Everything Carries Me to You (Axton and Leander Book 3) (62 page)

"It does not," Leander said, "no. He's the douchebag brother I never had."

"He could be both," Axton suggested, all exaggerated innocence. "That's a thriving porn subgenre. Or so I've heard."

"Now you're just fucking with me," Leander said, and he stood up just to press close and kiss Axton full on the mouth.

Axton's guts did a slow and dizzy turn as he closed his eyes and kissed back. His blood thrummed loud in his ears, and he parted his lips without thinking about it first. The kiss was long and slow and heavy, and he had to take a steadying breath and blink at Leander when they pulled apart.

"I love you," Leander said, as he sat back down and splayed his elbows over the bar. His hair was a little mused and his lips were wet and his eyes shone with something reckless and only half hidden. "I love you so, so fucking much."

"I know," Axton said, and his tongue felt thick and too big in his mouth, and his insides were fluttering with unleashed butterflies, and he was hopelessly, hopelessly turned on by the look Leander was giving him. His hardening cock was at an awkward angle in his jeans. His mouth was wet from his salivary glands kicking into high gear.

"I would tear apart the world to find you," Leander said. His hair looked quietly, beautifully wrecked, and his expression was following.

"I know," Axton said, half dazed. "I know."

"What am I going to do with all of this?" Leander asked. "This feeling in my chest. I've never--"

Axton was faster than Leander had been, and he was up and tangling their tongues together in an instant, hands on either side of Leander's face, urging them ever closer together.

"I love you," he said, when he surfaced for air. "I love you more than anyone I've ever known in all my life."

"Please never leave me again," Leander said, "even if you think it's for my own good. It would destroy me."

Axton leaned in again, readying for another kiss--

"I always knew you were going to turn into the kind of guy who gets maudlin in bars," New York said, sliding onto the stool next to Leander. "Whiskey on the rocks, please," he added.

"Oh my god," Leander muttered, closing his eyes, willing the situation to stop happening. "Oh my fucking, fucking god."

Axton drew back.

"Sorry," he said.

"No, by all means," New York waved his hand, "carry on. I'm hoping you guys make so much noise that it sounds pornographic. Hopefully then some homophobe is pushed to his breaking point and says something."

"Why?" Axton asked, mystified. "Why would you want that?"

"So I can punch some asshole," New York said, apparently offended that Axton had to ask.

"Oh," Axton said thoughtfully. "On second thought, I'll have a beer instead." He patted Leander on the back. "Sorry, babe."

"We can make out later," Leander said. "I'll still be maudlin, if you want."

"You're no fun," New York sighed, but then a pretty girl at the door caught his eye and he was off.

The whiskey on the rocks was waiting, but New York was still busy. Axton turned to look for him, but addressed Leander.

"So, which one of you would win in a fight?" he asked.

"Against who?" Leander asked.

"Each other," Axton said.

"We would never," Leander demurred, but he stole the whiskey and then turned around, leaning against the bar and looking at his friend with gleaming eyes.

"You've clearly thought about it," Axton said. "You probably have a file on how to beat him if he ever goes rogue. And one for me, too."

"No comment," Leander said.

"You
do
."

"I'm Batman. I'm Latino Batman," Leander said, but then he took a drink and added, "We've never gotten into an actual fight. That would be most uncool."

"But?" Axton prompted.

"We've gotten into scrapes now and then," Leander allowed.

"Scrapes," Axton echoed, and he didn't add the hand gesture because even he could hear how clearly the air quotes rang out.

"I'm better at using my environment," Leander said. "Indoors and outdoors."

"No shit," Axton said, all wide eyes and faux-surprise. "Tell me more."

"I swear to god," Leander said, "you kick your boyfriend off a mountain just
one
time, you never hear the end of it."

"It's so unfair," Axton agreed. "So. You can use the bar's ambiance to kill a man. What's New York got going for him?

"It pains me to admit this," Leander confided, "but he's just a
touch
more vicious than me. In a real fight, he'd immediately be trying to eat my eyeballs and knee me in the groin." He sounded very affectionate.

"Uh huh," Axton said.

"Not that I wouldn't tear out a man's throat to win a fight," Leander clarified, "but New York would tear out a man's throat as an opener."

"I'm glad you two are friends," Axton said.

The dance floor was separated from the bar by a courtyard strewn with potted plants and strings of lights. Axton had only seen it in the periphery of his vision, because he was preoccupied with holding Leander's hand and looking at his eyes, his lips. Inside, the music was loud enough that Axton had to coax his werewolf senses into the background in order to feel comfortable.

Songs bled into each other and time lost sharpness of meaning and Axton's hair was stuck to his forehead with sweat and the taste of Leander was vivid on his lips. Between flashing colored lights there was welcome darkness. Axton closed his eyes against the lights and let himself sink deeper into the peace offered by rhythm and motion. Even with his human hearing in place, his nose refused to entirely follow suit, and he could still smell the scent of Leander's sweat.

They drew closer, dancing together instead of around each other. A few seconds of pulsing beats and Axton slipped his arms around Leander to press his fingers to where Leander's neck met his skull. Axton's fingertips came away damp. How long had they been here? How long would they be here? Leander wrapped an arm around Axton's waist; Axton put a hand on Leander's hip.

lights darkness noise

It was not at all like being locked in a basement.

Axton and Leander pressed together, chest to chest, and no one was sure who started the kiss first.

Happy, Axton thought, drunk on the realization, they were
happy
.

They separated but briefly. An open circle had cleared on the dance floor, pushing people towards the walls of the club so that other people could dance inside the circle, one by one. It was a spontaneous dance-off, and Axton was satisfied with standing around to clap and whoop with the crowd. He didn't know the names of whatever was happening, but he appreciated dancers and always had. The fact that the ratio of dancers skewed heavily male didn't hurt.

But then--

It was New York in the circle, and he was doing something that looked--complicated.

"Oh,
bullshit
," Leander yelled, just loud enough to be heard. "I taught you that!" He turned towards Axton, a beseeching look in his eyes--

Axton held up his hand and nodded.

"I understand," he said, before Leander could open his mouth. No need for words.

Leander nodded gratefully.

And then Axton had an entertaining few minutes of watching his lover show off by showing up his friend.

"DANCE FIGHT!" someone yelled, and New York obliged by miming out throwing a fire ball at Leander.

This is going a lot better than last time
, Axton thought.

Back at the bar, everyone had gathered up to order another round of drinks and tease Sarah about arriving late.

"It's all downhill from here," New York said.

"You missed the dance fight," Leander said.

"You missed the seriously overemotional making out," New York added.

"Axton?" Sarah asked, "Did I actually miss anything out of the ordinary?"

"No," Axton said.

"See, he's the reliable source," Sarah said.

"You've seen us be over emotional plenty of times," Axton added. "I'm thrilled to report that tonight has been very pleasantly ordinary."

"Amen," Leander said, and he took a drink while looking only a
little
haunted.

"Look, I was just on a plane for twenty hours," Sarah said. "I had to wash my hair and moisturize thoroughly before heading out. Airplane air is terrible for your skin."

"I appreciate you coming out," Leander said.

"I appreciate that you look nice," New York said.

"Nice?" Sarah asked. "Really?"

"I'd say stunning, but you broke up with me last month so I'm still nursing hurt feelings," New York said, sounding completely unfazed.

"Oh,
you
," Sarah all but cooed, slapping his arm. The flirtation was heavy and crackling in the air. They were probably still a thing. They were totally still a thing. They were probably a thing that involved seeing other people, but they were totally still a thing.

"Wow," Axton said, watching them. It wasn't even a subtle thing.

"Sorry, dude," Leander was saying. "This is my drink."

"That's
my
fucking drink, you piece of shit," the guy next to Leander said. He was drunk and belligerent and big, gym rat big, hair pulled back in a ponytail.

"Hey man, you can have it," Leander shrugged, pushing his glass over. He had not switched into a fighting stance yet, but Axton wondered if he was close.

"Hey," Axton said, because even though Leander could probably diffuse the situation, that didn't mean he wanted to stand idly by. "You can't just--"

And suddenly, Big Drunk Guy was stumbling, not because he was drunk, but because he'd been punched in the face.

"Yeeeah!" New York yelled, triumphant and thrilled, shaking his hand out. "Suck it!" He reset his stance, ready to get another shot in.

Big Drunk Guy was so surprised that he momentarily stayed against the counter, touching his mouth and nose gingerly.

"Eh?" New York said, turning towards Leander since he didn't have to deliver an immediate follow up blow, "Eh, not bad, right?"

"What the fuck?" Leander asked, quietly horrified.

"That's our guy, right? Big biker looking motherfucker picking a fight with you for no reason? Leather pants, bad attitude?"

"Nope," Leander said, with big eyes.

"Oh."

They looked at each other, at Big Drunk Guy, at the bar owner--

And, as one, they bolted out the door.

"You guys, I'm in
heels!
" Sarah yelled after them.

Axton blinked.

"The hell was that?" Big Drunk Guy said, baffled. He didn't seem violent anymore--he just seemed very, very confused.

"Um," Axton said.

"Whatever," Sarah said, having jumped up to follow but then aborting the plan once she felt her shoes on the ground. "Hey, Big Man, lemme buy you a round?"

"Uh," Big Guy said.

"You got this handled?" Axton asked Sarah.

"Someone's got to," she said, waving the owner and bar tender over, plastering a big apologetic smile on her face.

"Thanks," Axton said gratefully, and he made his exit.

"I fucking know them!" Leander was hissing, in an alley a few blocks away. "We can't just go around punching people in my favorite fucking bar!"

"Whatever, he was being an asshole," New York said, breezy and unrepentant. "He deserved it."

Axton jogged up to the alley and peered into the darkness.

"Hey guys," he said. "I'm surprised you made it past the bouncer."

"I have a really good sprint," New York said. "Thanks, man."

"Jesus, it's like college all over again," Leander muttered.

"All that time you spent, training in the woods," Axton said gravely, "here I thought you were just a fitness freak, but no. You were training to evade the authorities on foot, weren't you?"

"We abandoned Sarah," Leander said. "Someone should go back for her."

"That's not a denial," Axton pointed out.

"She'll be fine," New York said, with confidence. "It's not the first time she's had to smooth over a situation for us."

"It's not?" Axton asked.

"Jesus," Leander said. "Sweet baby
jesus
, why do I ever think that inviting the loose cannon is a good idea?"

"Nah," New York said cheerfully, "she's good at it. I bet you one of us gets a text in the next five minutes."

"I'm going to have a heart attack in about three," Leander said.

"Shh," New York said. "Breathe deep, and whatever other meditation type bullshit you know how to do. If that doesn't work, you can have some of my barbiturates."

"I like how non-specific that is," Axton said. "It implies you have more than one type of barbiturate."

"Yeah, sure, I got a bunch," New York said, patting down his pockets. "Want a Vicodin or a Xanax?"

"Stop giving my boyfriend drugs!" Leander shouted.

"I'm good for now," Axton said. "Thanks, though."

"Why did I run?" Leander asked the alley, or maybe himself. "I didn't punch anyone. Why do I associate with crazy people?"

"If you look at it from the right point of view," Axton said, upbeat, "we all got what we wanted tonight. That's a success, right?"

"I got to punch a guy," New York said. "I'm good for the night, yeah."

"I had a lot of fun," Axton said. "I got to dance."

"What did I get?" Leander asked.

"Not punched in the face," New York and Axton said in unison.

"Ooh, in stereo," New York added. "Boom. Truth bomb."

"I guess that is what I wanted," Leander allowed. "Now if only the night could end without an arrest, I'll sleep easy."

"Relaaax," New York said, "Catherine will talk the guy out of calling the cops because she doesn't want undue attention to her bar. Sarah will buy the guy a few rounds on the company card, spending money will thank Catherine for her trouble, and we'll all be fine."

There was a pause.

"You never get arrested," Leander said, with a faint whiff of accusation in his words that told Axton there was a specific untold story on the subject. "What do you know?"