The doc roughly dug into Tanner’s back muscles again, dragging a groan from Tanner’s throat.
“Ughhh, fuck, that’s good,” he grunted. “Mmmm, yeah, I can’t wait to tell them how blind they’ve been.”
Paul stopped mid-motion.
Tanner craned around again. “Oh, unless you don’t want me to?” he asked innocently. He could see the color start to rise in Paul’s face, like he was holding himself back.
Just like a fiddle. Fuck, closeted fags are so easy to spook.
“I think we’re done here,” Paul said blandly. “How does it feel now?”
Tanner shifted until he was sitting on the exam table and rotated his shoulders and neck sensually. “Oooh, better,” he cooed. “Those hands of yours are magic.”
He swung his legs out to brush Paul’s side. “Do you have any other magic parts?”
Paul quickly stepped back, his face still a careful mask. “Make sure you incorporate some core-building moves into your workout regimen, to prevent future back pain.”
Tanner rubbed his own hard stomach. “I make sure to keep these abs in six-pack shape, doc. Can’t you tell?”
Paul handed Tanner his shirt. “My secretary can give you some literature with specific moves that can help.”
Tanner slowly buttoned his shirt. “How about you show me personally?” He teased a finger up Paul’s chest. “I’m sure you could give me quite a workout.”
“That’s enough, Mr. Caldwell,” Paul clipped out. “Stop by Nicole’s desk on your way out.”
Tanner hopped off the bench and moved into Paul’s personal space. “What’s the big deal, Dr. Z? We’re both adults here. You’re hot, I’m hot. It’s just fucking. Really hot fucking. Why deny yourself?”
Paul walked with purpose to the door and yanked it open. “Don’t forget to see Nicole before you leave.”
You think you can put me off that easily?
“Thanks for the hands-on help, doc,” Tanner said with a smirk. “I’ll be sure to tell my friends about you. It’s hard to beat word-of-mouth, you know?” With a wink, he strutted to the exit.
Once he slid into his silver Mustang, Tanner rubbed his growing bulge. Fuck, that got me hot. Gonna have to hit up that slut in Foley Hall. He’s always ready for my cock.
He was going to have to keep tabs on Ace after this. Tanner had a feeling things would be coming to a head soon.
Speaking of head, he pulled out of the parking lot and sped toward campus to get some.
**********
His appointment with Tanner Caldwell left Paul good and freaked. It was a struggle to calmly see the rest of his patients after that.
Paul rushed home after his last appointment and ripped off his clothes to change so he could go over to Ace’s. At this moment, he really needed to talk to him about what that Tanner kid said. Mostly, though, he just felt antsy whenever he wasn’t around Ace. His fingertips tingled with the need to touch him.
He had just grabbed his keys when he remembered that Ace wouldn’t be home. He was out on a man date with that friend of his.
Was it called a man date when both guys are gay friends? Paul still didn’t have a handle on all the vocabulary.
He tossed his keys down and reluctantly surveyed his condo, which had vastly improved under Ace’s care, but something about it still bothered Paul. Now that he knew what a real home could feel like, this box with his furniture in it could never compare even with the fetching new throw pillows scattered about.
Paul decided to reacquaint himself with his Wii something he just couldn’t find time for when Ace was so much more fun to play with.
Right in the middle of his bowling approach, the doorbell startled him into throwing a gutter ball. He growled and braced himself for one kind of sales pitch or another.
Instead, he found Steven at his door, red faced and positively livid. The sight threw him so much that Paul simply stared at him.
“You son of a fucking bitch,” Steven growled, pushing Paul with both hands back into the foyer.
Paul recovered his footing and gaped at his brother.
“How could you do this?” Steven ground out, his teeth clenched menacingly. “To me?”
Paul’s heart plummeted. Steven knows? About me? Fuck fuck fuck!
“Let me explain,” Paul said carefully.
“Explain!? Explain!” Steven gained volume. “Okay. Explain betrayal, brother. Explain this knife in my back.”
Um, what? Paul didn’t understand how Steven could see his sexuality as a knife in the back. If this was how Steven really felt about homosexuality, this was not going to end well.
“I think you’re overreacting ”
“Oh really!” Steven interrupted. “Well, tell me how I’m supposed to react when I find out that my only brother has been fucking my fiance!”
Not what Paul expected.
Paul blinked. “Your fiance?”
Steven laughed harshly. “Yeah. You remember her. Cute, fierce, the fucking love of my life!” He slammed his palm into the wall by Paul’s head. “And yours too, I guess.”
Paul pushed him back. “What the hell are you talking about?”
Steven ran his hands over his head and turned wild eyes to Paul. “Oh, you want the whole story then? Want to see how completely I was in the dark?” He began pacing like a caged, wounded animal. “We were at dinner and she goes to the bathroom. Her phone buzzes with a text. I’m nosy. I peek. It’s from you.” He lowered his voice to mimic Paul’s: “‘Had a great time with you last night, babe. Want you here again soon.'”
Paul groaned and closed his eyes. This was so not what Steven was thinking it was.
“This perplexes me,” Steven continued, “because I thought she was with the girls that night. So I check her past texts. She’s texting you six or seven times a fucking day! You’re calling her all the fucking time! And I’m so fucking blind I never saw any of it!”
There was a good explanation for all that, but Paul couldn’t tell Steven now, not when he was like this. “Steven, buddy, it’s not like that at all.”
Steven continued his rant, unheeding. “So Holly comes back from the john and I ask her, point blank, what the fuck? One McDonnell just isn’t enough for you? And you know what she says? She says talk to Paul. That’s it. That’s all I get from her.” He stalks right up to Paul and invades his personal space. “So I’m talking to Paul,” he growled. “My big brother. My best man. I’m talking to him.”