Page 9 of His Middle

Noah folded his hands in his lap. Why did Sawyer have to put that thought in his head? He was on the verge of popping a boner thinking about Sawyer going all growly and protective over him.

“I, uh…”

Shit. Why hadn’t he broken it off with Garth already? Sadly, he knew the answer. It was a combination of not wanting to be alone and hating confrontation.

Sawyer arched his eyebrows. “So, youdohave a Daddy?”

Noah slumped down in the chair. “Yeah.”

A burst of what Noah swore was disappointment flashed across Sawyer’s features before it disappeared.

“Then it’s out of the question.” He gave Noah a tight smile. “I’ll look into the Airbnb.”

Noah wanted to shout out that he wasn’t in love with Garth, that he’d been meaning to break it off, but knew that wouldn’t go over well. Sawyer was a decent guy and would view Noah as a jerk for doing something like that, would rightly assume it was so Noah could move Sawyer into the house anyway. Not the impression he wanted to leave on his crush.

Sawyer rose and glanced around the office. After idly wandering over to a couple cabinets, checking out the bookshelves, then trailing his fingers over the piles of papers on the desk, he regarded Noah again.

“All right, here’s the plan for now. Let me get settled today, then we’ll jump in early tomorrow morning. Say nine?”

A stab of disappointment tore through Noah. In his mind, he’d envisioned bringing Sawyer to the house, then catching up with him over a pizza and some beer, then discussing how much Sawyer should get paid for taking over the club. Which in Noah’s mind meant whatever Sawyer wanted.

“O-okay. Sure. Nine.”

After the whole accommodations fail, he didn’t dare try and slip in a ‘let’s grab dinner later’ move.

Sawyer smiled, the previous warmth in his expression returning. “Sounds good. You get some rest and stop worrying. We’ll figure everything out.” He turned to leave then paused mid-step. He slowly turned around, his brow knitted as if he wasn’t sure he should speak. “I should also mention one more thing before we get started.” Sawyer locked eyes with him. “I appreciate your faith in me, but I didn’t agree to become the official manager of Playpen. I’m here as a consultant. But I’ll be certain there’s a capable manager in place before I leave. All right?”

All right? Allright? No, it wasn’t fucking all right. It was a fucking disaster. His disappointment went from a stab to a fatal blow.

Noah’s voice cracked as he attempted to respond. He cleared his throat but couldn’t conjure up much enthusiasm as he spoke.

“Sure. Whatever you think is best.”

Sawyer pressed his lips together then nodded. “Everything really will be fine, Noah. I promise.”

Noah sniffed. “Okay. I trust you.”

After giving him another smile, Sawyer left. As much as Noah didn’t want to feel sorry for himself, he decided to give into the dark abyss of self-pity. Then, he’d put on his big boy pants, follow Sawyer’s orders and get some rest. Maybe tomorrow he wouldn’t feel so shitty.

It could happen.

Chapter Four

Sawyer pulled into the lot Club Playpen shared with the downtown adult toy store near The Embarcadero and parked his truck. He was arriving about fifteen minutes earlier than the scheduled time in the hopes of giving himself some time to gather his wits before facing Noah again.

Their first meeting had been brutal.

At least, in Sawyer’s mind it had. The last time he’d seen Noah, he’d made a big show of staying out of his way, doing his utmost to prove to Oliver that he wasn’t hot for his son. Of course, Oliver wasn’t a stupid man and he’d seen right through Sawyer’s pretense.

The weekend had been awkward at best, especially with Noah always managing to find ways to either parade around in a speedo that showed off his cute muscular ass and mouth-watering bulge when he and Oliver were having breakfast on the patio. Or when he’d ‘accidentally’ come out of the shower with only a towel around his waist, his sculpted, waxed chest replete with droplets of water when Sawyer was in the kitchen getting a snack late at night.

The fact that Noah wanted him as much as he wanted Noah was clear. What wasn’t clear, was whether Noah knew about the ultimatum his dad had given Sawyer.

“It’s not that I don’t think you’re a great guy and aren’t an awesome Daddy, but he’s my son. I want him to find someone closer to him in age, someone who doesn’t take off on all these adventures around the world. Noah needs a man who will put him first, above all things, and is more a stay-at-home kind of guy. Sorry, man. But you’re not it. Promise me you won’t go after him.”

What a gut punch that had been. He’d ached to plead his case to Oliver, to reassure him that he’d always put Noah first. But he hadn’t been able to argue with him on two basic facts. Nothing would change their sixteen-year age difference and Sawyer would always seek adventure. Not because he didn’t want a relationship, or didn’t want to dedicate himself to a boy, but because that’s who he was. Denying that part of himself would only cause resentment toward his partner in the long run.

Sawyer tapped his fingers on the steering wheel. Yeah, Noah had definitely been making a play for him back then. That was what, about six months ago? He’d just sold the company and was getting ready to take off for Kathmandu. Spending some time with his best friend before he left had been a given.

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