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  “Stop teasing,” Michael said, trying to recapture Alli’s lips as they traced a path across his cheek.

  “Who’s teasing?” Alli ground his hips, catching Michael’s surprised yelp with his moist, kiss-swollen lips. Michael was breathing hard, the edge rushing toward him with astonishing suddenness. Damn, Alli was something. Such a hot little bundle of—

  Alli wrapped his legs around Michael’s back, pushing his ass down on Michael’s groin, and Michael lost all train of thought. Words and rationale became a thing of the past as Alli continued to kiss him, each thrust of his tongue echoed by a thrust of his hips.

  “Alli, wait, gonna—”

  “Go ahead.” Alli pulled away, nipped at Michael’s ear and nuzzled his neck. “Let go.”

  “Holy—”

  Everything went tight, Michael’s cock throbbing, balls pulling taut. It was, bar none, the quickest orgasm he’d ever had. Michael didn’t even have time to shout, just gave a long, drawn-out groan. Alli kept riding him, squirming and grinding, as Michael came in his pants like a damn teenager.

  The world went fuzzy at the edges for a second, Michael lost in the physical sensations, muscles shaking with his release. The blast of pleasure finally faded, leaving him tingling and relaxed. Alli pressed a gentle kiss to the base of Michael’s neck and laid his head on Michael’s shoulder.

  Michael squeezed the man tightly. “Damn, baby.”

  He was still holding Alli’s hips, and Michael began to stroke again, the motion almost automatic. He would have stayed like that all day, but reality had to go and rear its ugly head. Spunk dripped down Michael’s legs, the damp spots in his pants rubbing against his skin and making him itch.

  “I should go get cleaned up,” he murmured, but made no effort to move.

  Oh, shit.

  “Damn, I’m an idiot,” Michael suddenly burst out. “A selfish jerk. You need, babe?”

  Alli didn’t look at him, just shook his head from its position tucked up against Michael. “I’m okay,” he practically whispered.

  “But you didn’t—”

  “No, I didn’t. But that’s okay. Maybe next time.”

  “Alli—”

  “You said something about breakfast.”

  Alli pulled away and Michael was forced to let go. Alli stood and Michael immediately wanted to pull the man back into his lap. It was where Alli belonged, Michael decided. He’d be happy just carrying his shy little lover around for the rest of their lives.

  He had a mental flash of a bent, white-haired man trying to juggle a cane and an elderly Alli, and nearly snorted in amusement.

  Alli raised one eyebrow and Michael tried to pull it together. Alli would, eventually, get used to the way sex turned Michael’s mind to mush and sent him off on weird tangents. Of course, it wasn’t only sex, but it was the worst culprit.

  “Alli, I wish you would let me.” Michael lowered his hand, brushed the back of his knuckles against Alli. The cock trapped in Alli’s sweats formed a nice bulge, hard and hot under his touch.

  Alli shook his head, smiled. “I want to wait.”

  “Why?” Michael asked with utter confusion.

  “Haven’t you ever heard of delayed gratification?” came the teasing response.

  “Seems like a very silly concept to me,” Michael stated.

  “I just…I want to take my time, you know?”

  “Then what the hell was this about?” Michael snapped. “Look, if you don’t want me—”

  “Are you kidding?” Alli gaped. “You’ve got the proof in your hands.”

  “Physical. Doesn’t mean—”

  “You’re a bit of an idiot, you know that?” Alli retorted, standing and planting his hands on his hips.

  “You didn’t let me finish,” Michael pointed out.

  “Doesn’t matter. You were going to say something stupid. I want you, really truly.” Alli wrapped his hands in Michael’s shirt and yanked, pulling their faces together.

  “Really truly, huh?” Michael’s irritation slid away at the earnest expression on Alli’s face.

  “Really truly. After last night, and it’s Friday, and…I just wanted to make you feel good,” Alli finished with a shrug.

  “Oh, you certainly accomplished that.” Michael smiled and tugged on Alli’s hair. “But I don’t understand what the day of the week has to do with anything.”

  Alli was chewing on his lip again. This time Michael gave in to the urge, tugging the abused and puffy flesh free.

  “I just… Fridays aren’t good days.”

  Alli shrugged again after that cryptic comment. It didn’t escape Michael’s attention that his lover was having trouble with his sentences again. If Michael were a wolf shifter, he’d be howling in frustration.

  “Swear to God, it’s two steps forward and one step back,” he muttered.

  “What?”

  “Sorry. Nothing.”

  Alli met Michael’s gaze head on, serious and solemn. “It’s not, you know. One step back. I promise.”

  Alli moved, pressing a soft, brief kiss to Michael’s lips. There was nothing sexual about it, but the gesture thrilled Michael down to the tips of his bare toes. It was the kind of kiss bestowed on a lover, a boyfriend, a partner.

  Michael slid his hand down Alli’s arm, rubbing his thumb along the silky skin, and dipped his head for a kiss of his own.

  “All right, babe,” he said. “The curiosity is probably going to kill me, but I’m willing to wait until you’re ready to tell me everything.”

  “There’s nothing to tell.”

  “Alli? You’re a horrible liar. And despite your earlier accusation, I’m far from stupid. You’re hiding something. I really wish you would trust me.”

  “I do trust you,” Alli hastened to assure him.

  “So what is it, then?”

  “I don’t think you’ll stick around,” Alli admitted. “No one ever has.”

  Michael sighed and tucked Alli against him for a nice, long hug. “I’m not like everyone else. I’m not going anywhere.”

  It was clear to Michael now that the issue wasn’t, in fact, him. Michael was rapidly discovering that Alli didn’t have a very high opinion of himself.

  “I’m a lot of trouble,” Alli murmured. “And if you stick around, you should probably get used to interruptions like last night. It happens a lot.”

  “Just so long as it’s not always because someone’s trying to hurt you, I can learn to live with that.”

  “We’ll see.”

  Michael growled, the sound nearly sub-vocal, and made a decision. “It’s too early for this conversation,” he declared.

  “It’s one in the afternoon,” Alli pointed out.

  “And I’ve only been up for an hour. Makes it early. Come on. We’ll pick up some food, head over to Flora, and start working on cleaning up your store. This conversation can wait for some other time.”

  The pure relief Alli displayed told Michael he’d made the right decision. Michael could only imagine how hard the early morning hours had been on Alli. Time to distract his man for a while.

  Food. Hard work. Maybe he’d call Chris, get some people over to help out.

  Yeah. He could wait until later to pry out Alli’s secrets.

  * * * *

  “Babe, I don’t think you can save it.”

  Alli looked sadly at the limp plant and had to agree. It hung over his palm, shedding dirt from tattered roots, the stem bent nearly in half. He placed it gently in the trash pile.

  Yet another loss. He looked helplessly around the greenhouse, choking back a wail of mingled fury and sorrow. This small room was his haven, his sanctuary, his comfort in the cold world around him. In here, he could pretend he was home. Pretend that just beyond those doors lay acres of virgin forest, the gentle sloping hills that would eventually rise to craggy peaks, the rush of water tumbling over rapids. Damn, he was homesick. Since Michael had burst into Alli’s life, the constant gnawing ache had lessened considerably, but th
is wanton destruction brought it back full-force.

  “Why couldn’t they have attacked me?” Alli snapped, tossing yet another unsalvageable piece of greenery away with furious energy.

  “Don’t say that,” Michael snapped back. “Plants can be replaced. You can’t.”

  Alli huffed, knowing Michael was right. “I don’t really want to be appeased right now,” he pointed out.

  “Tough.” A low rumbling vibrated in Michael’s throat as he pinned Alli with his dark stare. “I’m not going to let you sit there sinking deeper into self-pity. We’re going to keep busy, you’re going to order whatever you need, and we’re going to put everything back the way it was. Better, even.”

  “I wish it were that easy.”

  Michael rose from his nearby crouch to loom over Alli. He placed his solid hands on Alli’s shoulders and began massaging. The touch felt marvelous, easing some of the anguish. Michael bent down, pressing a soft kiss to the top of Alli’s head.

  “It’ll get better,” he promised.

  Alli closed his eyes, blocking out the mess around him, focusing everything on the touch of his big, cuddly bear. How did Michael do it? Just…make everything better?

  A soft knock interrupted their moment. Alli snapped his attention around, resenting the intrusion.

  “Maven!”

  His mouth was probably hanging open, but he couldn’t be blamed. Maven was the high priestess of the local coven. The same coven that had been involved in the whole summoning mess. Sure, they still shopped at Flora, but it was because they had to. His was the only shop in the area that carried the herbs and spell ingredients needed. Or at least, his were the best. But the witches and warlocks always came in pairs and wore a lot of amulets.

  Maven gave him a wry smile, the expression twisting her full lips. She was a pretty woman, a bit heavy but shaped nicely, with thick dark hair and well-arranged features. If Alli leaned that way, he might even have found her attractive.

  That, and if she didn’t hate his guts. Although the look he was getting right now was anything but hate.

  “Bright blessings, Allegro,” she said softly. “I heard what happened. Are you all right?”

  “I’m not hurt,” Alli said, skirting the question.

  “Not physically, no.”

  Damn the woman. She was too perceptive by half.

  Alli shrugged. “I’ll get there.”

  “Well, I’ve made some calls. Victor and Derek will be here in an hour with garbage bags and boxes. Selma is making a few calls and trying to locate some cuttings to restart your stock.”

  “That’s… Wow, Maven, I don’t…”

  Alli chewed on his lip. That was the last thing he had expected.

  Maven sighed. “We’ve had problems, but you’re a good man, Allegro. Putman is small, unique. Our kind has to stick together. Something like this hurts us all.”

  As if Maven actually knew what Alli’s kind was. And he certainly wasn’t going to enlighten her.

  Michael strode forward, extending his hand. “Michael Lakkis,” he introduced himself. “We really appreciate it.”

  She raised perfectly plucked eyebrows and gave Michael an assessing look. “A relative of Allegro’s?” she asked curiously.

  “Boyfriend,” Michael cheerfully pronounced.

  Alli groaned and covered his eyes, but not before he saw Maven smile. And really, a smile that wide looked like it should hurt.

  “Welcome to the community,” she declared. “Maven Thenopolis. It’s about time Allegro found someone.”

  Michael slung his arm over Alli’s shoulder. Alli considered it progress that he didn’t move away.

  “I found this on the sidewalk,” Maven continued, holding up the string of tiny bells that usually hung over the front door as if it was the world’s greatest treasure. Alli took it, turning the small metal object over in his hands.

  “Thank you,” he said softly, staring at the bell.

  Maven smiled, knowing that the thanks was for far more than just retrieving Alli’s bell. “Where do you keep your broom?” she asked.

  “You don’t have to—”

  “Allegro? Shut up while you’re ahead.”

  Alli nodded. Yeah, probably good advice.

  “There’s cleaning supplies in the pantry. Or at least, there were.” God only knew if they were still there and not scattered from one side of the room to the other, like everything else. “Left corner of the staff room.”

  Maven patted his shoulder. “I’ll find it.”

  Alli stared at the now empty doorway, still fingering that blasted bell.

  “See, babe?” Michael leaned close to speak right in Alli’s ear. The musky, rich smell unique to Michael drifted to Alli’s nose and he found himself shifting closer. “You have more friends than you know.”

  “Yeah,” Alli said with something approaching wonderment. “I guess I do.”

  * * * *

  Alli was busy supervising, so Michael took the chance to sneak back to the office and borrow his man’s cell phone. The store phones had been smashed to bits, both the one on the front counter and the one on Alli’s desk. Michael hadn’t had time to replace his own phone and by now his brother was probably getting ready to call up the cavalry—aka their mother.

  “Hey, brother of mine.”

  “Michael! Where the heck have you been? I’ve been trying to call you and it just keeps going straight to voicemail. Even Maryanne was getting concerned.”

  “Sorry about that. My phone met its demise yesterday.”

  “And you haven’t gotten a new one? I didn’t think you could last that long without your phone.”

  “Neither did I. But I’ve been a bit preoccupied.”

  “Oh?”

  How could his brother make one single syllable sound so ominous?

  “Yeah, it’s okay. Remember that guy who got hit by a car? Well, his store was trashed and I’ve been helping him put things back together. The local law contacted us early this morning and we’ve been going strong ever since.”

  “Us?”

  Whoops. “Um, yes?”

  Michael really knew better. His brother had more in common with a bulldog shifter—did those even exist?—than a bear sometimes.

  “This sounds serious. So, do tell. Is he cute?”

  “Evan!”

  “Well, is he?”

  “Yes,” Michael admitted. “But he’s not—”

  “Sweet! It’s about time you started dating again. Tell me all about him. What does he do for a living? Is he a paranormal?”

  “I’m not going to gossip with you,” Michael said firmly. He didn’t really think the tone would work. It didn’t.

  “Why the heck not? Besides, if we’re going to add another family member, I really need to get to know him, don’t you think?”

  “For the love of God, Evan! I said he was cute, not that we were getting married. Good grief.”

  At the same time, Michael knew a smile was creeping across his face. It was just nice, knowing that his family accepted him the way he was.

  Contrary to popular opinion—mostly their own—the Lakkis family wasn’t perfect. Michael might have dated more women than men, but there had been a few guys over the years. The first time Michael had brought a boyfriend home had been…well, explosive. His mom had cried and his dad had looked all stern and his brothers had yelled. A lot.

  Evan had recovered pretty quickly. He’d admitted later that he’d kind of suspected and had just been caught up in the moment. He and Maryanne had been dating at the time and she had been present for the debacle. It was Michael’s private opinion that she was solely responsible for Evan’s quick turnaround. After she’d slugged Evan in the arm, she’d hugged Michael tightly and Evan had done that big-brother-looming thing that he was so good at, this time turning the focus from Michael to their other brother, Tristan.

  When Michael and his boyfriend had left the house a few tense moments later, the couple had followed them. All four of them
had ended up at a bar, downing shots until they were completely smashed and needed to be poured into a cab.

  The boyfriend had actually lasted long enough for Michael’s family to come around. They loved Michael and, although it hadn’t been without its rough spots, they’d eventually accepted the fact that Michael had a thing for other guys.

  All, that is, except for Tristan. His oldest brother still wasn’t speaking to him unless absolutely necessary. Michael pretended not to notice the cold shoulder, but it hurt. He’d always looked up to Tristan more than anyone else. To lose his approval…it had almost been enough to send him back into the closet. Almost.

  “Yeah, that’s an excellent idea. We’ll start packing.”

  Oh, hell. What had he missed while he’d been lost in the past?

  “Hang on there, big boy,” Michael protested.

  “You weren’t listening, were you?”

  “No.”

  “Too bad. I was being witty.”

  “I’m sure.”

  “Don’t worry, I’ll handle everything.”

  “Everything?”

  “Sure. The rest of the gang will want to meet him, too.”

  “I like this guy,” Michael protested. “So stay away.”

  “Why?”

  Michael wasn’t buying the hurt tone, not for one second. “Because he’s shy. You’ll scare him off.”

  “We’re not scary!”

  “No, just overwhelming and obnoxious.”

  “Why do I love you again?”

  “Because I’m your brother. You have to.”

  “Yeah, that must be it.”

  “I’m done with this conversation,” Michael stated. “It’s becoming senseless.”

  “But aren’t all our conversations?”

  “True. But I have better things to do than sit here and banter with you.”

  “We’re still coming to visit,” Evan stated.

  “Just wait a while, would you? Alli spooks easily.”

  “Hah! I have a name!”

  Michael slapped his hand over his eyes and groaned. “I’m cursed,” he muttered. “And I’m hanging up now.”

  He followed through, stabbing the off button almost viciously. Still holding the phone, he rubbed his eyes with the back of his hand. He loved his brother, he really did. It didn’t stop him from wanting to flee sometimes, though. Michael had no doubt whatsoever that Evan would be showing up all too soon, probably with the wife and kids in tow. At the very least.