Page 28 of His Temptation
“He probably won’t be home anyway,” Ryan added. “And if he is, he’ll be in his office. He’s working on that case, remember?”
“Right. You mentioned that earlier.”
Emery’s SUV was in the driveway when we got to his house. Ryan parked and hopped out of the car, and I was frozen in place.
“You coming?” he asked, bending down and sticking his head back into the car.
Nodding, I unbuckled my seat belt and got out. Ryan didn’t knock before checking the doorknob. Finding it was locked, he searched through his keys before finding the right one and unlocking the door.
I followed him into the house on shaky legs. Would Emery play it cool? Would he let something slip? Christ, I didn’t remember ever being so nervous.
“Ryan?” a voice sounded from the other room.
A voice I knew all too well. Suddenly, I had flashes of Emery pushing me on the bed and kissing me. I recalled his hands on my hips and the feel of his lips on mine. His touch had felt soright.
“Yeah, it’s me,” Ryan responded, walking down the hall. “Just picking something up. Won’t be long.”
Inside Ryan’s room, I helped him search for his cleats. He was always losing his shit and had gone through several pairs of shoes this past baseball season. Even more than that during football. I blamed it on his sense of entitlement. I mean, I loved Ryan like a brother, but he was used to getting whatever he wanted and didn’t respect what he had because of it.
“Need help?” Emery asked, coming into the room. Thank god Ryan’s back was turned because Emery didn’t hide his shock well at seeing me. His eyes widened and he even appeared to have gone a bit pale.
“No, thanks,” Ryan muttered from the closet, where he was on the ground searching through a pile of shoes and clothes. “Go back to work.”
“I’m done for the day,” Emery said, shifting his gaze from me to his son. “Do you want to stay for dinner? I can cook steak, your favorite.”
“Nope.” Ryan’s response was immediate.
Emery’s face fell, and my chest ached at the sight. He tried so hard to bond with Ryan, but Ryan wasn’t having any of it. All because of Emery being gay? It made me even more hesitant for Ryan to know about me.
“Hey, Mr. Cross,” I said, smiling.
“Cason,” Emery responded, his tone casual. His gaze lingered on my face before trailing down my body.
Was the AC even on in that damn house? I was burning up.
“Found them!” Ryan exclaimed, throwing stuff out of his way before standing, the cleats in his hands. He passed by Emery without so much as a look before leaving the bedroom.
Leaving me and Emery alone.
The temperature skyrocketed again. Emery’s glacier-blue eyes should’ve chilled me to the bone, but instead I felt like I was standing in front of a blazing fire.
“About that night—”
“No,” Emery said. “We’re not discussing it.”
“But Ineedto.” I stepped closer to him, searching his face. “Being with you feels—”
“Goddammit, Cason, I said no.” Emery tore his gaze from mine and turned away. Before he left the room, though, he stopped in the doorway. “It was a mistake. Forget it happened.”
“A mistake?” I whispered. “I don’t see it that way.”
For years, I had felt like an outsider, someone who wanted to fit in but didn’t ever feel like I did. For the first time, I felt like I was on the right track. Like maybe this was who I was meant to be.
All because of Emery.
“Cas?” Ryan called down the hall. “You comin’ or what?”
“Yeah,” I answered. Feeling a hollowing in my chest, I walked past Emery.
