Page 46 of The Long Game

“Good?” Grady murmured, his deep voice a vibration against Jack’s lips where they were pressed to Grady’s throat.

Jack opened his eyes, his lashes dragging against Grady’s warm skin, and tried to make his brain come back online. He managed a nod, the merest movement of his head.

He clung to Grady, his shirt bunched in Jack’s fist, while Grady worked the muscles from above the dimples at the base of Jack’s spine to the very top of his ass. He tried to stop canting his hips to meet that pressure, but gave up.

Grady didn’t seem to mind. He just kept working while the tension drained from Jack’s body. The gentle rocking coaxed him closer to Grady, until their legs were tangled and even then, Jack couldn’t seem to get close enough. He was in a trance, relaxed and warm and…safe.

“I should be doing this for you,” he mumbled.

When Grady spoke, his lips moved Jack’s hair and brushed his scalp. “Why?”

“You need to be comforted.”

Jack felt more than heard Grady’s chuckle. “Maybe this comforts me.”

“You promise?”

Grady’s lips pressed to the top of his head, a sweet kiss that wasn’t something they should be doing, though Jack couldn’t remember why just then. “I promise.”

Jack acquiesced with a nonsensical hum and closed his eyes.

Brain quiet, body lax, he dropped into sleep.

9

Jack woke with a start. He didn’t know where he was or why he couldn’t move his legs. Then he realized he and Grady were still a tangle of limbs in the middle of the bed, and he had zero interest in changing that. Particularly before one of their alarms went off.

He was just drifting back to sleep when the annoying sound of his phone vibrating on the bedside table started. Again.

Shit,thatwas what had woken him up.

Uncurling his arm from around Grady’s waist, he twisted and flailed, trying to grab his phone before it or his movements woke Grady.

His hand landed on the phone just as it stopped buzzing. He stared blearily at the screen and saw it was later than he’d thought, and he’d missed a couple of calls from Callum.

Shit.Was it about Colton? He and Christian were supposed to hang out today.

His phone started vibrating again.

“Hello?” Jack croaked. He cleared his throat and grasped for the edge of the bed with the intention of hauling himself out from under Grady.

“Jack!” Callum said cheerfully. “Don’t tell me I woke you up. You’re usually up for hours by now.”

Jack started to pull away, but Grady wrapped both arms around Jack’s ribs and squeezed Jack against his chest like a child with their teddy bear.

Jack grinned. “Sorry. Late morning, I guess.”

“You guess? Geez, I’m sorry. Ididwake you up. You feeling okay?”

Jack didn’t have to take stock to know the answer. “Fantastic, actually.”

“That’s…” Callum paused a beat. “Great.”

So, maybe Jack wasn’t usually that effusive or whatever.

“Anyway,” Callum continued, “I got your text and I wanted to see if you two have time for brunch today. We want to do what we can to help and support GradyandColton.”

“That would be great. Hold on, let me check with Grady on his schedule,” he said, nudging the man in question a couple of times.

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