start, Jakk handed Rocky the phone. He studied Rocky’s expression as he read the exchange. Rocky just looked sad as he passed the device back to Jakk. Rocky went back to cooking, confusing Jakk.

“How do I respond to that?”

“I can’t decide that for you.” Rocky’s voice sounded dead.

Jakk quickly blocked the mystery messenger before setting the phone aside. He crowded Rocky’s space again, clinging to him as he had earlier. “Talk to me. What’s going on?”

He felt Rocky shrug. “It seems someone is trying to break us up, and it’s looking more and more every second like it’s working.”

That remark doubled Jakk’s confusion. “Please, just leave that for a second and look at me.”

At his demand, Rocky set his spatula aside and turned. Jakk sucked in a breath. He looked wrecked. Jakk turned off the stove and took Rocky’s hand. He led him to the living room and urged him to sit before straddling him so he couldn’t get away.

With his arms wrapped around Rocky’s neck, Jakk toyed with the ends of his hair while holding his stare. “I can’t help if you won’t tell me what’s going through your mind.”

“They weren’t lying.”

Jakk’s stomach dropped. “What do you mean?”

Rocky swallowed so hard, it looked like it hurt. “When I first started out as an agent, I was determined to succeed, but I was also kind of a mess.”

Having experienced the same rejection as Rocky, Jakk understood that. “That’s fair.”

“It sort of made me an easy target, I guess, but I also let it happen.”

An ugly picture unfolded in Jakk’s mind. Rocky had lost his dream and was vulnerable. He represented men who would do literally anything for their big break. Jakk wondered how many men had used and humiliated him before Rocky shut down and stopped trusting everyone. He wondered if Rocky thought Jakk was one of them. Obviously, other people thought exactly that. At least one person out there did, anyhow.

“You know I’m not one of those guys, right? You know this is real, don’t you?”

Rocky never wavered from holding his stare. “The intelligent side of me knows the truth. I guess there’s still just a small piece of me that’s scared shitless.” He swallowed again. “I can’t go through all that again.”

Damn. Jakk had leaned so hard on Rocky from day one. He hadn’t realized he wasn’t the only one drowning. “How crazy do you want me to get to prove myself? I can get pretty fucking insane.”

One corner of Rocky’s mouth lifted. It was obvious he didn’t want to doubt them. “Every day I wake up and you’re still around, you’ve proven yourself. This isn’t your issue. It’s mine. I never wanted you to feel like I doubt you.” His expression turned defeated. “I also don’t want you to think I’d use my position as your agent to get you in bed or keep you in check.”

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