The Guy Next Door

Epilogue

LEIF

One month later…

A s I stir in bed, I feel a tight grip around my waist.

“Shh. No. It’s the weekend,” Zane says. “We can sleep in.”

I chuckle. “Is my short king tired?”

He nods against the back of my neck.

“If I stay in bed, how am I gonna make us waffles?”

His arm pops up, and I burst into a laugh.

“Oh, that easy, huh?” I roll toward him.

His arm drops back down on me, and he pulls my body close to his. “I’m only kidding. Although, I wouldn’t mind a few waffles after that workout you gave me last night.”

I reach down and grip his ass. “Yeah, this ass gave me a good workout too.”

“Now that I’ve trapped you, I figure I’m just gonna be a total bottom. And you’re gonna have to come home and drill me with that thing every afternoon.”

We share a laugh, and as it settles, I assess his expression.

That spark in his eyes has returned, but I can still see the pain. It hasn’t been an easy month, between our encounter with Tolle and the subsequent revelations.

Tolle took a plea deal. Confessed to every detail of his crimes.

How he met Jason and Mike at the Chelsby Hill library. How he talked with them about books a few times before he caught them while they were walking around town, offering rides. He used his stun gun to keep them from fighting, then bound them in zip ties and tucked them away in the trunk of his car, taking them to his place, where he did the sorts of things monsters do. And once he didn’t see that light in their eyes anymore—as he saw it, at least—he disposed of the bodies. Jason’s was in the creek by the dam, and Mike’s was in another creek on the other side of town.

Since Mike’s body was recovered, Roth has met up with Zane a few times. She’s apologized for their difficulties throughout the investigation and offered him private insights about the case, which has become a high-profile media circus, capturing not only the attention of Wyachet, but the nation.

Zane’s had to process it all through the media frenzy while managing the investigation and Mike’s service. Despite how wild it’s all been, my parents have been amazing, not only to me, but to Zane. They wished I’d felt comfortable sharing sooner, but given the circumstances, they’re not surprised we handled it the way we did. Just glad we’re both alive.

The past week has really been the first time Zane’s had some peace, so long as he doesn’t check the news on his phone or see a paper on a newsstand around town.

All that aside, the way he’s smiling this morning gives me reason to hope.

A chirp comes from the other side of Zane’s room, and we turn our attention to Kyra’s cage, where she flies from the bottom to her little wooden perch. Since I started staying with Zane after our confrontation with Tolle, we moved Kyra over to his place.

Zane says, “Guess she’s trying to remind me that we have to start waffles because we have our big picnic today.”

Despite how little interest she’d shown in flying since I rescued her, last week we caught her flying around her cage. At first, she seemed to struggle, but a few days ago, it became clear my friend’s back to her old self, ready to take flight, so we planned a big release celebration at the park.

As Zane turns back to me, he rests his hand on my arm, caressing my triceps. “How you feeling about that?”

“Glad she’s better, but sad too. I’ll miss her.”

He frowns. “You were very good to her. You’ve been very good to both of us.”

“You’ve been good to me too,” I tell him. I know he values what I’ve brought into his life since we first met, and particularly this past month. But I won’t let him dismiss how much better I’ve been with him too.

He smirks and leans close, planting a kiss on my forehead. “Come on. Let’s get some waffles in our bellies and then jerk off in the shower.”

My kind of morning.

We force ourselves out of bed. Go through our morning routine, getting through waffles before he helps me with prepping food for the picnic. We put on the downstairs TV, cuddling up to watch some of our shows.

I could get used to this routine.

When the afternoon arrives, we head to Palamone Park and settle on a blanket in a spot not far from where we went sledding before Christmas. Kyra starts flapping about wildly in her cage, like she wants to get out.

“Oh, no,” I say after I swallow a bite of my sandwich.

“Oh no? That’s a good sign. Maybe she knows she’s ready.”

“I’m just so worried about her.”

“Worried? She’s been in the wild before. She knows how to survive.”

Zane’s right, but it still plays on my mind. “What if her wing isn’t healed up enough?”

“Is that what the doctor said?”

“No,” I reply, reminding myself that she should be all right.

He sets his sandwich on his plate and scoots over, setting his hand on my leg. “I think our baby’s ready.”

Tension rises within me.

I can’t deny there are a thousand scenarios playing through my mind: She’s unable to fly far. Some hawk swoops down and snatches her. She falls over in the dog park and becomes their next chew toy.

Zane squeezes my thigh gently, offering me the support I need right now.

“Okay, Kyra, here we go,” I say, taking that hard step, unlatching her door and opening it.

It takes her a moment to realize it’s open. She perches on the door, glancing between Zane and me.

“It’s okay,” I say. “You can do it.”

And as I’m saying the words to her, I’m also trying to remind myself. My own nerves about what the future holds.

Kyra glances at me for a moment, then flies from her cage and comes to rest on my shoulder. She stays there for a few moments.

“What are you doing?” I ask, turning to her. She tilts her head either way, chirping. In my mind, she’s thanking me for the help before she pushes off. I figure her first will be a short test flight, but she soars through the air, heading for the woods without hesitation, her flight looking as effortless as that of any of the other birds I’ve seen today. A wave of relief moves through me, but there’s grief there too.

Zane rubs my back, and I turn to him. “Nice to see that my wildest fears weren’t realized, but I’ll miss her. It was nice having her around.”

“Yeah, well, now you’re really stuck with just me.”

I chuckle. “Not such a horrible fate. Although, you might only have me until this summer.”

“Oh, really?” he asks, a smile playing across his lips.

I’ve been talking to him about attending WCC for Maymester and summer semester. It kind of surprises me that I’m already talking about it, but my meds have really helped. I’m glad I’m taking them, and I’ll continue to, along with seeing my therapist and psych, but Zane took me beyond stability—he’s given me a reason to hope. I’m not ready to go back to Georgia State, not just yet. But I feel like I could knock out some core courses at WCC, then maybe transfer those once I’m ready.

Zane takes my hand, rubs his thumb across the back, massaging gently. “Then I’d better take advantage of every moment while we have the chance.”

“If I did end up going back to Georgia State at some point, how would we—”

He moves in fast, taking a kiss, silencing me. I relax into it, and when he pulls away, his gaze locks with mine. “Don’t think for a fucking second you’re getting away that easily.” He winces. “Okay, that sounded creepy. Obviously, if you wanted to leave me, I would let you, but if you think that moving to Atlanta is enough to discourage me, then you really are just a pretty face.”

I laugh, and as I smile, his gaze settles on my lips.

“Maybe we could get an apartment close to campus,” Zane says. “When you’re ready, that is.”

“You’d do that?”

“Leif, you really don’t get how fucking head over heels I am for you, do you?”

“You make it hard for me to miss that,” I confess.

He shows it every day—in his looks, his words, his actions. And neither of us can keep from showing the other how much we love each other on any given day. Maybe because we’ve both come to realize how precious each day is, and that another isn’t always a given.

“Let’s finish up here,” Zane says, “so we can get back to the house and I can remind you one more time.”

He offers another kiss, and we enjoy the afternoon, though I have to admit, I’m eager to get back to the house with him. When we finally get home, we’re on each other before we can even make it to the bedroom.

We strip down, a bit of a fumbling mess, chuckling as we try to get out of these damn clothes so we can get to what we really want.

We wind up naked on the bed, Zane on top of me. He smells of the Altoids we popped after our picnic, his tongue pushing into my mouth, my tongue welcoming the visitor as he rubs that fat cock against my thigh.

After some messy kisses, he manages to pry his lips away. “Fuck, this is like that first time we messed around. Me showing you how good it could feel.”

Just him mentioning that day sends a rush through me.

He smirks before crawling off me.

“What are you doing?” I ask. I get a good view of his ass before he grabs his desk chair and rolls it over.

Another jolt of excitement pulses through me. After he’s placed the chair, he fishes through the nightstand, fetching the lube and my little toy.

“Oh, really?” I ask.

“You’ve never even used it after that one sexy call,” he says. “Or have you?”

He glares at me like a jealous boyfriend, making me laugh. “I mean, I clearly brought it over in case we wanted to have some fun, but I haven’t had any reason to yet.”

His smile returns as he sits in the chair. “Get your ass over here.”

I position myself as I was that first time, close along the side of the bed, while he lubes up the toy. I spread my legs, gazing at him as he rests it against my hole, massaging gently. I close my eyes, relax as he plays with me, opening me up the way he has plenty of times with his fingers or cock. He takes his time getting it in, and as it hits my prostate, I feel a warm bead of precum spill from the head of my cock.

“Fuck,” he mutters before I feel his lips along the bottom of my shaft. He licks along it, creating that pressure like he did the first time he fingered me, now using the toy to tease my prostate as he works me up.

My hips rock as he keeps building me up, and soon I feel his finger and thumb against my nipple. Yet again, he’s playing me like a goddamn instrument. I’m lost in sensation, reveling in the way it radiates from so many different parts of my body.

“Jesus, Zane. Oh, oh.”

Another push of the toy, and I arch my back, moaning.

His lips pull away from my cock. “Okay, now it’s too fucking much for me.” He hurries back onto the bed, on his knees between my legs, readying his cock with the lube.

He’s worked me up so much, I’m all desire and need as he hooks an arm around my thigh, positioning me for him before sliding in. My body welcomes him—I’m sure because of how he’s already worked me up, but also because he’s trained me to take that thing.

“Jesus Christ, Leif. I’ve bottomed too much for you. I forgot how good it feels to be inside you.”

Heat rushes up my body, pooling in my cheeks as he builds into a stride.

He licks his palm before gripping my cock. Then he licks the thumb and finger of his free hand and teases my nipple. Once he’s set up his system, he gets busy fucking me.

It’s too much, I’m fucking calling out, my moans encouraging him along as he picks up the pace.

I love filling him up, but right now, I just want him shooting into me.

As Zane fucks me, the bed shakes, and he built me up so much with that initial tease that this is too fucking much for me.

“Zane, you have to come. I’m about to—”

“Oh, don’t you fucking worry about it, my pretty man.”

His hips slam against me, and the way his body shifts and jerks, I know he’s shooting into me.

Knowing that, and feeling these sensations with how he’s stroking my cock and toying with my nipples, is too much, and it’s like a wave comes over me before I blow, calling out, desperate to break that pressure, when the warm sensation shoots across my abs.

I’m lost in the pleasure, reveling in everything he’s stimulated as he steadily pulls out before burying his face against my abs, licking and sucking me up. When he’s finished, he nibbles at the flesh by my navel, before crawling up my body and resting against me, his elbows on either side of me to support his weight.

As I gaze up into his eyes, he’s grinning, clearly thrilled with the experience himself and what he’s done to me once again.

“Hot,” he says before licking my lips.

I reach up, resting my hand against the side of his face. He closes his eyes, leaning into it, before he turns and kisses my palm.

“You know I’m all yours,” he says. “Right?”

“Yeah. And I’m all yours.”

He smiles, opening his eyes, leaning down to take another kiss, letting me taste myself.

We’ve been through some shit—Zane especially—but after what we’ve survived, feels like together, we can sort out whatever else comes our way.

Wild to think that when I first saw him around the neighborhood, he was just some creepy guy next door.

Now he’s my sexy-ass creep.

And so long as I have any say in it, he always will be.

THE END