The sounds of an engine reached Colin through the open windows and door. As the throttling noise decelerated then came to a stop, Colin whispered, “I'll be right back.” He stepped out on the porch, and his heart rate kicked into dizzying speed the second he set eyes on Marek again.
Good God. He has somehow gotten even sexier. His shoulders, arms, and chest all seemed a little wider, no doubt from the task of repairing this house. He'd maintained his haircut, and the beard had not made a reappearance either. Purely stunning. Colin's mouth watered as he stared.
Marek finally looked up to the house when he reached the foot of the sand path, and he stalled in place. Portfolio falling from his grasp, he clutched his heart. “Oh, Jesus Christ.” He almost doubled over, but his pure blue eyes remained glued to Colin. “Are you really here?”
“I am, baby.” A catch in Colin's voice hitched his words. “I missed you too.”
Leaving papers strewn in the sand, Marek started running.
Chapter Nineteen
He can't really be here.
With his hands half covering his face, afraid to believe, Marek bounded up the path and steps but jerked to a stop mere inches from sweeping Colin into his arms. He stared, transfixed, absorbing every inch, every eyelash, every piece of clothing, every nuance of the man standing before him. Strands of hair caught on the breeze and brushed over Colin's forehead, his eyes reflected like green sea glass, early stubble grew along the line of his jaw, his thumbs were hooked on the edges of his front pockets, and his bare feet stuck out from the bottom of his jeans.
It's so much more detailed than the Colin I saw yesterday.
Marek's hand shook as he lifted it, and noticing the tremble, he let it fall back to his side. “I think I'm having another hallucination. I'm afraid to touch you. When I do, you're going to disappear.”
Colin reached down and took Marek's hand in his, and the warmth—real, male, human body heat—made Marek shake all the way down to his marrow.
“I'm home.” Colin put Marek's hand on his lips and spoke against his palm. “And I'm here to stay.”
Marek let his fingers flutter over Colin's cheeks, nose, forehead, and chin, letting the memories of touching, kissing, loving this face return to him. “Oh shit.” A sob wrenched out of him, and he clutched Colin's head in a bruising hold, pulling him close. “Oh shit. It's really you.”
“It's really me.” Colin curled his hands around Marek's neck, pressed their foreheads together, and looked right into Marek's eyes. “I swear.”
Oh Jesus, he's not a mirage.
“I'm so sorry.” Planting little kisses all over Colin's face, Marek's voice broke with emotion on everything he needed to say. “I'm so sorry I was a coward when we were kids and that I didn't confess everything the second I saw you again. I wish I could make it up to you and take away how much pain I caused and have you believe in me again.” He nudged his thumb under Colin's chin and tilted his face up, brushing their lips together. “I'm sorry I wasn't stro—”
Colin put his fingers against Marek's lips, silencing him. “No more anger, no more betrayal, no more accusations, no more 'I'm sorry's.'“ He moved his hand and rested it against Marek's chest, where he could surely feel the crazy thumping of Marek's heart. “Let's just move forward.” His gaze held Marek's with such intensity Marek felt stripped bare of every barrier he had ever erected to protect himself from ridicule or harm. “Together.”
Love and acceptance swelled up a cauldron of need inside Marek, sparking the humid air around them with jolts of electricity. Colin's breath caught audibly, his fingers dug into Marek's chest through his shirt, and Marek reacted as completely as if no clothing existed between them. His cock rose with a rush of blood and pushed against his underwear and khakis, hardening in a shot. Vivid memories of being buried inside this man filled Marek with an exquisite agony of wanting. A brightness reflected back in Colin's eyes and made Marek bold.
He slid his hands down Colin's chest and stomach, loving the rips of hard muscle beneath his fingers. “Can you feel it?”
Colin pushed one of Marek's hands over the stiff ridge in his jeans and, at the same time, scraped a kiss across his lips. His voice husky, he said, “Yeah. I can.”
“Christ, I've missed you.” Marek wrapped his arms around Colin's waist and lifted him right off the porch. “I have to have you again.”
“Yes.” Colin slid down Marek's body and grabbed his waistband, going right for the button closure. “Inside. Now.”
Marek didn't understand if Colin meant inside the house or inside his body, but he would give Colin one if it meant getting the other. He walked Colin over the threshold and slammed the door. Not giving the man a second to adjust, Marek crowded him into the wall and took his mouth with an open, wet kiss. He tangled and stabbed with all the pent-up longing for connection he'd suffered during three and a half endless months apart. Colin rubbed against him and kissed him back with equal enthusiasm, and Marek moaned with sheer, unadulterated joy. He licked Colin's teeth, tongue, lips, and then all over his face, savoring the faint flavor of salt that clung to his skin from being out on the water. Marek's mouth skimmed Colin's hairline, and as he inhaled the clean scent of his shampoo, gratitude tightened a band around his chest. “I can't believe you're real and you're here.”
Colin growled and bit Marek's chin. “My dick is too fucking hard for this to be an illusion.” He yanked Marek's shirt out of his pants and pulled on the
