Page 30 of Rough Heat

Damon shook his head. “No such thing. Thanks for coming on such short notice.” He flushed, the reason for Leo’s presence hanging between them.

“No problem. I, uh…I wanted to.”

“Yeah?” Damon asked quietly.

“Yeah.”

They stared at each other for a long moment before the tension in Leo’s neck was too much, and he had to rest his head on the pillow again, wiggling into Damon.

Josh beamed, stroking Leo’s hair off his forehead. “It wasn’t too much?”

“No. It was…it was really good.” Now it was Leo’s turn to blush—not at what he had done or how much he’d liked it, but why he’d loved the experience so much.

It hadn’t just been the physical pleasure. It was the fact that it was Josh and Damon making him feel that way.

“I’m glad,” Josh said, brushing his thumb against Leo’s cheek.

Leo took the time to look at Josh, at how much healthier he seemed. His cheeks had filled out, no longer gaunt and sunken. His body didn’t seem so frail, hips a little fuller, ribs no longer showing. Even his hair had more volume, a brown mess against the pillow. “You look so much better than when we met,” Leo had to say. “Well, not, like—I meant healthier.”

Josh laughed. “I know what you mean.”

Damon leaned over Leo. “Tell him about the doctor’s visit.”

“Oh, yeah. So, I went to the doc right before Damon’s rut hit, and he said that I can start the treatment! So, like, my next heat shouldn’t hit for a while, and it should be better. It’ll take time for my hormones to adjust but, yeah. If this works…”

You won’t need me anymore, was Leo’s first thought, and he hated himself for it. “Fuck, I’m so happy for you.”

“Thanks.” Josh smiled. “I mean, we don’t know for sure it’s gonna work, but they ran some tests—gave me a version of the treatment and measured how my body reacted, and they said I was a perfect candidate for it.”

“That’s amazing, Josh.” And it was amazing. The relief he felt at the thought of Josh no longer being in danger was like a boulder being rolled right off him.

The albatross around his neck, though—the sin that he carried—was the selfish, disgusting feeling of loss at the reality of what Damon and Josh disappearing from his life meant for him.

Maybe Leo’s dad was right. Maybe he wasn’t worth the dirt he walked on.

“Thanks,” Josh said, looking at Damon and changing the subject. “Smells like your rut’s about done.”

“Yeah,” Damon agreed, and another pang went through Leo. Maybe that was his cue to leave. Before Leo could spiral, though, Damon went on, “Not quite, though.”

“Uh-huh,” Josh said. “You wanna make us some food?”

Damon nodded, agreeing quickly, dragging Josh and Leo to the living room so he could ‘watch over them.’

Josh put something mindless on the TV, lying on top of Leo. “He’s so protective during his rut, it’s crazy. Sweet, though.”

“Yeah,” Leo murmured.

“You okay staying today? We can, uhm, call the agency. Actually, let me do that now if you’re free and I can—”

“It’s fine,” Leo cut him off. “Don’t worry about it. We can sort that out later. I’m happy to be here, you know?”

Josh twisted his mouth, clearly conflicted. “If you’re sure. Like I said at the start of this, I don’t want to take your time for granted just because you enjoy being here, so…”

“You’re not. I promise.”

“Okay,” Josh capitulated. “Do you have to call anyone? Cancel anything?”

Leo wasn’t going to admit he’d cancelled his appointments on the way there. “Nah. Free as a bird.”

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