Page 98 of Boss and Brat

His mother, though… Ethan didn’t even have to imagine her reaction. He’d heard enough comments growing up to know exactly where she stood. The thought of her voice, sharp and cold, brushed against the back of his mind.

He didn’t want Carter to see that fear, so he kept his expression soft, nodding slowly. “Okay,” he said. “We’ll talk to him.”

Carter tried to read the part Ethan wasn’t saying. His hand brushed Ethan’s wrist again—light, careful, almost grounding. “Hey,” he murmured. “Whatever happens… I’m not going anywhere.”

“What about the secret deal with my father?”

“When it unfolds, you will be with me in the meeting with your father.”

“What is it about?”

“I can’t discuss it. Your father ordered me to keep the information between him and me.”

“Is a business deal?”

“Yes.”

The words settled something inside Ethan, even if the fear didn’t disappear completely. It was enough to breathe again.

They stayed on the porch a little longer, listening to the waves and the distant calls of seabirds settling in for the night. Eventually, the air grew cooler, and Carter nudged Ethan’s knee with his own.

“Come on,” Carter said. “Let’s get some sleep. Long day.”

Inside, the house was profoundly silent, a calmness that softened the sound of each step. They changed, brushed their teeth, and moved around each other in the bathroom with ease.

When they crawled into the bed—Ethan’s grandparents’ old bed—Carter lay on his side, one arm propped under his head.Ethan shifted closer, and Carter met him halfway, pressing a gentle kiss to his forehead, then another to his cheek. Nothing rushed. Nothing heavy. Just warm, steady affection.

“We should go down to the beach tomorrow,” Ethan said, voice low. “There’s a trail that leads to the tide pools. Sarah and I used to spend hours there.”

Carter smiled—small, real. “Yeah. I want to see it, then we’ll ride our bikes. I know where we can go.”

Ethan rested his head against Carter’s shoulder; the steady rise and fall of Carter’s breathing eased the last of the day’s tension. The fear about his father was still there, tucked somewhere deep with Carter’s arm around him. Tomorrow would come. Tonight, they could just be here. Together.

***

Ethan woke to the sound of waves hitting the rocks below the house, steady and rhythmic, as if the ocean was nudging him awake. Morning light spilled across the room in thin stripes, catching on the old wooden dresser and the framed photos his grandfather had left behind. Carter was still beside him, one arm draped loosely over Ethan’s waist, breathing slow and even.

For a moment, Ethan just watched him—how peaceful he looked when he wasn’t overthinking everything. The tightness that had lived in Carter’s shoulders for days was gone, smoothed out by sleep and the ambience of the coast.

Carter’s eyelids fluttered open, and the first thing he saw was Ethan’s face close to his. A small, sleepy smile curved his lips. “Morning,” he said, voice still husky with sleep.

“Morning,” Ethan whispered, closing the space between them for a kiss that was slow and tender.

Ethan’s cock thickened as he moved between Carter’s spread thighs. He dipped his head and sealed his lips around Carter’sstiff shaft, sucking him deep while his tongue dragged along the underside in long, wet strokes. Carter’s erection pulsed and leaked against Ethan’s tongue, growing hotter and harder with every pull of Ethan’s mouth. Ethan wanted to ease every bit of stress still lingering in Carter’s body, to make him feel cherished and wanted.

Carter’s fingers threaded through Ethan’s hair, and he pressed a soft kiss to Ethan’s forehead. “What a beautiful way to wake up,” he murmured, eyes shining with affection.

“I wanted to please you,” Ethan said, voice muffled around the thick length in his mouth.

“You please me more than you’ll ever know.” Carter’s eyes glistened and Ethan saw a few tears well up; the emotion seemed to be too strong for Carter to hold back, as well as coming into Ethan’s mouth.

They rolled together, wrapping each other in a tight embrace, clinging as if the world outside didn’t exist. For a long while they stayed like that, trading slow, lingering kisses—Ethan’s lips brushing Carter’s, then Carter’s returning the gesture, again and again.

“Let’s get up,” Carter whispered. He took Ethan’s hand and led him toward the spacious master bathroom; their fingers laced together the whole way.

“I found these bubbles last night.” Carter pointed to the bottle on top of the sink counter. “I want to give you a bubble bath.”

“Me?” Ethan asked, his face flushing with embarrassment.