Read Haven 4: Back Roads for Free Online Page B

the shots. If he said no—and he could—Bannon would stop everything, and they’d go back to tap-dancing around each other. Bannon said the choice was his, and he believed the man meant it.
    How ironic that this was the first real, the first life-altering decision of his life that he could finally make for himself, and he still had no choice in the matter. “You suck.”
    “Aye, and ya can scream it from the rooftops.” Chuckling under his breath, Galen leaned away and cradled Bannon’s face in both hands, staring deep into his eyes. “I have two things I want to tell you. First, if I let you in and you break my heart, I’m going to kick your ass.”
    “Not to worry, darlin’. I’ll be takin’ good care of your heart.” Galen nodded curtly to show that he meant business. “The other thing could take a while, so you might as well get comfortable.”
    “Are ya trying to seduce me out of my clothes then, Galen?” Bannon smiled adorably, and Galen couldn’t help but mirror it.
    He kissed the tip of Bannon’s nose and sighed. “We’ll get to that part.”
    With a mock sigh, Bannon looked down at the prominent bulge trapped behind his zipper. “Can I hope your story is a short one?”
    “Absolutely.” He smirked as he released Bannon’s face and crawled up the bed to snuggle under the blankets. “Then you can spit in the other hand. You’ll let me know which fills up faster.”

Chapter Four
    After kicking off his boots and tugging his shirt over his head, Bannon stood and reached for the button of his jeans. Galen cleared his throat, though it sounded more like a mixture between a sigh and yelp.
    Pausing with his fingers still on his zipper, Bannon glanced up and grinned. “Ya said I should be makin’ myself comfortable. My cock bent up like a switchback is a might unpleasant.” He didn’t want to make Galen uncomfortable, but he wasn’t lying. His cock throbbed painfully inside the denim. If he didn’t get a little relief, he was looking at permanent damage to his favorite body part.
    Galen looked him up and down, and his pink tongue darted out to lick his lips and make them glisten in the amber light from the bedside lamp. “Fine, but the boxers stay on.”
    “What if I told ya that I’m not wearin’ any?” He was, of course, but he couldn’t help but tease the little man a bit. It had been a long time since he’d seen this more playful side of Galen. From the minute the M word cropped into their conversation, he had become reserved and twitchy. Not a good look for him as far as Bannon was concerned.
    As expected, Galen rolled his eyes and snorted while lifting the corner of the blanket. “Just get your ass in here.” Mostly naked and in bed with his mate—it was probably the easiest decision ever. Shedding his jeans, Bannon sighed in relief, and swore he heard his erection do the same as it uncurled and sprang forward to leak pre-cum against the front of his dark blue boxers.
    Glancing between the growing stain and Galen, he finally shrugged and hurried to slide under the covers. He didn’t want to rock the boat when it appeared the guy was finally starting to loosen up, but there wasn’t much he could do about his body’s reaction to his mate.
    He scooted as close as he dared, stopping just before his raging hard-on could poke Galen in the belly, and levered himself up on one elbow, resting his head in his palm. It wasn’t easy, but he managed to control his breathing so that his words came out a hell of a lot steadier than he felt. “We’re here. Now, tell me what needs tellin’.” Galen ducked his head and chewed on his bottom lip. “Can you move closer?”
    Shit! “Uh, I’m not thinkin’ that’s a good idea.” His mate peeked up at him through those impossibly long lashes.
    “Please?”
    How was he supposed to say no to that, especially when it was exactly what he wanted as well? Rolling to his back, he curled his arm around Galen’s shoulders and urged him toward