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.Not the day hisparents died, which was bad enough, but the day they d come and taken his sisters.He wanted them back.He wanted to be a part of a family, a home, and if there wasany chance of finding it, it was behind that door, but his own happiness would meannothing if Adam became hurt in the process. Luke?Startled, Luke opened his eyes and saw Adam standing there, a look ofuncertainty on his face.Blind Passion 107 Yes, it s me, he reluctantly admitted, not at all surprised that Adam wouldhave known he was there, but not ready to make the commitment of walkingthrough the door.Adam suddenly grinned. Thought it was.Michael said I was hearing things.You re not wearing your boots.Luke looked down at his running shoes.They would have been almost silent onthe wooden balcony, yet Adam still heard him.He smiled despite his indecisionabout whether he could do this. No. He looked back up at Adam, who smiled athim, his eyes shining with happiness that was impossible to miss.Luke s heartsank. Adam Before he could say any more, Adam reached for him, sliding a hand behindhis neck.Luke instinctively took a step toward him as Adam s mouth covered his ina soft yet insistent kiss.His tongue pressed for entry, gentle but with a need Lukeunderstood all too well.Unable to help it and with a need of his own, Luke kissedhim back, but the second he stepped into Adam s arms, Adam pulled free. Luke, what s wrong?Shit.Luke knew he couldn t hide anything from Adam, but there was no wayhe was going tell Adam the truth. Just a little nervous about meeting yourbrother, he said, which wasn t entirely a lie. Don t be.He wants to meet you. Adam smiled again and bent down foranother kiss.Thankful that Adam hadn t caught him out, Luke lifted up for him, but thistime he pulled Adam to him, sliding his arms around his neck and holding himclose.Adam s hands closed around his hips and dragged him even closer.When Adam let go this time, he was grinning. Better? Luke asked as he moved back out of Adam s arms. Better, but still not nearly enough, but I guess it ll have to do for now. For now? As soon as my brother is out of here, I m jumping your bones, Adamwhispered conspiratorially.Luke laughed and relaxed enough to allow Adam to pull him through the door.He still didn t know if he could do this, but he couldn t just walk away now. It s not cold out, is it? Adam said as he closed the door behind them.Lukeglanced toward the man sitting on the lounge, then brought his attention back toAdam. No, why? You re wearing a long-sleeved shirt. Adam s hand slid down his arm, thenback up to his shoulder and over the collar covering his neck. You re not worriedabout your scar, are you? Michael won t say anything.108 Penny BrandonLuke dipped his head.Michael was within hearing distance and probablywould say something now. No, I m not worried about the scar. He d worn the long-sleeved shirt for a totally different reason something else he was hiding fromAdam. Good.Did you bring everything?Luke didn t answer, but taking Adam s arm he followed him into the loungeroom, where Michael had stood up and was waiting.He hadn t taken a look at him when Michael had caught him and Adamtogether yesterday, so he was interested now in what he was like.Physically he wasa little taller than Adam, and his hair was darker, but there was no mistaking theywere brothers.Their features were similar, and so was their body shape.The maindifference however was Michael s eyes.They were a deep cerulean blue, and theywere sharp and piercing as they stared at him.Luke suddenly felt ill at ease under his scrutiny until Michael smiled and heldout his hand. Hi, I m Michael.Luke shook his hand, the other man s grip firm, but not crushing. Luke. Adam s told me a lot about you.Luke glanced at Adam, who had plonked down on the edge of the lounge.Adam was listening intently, no doubt picking up inflections in their tone.Lukeworried his lip and took in a deep breath, knowing he was going to have to bedoubly careful about showing his feelings around these two. Only nice things I hope, he said, returning his gaze back to Michael, who waslooking at him with an intensity that was unnerving yet reassured him thatMichael was only looking out for Adam s best interests.He supposed Adam had toldhis brother about their arrangement, and he wondered what Michael thought of it.Whatever it was, he was keeping it to himself, which made Luke even morenervous.He didn t need Michael s approval to be with Adam, but he didn t wantMichael to openly dislike him, either.If he wanted to do this, if he wanted to findhis sisters, he was going to have to trust Michael.In return he needed Michael to atleast want to help him.He sat down next to Adam and was immediately aware of the pent-up energyAdam was feeling.Some of it, Luke knew, was sexual need thrumming throughAdam s body like a hot wire, but a lot could be attributed to Adam s worry abouthow he and Michael would get on.Without any thought, Luke reached for his handand squeezed it, partly to calm Adam down, but mostly to take some of Adam sstrength.If he was going to do this, he was going to need it.Adam squeezed back,and Luke slid their hands together until their fingers linked.Adam grinned at him,and it was only then that Luke became aware of Michael s scrutiny.Michael slowly sat down on one of the large armchairs, his gaze flickingbetween Luke and Adam.Luke watched the slow curve of a smile on his mouth, andBlind Passion 109he began to worry even more.Whatever he was thinking now was pretty obvious,and Luke wondered what Adam had said to him. What have you got for me? Michael asked, obviously expecting Luke to beprepared.Luke knew it was time for him to make a decision.He glanced at Adam again.Maybe it was time to let go some of the control.Maybe it was time he allowedhimself to trust and to hope.But could he do that and keep Adam safe from beinghurt? He could, but only if he kept his emotions in check, only if he kept his distancefrom Adam.Adam sat forward and brought their linked hands into his lap, and as Lukestared into his beautiful eyes, he knew there was no chance of him ever keeping hisdistance. Luke?It was Michael who spoke, forcing Luke to look at him.Michael s gaze wasassessing, and like his brother, Luke knew he was seeing more than Luke wasprepared to have exposed.He shook his head, just enough so Michael would knowhe wasn t going to do this.Michael frowned, and the color of his eyes darkened indisapproval.He looked over at Adam, then back to Luke, then tilted his head,almost as if he was asking why.Luke watched him, almost too scared to look away,and then Michael suddenly smiled and leaned back in his chair. Adam tells me you have two sisters.Startled, Luke glared at Michael, who glared back.Why was Michael doingthis? What did he hope to prove? Michael flicked his gaze to Adam as if in warning,and Luke took the hint.He didn t have any choice. Yes.Maria and Theresa.Michael nodded in approval [ Pobierz całość w formacie PDF ]