Jed rolled onto his good side, turning his back on Max, and curled his bad leg as high as he could stand. Max drew the sheets up over them and positioned himself behind him, molding his body around Jed and consuming him. He snaked an arm under Jed’s neck and took his hand, using his other to align their bodies. He pressed forward slowly and joined them with an aching tenderness.
Jed squeezed Max’s fingers in a death grip. There was pain, a lot of pain, but it felt good, cleansing, like it was tearing through him the way the bullet had and making him whole again. He fell forward slightly, mashing his face into a pillow, and groaned, long and low, pushing back onto Max’s cock.
Max responded gently, easing his hips in a slow, circling thrust and pressing soft kisses to the back of Jed’s neck.
Jed drove his fist into the mattress. It wasn’t enough, but it was almost too much to bear. He took himself in hand, matching Max’s rhythm with every flick of his wrist. Sweat trickled down his back and spots danced in front of his eyes. He was already painfully close, but he fought it and gritted his teeth as his body locked up.
Behind him, Max trembled and muffled his ragged cries by sinking his teeth softly into Jed’s back. His movements became steadily more erratic until warmth finally pulsed where they were joined.
Jed let out a desperate, soundless moan and let the climax he’d been fighting roar through him. He shivered like he had a fever, his breath coming in stuttering gasps. Max raised his head and pulled him impossibly closer, making soothing noises Jed didn’t understand until he felt the wetness trickle over his cheeks again.
It took a while, but eventually, Max loosened his grip on him and leaned back. “Can you roll over?”
Jed steeled himself and rolled over, right into Max’s arms as their shared heartbeats slowed to a dull roar.
Max smiled, his relief evident in the dim, predawn light, and kissed his forehead. “All right?”
“Yeah.” Jed couldn’t articulate anything else. He felt detached from himself, though not in a bad way. He pressed his lips against Max’s chest and centered himself with the scent of sweat and fresh cotton.
Max rubbed Jed’s shoulder. “I’m going to clean up. I’ll be back in a sec.”
He slid from the bed and padded out of the room, but he was back before Jed could reconcile himself to the fact that he was gone. Max cleaned them both up and settled back in the bed, then coaxed Jed to lie over him once more.
He put his arm around Jed’s shoulders and kissed the top of his head. “There’s no past tense when you lose someone, Jed. You just keep on loving them.”
Chapter Seventeen
MAXWOKEfirst, disturbed by the bright morning light. He rolled over, confused, until he opened his eyes to the wide expanse of Jed’s bedroom window.
Fuck.
The events of the night before came flooding back to him, and he was almost afraid to turn his head, convinced he’d find himself alone.
He looked anyway, and his heart skipped a beat. Jed was there, curled slightly on his right side, one arm wrapped around his belly and as asleep as Max had ever seen him. Max considered him, ignoring for a moment the fact that they were both naked. He didn’t regret a thing, but Jed had been so broken, both before and after, he couldn’t help wondering if he’d feel the same.
Jed stirred, as though he could feel eyes on him. A grimace colored his face and his eyes flickered open.
Max put out a hand, stilling him before he could move. “Easy. I’m going to feed the animals. Go back to sleep.”
There was a beat of silence. Jed stared at him, like he was trying to figure out if Max was real, then he let his eyes fall closed again, leaving Max to wonder if he’d been awake at all.
Max slid from the bed, retrieved his clothes from the floor, and padded out of the room. He fed Flo and let the chickens out. Took his medication and got in the shower. By the time he drifted back to the kitchen, the rain from the night before had morphed into a full-blown winter storm.
He went around the cabin, battening down the hatches. Most of the windows were sound, aside from the one in the hallway. Or so he thought. He approached it, ready to plug the gap with duct tape, only to find it fixed with a shiny new catch.
Jed.
Damn it. How long had that been there? Jed had been gone for days. When the hell had he done that?
The phone rang as Max finished making the cabin as safe from the rain as it was going to get. It took him a while to track it down, hidden under one of the couch cushions. He answered before the machine cut in.
Carla’s voice greeted him. “Finally.”
Max frowned at the clock on the wall. “What are you doing up at this ungodly hour?”
“I had an early appointment. Speaking of which, don’t suppose you’ve heard from that elusive roommate of yours, have you?”
Heat flooded through Max’s body, making him glad Carla couldn’t see him. “Um, he got back last night.”