“Is he all right? Where’s he been?”
Max paused, torn between the fact that Carla wasn’t asking as his best friend, or as the little sister of Jed’s own best friend. She was Jed’s physical therapist, and Jed had bailed on her as much as anyone else.
Besides, what was he supposed to say? He only had a vague idea of where Jed had been all this time, and he knew for sure that he was far from okay.
Carla sighed, reminding him that she was there. “Okay, I get it. Just tell him to call me, would you? If I don’t hear from him soon, I’ll be banging on your door, and trust me, neither of you wants that.”
She hung up before he could figure out what the hell she was talking about. He tossed the phone back on the couch and glared at it. It rang again before he could move. He ignored it, letting the machine pick up. One irate call from Carla was enough.
The machine was in the hallway. Max passed it as beep sounded and the caller began to speak. It wasn’t Carla. It was someone else, a woman with a soft southern accent.
“Jed? Hi, it’s Olivia. Are you avoiding me now? I tried your cell, and then your brother again. Your sister-in-law gave me this number. I don’t know who I’m even calling. Is this where you live now?”
After a long pause, she continued.
“Listen, Jed, I’m calling…. God, I don’t know. I’m calling to make sure you got home okay. I’m sorry about what happened before you left. Sometimes I find it so hard to separate you from Paul. You were so close, and I know how much he loved you.
“Look, I’m sorry, okay? Don’t be a stranger. We love you, and I want you in our lives as much as you’ll have us. Take care, Jed.”
The machine clicked off, and Max found he’d frozen in the hallway. Pieces of a distant puzzle slid into place. Paul. The memorial service must have been for him. Jed said he was a friend, but something about the anguish in the mysterious woman’s voice suggested there was far more to it.
Max shook himself and continued on his path to the kitchen. Jed hadn’t touched the tea from the night before, so he busied himself making some more. When the kettle had boiled, he carried two mugs into Jed’s room.
Jed was still asleep on his side with his back to the window. He hadn’t moved at all. Max set the mugs down. He considered taking his own and slipping away, but Jed stirred before he could move.
Once again, Max noticed the wince in Jed’s expression as he came awake. He knelt on the bed, his nerves forgotten, and helped him sit up. “Okay?”
Jed scrubbed his hands over his face and took a deep, shaky breath. “Yeah, I think so.” He paused and looked down at himself. “I’m pretty fucking naked, though.”
Max grinned, relieved that Jed seemed to be back to some semblance of his normal self. “That you are. I put the water heater back on. Want a shower?”
Jed nodded slowly and held out his hand. “Come with me?”
STEAMFILLEDthe bathroom. Jed pushed Max against the tiles and kissed him, paying no heed to the cascading spray of water between them. They were both hard, but Max knew a repeat of the previous night was out of the question. Jed had needed something then, something deep rooted and all consuming, but it didn’t take a genius to work out he was a natural top.
That suited Max fine, but it went unsaid that Jed wasn’t going to be fucking him anytime soon. He seemed caught at a crossroads, and Max knew he had to wait for him to choose the right path.
Jed broke the kiss, bowed his head, and closed his eyes. Max ran a cautious hand down the length of his water-slicked bare back, coming to rest at the base of his spine. “Sore?”
“Nothing hurts when you do that.”
Max grinned, but he wasn’t convinced. “Anything I can do to help?”
“Not unless you want to procure me a new body.”
“You can have mine.” Max pressed his lips absently to the uneven skin on Jed’s scarred shoulder. “But I want your sense of equilibrium in return.”
Jed raised his head and smiled a smile that was faintly sardonic. “Be careful what you wish for. Mine doesn’t feel so hot today.”
“Temporary glitch,” Max said lightly. “Mine’s totally fucked.”
They stayed under the water until it ran cold. No other words were spoken, but none were needed. Jed’s gentle touch and warm lips were enough to let Max know the most incredible sex of his life had been real.
He left Jed in the bathroom and retrieved his clothes from the bedroom floor for the second time that day. He met Jed in the hallway. Jed was dressed, but one look at him, an arm braced against the wall and his face drained of color, told Max he was in no state to do anything but fall back into bed.
Alarmed, Max put a steadying hand at the base of Jed’s spine. “What’s wrong?”
“Nothing.”