“Tell me this, Cam.”

Cam turned his head again, meeting his father’s dark blue gaze, waiting.

“Is he good enough for you?”

Cam couldn’t help but smile, turning back to face the TV.

Although they’d had their differences over the years—what parent and child hadn’t?—Cam knew that he was lucky to have such a supportive old man. Cam’s mother—rest her soul—had been just as understanding, possibly more so up until the day she’d unexpectedly died.

Cam fought the memories, not wanting to be overwhelmed by them. He missed his mother every single day, wished she were there for him to talk to.

“He’s good enough,” Cam confirmed.

“When do I get to meet him?”

Another smile curved his lips as he kept his eyes on the baseball game. “Don’t know.”

“Cam…”

Aww, hell. He knew that tone, knew his father was going to say something that would make him want to cry. That’s the way it worked. Whenever it came to relationships, his father had his own view on things. It wasn’t that Cam didn’t understand it. He did. It was just too hard to listen to.

“Dad—”

“Nuh-uh,” Michael interrupted. “You listen to me, boy.”

Respect for his father had him turning his head once again, staring over at the man who’d spent his entire life taking care of his family, working his ass off, risking his life for the town he loved.

“Don’t let one minute pass you by,” his father said, tone soft but firm. “You never know what tomorrow’ll bring.”

No, he didn’t. None of them did.

And that was the reason Cam usually kept himself distanced from relationships. He wouldn’t survive falling in love with someone only to have them ripped out of his life unexpectedly. He’d watched his own father suffer for years, devastated by his loss. As far as Cam was concerned, his father was the strongest man he knew. His father had survived. How, Cam wasn’t exactly sure. But Cam didn’t think he could do it.

And with Gannon, Cam feared he was already falling. Much harder, much faster than he’d planned. The idea that one day Gannon might not be in his life, might not be there for Cam to talk to, to tell him how he felt… It scared the ever loving shit out of him.

As much as he wanted to get closer, he was petrified he’d be submerged into the darkness, having to live out the rest of his days alone.

And he damn sure wasn’t equipped to do that.

A knock on the door had Cam bouncing up from the couch.

Saved by the pizza guy.

Gannon lay in his bed, staring at the ceiling.

It was after ten, and he should’ve been exhausted, but he couldn’t get his brain to shut down. Having spent sixteen hours in the office, watching his engineers scramble to fix another issue found by some of their beta testers, he hadn’t had much time to decompress.

The only thing he could think about now was Cam and how he wished he were there with him, sleeping beside him, keeping his mind from working overtime to fix something that was already being handled.

He’d texted Cam earlier, just to check on him, and had received a quick response, letting him know that Cam was having dinner with his dad. Not for the first time, Gannon had wondered what Cam’s father was like. If he accepted Cam for who he was, whether or not they had a good relationship. He assumed that was the case since Cam’s father had fronted the money for the marina, and from what Gannon could tell, Cam was openly gay.

That didn’t mean Cam didn’t hide it from his father.

Gannon squeezed his eyes shut, forcing out the thoughts that pummeled him regarding his own family and how they’d disowned him years ago, kicked him out on his ass because he was gay. He didn’t want to think about them.

His phone rang, the ringtone he’d set for Cam’s number. He lunged for it, snagging it off the nightstand.

“Hey,” he said softly.

“Did I wake you?” Cam’s deep voice sounded through the phone, calming Gannon almost instantly.

“Nope. Just lying here, thinking about you.”

“Are you now?” Cam’s chuckle made Gannon smile.

“Yep. How was dinner?”

“Good. Pizza and baseball. Can’t beat that.”

There was a rustling sound on the other end of the phone.

“What are you doing?” Gannon asked.

“Takin’ off my shirt. Now, I’m climbin’ into bed.”

Gannon’s body hardened, his cock twitching to life beneath the thin sheet. “Are you naked?”

Another chuckle from Cam. “Do you want me to be?”

“Yeah. I do.” And he wanted Cam to be there with him, but he didn’t say as much.

“Hold on.”

More rustling, then Cam returned to the phone, his voice softer as he said, “Happy now?”

As happy as he could be without being in the same room with Cam. “Very.”

“How was work?” Cam asked.

Gannon reached between his legs, gently caressing his dick, just enough to send a tingling sensation down his spine. “Busy.”

“You get the problem fixed?”

“Not yet. Hopefully tomorrow.”

“Can I do anything to help?” Cam offered.

Gannon’s hand tightened on his dick. “Yeah.”

“Tell me.”

Damn. The rough, sensual cadence of Cam’s voice was the most erotic thing he’d experienced in a long time. Lying in his bed, the room completely dark, with only the sound of Cam breathing through the phone … Gannon wished he were there.

“Talk to me, Gannon. Tell me what I can do.” This time, Cam’s tone was suggestive.

“Are you covered up?” Gannon asked him.

“Nope.”

“Good. I want you to touch yourself.”

“How?”

It was clear that Cam wanted Gannon to specify, so he decided to go all in. He’d never had phone sex before, but with Cam, he was damn sure willing to give it a shot.

“Reach down between your legs and massage your balls,” Gannon instructed.

Cam’s soft groan made every hair on Gannon’s body stand on end.

“I wish your mouth was on me,” Cam whispered. “I want to feel your lips wrapped around my dick, your hot tongue on my balls.”

Fuck. Gannon wanted that, too. “Wrap your hand around your dick and stroke it for me. Slowly.”

“Mmm.”

“I wish I was there with you,” Gannon told him. “Between your legs, my lips and tongue working your cock, teasing you while you watch me.”

“Then what would you do?” Cam rasped.

“I’d push your legs up, slide my tongue in your asshole, fucking you. Slowly at first, then faster.”

“Fuck,” Cam sighed.

“Then, I’d slide my thumb inside you, working your ass open, preparing you to take my cock.”

Gannon was stroking his dick insistently now, eyes closed, listening to Cam’s rapid breaths through the phone. He could picture himself there with Cam, doing those things to him.

“I want that,” Cam said. “So fucking bad.”

“I know,” Gannon told him. “Are you masturbating for me?”

“Yeah.” Cam’s breathless moan told Gannon he was close.

“Good. Stroke your beautiful dick for me, Cam. Do you like it rough?”

Cam grunted. “Yeah. Fuck.”

“Imagine my lips on your nipples, sucking, biting, pulling them.”

“Gannon… Keep talkin’… Don’t stop.”

“Imagine me kneeling between your legs, holding you open while I ram my dick into your ass, filling you, stretching you.”

Another long, tortured moan escaped Cam. Gannon began fisting his cock harder, jerking himself as he thought about fucking Cam’s ass, plowing into him, making him scream his name, begging Gannon to let him come.

“While you jack yourself off, I’m fucking you, Cam. Driving my cock deep. Deeper still.”

“Goddamn,” Cam whispered harshly. “Gannon … gonna come. Fuck.”

“Come for me, Cam.” Gannon groaned, his dick pulsing in his hand. “Fuck. Come for me.” As he barked the words, his dick jerked, his release barreling down on him. He came in a rush, harder than he’d expected when Cam’s muted cry echoed in his ear.