Page 55 of Controlled Burn

He scoffed and gave me a disgusted look. “Told you all about his history, huh?” He spat out. “Just how long has this been going on?”

Damn, I’d hoped he wouldn’t ask that. But before I could say anything or explain, Caleb took a step forward. I had a lot I wanted to say to Robert, but I didn’t want to stop Caleb. He was worried about his dad seeing him as an adult, so the last thing I wanted to do was cut him off.

“We’ve been friends for a while, but how long has it been since it progressed to something more? Well, that’s really none of your business. What you do need to know is that as soon as it crossed that line into something more, your best friend”—he pointed angrily toward me—“the man you’re furious with, who did nothing wrong, insisted we had to tell you. So if you want to be mad at anyone, it should be me. I was the one who didn’t want to tell you a damn thing.”

“Rabbit, stop.” I wrapped one arm around his waist and pulled him back against me. “Don’t say anything you can’t take back.”

Robert stood there, glaring at us for a minute. Then he shook his head. “No, I won’t accept this. Caleb, I’ll talk to you about this later.” He looked directly at me and stared me in the eyes for a second before letting me know exactly how he felt. “And, Keith… fuck you.”

Then he stalked past us and jerked open the door, but instead of walking out, he paused before turning back around. “You know what? I’m taking that fucking lasagna. And not the little one.”

Then he marched back down the hall and came back with two of my pot holders carrying the massive pan of foil-covered lasagna that I’d intended for our dinner, going out the door without even looking our way.

Caleb

I watched as my dad stormed off. “That didn’t go well.”

Keith stepped up behind me and wrapped his arms around me. “I don’t know. He didn’t deck me, so it went better than I expected.”

I scoffed and let my head drop back against his chest. “I really thought we would talk this through, and he would see reason. Which was silly of me because I knew better. Leaving is exactly what he used to do when he and my mom would fight.”

“Was that often?” he asked, taking my hand and pulling me with him to the couch as he talked. “I knew Robert back then, but we weren’t really close until after their divorce had already happened.”

When we got to the great room, he sat down on one end of the couch and pulled me down into his lap. Other than our talk about him being a firefighter, I couldn’t remember the last time I’d sat in anyone’s lap, most likely my grandmother’s when I was a kid, but I wasn’t sure. Part of me thought it was childish and silly, but a much bigger part of me loved it. There was just something about sitting here like this with Keith wrapped around me that made what had just happened seem less horrible.

“Was it often?” A wry chuckle escaped my throat. “It was all the time. Mostly because my mom didn’t want him to be a firefighter. She kept pushing him to take a job at her father’s company, and he didn’t want to. But over other things, as well. My mom is… difficult. Don’t get me wrong, I love her, but no part of me wanted to stay in San Antonio after I graduated.”

“He loves you, Rabbit. He was so glad you moved here after college.”

“I almost didn’t. I had this idea that maybe what I needed was a clean break from both of them, but librarian jobs aren’t that easy to come by, believe it or not, and the timing of this job worked out perfectly.”

He placed a kiss on my temple. “Well, I, for one, am very glad you took the job.”

“Me, too. Now, what are we going to eat since my dad took the lasagna?”

“He took the big one, but the smaller one that I made to send home with him should be enough for us tonight.”

“I’m sorry he reacted that way. I know you guys are close, and I hate to think that us being together might damage your friendship.”

He gave me a reassuring squeeze. “Don’t you worry about my relationship with your father. We’ll either be fine or we won’t, but none of that is on you. I went into this thing between us with my eyes wide open, and I knew he might not be okay with it, but I decided being with you was worth the risk.”

“And do you still think so after seeing how he reacted?” I asked, trying hard not to sound even half as worried as I was.

“Absolutely.”

I knew how close he and my dad were, and the idea that he thought being with me was worth risking that relationship was both overwhelming and reassuring at the same time.

I bit down on my bottom lip, wondering if it was okay to ask for what I wanted. I was still learning the rules and figuring out what was expected of me as Keith’s boy. He reached up, pulled my lower lip from between my teeth, and gently kissed it.

“What’s going on in that brain of yours, Rabbit?”

“Just how hungry are you?”

He looked at me, brows furrowed. “Normal amount, I guess. Why?”

I slipped my hand under his t-shirt and up the sexy patch of hair on his chest. “Cause I was thinking maybe dinner could wait a little while if you weren’t starving or anything.”

He cupped my face in his hands, looking into my eyes with an intensity that made me shiver.