Hook, Line, and Sinker (Flirting with the Zodiac Book 1) Read online

  “You’ll like it,” Lawrence said, and Ty wasn’t sure if that was earnestness or a threat in his voice. Then he purred, “I promise, baby,” and a thrill went through Ty.

  Nobody had ever called him baby before.

  Slowly, he lifted his head and looked out at the house. An ocean of white tiles trailed from the foyer into the kitchen. Worn wood accented it, suggesting it had spent ages weathering in the sun and the surf. The living room was a soft yellow with blue accents, all of their mismatched furniture clashing horribly with it.

  Ty swallowed the lump in his throat. Lawrence’s hands landed on his shoulders. “Well?”

  Ty couldn’t help the way his heart was breaking. This place didn’t feel cozy, didn’t feel warm, didn’t feel or smell like them. There were no memories here, and he longed for his crammed little bedroom, their jammed apartment.

  “It’s not home,” he whimpered, lowering his head. He didn’t care if he was being hormonal or ridiculous.

  Lawrence’s grip tightened a little. “You’re not giving it a chance, Ty. We needed to move, for the—”

  “And you should have told me,” Ty snapped, then rubbed his arm across his eyes. “We should have looked for a place together, not just you springing this on me out of the blue. I thought I was going home, and instead I’m … here.”

  Lawrence was silent for a very long time. Ty shifted uncomfortably, thinking about their luggage on the street, the cab driver waiting there for them. He crossed his arms and twisted.

  “I’m sorry,” Lawrence said at last. “I thought you didn’t need the stress of trying to clean all our stuff up, of packing, running around trying to find the perfect spot. I thought … I thought I could do all that for you, Ty.”

  “You should have told me,” Ty repeated, because it was all he could say.

  “We really do need a bigger space.”

  “We should have made the decision together, Laz.” Ty hugged himself a little tighter. “I feel like … like I’m a renter, not a friend. Like you just went out and picked a space and if that works for me, then fine, and if it doesn’t, I should just … find somewhere else to live.”

  He looked at Lawrence, then said, “I’m going to my parents’ for the night. I’m tired. We’ll figure this out in the morning.”

  “Ty—”

  “Good night, Lawrence.”

  With that, he marched himself back down the path, to the waiting cab.

  Eighteen

  Lawrence was at the door the next morning with the seafood omelet from Jeffrey’s. Ty glared at him long enough that Mom walked by and said, “Oh my,” before tiptoeing into the kitchen.

  “Um,” Lawrence said, offering up the container. “I brought breakfast.”

  “What do you want?”

  Lawrence sighed. “I want to apologize.” He pressed the container into Ty’s hands, then pushed his way into the apartment. He unrolled the news-paper he was carrying with him. Ty followed him into the kitchen.

  Lawrence flopped down in one of the chairs, slapped the paper down. Ty frowned when he saw the real estate listings. “Are you trying to win me over with food?”

  “I’m sorry, Ty.” Lawrence rubbed his hands over his face. “I fucked up. I thought I was helping, saving you time and stress, but I fucked up. I didn’t expect you to react like that, I thought you were really gonna like the place …”

  Ty kicked at the table. Lawrence paused. “I thought we could start working on finding a new place, one that works for both of us.”

  Ty sighed. “I want to go home, Lawrence.”

  “I know. But Ty, we need a bigger place for the baby.”

  “We have two bedrooms, Lawrence. We can just stay there. We can sleep together.”

  “Are you okay with that?” Lawrence took his hand. “I mean, I still think we need a bigger place, but—”

  Ty huffed. “You were right. I’m nesting. I want to go back to the apartment.”

  “But are you—”

  “We’re married, aren’t we?” Ty jostled the table again.

  “We are,” Lawrence murmured. He rubbed the back of his neck. “I just didn’t think you wanted to.”

  “It’s fine, Laz. How long have we been friends? We’ve shared a bed before. And …” He dropped his hands to his stomach. “We made a baby.”

  Lawrence laughed. “I guess we did.”

  “We can sleep in the same bed.”

  Lawrence nodded. “Still think we need a bigger place,” he said.

  “Fine,” Ty grumbled.

  Lawrence sighed. “The good news is the apartment was cleaned,” he laughed. “So we’ll move our stuff back. And we’ll look for a new place.”

  Ty kicked the table a third time. “Still mad at you,” he muttered.

  “I don’t blame you,” Lawrence said softly. “I really fucked up. I’m sorry.”

  Ty reached over and squeezed his hand.

  ***

  It took them three days to move back into the apartment (thank heavens Lawrence hadn’t tried to break their rental agreement yet); they spent three nights apart, Lawrence in the new house and Ty at his parents’. He worked in the shop during the day, much to his mother’s delight. She kept talking about doulas and midwives and birth scenarios, and Ty felt like he needed a pound of weed or more to even begin contemplating the subject. It was hardly the middle of July. He had months to go before he even had to think about … that.

  He was more than grateful when Lawrence collected him after work on the third day. “The way she’s talking, you’d think my due date’s tomorrow or something. And she wanted to do some crystal mobile or some shit for the baby,” he muttered, glowering at the gum-covered sidewalk as they walked back to the apartment.

  Lawrence just snorted and smiled. “Well,” he said, “we will need to think about decorating baby’s room. It’ll be over before you know.”

  “Ugh.”

  “I see that’s a topic that thrills you.”

  “Laz, you know my version of furniture shopping is finding something in the classifieds that’s, like, zero dollars.”

  “I was thinking we could paint it yellow.”

  Ty glared at him. “What’s with you and yellow lately?”

  “It’s a nice, warm color. Gender neutral too.”

  Ty glanced down at his sneakers; he could see a flash of white and color if he exaggerated his step, but his belly had eclipsed them. “What’s that got to do with anything?”

  Lawrence gave him a look. “Well, we don’t know,” he said.

  “No, we don’t.” Ty didn’t even know when they would. Nobody had mentioned it to him, and the very little sex ed he’d sat around for in school had focused around the development of fully human babies, not Pisceans. “Maybe we should look some of this shit up?”

  “Or you could have, you know, asked your parents.” Lawrence unlocked the door to the apartment, shoved open the door.

  Entering the space was like having a weight roll off his shoulders. Ty paused in the foyer (so much cleaner than he was used to), breathing in, taking it all in. The piles of shoes were gone; the floor practically shone, and the mounds of laundry and take-out cartons and other garbage had disappeared.

  Lawrence’s hand landed on his shoulder. “Let’s try to keep it a little cleaner this time, hm?” He smiled.

  The feeling faded just as quickly as it had come on. Ty gazed out at the room, saw the old outlets, the sharp corner where the wall jutted out, the cracks in the wall. He remembered the uneven floor, the strange dip in the bathroom tiles, the heaved stairs outside, how the heat was broken and no one had ever bothered to fix it.

  “You’re right,” he said with a sigh. “We need a different space.”

  Lawrence squeezed his shoulder tighter. “I get it,” he whispered. “I got to say goodbye to this place. You didn’t.”

  He leaned into Lawrence as his friend hugged him.

  “We’ll start looking tomorrow.” Why was Lawrence always so damn sensible
? He nodded anyway. “I was thinking we could find a place with a pool. Or maybe a nice bathtub for you.”

  “Hmm,” Ty agreed, dragging his luggage across the floor. He paused in the doorway to his room. It was empty now, barren and almost sterile. Water spots on the ceiling, a chipped mirror hanging on the far wall. The closet door had long since been ripped off.

  “I, um.”

  “You’re in here now,” Lawrence reminded him, steering him toward the other door. His feet were like lead across those few steps.

  Lawrence’s room hardly seemed to have changed—it was cleaner now, but that was about all. He pitched his backpack into the corner, then flopped onto the bed, felt the thin mattress shifting beneath him. “I think we need a new bed too,” he said, turning onto his side. He could already feel the springs poking him in the back.

  “You think?” Lawrence joined him, sprawling out beside him.

  “Mm.” Ty nodded once, then turned back to him. “My back aches enough without a crap mattress under me.”

  “Your back hurts?” Lawrence’s face was pinched. “Fishy, why didn’t you say anything?”

  “It’s not that bad.”

  “We can get you in to see a physiotherapist, a massage therapist, something, anything. Whatever you want, Ty, whatever you need.”

  Lawrence settled a hand on his low back, rubbing into tender flesh. Heat bled from his fingers into Ty’s skin. “It’s fine,” he said.

  “Stop trying to be tough,” Lawrence chided. “Fishy, just tell me what you need. I’m here for you.”

  “Yeah?” Ty asked as Lawrence wrapped both arms around him, dragging their bodies flush together. Their legs tangled.

  “Use me,” Lawrence hissed, “that’s what I’m here for. Anything you want.”

  “Anything?” Ty quirked a brow.

  “Anything,” Lawrence replied with a nod.

  “Even …” Ty let his hands slide down Lawrence’s front, stopping just shy of his belt.

  “Especially that.” Lawrence’s voice was rasping, raking shivers along Ty’s spine.

  “Really?” he asked, and Lawrence nodded, nipped at his collarbone and ran his hands up Ty’s sides.

  “Thought you’d never ask,” he whispered, sliding his hands up under Ty’s tee.

  “I thought you weren’t interested,” Ty said.

  “And Val says I’m oblivious,” Lawrence muttered, reaching up to palm Ty’s chest. “I’ve been interested for a while.”

  “Even like this?” Ty asked.

  “Like what?” Lawrence pinched a nipple, and Ty tilted his head back. Those hands were making it hard to concentrate.

  “Pregnant,” he groaned, and Lawrence’s hands slid down over his belly.

  “Oh Ty.” Lawrence squeezed him a little tighter. “You’re even more interesting than usual.”

  Lawrence kissed him, tongue and teeth clashing with his, and Ty nipped him, tasted blood and felt him wince before he was reminded of how sharp his own teeth were. Lawrence didn’t seem to mind though, groaning and leaning in to lick blood off his lips. “Want you so bad,” he croaked, squeezing Ty’s ass. “So into you.”

  They rocked against each other gently now, Lawrence thrusting against Ty’s hip and Ty grinding against his thigh. Lawrence’s breath was hot in his ear. “Wanted to touch you so bad, while we were at the cottage, you right next to me. God, it was agony.”

  “Should’ve said something,” Ty offered, nipping at Lawrence’s neck.

  “Didn’t think you wanted it.”

  “We’re both idiots,” Ty groaned, gripping Lawrence’s ass to align their hips and let them thrust against each other.

  “So stupid,” Lawrence breathed.

  “We’re married,” Ty panted.

  “Should’ve been banging this whole time.”

  “’Specially like this.”

  “Not like this,” Lawrence murmured. “A hundred other ways.”

  “Fuck,” Ty spat and dug his nails into Lawrence’s shoulders.

  “Fishy.” Lawrence’s arms were heavy on his shoulders. “Fishy, did you—”

  “Yeah.”

  Lawrence knocked their foreheads together. “Fuck, Ty, I’m glad.” His eyes fluttered shut and Ty slid a hand between them, wrapped it around Lawrence as best he could. “Wish you’d suggested sleeping in the same bed months ago.”

  Ty wished he had too, especially as Lawrence shuddered apart in his grip. The silver-haired man sagged in his arms, his eyes slowly opening again. “What the hell is wrong with us?” he asked. He smiled.

  “No idea,” Ty replied, extricating himself from Lawrence’s grasp. “I’m getting changed, I’m not sleeping like this.”

  Lawrence pulled a face. “Ugh, no. Let’s go wash up.”

  Nineteen

  The summer heat was already fading when they finally moved into a house a few blocks from the downtown core. It was practically the same as the first house, but it had a larger yard and a giant clawfoot bathtub, and that was about all Ty had to say about it.

  He didn’t say anything about pricing. He knew how much houses with yards went for, especially on older, tree-lined streets like this.

  They’d barely been settled two weeks when an invitation arrived. Ty half-expected a Halloween invite from Ali, or maybe something even weirder (like an engagement announcement from Raoul and Val).

  He wasn’t expecting an invitation to spend Thanksgiving on Earth with Lawrence’s parents at their chalet in the Alps. He stared at it for a long time, then pinned it to the fridge and left the room. He had other things to worry about, like finding furniture for the room Lawrence had lovingly dubbed “the nursery” or his appointment with Dr. K or the fact that his fingers were swollen and that was making it difficult to play.

  Or that his back hurt and his belly was in the way of virtually everything, but no one else could feel the baby yet and that worried him.

  He didn’t need to think about making a trip to Earth or spending time with Lawrence’s stupid family. He went back to reading the catalog, trying to pick a crib where they’d nestle their newborn.

  It was weird to think about and he hated it a little, the idea of their baby being out in the open, where he’d need to think about where baby was and how to keep baby safe.

  He picked a white crib and called it a day. He took a nap on their bed (now with a new mattress) and woke up only when Lawrence got home from the lab with dinner.

  “Hey fishy,” he said as he slid onto the barstool. “You have a good day?”

  Ty stifled a yawn and peered into the containers of take-out. “Pretty good,” he replied, “slept most of it. Picked a crib out.”

  “That’s good,” Lawrence said with a smile. “Anything else?”

  Ty shook his head and sat down on one of the barstools. He heaped chow mein onto a plate. “Just slept, really. Guess I was tired.”

  “Mm,” Lawrence agreed, glancing down at him. “Well, baby’s doing some growing, so I guess that uses a lot of energy.”

  “I guess,” Ty replied, cramming noodles into his mouth.

  They ate in silence at the bar. Ty could see the invitation pinned to the fridge door, mocking him. Lawrence either hadn’t noticed or wasn’t going to acknowledge it.

  “So,” Ty drawled at last, earning a head tilt in his direction. “Your parents invited us to spend Thanksgiving with them.”

  Lawrence sat up straight, frowning. “They did what?”

  Ty pointed at the fridge. “That came today. Asked us to go to Earth.”

  Lawrence stalked across the kitchen, ripped the invite off the fridge. The magnet bounced somewhere under the stove. “The pricks,” Lawrence muttered, crumpling the invite. He met Ty’s curious gaze. “I already told Mother that I’m not coming for the holidays.” He gave Ty a guilty look. “That I can’t.”

  Ty snorted. “Bet she took that well.”

  Lawrence glared at the crumpled invitation. “Obviously.”

  Ty twirled his chopsticks
in his noodles. “I mean, we could go.”

  “Are you kidding?” Lawrence looked offended. “That’s right on top of your due date.”

  Ty half-shrugged. “You could go.”

  Now Lawrence looked mad. “What, I’m going to leave you?”

  “I’m not helpless—”

  “You’re having a baby,” Lawrence ground out. “Our baby. I think that’s more important than … going to Earth, seeing my stupid parents.”

  Ty was silent for a moment. Lawrence’s shoulders were shaking. “Do you want to go?” Ty asked finally.

  Lawrence gritted his teeth. “Yes. I mean, no. Well.” He sighed, then slumped over the bar. “Chaz called yesterday to say Gran’s not well.”

  Ah. Ty reached over, put a hand on Lawrence’s, felt the cool of his wedding band. “You should go then. You don’t want to miss it, if …”

  Lawrence’s lip curled up in a sneer. “They’re always telling me that though. Oh, Gran’s not well, she might not make it, you’d better come see her.” He glared into the sink for a long moment, then looked up at Ty. “I want to be here for you. For our baby.”

  They stared at each other for a moment. Then Ty said, “Would you regret it? If it was actually Myrtle’s …”

  Lawrence couldn’t meet his gaze. “I …”

  Ty squeezed his hand. “Then we’ll go.”

  “Ty, no—”

  “We’ll figure it out. It’s a couple weeks from my due date still, I’m sure it will be fine.” He grinned. “Besides, it’ll be fun to stick it to your mother that you’re coming home with me, to Mars. Where you belong.”

  Lawrence groaned. “Do you have to pick fights with her? Seriously, Ty.”

  ***

  “Are you crazy?” Dr. K asked, peering up from the ultrasound screen. Ty tried to ignore the look he was giving him, watched baby on the screen instead. Baby was far more interesting, he decided, kicking and twirling around inside him.

  He glanced at Dr. K. “I didn’t really think so, no.”