“Hey.” Frank took hold of Joshua’s chin and turned his face so their eyes could meet. Despite the sadness in Joshua’s heart, he couldn’t help his soft laugh at Frank’s half-clean, half-foamed face, which promptly broke into a smile at Joshua’s laugh. He tapped a finger to his foamed cheek and plopped a dollop of the cream on the tip of Joshua’s nose. “I’m okay. It was a terrifying time for me, and for a long time, I had nightmares I was still that scared teen out on the streets. Now when I look back, it serves as a reminder not to take anything for granted, and to never stop doing what I can to help those youth who are in the same position I was then.”
“You’re an amazing man,” Joshua said, coming to stand behind Frank and wrapping his arms around him. He let his head rest against Frank’s back.
“I’m not. I’m just a regular guy who doesn’t always get it right but is trying.”
“Can I ask you a question?” Joshua could stand here all day watching Frank shave.
“Of course.”
“Why a hummingbird?”
Frank’s smile turned wistful. “It was a nickname. When I was little, I was a tiny thing, so much smaller than other boys my age, and I had so much energy. I never seemed to stop, always zooming from one place to another. My sister used to laugh and call me a hummingbird. It became her nickname for me.”
“What happened to her?” Joshua asked softly, his heart breaking at the sadness that filled Frank’s eyes.
Frank finished shaving, washed his face, and patted it dry. He turned in Joshua’s arms. “Are you sure you want to hear this?”
Joshua nodded. “But only if you want to share it with me.”
“My mother reached out to me only once after I was kicked out, and it was to tell me my sister was dead. During a night out with friends, she was jumped in the parking lot and raped. My mother told me she agreed with the detective that if my sister hadn’t been dressed the way she was, maybe it wouldn’t have happened. My sister ended up taking her own life.” He frowned and stared down at his razor. “I know there’s nothing I could have done. My parents had done their best to turn her against me. They cut me out of their lives completely, like I never existed, but I still wish I could have been there for her. To let her know it wasn’t her fault. In my mind, she’ll always be the loving big sister I looked up to who called me hummingbird.”
Joshua placed his hand on Frank’s arm, tears stinging the back of his eyes. “I’m so sorry, Frank.”
Frank turned and kissed him, a slow, languid kiss, like they had all the time in the world. Or at least it seemed so until Joshua’s stomach rumbled.
“Oh my God, I’m so sorry.” Mortified, Joshua let his head fall against Frank’s chest.
Frank pulled back with a chuckle. “How about some breakfast? Then I can give you a tour of the house.”
“Sounds great.” He looked down at himself. “I should probably find my clothes.”
“Or you can borrow a pair of yoga pants and a T-shirt.” Frank hummed as he leaned in to kiss Joshua again. “I like the idea of you in one of my shirts.”
Joshua could barely control his grin. “Okay.” He happily accepted the pants and shirt, and although both were a bit baggy and long on him, it wasn’t too bad. They were super soft and so comfortable. After they dressed, Joshua followed Frank out into what looked like the formal dining room, and beyond that the kitchen.
“Your house is amazing.” It was all high ceilings and big windows that filled the place with sunlight. The kitchen was huge with dark wood cabinets, black marble countertops, and stainless-steel appliances. The sleek industrial style continued with the three large pendant lights that hung from the ceiling over the island counter. “What can I do to help?”
“Grab me the eggs, bacon, and fruit bowl from the fridge. Do you like French toast?”
“I love French toast.”
“Perfect. You can help me make it.”
Together they worked around the kitchen. Joshua prepared the egg, vanilla, and cinnamon mix for the brioche. He plucked a blueberry out of the fruit bowl, receiving a playful smack on the hand that made him laugh.
“Keep your grabby hands off my berries.”
“But I like your berries,” Joshua replied, waggling his eyebrows.
“Ooh, you’re trouble.” Frank dipped two slices of brioche in the mix and placed them in the frying pan. He pointed behind Joshua. “Can you grab me that.”
Like a dork, Joshua turned. “What?”
“Never mind,” Frank said through a mouthful of something.
“You sneaky sneak! You totally stole some bacon, didn’t you?”
Frank shook his head. “I don’t know what you’re talking about. You left the fridge door open, by the way.”
“I did not.” Joshua laughed when Frank tried and failed several times to get him to turn around, including taking hold of his shoulder and physically turning him to point out the view from the living room window, which was beautiful. “Put the bacon down, Frank.”
Crunch.
“Working around Ace has you hearing things,” Frank replied with a snicker.
“He’s also a bacon thief.” Joshua turned around and plucked a blueberry out of the bowl. He tossed it and opened his mouth to catch it, only to have Frank swipe it out of the air and pop it into his mouth. Joshua gasped. “You stole my blueberry!”
“I did,” Frank said with a chuckle as he slipped the last piece of French toast onto the plate. “And it was delicious. Probably the best blueberry I have ever tasted. There will never be another blueberry like it.”
Joshua barked out a laugh, then shook his head. He helped Frank take their bounty of breakfast goodness to the smaller dining room table at the end of the kitchen. They served themselves coffee, and Frank brought over a carafe of freshly squeezed orange juice. Joshua ate his weight in French toast topped with berries and gooey syrup. He couldn’t remember the last time he had this much fun at breakfast. Anyone who knew Frank saw him as this scary, serious guy, but in truth, he was just observant, quiet. How many people outside of Joshua knew Frank had this lighter side to him? Possibly Colton, who’d known Frank for years, and no doubt Frank’s best friend, Val.
Once they’d cleaned up breakfast, Frank took him on a tour of the house as promised. It was a two-story five-bedroom house with one of the bedrooms converted into a home office, another into a home gym. The two upstairs bedrooms remained guest rooms, along with a small sitting room and two bathrooms. The place was massive. Not as big as Colton’s mansion, but still huge. They stepped through the sliding glass doors in the living room and out onto the patio. Although not on the beach, it had a breathtaking view of the river. All kinds of trees and flowers grew around the property, all expertly taken care of.
“You have a jacuzzi?”
“Yep. Want to take a dip?”
“Oh my God, yes!”
Frank started stripping, and Joshua gaped at him. “What? There’s no one around us. Plus, there’s a shitload of trees and a fence. We’re good.”
“Okay.” Joshua didn’t need to be told twice. He stripped where he stood and followed Frank in. The water was hot, but not so much it was unbearable. He sat and groaned as the jets massaged his back. “This is nice.”