“Cocktease,” Ty accused in a low voice, and he moved closer, took Zane’s face in his hands, and kissed him.

Smiling against his lips, Zane hummed quietly and slid his arms around Ty, settling his hands at the small of his back. Ty continued the kiss for one more breath before pulling away. He turned and went to sit down on the end of the bed again to pull off his socks and continue getting ready for bed.

Sighing, Zane got out of his jeans and moved to sit near him on the side of the bed with the lamp. He pulled his feet up and leaned back against the headboard, propping his elbows on his knees and lacing his fingers together, his dark eyes riveted on Ty. He watched the muscles of his back move beneath the thin white shirt he wore, and he mentally cursed. They’d never been in a situation where they wanted to fuck and couldn’t. The only restrictions they’d ever encountered had been each other. This was a new and disconcerting feeling. Zane didn’t like having obstacles between himself and what he wanted.

“Stop it,” Ty warned without looking back at him, obviously knowing what he was pondering.

Zane smiled slightly. That just meant Ty was thinking the same thing. He could still hear the other members of the household moving about, preparing for bed. Until the house settled, they would need to at least pretend they wouldn’t jump each other at the first chance.

The lights on the landing were still on, and Ty stood to go turn them off and shut the bedroom door. He flicked off the light beside the door, throwing the room into temporary inky darkness. When Zane’s eyes began to adjust, he could see Ty still standing by the closed door. Zane smiled again. He hoped Ty remembered to wake up to do whatever he had planned, because Ty definitely had something in mind. Sex would be great, of course—it always was—but Zane would be happy to settle for simply holding him. Something about hearing Ty breathe, so calm and close, was reassuring in ways Zane didn’t examine too closely.

“Good night, Ty,” Zane murmured as he scooted under the sheet.

“Shut up,” Ty grumbled as he moved through the darkness toward the blankets on the floor.

IT WAS nearly pitch black outside when Ty finally got restless enough to sit up. He sat cross-legged on the cold floor, staring out the bedroom window for a long, dull moment before he pushed the blanket aside and stood. The cool air hit him and made him shiver all over as he looked down at Zane, asleep in the bed.

Ty stood looking over him in the faint light from the moon through the window. He looked older, worn thin and worried even in sleep. Tense. It was something Ty had tried for weeks to fix, trying to get Zane to just let go of the past and enjoy the present. But the more Zane had resisted, the less Ty had cared about trying to help him. He didn’t like where that left them, but he didn’t know how to change it. The only things they really seemed to be good at were getting into trouble or getting into each other.

Ty reached over and brushed his fingers against Zane’s cheek. His fingers had barely grazed skin when Zane reacted. He shot up and shoved hard with both hands, sending Ty back to the floor. Just as quickly, his hand was digging under the pillow, scrabbling for his gun. Ty hit the floor with a thump and immediately rolled to his side, covering his head and hoping Zane’s gun either wasn’t loaded or wasn’t there.

“Goddamnit,” Zane hissed when he didn’t find it, and he swiped at the bedside lamp, almost knocking it over and having to grab for it before fumbling to switch it on.

Ty was already shaking with silent laughter as he rolled onto his back. He looked up at the side of the bed in a mixture of relief and amusement.

Zane groaned and flopped back onto the bed, throwing his arm over his eyes. “I knew it was a good idea to leave my gun in my bag,” he muttered half into the pillow.

“I appreciate that,” Ty assured him in a whisper as he got to his knees and rested his elbows on the side of the bed. Rolling to his side, Zane squinted at him obstinately. “You didn’t want me to wake you?” Ty asked him with a knowing smile.

Zane relaxed onto his back, his eyes focusing as he looked at Ty. Ty smiled up at him, silent as he listened to make sure no one was coming to check on the noise. When he was convinced that everyone was still asleep, he climbed up onto the bed and lowered himself carefully to rest on his belly beside Zane. Zane threw the covers over him.

“Thanks,” Ty whispered as he settled into the warmth. “I used to wake up swinging when I came home on leave,” he told Zane quietly after a moment. “Almost decked my mama once. Dad made me sleep in the garage the next night.”

“No wonder you don’t visit your family a lot.”

“Oh, a summer spent without being relegated to the garage was a summer wasted,” Ty told him fondly. “I don’t visit as much as I should,” he answered guiltily. “Since the Tri-State case I haven’t at all.”

“Is it weird for you? Me being here with you?” Zane asked softly.

“Yeah,” Ty answered with a small laugh. “I rarely bring anyone home with me,” he admitted. “If we had an extended leave and one of the boys couldn’t go home, I’d bring him with me. Maggie was the last one I brought home, though, and that’s been about five years,” he told Zane with a shake of his head.

“Maggie?” Zane’s voice was careful.

“Stray dog,” Ty answered with a look at Zane and a small smile. He knew he probably shouldn’t, but he still enjoyed those little hints that Zane might want him enough to be jealous. Zane merely nodded and smiled. “Try going downstairs to Grandpa’s bedroom, you’ll trip over her. Right before you meet the shovel,” Ty advised as he tried not to laugh at the thought of that damn shovel. Chester Grady woke at the drop of a feather and would whack you in the face with that thing first and then wait until morning when it was light to see who you were and if you needed an ambulance. They did not want to meet that shovel tonight.

Ty licked his lips and looked at Zane seriously again. “But as far as anyone… someone who wasn’t a stray, you’re about it.”

“I’m honored, then. I like your family. They’re absolutely nuts, but I like them,” Zane added.

“Well,” Ty said with a shrug of one shoulder, “with them, pretty much anything goes. If you stay away from religion, politics, and the designated hitter, you’re gonna get along fine.”

Zane chuckled and shifted uncomfortably, pulling the pillow slightly under his chest and tucking his hands under it. “How’s the floor treating you?” he asked.

Ty grinned and stretched toward the lamp to turn off the light. He waited a couple minutes in silence until he could see again in the darkness that followed and scooted closer to Zane. “I like it much better here,” he whispered.

Zane grunted in agreement, grasped Ty’s chin, and pulled him sideways into a soft kiss. Ty responded eagerly, shifting closer and sliding his hand over Zane’s waist to tug at him. He rolled until he had Zane under him, but his actions were gentler than they usually were—he was trying to keep the noise down. He knew his old bed was liable to creak and groan even if you weren’t being overly active.

Zane obviously sensed that he was trying to be quiet. He didn’t do anything that might be heard, keeping his hands under the pillow and leaving his mouth upturned to receive more kisses. Ty let his hands slide up Zane’s arms to his wrists; he pulled them free of the pillow and held him against the mattress, still kissing him slowly. Zane’s hands splayed as he stretched out his fingers, but he didn’t try to pull free. He chased Ty’s tongue with his own, drawing the kiss out. It was a disconcertingly tender moment, a rare thing for them.

It was long moments before Ty pushed himself up and looked down at Zane hesitantly.

“What, you having second thoughts now that I’m awake?” Zane prodded, dragging his wrists free of Ty’s fists so he could slide his hands down Ty’s back.

“Is it worth getting banged over the head with a shovel if we make too much noise?” Ty asked as he dug his foot between Zane’s legs and pushed them apart, settling between his thighs.

Zane moved his legs without resisting and bit back a snicker. “You’ve been banged both by that shovel and by me. Is it worth it?” he parroted as he squeezed Ty’s ass and slid one hand down the back of his thigh.

Ty grinned crookedly and began shaking his head. “Not really,” he answered dryly.

“I’ll risk it,” Zane said, grabbing the back of Ty’s neck and pulling him down for a harder kiss.

The bed creaked in warning with the rapid movement. Ty growled in frustration and pushed himself up, looking around the dim room briefly before he threw the blankets off them and tossed the pillows down to the floor. He grabbed Zane tightly and rolled them right off the bed, causing another muffled thud when they hit the floor. Thankfully, it was a low bed.

“Better,” Ty decided as he pulled the blankets off the bed to fall back on top of them.

Zane groaned and gasped as he tried not to laugh. “Ow… what about being quiet?” he asked in a harsh whisper as Ty settled on top of him again.

“Give it a second,” Ty whispered in return, cocking his head to listen.

Zane closed his eyes, and Ty focused on the sounds around them as he kissed lightly at Zane’s neck and chest. He could hear Zane’s soft breathing above the noises of the house, the creaking as it settled in the cold, the click and whir of the appliances downstairs, the hum of the large freezer on the porch just off the kitchen, the soft scattering of leaves scratching against the window.

Zane’s eyes were still closed when Ty’s lips brushed his again. He slid a hand under Zane’s briefs and tugged at the elastic.

“Mmm. What do you want?” Zane murmured, shifting on the cool wood floor to give Ty’s hand more access.

Ty shook his head and grinned. “Just you,” he answered.

Zane smirked and held his arms out to his sides. “Go on then,” he invited in a rough purr. “Snag the duffel.”

Zane’s bag was only an arm’s length away at the foot of the bed. Ty reached for it, pushing himself down into Zane as he did so, getting a soft groan that made him smile. He got the bag between his fingertips and pulled it closer, pausing to steal a kiss.

Somewhere in the house, a door snicked shut, and Ty paused long enough to listen and hear the water running before he continued. Once the bag was next to them, Zane twisted around and dug through it, pulling out his shaving kit before pushing the duffel away again. He unzipped the bag and pulled out a familiar tube and a plastic packet. Ty waited impatiently for perhaps ten seconds before he pushed himself off Zane and began peeling off the rest of his own clothing.

They hadn’t hit the stage in their relationship when foreplay was something important. Ty, especially, knew he was unlikely to even think about such nuances. Zane didn’t need to be seduced. Ty didn’t suppose that Zane wanted to be seduced, either. There was never any question that Ty wanted him in bed, and that seemed to be enough to keep Zane happy.

Ty fussed with his boxers and fell back to lay down to take them off, but then he struggled to get his legs untangled from the blankets in order to continue. It was all very difficult in the dark when he was in a hurry.

Zane groaned, rolling toward Ty in an attempt to get closer. He reached to slide his hands under Ty’s T-shirt, gripping warm flesh, and then he tugged Ty’s shirt off, making sure to touch lots of skin as he went. Ty slowly laid his back to the cold hardwood floor again, pulling at Zane to follow.

After kicking his briefs off, Zane leaned over to slide his tongue up the crease of Ty’s thigh. Ty tensed below him, just like he always did despite his continued efforts not to. Zane had either stopped caring or started pretending not to notice. Ty was grateful, either way. He lifted his shoulders off the hardwood to arch his back as he handed the lubricant and condom back to Zane wordlessly. Then he rolled in Zane’s arms, turning over onto his stomach.

Zane leaned over him, grabbing hold of Ty’s wrist and squeezing it. “You sure?” he whispered into Ty’s ear.

Ty didn’t bottom easily or passively even under the best of circumstances, and they both knew it. “I’ll be quieter than you are,” he answered anyway. Zane didn’t usually restrain himself when Ty was fucking him. It was a very vocal, very arousing experience, one that Ty rarely turned down the opportunity to enjoy. But…. “I’m not running into that shovel with my pants down.”

Zane popped open the tube and soon slid his slick fingers between Ty’s legs as he leaned over to nuzzle against his ear. Ty’s fingers gripped the blanket, clenching slowly. He shifted again, pushing up onto his hands and knees, spreading his legs wider as Zane slid a finger into him.

“Don’t have all night, Garrett,” Ty hissed at him impatiently.

Zane shushed him and twisted his fingers harder and deeper before leaning back to grab the condom. Ty heard the crinkling plastic flutter to the floor and Zane’s hand grasped one of Ty’s hips, pulling him back as he leaned over him, one hand braced next to Ty’s on the hardwood floor.

Zane was good at this, and Ty always reacted the same way: heartbeat racing, breaths shallow and fast, excitement and nerves churning in his gut. It was all part of Zane’s charm.

Ty squirmed under him, pushing his hips back and lowering his shoulders, resting his head on the floor as he did so. Letting out a slow breath, Zane pumped his hips slowly, working himself inside. Ty groaned and bit his hand to keep from making any more noise as Zane forced his cock past the tense muscles and pain seared through him. It ebbed quickly, though, and he moved under Zane’s weight to help, his entire body flooding with heat as Zane rocked deeper into him. It always felt so damned good; Ty was never sure why he didn’t do this more often. But that just led to more questions he didn’t want to find answers to, and he’d rather focus on what Zane was doing to him right now.