Page 39 of The Finding Series: Vol. 2

Hunter laughed. “You can’t be serious,” he said. “Phone sex? Really?” Hunter said, his voice dropping to a near whisper even though he was obviously alone in his dorm since his roommate was gone for the whole week.

“It’s either that or I read you the presentation I have to give in a few hours.”

Hunter seemed to think on it for a while and then finally said, “What’s the presentation on?”

“Running costs and revenue streams.” When Hunter remained quiet, Roman said, “Well?”

“I’m thinking,” Hunter quipped.

“Well, while you’re thinking, I’m going to get started,” Roman said huskily and then switched the view on his phone to reverse the screen. He let his hand slip into his boxers and then laughed when there was an audible indrawn breath followed by a curse as Hunter began fumbling with his phone in a desperate effort to get caught up.

* * *

Hunter felt completely wrung out as he left the therapist’s office but he was beyond relieved that he was doing it on his own two feet and not being carted out by two guys in white coats. Although he’d believed that Roman would move heaven and earth to get him out of any psych ward he could have potentially ended up in, the idea of having the freedom he’d worked so hard to finally gain taken away from him was overwhelming and had kept him up most of the night after he’d hung up with Roman. Of course, there’d been the brief time in between when he’d been nearly comatose after the orgasm Roman had wrung out of him with some incredibly filthy suggestions about what he was going to do to Hunter when they saw each other again tomorrow.

Calling Roman as he’d sat on his bathroom floor and stared at the lighter and spoon he’d rested on the edge of the sink had been one of the hardest things he’d ever had to do. But there’d been no condemnation in Roman’s voice and when they’d finally hung up, Roman had told him he loved him and nothing in his tone or body language made Hunter think it was anything but the truth. When Roman had said he was coming home, the weakest part of Hunter had wanted to cry in relief but the little voice inside his head that had slowly started to grow louder these past few weeks had reminded him that he needed to able to stand on his own two feet…not because he didn’t want Roman’s support but because he needed to know that there was a part of him that hadn’t been completely lost to his fear.

The therapist hadn’t been anything like Hunter had expected. For starters, the man was built like a tank and both arms had been covered in tattoos. He’d had piercings in both ears and the only hair on his head was actually on his face. The Mr. Clean lookalike hadn’t even bothered to take notes as he casually asked Hunter about himself and when Hunter had balked at telling the man about his self-destructive behavior, the guy hadn’t pressured him in any way. In fact, it hadn’t been until the last ten minutes of the session that Hunter admitted to burning himself. There’d been no look of horror when he’d said it and the guy hadn’t reached for the phone to call someone to come take him away. And to Hunter’s complete and utter shock, he hadn’t even asked to see the burns. He’d simply asked Hunter if he was interested in learning about some alternative ways to cope with his stress. And then he’d been allowed to leave. No guys in white coats, no recrimination, no lectures.

Hunter grabbed his phone from his backpack and wasn’t surprised to see several messages from Roman waiting for him. He’d gotten several before the appointment reassuring him that he was going to do great and that everything would be okay. The most recent messages were more of the same and when he dialed Roman’s number, Roman picked up on the first ring.

“Hey,” Hunter said softly. God, how did even the prospect of just talking to Roman turn his insides to mush?

“Hey yourself, how was it?”

“Better than I expected,” Hunter admitted. “I’ll tell you all about it when I see you tomorrow.”

“How about you tell me on the plane?”

Hunter stopped walking. “What?”

“I thought we could go away for the weekend. You don’t start your work study till next week, right?”

“Right.”

“Do you have any classes today?”

“No, it’s my free day.”

“So what do you think?”

The husky tone in Roman’s voice had Hunter shivering. “When do I need to be at the airport by?”

“You’ve got time,” Roman said. “I’ve arranged a car for you.”

Hunter began walking again as excitement flared in his belly. “When will it pick me up?”

“Now,” was all Roman said.

Hunter stilled and then turned around. A black Town Car rolled to a stop at the curb and Hunter held his breath as he watched Roman get out, phone to his ear. Hunter lowered his phone and then walked towards Roman. It was surprisingly hard to swallow so when Roman whispered “hi” to him, Hunter couldn’t do anything except nod and then wrap his arms around Roman.

“I let you go to the appointment by yourself because I knew it was important to you but please don’t be mad at me for not being able to stay away like you wanted. I just needed to see for myself that you were okay.”

Hunter shook his head against Roman’s chest. “Not mad,” he muttered. “Definitely not mad.” He felt Roman’s fingers close over the back of his neck and gently massage him.

“What do you say we get out of here?”

“I say yes,” Hunter murmured. “Always yes.”

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