Page 112 of Kane's Awakening
“Hey, man,” Zack greeted me as I went to the front desk to check in. “Everything good?”
“Yeah. Just got off work.”
“Cool. Enjoy your workout,” he said, handing me a towel.
Since the run-in with Devon over a month earlier, he hadn’t returned to the gym. Guess my right-hook to the jaw came across loud and clear and he’d gotten the message not to fuck with me. I got the feeling maybe Zack had said something to him, too. He didn’t tolerate that shit in his gym.
After the workout, I decided to shower there before heading home. In the shower, a dude I recognized came in and stripped down.
Shit. It was the twink I’d banged back in January.
He looked at me, and I nodded in acknowledgement, not wanting to blow him off.
After cutting his eyes at me and giving me the most obviousfuck youexpression, he turned around, which gave me a perfect view of his naked ass. The view didn’t do anything for me, though. My dick remained soft and kept to himself.
As I stared down my past, I couldn’t help but feel thankful I wasn’t that same guy anymore; a guy who used people to get what he wanted and tossed them away once he finished. That was a person I never wanted to be again.
I didn’t miss my slutty days at all, and it wasn’t until that moment when I realized how far I’d actually come in the past few months.
Being with Ryker meant more than a few minutes of getting off with a damn stranger. I wouldn’t throw away what I had with him for anything.
I loved him. And the next time I saw him, I’d finally say the words.
Leaving the gym, I felt more upbeat than when I’d arrived. Happier. Crazy how I could have such a mind-altering moment in a shower.
Weeks had passed since Ryker had said he loved me, and the subject had been dropped since then, but I was finally ready to say it back because I realized nothing mattered more than him. My fear about the words being some kind of curse on our relationship was bullshit. If anything, it would only bring us closer.
Over the weeks, I’d seen his kids a few more times as well. When Anna invited Ryker over to dinner throughout the week, she’d invited me, too.
Theo never left my side when I was over, and I brought over one of my footballs one time and played catch with him. He’d been shy at first, not wanting to screw up, but I helped encourage him and showed him the best way to throw the ball—lining your fingers with the thread—and how to catch it. Once he nailed a spiral throw, his face had lit up like the sun, and I’d felt pride for him.
Isabella also warmed up to me. She still liked playing pranks on me—like a whoopee cushion in my chair before dinner—but Ryker said it was her way of bonding, so I went with it. She was a funny kid.
Little girls were usually all sweet and wanted to play with dolls, but Isabella was more like me at that age, constantly getting into trouble and being mischievous.
I hadn’t really realized how much I wanted to be a dad, until I was with the twins. Ryker had given me a glimpse of a life I never thought possible, and I wanted to hold onto it—and him—with all the strength I had.
Confessing my love to Ryker would be a huge step for me. But it was a risk I was willing to take.
For him.
***
Hours later, I was on the couch with Molly, playing a game on Xbox, when there was a knock on the door. She sat up and looked that way, her ears pointed. I scratched her head before standing up. My heart warmed as I went to answer it.
It had to be Ryker. He was the only person who ever came by my house.
I was wrong.
Opening the door, I froze. That shock turned to anger, though, and my hand gripped the door tighter.
“What the fuck are you doing here?” I growled into Devon’s face. “And how the fuck do you know where I live?”
“Can I come in, please?” he asked in a broken voice. Tears welled in his eyes and his messy hair was stuck out in different directions—the way it used to look after we’d fucked. When I went to slam the door in his face, he slapped his hand on the wood to stop it. “Kane, I need you. Please. I don’t know what the hell to do.”
“Look, Dev, I don’t know what happened, but why in the fuck would you think I cared?” I asked, sneering at him. “I’m the last person you should be comin’ to with your damn issues.”
Molly came over and started growling at the door, and I shooed her back, more for her benefit than for his. If she bit his evil ass and he pressed charges, it could come back and hurt her. And then I’d have to kill him.
