Page 122 of Body Check

“No, I’m not,” Gavin agreed. “And I’m working on not being the person I was even a few months ago.”

“So let’s change together. Let’s grow together.”

“Let’s.” Gavin smiled because that was all he’d wanted. A partner. Someone to learn with and grow with.

And he wondered if that was where he’d gone wrong with his brother. If maybe his desire to learn and grow and change had inadvertently left Thad behind, when it should have been something they’d done together.

If he’d talked to his brother and tried to help him understand he wasn’t trying to let go of him, only to find himself, find his own identity, might things have gone differently? Might they have been able to navigate it all together, instead of being constantly at odds?

“You look sad all of a sudden,” Dakota whispered, cupping his cheek, stroking his thumb against Gavin’s whiskers in a way that made Gavin shiver.

Gavin focused on Dakota’s eyes, the ones that looked at him so softly, so worriedly. “Wistful, maybe,” he admitted.

“Do you want to talk about it?”

“Not right now, but I’ll tell you later.”

“Okay.”

It seemed to be as simple as that for Dakota to accept his word. As uncomplicated. And maybe it could be. With secrets out of the way, with honesty and trust at the forefront, maybe they could have the kind of relationship Gavin had always wanted.

He kissed Dakota again, more than a brief brush of their lips together this time. Instead, it was slow and deep. He tasted a faint remnant of mint on Dakota’s tongue as Dakota opened to him.

They’d burned so hot and hard at first, but this was softer, gentler.

“Gavin,” Dakota whispered, sliding a hand across Gavin’s shoulders and making him shiver when his blunt nails skated over the sensitive spot at the base of Gavin’s neck.

“Dakota,” Gavin whispered, suddenly emotional, suddenly needing him to know how much he felt for him. How much he wanted him.

Not for a quick tumble in bed or a thrilling hookup. But something deeper. Something more meaningful, something longer lasting.

Gavin had never been the kind of man who thought in terms of forever.

Life, hockey … they were fickle. They gave and they took, and they never stayed the same. And wasn’t that what he’d always loved about both? Wasn’t that what filled him with the fire to wake up every morning and dive deep, negotiate deals, battle for everything they could give him?

But maybe foreverwasn’tso impossible with the right person.

Maybe it was within reach, if he took a moment to slow down, to appreciate what he had right here in front of him. Maybe if he took the time to nurture the relationship, to build it with the kind of stable foundation that would allow it to last.

Maybe he could finally take a deep breath and allow himself to trust that whatever came, he was with someone who wanted what he did.

Who would want that forever too.

Gavin whispered Dakota’s name, then reached down and gripped Dakota’s hips, coaxing him to slide forward until their cocks pressed together. Neither of them were hard yet, but oh, he didn’t think it would take long.

“Shouldn’t we be getting ready for work?” Dakota asked, smiling now.

“Mmm, I had something else in mind,” Gavin admitted.

“Like what?” Dakota asked with a lift of his eyebrow, that smile still playing at his lips.

“How about we get you out of these clothes to start with,” Gavin said teasingly, tugging at Dakota’s shirt.

Dakota reached behind his head and tugged the shirt off, dropping it onto the floor beside the bed. “Better?”

“Much.” Gavin reached out, running his palms along Dakota’s lean, muscular chest. His skin was soft, though goosebumps broke out everywhere he touched.

When they were naked and stretched out on the bed on their sides, Gavin leaned in and kissed him again. He feathered hislips across Dakota’s, sliding closer, tangling their bodies until they were pressed together from head to toe.

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