Sometimes he wondered if his flamboyant personality—his true self—was too much for Adam, who was on the more conservative side. His fiancé saw no need to draw attention to himself and wasn’t always comfortable when Teddy tended to be loud and made it known that they, as a gay couple, existed in this town and weren’t going to hide.
They were such opposites.
Maybe Adam’s delay was because he wasn’t sure about their future.
Or maybe Adam was simply with Teddy because he was the only other “out” man in the area. Maybe if there was more of a choice, Adam wouldn’t choose him at all.
Yes, they had sexual chemistry, but maybe that was all Adam experienced. Nothing deeper.
Teddy slammed a hand over his mouth so he wouldn’t cry out at the pain suddenly stabbing at his heart.
It was easy to say the words, “I love you.” It was harder to mean them.
Sometimes those words could be hollow and automatic as to not create conflict.
When Adam said those three words, did he mean them? Or did he say them just to placate Teddy to avoid drama?
Was Adam having second thoughts?
He’d been so secretive lately. Getting home late. Taking phone calls out of Teddy’s hearing and not explaining why or who called. Or he would simply brush them off as something to do with work.
But then there were the hours when he just disappeared.
They used to take their lunch breaks together on a regular basis, but recently he’d cancelled a few of them, saying he had an emergency incident he needed to respond to. Only to find out through the Bryson grapevine that Adam hadn’t responded to anything at all.
Had the man he loved found someone else? Someone who would fit into his life better? Someone who wouldn’t embarrass him, unlike Teddy did with his drama queen theatrics?
Oh God, had he driven Adam into an affair?
If so, Teddy would find the culprit and scratch out the other man’s eyes.
But if Adam couldn’t love him the way he was, his true self, then he couldn’t love Teddy period.
His heart began to race at the thought of losing the man he loved to someone else. Of being alone again.
Of maybe no longer belonging to the Bryson family, the one family who loved him and accepted him as he was.
A whimper bubbled up his throat.
In a panic, he shook Adam’s shoulder. “Adam!”
Adam jackknifed up to a seated position, eyes wide but unfocused. “What? What’s wrong?”
Teddy also sat up, his fingers digging into his lover’s shoulder, his other hand grabbing Adam’s prickly jaw and jerking his head in his direction. “Don’t you love me anymore?”
Adam’s perfectly manicured eyebrows dropped low. “What?”
“You don’t love me anymore!” Teddy wailed.
“What?”
“You don’t want to marry me! You’ve found someone else! Who? Who is it? I’m going to scratch his damn eyes out!”
Adam’s mouth gaped open and a loud breath escaped before he snapped it shut. “Did you have a bad dream or something?”
“Yes, this is my nightmare.”
Adam ran a hand down his face and shook his head. “Well, you’re awake now so your nightmare is over. Go back to sleep. It’s...” His eyes slid to the digital clock on Teddy’s nightstand. “Christ. It’s five in the fucking morning.” Adam flopped back down, breaking Teddy’s hold. He punched his generic-brand pillow back into shape, rolled to his side, giving Teddy his back, settled in and sighed. “Go back to sleep.”
“I can’t,” Teddy cried, gluing himself to Adam’s warm, broad back.
“What the fuck, T. I need to work second shift today. I need sleep.”
“I can’t sleep, lover. I can’t.”
Adam rolled again until he was facing Teddy with only a few inches separating them. “I can’t deal with your neurosis right now.”
“It’s not neurosis.”
Adam’s eyebrows jerked up his forehead.
Teddy grimaced and rolled his eyes. “Okay, okay. I get a little paranoid.”
“A little?”
“Well, you’ve been so secretive lately.”
“I have not. I’ve been busy.”
“With what?”
“Work.”
Teddy narrowed his eyes at him. “You’re lying.”
Adam’s expression turned hard. “Really? You’re calling me a liar?”
Teddy pressed his lips together.
“You know I want to make detective. I’ve been trying to prove myself to Max.”
That was true. Max had mentioned it, too.
Adam continued, “That means odd hours and a crazy schedule sometimes.”
That was also true.
But still...
Teddy rolled into him, knocking Adam to his back, and climbing on top to stare directly into those light blue eyes that did all kinds of naughty things to him.
“Do you love me?” He tried to keep the whine out of his voice, but failed.
“Jesus, Teddy. What’s up your ass?”
“Not you. It’s been forever since we’ve made love.”
“It hasn’t been forever,” Adam scoffed.
“Fore... ev... ver.” He emphasized each syllable with a finger poke to that hard, muscular chest.
“It hasn’t...” His not-lately lover went quiet. Adam pursed his beautiful, kissable, suckable lips.
“Gah! You don’t want me anymore!” Teddy cried out. “I knew it!”
“Jesus Christ,” Adam muttered.
Teddy poked a finger into his fiancé’s chest once more, making Adam wince. “Don’t invoke him in this bed. He won’t help you out of this.”
“I don’t need help. You’re just making more out of this than you need to. I’ve been... distracted.”
“With someone else?”
“Teddy...”
He pressed a finger against Adam’s luscious lips. “Uh uh. I need you to be honest with me. Do you still love me?”
Adam frowned.
“Do you still want my tight, delectable ass?”
Teddy squealed as Adam hooked him with one of those muscular legs and rolled him until he was pinned to the bed. His fiancé was now settled between Teddy’s thighs and had both palms planted in the mattress on either side of his head.
Adam dropped his head until his lips were just a hairsbreadth above Teddy’s mouth. He growled, “Do I need to prove it?”
Teddy licked his lips. “That would be swell. And since you’re already awake...”
“I ought to spank that irresistible ass for waking me up over imaginary nonsense.”
“Ooh,” Teddy breathed, his cock waking up at the thought. His man was such a gorilla. A big silverback. Big and strong and... so growly
