Page 11 of Escape into the Night

“Yeah, same.” Theo turned on a dime and strode down the walkway. Connor was already in motion to open the passenger side door as Theo threw his parting words over his shoulder. “But I guess I thought wrong. Thanks for the heads up, Eli. Good luck, I guess.”

“Theo, wait!” Elias tried to push forward and pursue Theo, but Caleb held him in place.

“Elias, no. He needs time.”

“Cay, not now—”

“I swear on my entire Marc Jacobs collection, if one more person tells me ‘not now’ I will go apoplectic!” Caleb gripped Elias’ shirtfront in a tight fist. “Give. Him. Time.”

He stared at Elias’ face as Elias watched Theo climb into the car before it rumbled to life and drove the meager distance between their homes. He glanced in their direction and saw the vehicle pull into the driveway and subsequently disappear into the garage. Elias finally exhaled a shaky breath once the automatic door closed. It was only then that Caleb could encourage him to take a step back from the doorway and allow him to close it behind them. As soon as the latch snicked into place, Elias turned to flee. Theo wasn't the only one who needed time. Caleb released a heavy sigh as his partner disappeared into the office again. Frankly, he earned himself this time out. Resigned to letting his lover stew for a little while, he retreated to the kitchen to figure out their dinner. After all, life went intrepidly onward regardless of whatever monumental clusterfucks happened to show up.

A little while turned into a long while. Caleb called Elias for dinner. His response was to retreat even farther. The moment Cay heard the shower turn on, he knew it was a moot point. The last thing he wanted to do was argue a touchy subject, so he opted for sharing an awesome dinner of corn dogs and pasta salad with his nine-year-old bestie turned stepson. The little smartie pants knew better than to question the icy temperature of the house or his dad’s unusual behavior, but Caleb caught the concerned, curious glances Parker stole. If anyone knew about Elias’ therapeutic shower habits, it was his son.

“After you wash up, I can tuck you in, little dude.” Caleb swiped the plates off the counter and turned toward the sink.

“Yes please, Cay-Cay!” Parker hesitated for a moment before jumping from his stool. “Double extra hugs and kisses, ‘kay?”

Caleb’s heart filled to bursting with all sorts of feelings. Big feelings. “Duh, of course!”

The clatter of heavy feet retreated from the kitchen, through the hall, and echoed up the stairs. He didn't even have the heart to call a reminder about the running in the house rule. Sometimes, letting the small things slide was worth it in the end. Tidying up only took a few minutes, which left him all sorts of time for the nightly routine. Chatting, cuddling, tucking in, and of course, double extra hugs and kisses. Parker was the king of physical affection and Caleb ate up every second of it before quietly escaping the room and returning to the ground floor.

Everything was dim and quiet, exactly how he'd left it. He crept through the home with soft steps and slipped into their bedroom to find Elias looking worse for the wear. Hunched over on the edge of the bed wearing only a towel with his head in his hands was what Caleb had assumed he would find, but the picture still filled him with sadness and concern.

“Baby doll, do you want to talk? Strategize? Process?” Caleb passed through the room and drew up short before his morose husband. “Tell me what you need.”

“I’m not sure what I need, babe.” Elias tilted his head up and Caleb felt the agony his red-rimmed eyes conveyed on a visceral level.

“Oy, love.” Cay stepped closer and swept Elias’ shoulders into his arms, pressing the back of Elias’ head into his chest with a gentle palm. “I promise, he’ll come around. You know he’s hardwired to react this way. But you also know it's because he loves you.”

“I fucked up.” Elias slumped against him with a beleaguered sigh. “I should have told him.”

“Families fuck up. It happens. Yes, we probably should have thought more about how to handle this with him, but what's done is done. We’ll figure it out. We always do.”

“I'm having second thoughts. Not just because of Theo. I read over the report he gave me about the data breach. There’s so much at stake, babe.” Elias tugged Caleb between his parted knees and hugged him closer.

“Elias Cohen-Williams, since when are you a quitter?” Caleb's words were firm but quiet.

“I did quit my job in the White House,” Elias countered.

“Different situation.” Caleb eased backward and gave Elias’ shoulders a push until he flopped backward on the bed. The tease of a smile over his lips made Caleb whoop internally. “Stop catastrophizing. That’s Theo’s job. Your job is to fix everything and you can't do that by giving up. My job? My job is to shut this off when you need it.”

Caleb tapped Elias’ temple before plucking the towel loose with a saucy wink. The faintest huff of laughter was all the reward he needed for his advances.

“Incorrigible and insatiable.” Despite his comment, Elias squirmed where he lay, a hand sneaking down his torso to give himself a lazy tug as his cock began to plump.

“You love it, baby doll.” Caleb swept his palms over Elias’ thighs, carefully kneeling between his knees as Elias tracked every movement with hungry eyes. “Tonight, I'll help you let go. Tomorrow, it'll all be clearer for it.”

“I couldn't do this without you.”

“Good thing you’ll never have to.” Caleb swatted Elias’ hand away with his fingertips. “Get. This is mine.”

“Mnn. It is. All yours.” With an indulgent stretch and quiet moan, Elias settled deeper into the cushion of the mattress as Caleb curled a hand around the base of his cock. No matter howoften they were intimate, the heady power of it made him feel like the king of the universe every damn time.

“Hands behind your head, bossman. I'm in charge tonight.” Caleb rewarded Elias' compliance with a long lick along the underside of his length. The groan that came in response was poetry. Pure, sinful poetry. It took on a deeper tone as he engulfed the dusky head of Elias’ cock in his mouth.

Every intention of dragging this out and driving Elias wild evaporated the more vocal he became. Mere moments of taunting and teasing had rendered him a whining, writhing mess. His baby doll was overwrought and desperate, filled with too many big feelings with nowhere to unload them. Ergo, Caleb would help him unload. It shouldn't have surprised him that Elias was on a hair-trigger since he’d already been strung out before they even began. It merely inspired him to rock his world harder and faster.

Rising up higher on his knees, Caleb poured himself into the act with renewed vigor, swallowing Elias’ length in a move that always brought a delicious gasp to his lover’s lips. The incoherent babbling came immediately after and only got more jumbled as Caleb used his free hand to give a firm tug to Elias’ balls. They might not have the bandwidth for a ton of edging, but Caleb would be damned if the blowjob ended in a scant few moments. He alternated deep throating Elias’ cock with suckling and nipping at the engorged head and foreskin until he was convinced the man was about to cry. It didn't take long, honestly. It never took all that long—Caleb knew how to play Elias’ body like a well-trained musician plucking the strings of a guitar to make melodies with his moans.

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