Michigan Read online

  Lucas turned and hurried back to the front door, opened it and stepped out. The delivery guy still stood on the walkway up to the porch, his gaze trained on the house, though Michigan’s brothers had finally moved on. Lucas wanted to be relieved about that but he’d gotten a feel for the Sevion brothers and while they were all sophisticated, educated doctors, they still gossiped like a group of old women. He gave the delivery guy a wobbly smile and held out the fifty-dollar bill to him.

  “Here you go.” The younger guy assented and accepted the money from Lucas, his eyes darting back to the front door. Lucas realized then that the constant glances towards the door from—Lucas looked at the name stitched on the young man’s shirt—Nico, weren’t because he was afraid of seeing Michigan nude again, they were because he wanted to see Michigan naked again. Son of a bitch, Michigan was right. Lucas took the food from Nico and gave him a tight smile. Giving in to the bitchy voice inside of him, Lucas tossed his hair over his shoulder and chuckled softly.

  “I’m sorry about that whole thing with me and my partner. He gets like that when I have to work at the restaurant all day while he’s at the hospital, and we go too long without seeing each other.” He shook his head, going for the whole exasperated recipient of an attentive lover thing. “You know how it is.”

  Nico’s face showed disappointment on hearing that Michigan was taken and he acquiesced. He held up the money in his hand. “Let me get you your change.”

  Lucas shook his head. “Don’t worry about it. I’m sure Mich would want you to keep the change as a tip. Especially with the whole giving you a free ticket to a live porno. You just hold on to that change and make sure you don’t tell anyone about how… talented my doctor is.” He winked at Nico.

  “Y-yes sir. I won’t. Thank you. Have a good night,” Nico stammered. His eyes lifted and he waved. “Goodnight Doctor Sevion.”

  Lucas froze and slowly turned. Leaning against the doorjamb of his front door was Michigan, giving him a smug look. He didn’t even glance in Nico’s direction as he waved back. He lifted a hand, crooked a finger at Lucas and gestured for him to come back to the house. Lucas wanted to do anything except go into the house with Michigan, but after everything he’d just finished saying to Nico it would look weird if Lucas dropped all of the food and ran.

  “Goodnight Nico,” Michigan called out, his voice husky as Lucas walked up the steps and stopped in front of him. He lowered his head and skimmed his nose up the side of Lucas’s neck. “Your partner, huh?”

  Lucas trembled and let out a choked whimper. “I-I didn’t mean it. I was j-j-j—”

  “Jealous?” Michigan supplied.

  Lucas shook his head, his mind fuzzy as lust poured through his veins. How was he supposed to have a conversation with Michigan with the man touching him? It was impossible to do so. Clenching his hands around the food he held in his hands, Lucas took a steadying breath and stepped back. “N-no. I wasn’t jealous. I was just trying to let him know that he didn’t have a chance with you, because…” Shit. He was jealous. While he and Michigan weren’t officially together, Lucas had definitely felt a connection to the broad-shouldered, handsome doctor. He didn’t want anyone else thinking they had a chance with him. Until Lucas made a complete ass of himself and Michigan decided he didn’t want him anymore, or until Lucas discovered exactly how deep the crazy ran in Michigan and his family, Michigan was his.

  The possessiveness he felt was strange and foreign to him. Lucas didn’t know what to do with the intense emotion streaking through his veins. He was a proud bottom. He loved to be fucked and fucked hard, but in that moment he wanted to take a more dominant role. He wanted to push Michigan against the door and… bite him.

  Giving himself a firm, if mental, talking to, Lucas lifted the food and gestured towards the house. “Should we go inside and eat before the food gets cold?” he asked trying to divert Michigan’s attention back to the purpose of the evening.

  Michigan smirked at him and agreed. “Sounds like a good idea.” Michigan swept a hand out, indicating that Lucas should precede him inside and with a nod in the man’s direction, Lucas did just that. He walked towards where he thought the kitchen lay, feeling Michigan’s presence pressing against his back like a warm coat, subtly directing him. He moaned low in the back of his throat then cleared it to disguise the sound.

  “Are you okay?” Michigan asked and his voice sounded amused to Lucas as if he knew that Lucas was having a hard time dealing with the lust that had taken his senses hostage.

  Lucas nodded. “Yeah, I’m just really hungry,” he lied. He jumped slightly at the feel of Michigan’s large hands on his shoulders turning him towards the kitchen. Stepping inside the room Lucas’s mouth dropped open at the sight of the gorgeous kitchen. “Oh my god,” he breathed.

  “You like it?” Michigan asked from behind him. Lucas looked over his shoulder at the man before turning his attention back to the immaculately designed kitchen.

  “I love it. This is like a chef’s dream,” he said softly. Walking forward he placed the food on the center island and trailed his fingers along the dark green marble countertop. His eyes took in the appearance of the black appliances, thankful that Michigan had opted against buying stainless steel. What a bitch they’d be to clean. Every fingerprint and smudge could be seen on the gleaming silver.

  Lucas walked around, his touch a whisper against all of the expensive appliances. From the double oven to the six burner stove, Lucas could imagine himself cooking a number of amazing meals in that room and serving them to Michigan, his family, and Lucas’s friends. Jerking his hand back from the Keurig coffeemaker, Lucas took a shuddering breath. He was getting way ahead of himself. Imagining himself cooking in Michigan’s home? Like they really were partners? What the fuck was wrong with him?

  He spun around and found Michigan standing precariously close to him. He looked up into the man’s hazel eyes and his heart leapt. What was it about this man that made Lucas feel both nervous and confident all at the same time? Lucas couldn’t remember ever having experienced anything like it before and it freaked him out.

  “Let’s eat,” Michigan said softly, taking Lucas’s hand and leading him over to the small breakfast nook in the corner of the room. He pulled out Lucas’s chair and waited for him to sit before pushing the seat in. Lucas stared at the white lace tablecloth as Michigan stepped away to grab the food and plates. He could hear the sound of the cabinet doors opening and closing behind him and he barely resisted the urge to turn and watch the play of muscles in Michigan’s back as the man moved around the room.

  While Michigan had gotten dressed, he wasn’t completely clothed. His chest was bare and he wore a pair of low-slung gray sweatpants that did not disguise the large half-hard cock between his legs. The hair on Michigan’s chest had captured Lucas’s attention and he’d barely stopped himself from leaning forward to root around through the thick, silky forest of black and gray curls to find Michigan’s nipples and suck them in between his lips.

  I am so fucked. How the hell am I supposed to be confident and smooth when all I want to do is strip off all of my clothes and lay down on top of this table and beg for him to fuck me until I pass out?

  “Here you go,” Michigan’s voice so close to Lucas’s ear caused him to shiver. He lifted his hands and accepted the plate loaded down with food. He gave Michigan a smile and whispered a thank you. “What can I get you to drink? I have Heineken, Sam Adams, Hennessy, Grey Goose, juice, water, milk, or Kool-Aid. Strawberry flavored.”

  Lucas coughed as Michigan listed the different items and spun around in his seat to stare at him. “You have Kool-Aid? Why?” He asked.

  Michigan laughed as he opened the refrigerator door. “Because of Isaiah. I mean, he’s my nephew now, right? And Nimo doesn’t let him drink the stuff, so I figure it’s my job as his uncle to give it to him.”

  Lucas snorted. “It sounds like you’re trying to suck up.”

  Michigan nodded. “You’re damn right I
am. I want to be that kid’s favorite unchi.”

  Lucas’s brow furrowed at the foreign word. “Unchi is uncle?”

  Michigan bobbed his head. “Yes, in Romanian.”

  “Do you speak a lot of Romanian?” Lucas asked.

  Michigan shrugged. “Not as much as Arizona, but growing up my parents would talk to us in Romanian. Not all the time but enough so that we knew the language and it kept us connected with our heritage.”

  “That must be so cool,” Lucas said. “To be so proud of your culture.”

  “Well, where were your ancestors from?” Michigan asked gesturing once more to the refrigerator.

  “Sam Adams,” Lucas told him then shrugged in confusion. “I have no idea. My parents didn’t talk about that stuff when I was a kid. They always spoke English to me and there were no major cultural mementos around the trailer, you know?”

  “How old were you when you lost them?” Michigan asked as he walked back towards the table holding a bottle of Sam Adams for Lucas and a Heineken for himself. Lucas couldn’t remember if he’d told the man about his parents being dead, but he shrugged it off. Obviously he had.

  “I was eight,” he said, swallowing the lump that rose in his throat. “I can’t even really remember what they looked like anymore, but I can remember my mom’s laugh and my father’s voice.” He shook his head. “It’s so strange, the human brain, how it can retain some information and then cast aside other bits.”

  Michigan nodded. “What happened to them?”

  Screams. Sobs. Walking into the trailer and seeing the blood and the lifeless eyes staring up at him.

  “They were murdered.” Lucas began peeling off the label on his bottle, hoping that Michigan didn’t notice the slight tremble in his hand. “They owed this guy some money and he showed up and killed them.”

  Michigan’s hand came across the table to touch the back of Lucas’s stopping his mindless fidgeting. “I’m really sorry, Lucas.”

  Lucas swallowed the tears that threatened and glanced up at Michigan’s face. “Thanks. It was a long time ago, though.”

  “Doesn’t mean that it doesn’t still hurt.” Michigan pointed out. “Losing your parents, especially at such a young age is hard and that pain isn’t going to go away for a while.”

  Lucas’s gaze blurred and when he blinked, hot tears rolled down his cheeks. He let out a choked laugh as they continued to fall. “I’m sorry,” he gasped out as he lifted his hands to wipe his eyes. No matter how much he tried to stop himself from crying, the tight viselike grip that grief held on his heart wouldn’t let go. A sharp, piercing pain streaked across his chest and he lowered a hand to rub at his sternum.

  “I don’t know why I can’t stop crying,” he admitted, looking to Michigan for… what? Comfort? Help? Was he expecting Michigan to tell him to get over it like the kids in the group home had done? Or maybe to tell him that he’d grieved long enough and it was time to move on, like his social worker had advised him.

  Whatever reaction he thought he was going to get from Michigan, it wasn’t the man rising from his chair and walking around the table towards him. Michigan bent down, slid one hand behind Lucas’s back, the other beneath his legs and lifted him into his arms. Lucas wrapped his arms around Michigan’s neck and sobbed harshly as they moved through the kitchen into another room.

  Michigan sat down with Lucas in his lap and Lucas pressed himself closer as he allowed the pain of losing his parents to flow through him. Michigan didn’t say anything, he merely ran his hand over Lucas’s hair and held him close. Lucas couldn’t recall a time when someone had been so attentive and just allowed him to feel.

  Once his tears abated, Lucas sniffled and opened his eyes. He looked up at Michigan and saw nothing but compassion, concern and caring in the man’s gaze. I could deal with those CCs. Lucas chuckled mentally at his own corny joke and gave Michigan a grateful smile.

  “Thanks. I guess I sort of ruined dinner, huh?”

  Michigan shook his head. “Not at all. I asked the question. Besides, I told you I wanted to get to know you better. That’s the bad, the ugly, the flawed, the imperfect, the annoying, and the downright stupid as well as the good and the perfect.” He sighed and leaned back against the cushions of the sofa. Lucas watched him, waiting for the rest of what he was going to say. He didn’t know how he knew, but he could just tell that there was more that Michigan wanted to say. He was proved right when Michigan opened and closed his mouth a few times before he continued.

  “People think that relationships are all kissing, cuddling, having sex, getting married, houses, cars, and having a family. I mean, they can be those things too, but it’s sticking around when you want to run away. When the fire is literally burning your ass. It’s fighting the monsters that would tear you apart. It’s helping your partner to fight their internal monsters when they get tired until you have to back off, knowing where that line is. It’s being trustworthy enough, proving yourself to your partner that they can expose all of the fucked up, dirty, things that have happened to them or that they’ve done. It’s sticking around when your partner exposes all that shit to you then not turning away from them because the shit stinks.” He sighed and smiled at Lucas with a sheepish grin. “At least that’s what I think.”

  Lucas leaned up and pressed his lips against Michigan’s. It wasn’t as fiery as the kiss they’d shared at the door, but it was still passionate. Much more than that, this kiss was filled with a sort of heartbreaking sweetness that made Lucas’s lips tingle where they pushed against Michigan’s.

  He lifted his head and ran his fingers through Michigan’s hair. “I completely agree with you.”

  “I like the way you show that you agree with something.” Michigan chuckled. He sobered quickly and narrowed his eyes at Lucas. “Unless you show that sort of cordiality with everyone?”

  Lucas laughed and turned his head to look at the television. Seeing the images on the screen he sat up quickly, happiness spearing through him and making him clap his hands. “You like Torchwood too? This is awesome!”

  CHAPTER NINE

  The next night Michigan was still confused. While it wasn’t a perfect date, he’d gotten a chance to make out with Lucas, learned a lot about the little chef, and they’d spent hours together. He definitely knew they were getting closer and while Michigan’s throat was starting to get scratchy and dry, the beginning of the thirst setting in, he was confident that he and Lucas would end up completing the bond before time ran out for him.

  He just didn’t know how he ended up watching three episodes of Torchwood then buying all four seasons on Amazon and agreeing to go to Comic-Con with Lucas and his friends, dressed as Captain Jack Harkness. Not even the thought of Lucas being dressed as Ianto Jones, who was apparently Jack’s love interest on the show, could fully help with the confusion. Michigan wasn’t really into the whole sci-fi, nerdy, fandom stuff. He watched television, yes. But it was mostly sports, home improvement shows, Crisis and Modern Family, but no one knew about that.

  No one.

  He was pretty sure that when he and Lucas completed their bond and moved in with each other, he would have to sneak off to watch those two shows. Michigan had an image to uphold and while Crisis wasn’t so bad, Modern Family did not help to promote his whole biker-leather-wearing-devil-may-care persona. And watching Torchwood would blow that whole image to smithereens. So the fact that he had not only bought all four seasons but proceeded to stay up long after Lucas had left to go home, just to watch episodes of the show online and On Demand, was really not something he wanted anyone to know. His sufletul pereche was changing him. And he liked it.

  It was confusing as fuck.

  Wiping the sweat from his brow, Michigan lifted his hammer and brought it down hard against the wall in front of him. He could hear the rest of his demolition team in other parts of the house taking apart walls, cabinets, tearing up floors, and removing carpet. Michigan had finished closing on the house he was standing in two weeks prior
and after having a contractor and an architect come out, the three of them had designed a new layout for the home. Michigan had hired Loweston Demolition and Renovation to come and work, just like he always did, because they let him get involved with the demo. When Lucas had let him know that he had to work that night, Michigan had decided to come out and work on the house.

  He smiled when one of the guys turned on the radio and Celia Cruz came on. Swaying his hips to the salsa music that filled the house, Michigan almost didn’t hear his phone ring.