Finding Home (3 page)

“Hey, wait,” he pleaded softly. “I’m sorry I pried. Please don’t leave. I’m enjoying talking to you.”

“If I stay, will you swear not to ask any more questions about Chicago? I really, really don’t wanna talk about it right now, especially on my birthday.” Dillon put his hand up to cover his mouth. He really hadn’t meant to tell him that it was his birthday.

Adam’s face lit up at the tiny piece of information though. “Today is your birthday?”

“Yeah.”

“How old are you?”

“Eighteen,” Dillon answered quietly.

“Well, damn, Dillon, you’re making me feel old here.” He chuckled. Dillon thought that Adam couldn’t be that much older than him and he said as much.

“I’m twenty-three,” Adam divulged reluctantly.

“Five years isn’t that much,” Dillon told him.

“Maybe not in numbers, but in life experience it can be quite a bit.”

Hmm… Adam was right about that, Dillon thought. He’d had a lot of survival experience but not a ton of real life experience. “Well, then I’m glad I made a new friend to teach me the ways of the world.”

Adam just smiled at Dillon and agreed.

It was late, and Dillon was beyond exhausted. He was getting ready to say goodnight to Adam when Adam stealthily tried to slip his phone number across the counter to Dillon. It was then that he had to admit to not having a cell phone which led to Adam giving him that look like he was trying to figure him out again. Dillon didn’t like that look one bit.

He didn’t want anyone’s pity, and it seemed to be radiating from Adam, so he excused himself politely and headed to his room to crash. Dillon was out before his head even hit the pillow.

Adam, on the other hand, had the rest of the night to think about Dillon. He was curious about what might have happened to him, but mostly, he just wanted to get to know more about the birthday boy in room ten. He spent his entire night devising a plan for the next day.

The next morning, Dillon woke up to someone knocking on his door. From previous experience, he could only guess that it would be Adam, because he
’s really the only person who would be coming by at, Dillon checked the clock next to the bed, eight in the morning.

What?

Who in their right mind wakes someone up at that time? Dillon heard his voice, muffled by the door, “I know you’re in there Dillon. Wake up, sleepyhead!”

Somehow, and he wasn’t exactly sure from where, Dillon mustered up the energy to pull himself from the safety and warmth of the blanket cocoon he’d buried himself in and opened the door.   

Adam’s breathtaking smile made it all worthwhile. Dillon thought he could get used to seeing that first thing in the morning and that scared him a bit. He didn’t need to be getting attached to Adam, especially so soon.

“What in the world are you doing here so early?” Dillon asked sleepily, yawning wide for full effect.

“I enjoyed our talk last night immensely and was hoping I could get you to agree to have breakfast with me,” Adam revealed, almost nervously.
Why in the world would someone as attractive as Adam be nervous about asking me to go to breakfast with him?
Dillon wondered.

“Well, come in,” he relented and shut the door behind him after Adam stepped inside the room. Then Dillon proceeded to scramble back into bed and pull the covers up over his torso, submerging himself back into the warmth that he had briefly escaped.

Adam stared at Dillon like he was a crazy person. “How can we go to breakfast if you won’t get your lazy butt out of bed?” he teased him.

“Oh, I don’t know, maybe we can have breakfast in bed, instead,” Dillon countered playfully. “I think I might have a few chips left in that bag from last night.” Dillon raised an eyebrow at Adam, daring him to disagree.

“I don’t really care where we eat breakfast, asshole. I just thought it would be nice to get to know you a little better.” Adam walked over and plopped his ass down on the edge of the bed. “So breakfast?” he asked again.

“Does it require me getting out of bed?” Dillon was really only teasing, but, damn, seeing Adam on his bed was a little surreal.

Adam groaned. “Dillon, you’re killing me here. You’re lying in bed looking so damn cute that I just want to eat you for breakfast, and you’re asking me to talk you into getting out of bed?” He muttered something under his breath.

Oh, God! Did Adam seriously just say he wanted to eat me for breakfast?
Dillon’s cock definitely liked that idea, considering how little experience he actually had, and there was no way he could get out of bed without embarrassing himself now. He tried to subtly readjust himself but Adam’s eyes were drawn to the middle of the bed anyway.

“I’m going to go get food and bring it back here, because if I don’t leave right the fuck now, I can’t be held responsible for the things I do. Where’s your room key?” he demanded.

Dillon pointed to the dresser next to the television. Adam leaned over and placed a soft kiss on Dillon’s forehead. “I’ll be right back,” he promised. “Don’t go anywhere.”

“Where am I going to go? You’re taking my key!” Dillon chuckled.

“I mean it. Stay in bed, and I’ll be right back.”

Adam grabbed the key and hurried out the door. Dillon was getting used to watching his ass as he walked away, and it definitely wasn’t going to get old anytime soon. He rolled onto his side and knew the grin that was plastered on his face was making him look like a total dork, but holy shit, Adam had just kissed his forehead.

Dillon sighed contentedly and considered a quick shower, but Adam had basically ordered him to stay in bed, so who was he to disobey the hot guy who went to get them breakfast?

Maybe twenty minutes later, Dillon heard the key in the lock, and his heart sped up in anticipation of seeing Adam again. The door opened, and Adam walked in with what Dillon hoped was coffee and two Styrofoam takeout containers in a plastic bag.

“I hope you like what I got. I forgot to ask you what you wanted in my hurry to get out of here.” He sat the stuff down on the little table, pulled a cup out of the holder, and handed it to Dillon. “I really hope you drink coffee.”

Dillon took a sip from the cup and moaned. It was caffeinated heaven. “I do. Thank you so much. How much do I owe you for my breakfast?”

Adam’s head snapped toward Dillon, and the look he shot him shut him up quickly. “I asked you to have breakfast with me so it’s my treat. You owe me nothing.”

“Seriously?” Dillon was a little skeptical.

Adam’s face went soft again. “Yeah, that’s how it works.”

Dillon still wasn’t convinced. Eventually he was going to have to do something for this family to make up for all the nice things that they’d done for him in less than twelve hours. “Oooookay…” he answered slowly.

“Time to get out of bed now; I brought pancakes!”

That made Dillon smile. Pancakes were his favorite hot breakfast food, probably because they weren’t too hard to make so he’d been able to figure them out at a young age. “I love pancakes!” Dillon exclaimed as he threw the covers off and nearly bounced out of bed toward the table.

Adam had opened the containers, and the smell was enticing enough, but then there was the fact that Dillon knew he’d be closer to Adam on that side of the room. The box that Adam handed to Dillon had pancakes, hash browns, and sausage links in it, and when he peered in Adam’s container, the only difference was he had bacon as his meat.

“Okay, I want one of your sausage links,” Adam informed Dillon and then quickly snatched it away, taking a bite of it. Watching Adam’s lips wrap around the little piece of meat was entirely too erotic for Dillon that early in the morning and should have been outlawed.

“That was mine, you thief!” Dillon exclaimed. Then he stole a piece of his bacon, shoving it in his mouth before Adam had time to protest. Adam faked a look of disbelief before he laughed. “I guess turnabout is fair play,” he relented, prior to offering Dillon packets of butter and syrup.

They ate in near silence after that, mostly because once the food hit Dillon’s stomach; he couldn’t be bothered to stop shoveling it in to speak. He’d barely eaten anything the entire day before, and his body was trying to make up for it. It didn’t take him but five minutes to finish what was in front of him.

Dillon looked up to find Adam gazing at him again. He was immediately embarrassed for acting like such a damn pig in front of him. “I guess I was hungrier than I thought.” At least he had the good sense to look sheepish.

“It’s okay,” Adam assured him. He immediately felt protective of Dillon, and while he had no idea where that feeling had come from, he wanted to make sure that Dillon had everything that he could possibly need. “Do you want what’s left of mine?”

Dillon was still incredibly hungry, but he wasn’t about to poach the rest of Adam’s food. “No, that’s okay. You eat it. Thanks though!”

“No, seriously, you can have it,” he insisted, taking Dillon’s empty container away and replacing it with his, which still had at least half of his food. He folded his arms across his chest and gave Dillon a look that rivaled his dare to argue from earlier.

“Are you sure?” Dillon asked quietly. He hated feeling like a charity case, but, fuck it, he was hungry.

“Yes, please eat it, Dillon. I promise I’m fine, and you look famished.”

So he did.

When Dillon was finished with Adam’s food, he felt so much better. “Thank you,” he whispered to Adam, hanging his head.

Adam placed his finger under Dillon’s chin and gently forced his head up so that he was looking into Adam’s eyes. “Hey, stop that,” he instructed softly. “You traveled a long way yesterday, and you only had a bag of chips for dinner last night. Anyone would be starving after that. This is nothing to be embarrassed about.”

“Can I ask you something?” Dillon wondered out loud, taking a deep breath to steel his resolve.

“Sure, anything,” Adam responded instantly.

“Why are you and your family being so nice to me? I don’t want to be a charity case.” Dillon knew that he sounded like a brat after everything they’d done, but he needed to know.

Adam looked totally confused. “I’m being nice to you because I genuinely like what I’ve learned about you so far. What are you talking about that my family has done for you?”

So Dillon explained to him about how Amy had helped him get to the motel, and how Doris had bent her rules to allow him to stay. Adam listened carefully, not interrupting Dillon through the whole explanation, and when he was finished Adam finally replied. “Dillon, my family just saw someone who needed assistance and they helped. It’s not charity; it’s called being a decent human being. It’s really not that big of a deal.”

Dillon gave him a gimlet eye. “Are you fucking kidding me? It’s a huge deal! I don’t know where I’d be without their generosity! I’d probably be sleeping on the street.” How could he be so casual about it?

And Dillon swore if he cocked his head at him with that look one more time, he was going to go postal. “Why are you looking at me like that?” Dillon asked him, completely exasperated. This breakfast had gone from peaceful to stressful too quickly for Dillon.

Adam sighed deeply. “I’m just trying to figure out what could’ve happened to you that you’re so surprised that people can be nice.” He started to pack up the empty containers like they weren’t having a tense moment at all, which just irritated Dillon more.

“Don’t try to figure it out. I don’t want to talk about it,” Dillon mumbled.

“I didn’t ask you to talk about it; I’m respecting your wishes from last night. Doesn’t mean I can’t think about it,” he stated, standing up and taking the bag to the trash can.

Then he changed the subject as if the last several minutes hadn’t even happened. “Okay, now go shower. We’ve got a long day ahead of us.”

Wait. What?

“What do you mean?” Dillon asked, completely fucking confused.

“Yesterday was your birthday and you spent almost half of it on a bus, today we are celebrating. Shower, now.” Adam sat down on the edge of the bed and, once again, gave Dillon a look that dared him to argue.

He didn’t.

Dillon didn’t know where the hell it came from but he was smacked with an unexpected need to please Adam, so he obeyed his command and headed for the bathroom.

Adam’s heart warmed at the thought of Dillon doing what he asked without a fight. He wasn’t sure when to prepare for battle with this one.

After Dillon finished his quick shower, he put on the one nice pair of jeans that he owned and a plain black t-shirt that hugged his body nicely. He stared at himself in the mirror, trying to figure out what it was about him that could possibly make someone like Adam want anything to do with him. He’d actually put gel in his dark brown hair so that it had that purposely messy look, and his eyes were just plain blue so he didn’t think there was anything unique about them. Quite a few freckles were scattered over his nose and his lips were plump, which was about the only thing he really liked about his face. A lot of people would classify him as twink in the gay community because of his age, height, and slender body type. That’s not something he’d ever been ashamed of; it’s just not something he’d ever considered special about himself either. He couldn’t figure it out.

Dillon figured he’d spent enough time looking at himself when there was someone in the other room he’d rather be looking at, so he exited the bathroom. Adam’s face lit up when Dillon returned. “You look really nice,” he complimented Dillon.

Adam’s words made Dillon blush, and he couldn’t do anything to stop it from happening. “Thanks,” he mumbled as he searched his bag for his Coldplay hoodie, because spring in the Midwest could be quite cool. Once he located it, Dillon pulled it over his head and turned to face Adam again. “Okay, I’m ready.”