Page 64 of His Stepdad Wears Leather

The instinct to lift Noah on his back swept into his mind but he forced it out. “Well, you need to hurry up before we’re caught.”

He spun back and continued moving, even as he worried about his boy.

Not my boy.

He heard the steps behind him. The crunching of twigs. The groan here and there as they moved up a steeper section of the trail. They got to a section that was a bit of a climb. A large stone had several worn spots in it—steps of a sort—but they were spaced far apart. Brody leapt up the stone before pausing at the top. He spun to face Noah and offered a hand.

Noah eyed him, silently, before sliding his palm into Brody’s. Their gazes locked for an instant before he helped haul the kid up the rock. When Noah managed to reach the top, they stood inches apart.

Neither of them moved.

“Brody,”Noah murmured.

“We need to go,” Brody said before spinning around and continuing along the old trail.

Twenty to thirty minutes later, they arrived at the park and saw Lex’s truck idling. After jumping in, Lex headed toward the club.

No one spoke, not even Lex.

They were on a mission, so the past wasn’t up for discussion in that moment. He was thankful for the silence. His mind was raging too much to handle anything else. Once home, Brody searched the horizon for police or signs of Walt and Abbie Lee. Nothing. He turned to his best friend.

“Thanks,” Brody murmured through the passenger window to Lex.

Lex leaned over a bit to eye him. “Gimme your truck keys. I’ll get someone to drive me over to their house and bring it back tomorrow morning.”

“Thanks,” Brody said before tossing his keys to Lex.

Without another word, he led Noah to his apartment upstairs. As soon as they were safe behind a locked door, he went to the windows and scanned the perimeter, searching for trouble.

All seemed quiet.

The opposite of the storm brewing inside him.

He turned to stare at Noah, this young man he knew so intimately—and shouldn’t. He was reminded of something Walt had implied many years ago—and it turned his stomach. Noahhadn’tbeen safe with him, after all.

How had he not realized who was standing before him?

Noah’s face was dark with shame, yet there was a glimmer of something else. Something Brody shouldn’t want to see.

“Why did you run from me this morning?”

“You wanted me to fill out the paperwork for the club. I didn’t have it. And even if I did…”

“It would’ve told me who you were.”

Noah nodded.

“Otherwise, you would’ve still been in my bed.” Saying the words caused him to feel worse.

“I hated lying to you. I hated hearing another name come from your lips. I’d almost told you the truth a few times… but I feared your reaction.” He paused. “But that was fear of you finding out I was only eighteen and had used a fake ID. I had no idea… who you were…”

“Nor did I.” He paused. “We pretend it didn’t happen. We tell no one.”

“Lex already knows. As does some of the people in the club. Word might get out.”

That very fucking public kiss.Brody closed his eyes, wishing he hadn’t done that. “We pretend it didn’t happen.”

Silence fell between them a moment.

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