Tenner’s come saturated his taste buds, and his entire world was this moment, bound together with this surprising man.
Ross had to do this again.
“Oh shit,” Tenner mumbled. “Hell. I’ve got to go.”
“That’s disappointing,” Ross said, taking a deep breath before grabbing his condom at the base of his cock and pulling out. “I was sort of hoping for a beer or something afterwards.”
“Oh my God.” Tenner leaned his head against the cinderblock. “I have a daughter!”
“That’s so cool! Where’s she at?”
“Oh shit oh shit oh shit.” Ross had stepped back to tie off the condom and throw it in the trash can right by the closed door, while Tenner was using the space to scramble into his pants. He adjusted himself very carefully and then tucked in his shirt, like the tightass he was, and zipped up.
“You okay there, Tenner?”
“I have to go pick her up!” Tenner practically wailed. “I’m sorry—” He paused in the act of grabbing his equipment bag and slinging it over his shoulder. “I… I don’t usually do this sort of thing. Is there… is there, like, protocol or—”
“Buddy, hold up,” Ross said gently. He turned Tenner toward him and wiped his lips off and straightened his hair. Keeping one hand on Tenner’s stomach, he did a quick squat and scoop and came back with Tenner’s hat, which he placed on his head at the exact angle Tenner had worn it all night. “You’re not too late. That took us, what? Eight minutes? Nobody will ever know.”
Tenner’s mouth parted a little as Ross straightened him up, and the look in his eyes was so yearning, so vulnerable, Ross wanted him all over again.
But not against a cinderblock bathroom alcove—in a real bed, like grown-ups, with sunlight and everything. Tenner’s stomach tightened under his hand, and Ross grimaced.
“Wait a minute. We gotta do that again.” He took off Tenner’s hat in spite of Tenner’s protests.
“We can’t do that again. I’ve got to—”
“You’ve got jizz on your shirt, Ten. Here.” He yanked his own shirt out of his pants and jerked it over his head. Tenner’s was bright Sunspot yellow, but Pat’s team was in a reasonably dignified indigo. Ross pulled the yellow one off, over Tenner’s head, before hauling the blue one on. Then he let Tenner tuck himself in while Ross dealt with the hat again. “There. No jizz. No one will ever know.”
Well, someone observant might, because Ross would bet that in the light, Tenner’s mouth was swollen from Ross’s kisses. But here in the dark, all Ross could see were the limpid brown eyes.
“You are… surprisingly sweet,” Tenner said with dignity. “I’m sorry. I’ve got to—” He started off down the baseball path, but Ross kept pace. “What are you doing?”
“I’m parked out this way too. Besides, I couldn’t just let you walk out here in the dark.”
He heard Tenner’s snort. “I am a grown-assed man.”
“And you are a tight-assed one too,” Ross said with a smirk. “But it’s not safe for anyone. See?” he said as they rounded the corner. Two vehicles were there—Ross’s Tahoe and Tenner’s little CR-V. Ross’s was fire-engine red, special order, because when he was in the States, he worked a lot of job sites off-road, and Tenner’s car was a more sedate white, but Ross had sort of figured that.
As they approached their cars, a security vehicle turned in and started a loop around the parking lot. They both trotted a little faster, and Tenner called out to him, “Hey, how will I get you your shirt back?”
Ross was still bare-chested, but he held Tenner’s yellow shirt in his hand.
“Don’t worry. I’ll find you!”
And then Tenner was taking off, Ross not far behind him.
Ross hadn’t missed the fact that Tenner and Ross’s brother-in-law were friends. It was time to have a little heart-to-heart with Patrick about the buddy he’d dragged to the game.
Never Too Late
“OH MY God, Tenner, how many games did you play?”
Tenner had a lot of practice keeping his temper. “I’m so sorry, Nina. The game went into extra innings. I promise, next time you’ll have more warning.”
Nina—petite and brunette with the angular features of a fashion model—rolled her green eyes. “Did you at least win?”
And Tenner couldn’t have stopped the smile if he’d tried. “Yes, yes, we did.” And I got an extra play for my pay.
“Well, you don’t need to come in. She’s been waiting.”
“Thank you again for letting me play. It’s been a while, and I had a blast.” He smiled again tentatively, hoping as he always did for some sort of truce. Détente. Peace. They’d survived the hard years together, hadn’t they? Piper in diapers, with colic, Nina still in school getting her business degree. Tenner remembered playing tag team, coming home from work and taking baby duty while Nina worked on papers. They’d both been sleep deprived in the 7-Eleven, on their last diaper. All this hostility now just seemed so… pointless.
“Well, I’m glad you’re happy,” she snapped. “I’ll be lucky if I can get to the restaurant on time.”
“Don’t let me stop you,” he said. “Piper, honey, you have all your stuff?”
“Coming, Daddy!” Piper charged through the door with two backpacks on her shoulder. “Sorry, I had to pack my dolls.”
Tenner caught her on her way out and hefted her up in his arms. She was almost too big, but not yet. “Look at you!” He grinned. “Did you grow?”
She grinned back, showcasing a missing tooth. “No, but look what happened!”
“The tooth monster came and stole your tooth!” he said, making his eyes big and wide. “Oh no, how could you let that happen?”
She giggled. “No, Daddy! I lost the tooth. My whole class is losing their front teeth. I’m the third to the last one.”
“Well, it’s a good thing it fell out, because that would have been horrible right there. How will we ever show our faces if you’re the last kid in the class without a hole in her mouth?”
Piper threw her head back, lost in a cloud of dark hair, and giggled. “It’s a tooth!” she squealed. “Not a hole!”
He winked. “Sure, sure, that’s what they tell you because they don’t want you to worry. Now go hop in your jump seat, and I’ll check your belt in a minute, okay?”
“Yes, Daddy.”
He rubbed noses with her and set her down, smiling tiredly as she ran. “She’s a great kid, Nina. I love her little outfit.” It was pink and frilly, and super expensive. He didn’t mind any of those things, but he didn’t tell Nina about the drawer full of basic shorts and jeans and T-shirts that Piper had picked out with him so they could do things like go on walks or go fishing or play in the dirt while she was with him. He dropped her off at school clean, in her mom-approved clothes, with her hair braided neatly, and Nina never had to know.
“So glad you approve,” Nina said, sounding surprised and a little pleased. “Don’t forget gymnastics.”