Page 50 of In Frame
He said, “You don’t have to say anything yet, it’s fine, I get it. We broke your brain with sex.”
Leo snorted at him, which should’ve been inelegant and wasn’t. “You did, yes, and thank you for it. Good heavens. Which is not something I say normally, but I’ve been spending time with Colby, who hardly swears ever, which makes me feel horribly guilty every time I even think the wordfuck. Not that that stops me from thinking it.” Lightness hid emotion, but only barely.
Sam tipped his head back against his headboard. He’d have to get up soon. Clean up. Change shirts. Do something about dinner. Check in on siblings and homework completion. “I like hearing you say it. Do you have any food? Something with sugar? And also something like water or juice.”
“I’d have to go downstairs—oh, wait. I do. One of the assistants gave us some snacks at one point this afternoon, andI put the biscuits in my pocket and forgot about them, and those trousers’re over there on that chair. Are you making me get up?”
“Yes,” Sam announced, throwing just a suggestion of command in there. “If you feel up to it. No rush. Also get water. And I know you’ve got lotion, so find that, you’ll want it in a couple minutes. Something with aloe or arnica would be great, or something cooling, but whatever you’ve got.”
Leo sighed pathetically at him, but rolled off the bed—Sam heard him get up—and went looking. And then flung himself back down. “I’ve got water and rather crumbly chocolate biscuits and I found the salve Jason’s stuntperson family swears by. He gave me some today, in case I ever needed it.”
At this point they both paused to processthatstatement. In the wake of everything they’d just done. Plus the fact that Colby and Jason knew about at least the sex that’d already happened.
Sam very slowly shut both eyes. He might never be able to look at Jason again. Could be a problem for an upcoming job offer.
“Wow,” Leo said, “I really truly didn’t think of that. Which I can’t quite believe. How did Inotthink he meant that? But he said it so casually, as if, you know, of course we get bumps and bruises all the time, even Colby does some stunt work, and Jason likes protecting people. But…wow.”
Sam, because he had to, said, “…good heavens?” and listened with vast pride to the sound of Leo dissolving into a puddle of laughter and biscuit crumbs.
“Oh, fuck,” Leo said, reemerging. “You’re wonderful. You’re just wonderful. I feel a lot better, actually, already. Much more balanced. I should probably shower, and sleep, and let you go for now? Not that I want to, but we should, shouldn’t we?”
“Maybe. Let’s say…eat your biscuits—cookies, right?—and have some water, and when you feel up to it, go shower.Then put that…salve…on everyplace that you eventhinkmight be even a tiny bit sore, and get in bed, and text me once you’ve done all that. I won’t keep you up, you should rest, but I want to know.”
“So you know I’m all right?”
“Yeah,” Sam said, just that, and the truth of it poured out along the phone connection and brought warmth along, unfurling, shared. “Please.”
“I can do that.”
“Good. And, Leo…”
“Hmm?”
“Thanks. For…” This time he was the one without words. For everything. So much. “For trusting me. With you. And with your friends. I—I don’t know how to say thank you. Other than saying yes. And I’ll be there.” For you, he meant. And for them. For all that you’ve given me.
“I’d take credit, but it really was Colby’s idea.” Leo yawned, drowsy and chocolate-filled and contented. “I’ll tell him tomorrow that you’ve said yes, and he and Jason will be in touch. And someone will tell me things, I hope. And…and I know you’re much more experienced about the sex part than I am, and Colby and Jason will handle the details of getting you out to LA, Jason’s very organized about travel, and…I only want to say that I’m, well, also here. I want to be. I’ll try, if you ask me. You’ve been so good at that for me, and I—I just want to make sure you knew that. That I want to be, too.”
Sam’s heart tripped over itself and Leo’s words. He didn’t know how to fix some of that, how to answer the howling wrongness that was Leo’s assumption about self-worth versus other people, and then he felt a hot burn behind his eyes at the courage it’d taken to offer that self anyway, and most of all he wanted to kiss Leo gently all over, including the ticklish feet, and then turn himself into a shield for that big rainbow-hued souland take on every arrow shot by the world.
He said, for now, “Leo…one more order, okay? And I want you to listen.”
“Are we honestly doing orders? I’m not certain I’m good at following them. Bossy, I believe you called me.”
“You are, sometimes. You make things happen, around you. I like it. But this one’s important.”
“Oh, fine, if it’s important.” Leo yawned again. “I like saying yes to you. Even if I am a bit sore, after. In nice ways.”
“I’m going to see you,” Sam said, “next week, in California, because you madethathappen. For us. Because youarehere for me. Because that’s who you are. You don’t have to be anyone else, you don’t have to be some sort of instant sex expert, you don’t have to be Colby Kent, you just have to be you. And the person you are is pretty damn awesome, Leo Whyte.”
“Of course I am, I’m—”
“That’s the order. I want you to listen to me saying that, and I want you to really think about it, not just turn it into a joke. You care about people, and you care about me, and you’ve already made my life about fifty times better just by buying fish-shaped pillows and smiling at your tea and letting me see you. When I say I’m not leaving you, it’s because I’m thinking the same thing you are, about being here. And when I see you next week I’m going to have plans for, um, a lot of your anatomy, just letting you know in advance.”
He stopped. Leo had made a rather frantic noise, maybe crying, also sort of like a cough. “You okay?”
Leo swallowed what sounded like a gulp of water, and explained, “I started trying not to cry, but then I was eating a biscuit, and then I sort of tried to inhale a biscuit, and then I had to cough, and…I’m sorry, you were being lovely, and I’m awful, I’ve ruined it, and I—I still might want to cry, but not as badly, I think.”
“You couldn’t ruin anything if you tried. And you wouldn’t, because you only ever try to help.” Why the hellcouldn’the teleport across oceans, again?
