When Mason didn’t continue, Gavin lightly pushed him with his elbow. “Are you going to tell me why?”

Mason got a cramp in his gut. The words were still hard to say, even though he wasn’t sure if it should be as difficult as it was. “Because I don’t. Not really. Stumbled upon paperwork I shouldn’t have. Oh, hey, we forgot to tell you, son. You’re not really our son. You belong to a drug addict your mom went to college with.” Maybe at his age, it shouldn’t matter. Maybe he shouldn’t care. His family loved him, raised him, and treated him well. Did blood really matter? To him, it did.

The fact that they’d never told him mattered. That Isaac had found out but didn’t tell him, either. And knowing that his mom got clean when he was ten years old and he’d still not gotten so much as a phone call from her mattered as well.

It hurt like hell.

***

Damn, Gavin definitely hadn’t expected that. He could tell there was more to the story as well. “Do you know where she is? Have you contacted her? Asked your parents about her?”

Mason turned his head toward Gavin. “I don’t think so. My turn is over. Aren’t we playing the get-to-know-you game? Tit for tat, Teach. Don’t tell me I have to explain to you the rules of the game.”

Gavin leaned his head back against the tree, waiting to feel himself clam up, waiting to feel the urge to pull back because Mason was trying to find out too much about him.

It didn’t happen.

“They found out I was gay.”

“How did they not know you are gay?”

Gavin shrugged. “Am I supposed to go around with a sign on my forehead? Maybe my back, too?” He tried to stand but Mason grabbed his arm and pulled him back down.

“Don’t. You know that’s not what I meant.”

And he did. “I was…discreet. I taught at a Christian school. My dad’s a teacher, and Mom was before she had me. All I ever wanted to do was teach, and I didn’t want to threaten that, so I kept my business to myself. It’s not as if I had a lot of time to date, anyway.”

Mason still held Gavin’s wrist as they sat there. He liked the feel of the strong hand on him.

“And?”

Gavin almost called him bossy again but figured this wasn’t the best time. The ache in his stomach got worse. Spilling his guts to a man he just met wasn’t his idea of a good time, yet he found himself willing to do it anyway. “I noticed a boy being picked on. We started talking. I wanted to help him. The kid admitted he’s gay. I gave him my support, his parents didn’t like it. There went my job. That’s the basics of it. Tried to help a kid, lost my job.”

Wasn’t that his job as a teacher? To help? Wasn’t that his job as a human being? Apparently not where they’d been concerned.

When Mason didn’t reply, Gavin looked his way. Mason’s green eyes pinned him, trapped him with what looked like respect burning there. Gavin wanted that look, wanted someone who got it, and Mason didn’t have to say it for Gavin to know he did. “You did the right thing.”

“I know.” And in reality he did, but from there on, he’d done nothing to fight.

Mason licked his lips, and Gavin found himself wanting to be the one to do it. Mason was a sexy man. His short hair looked soft. Gavin wanted to grab it, but initiating things wasn’t typically his game.

“I want to kiss you. Not sure it’s a good idea, though.”

Gavin wasn’t, either, but he wanted it. Right now, he really fucking wanted it. “It is—a good idea.” The words hardly left his mouth before Mason’s lips touched his, gentle and slow. His hand moved from Gavin’s wrist to cup the side of his face as he teased Gavin’s mouth open.

It had been much too long since Gavin kissed a man. The second their tongues touched things went from zero to sixty in no time flat. All he could think about was wanting more.

Mason’s hand pulled his hair as his tongue pushed into Gavin’s mouth. Urgent. Hungry. Incredible.

Gavin didn’t notice him move, but suddenly Mason sat on top of him, straddling his legs. His body was hard, his thighs thick with corded muscle as they hugged Gavin’s body.

Mason grabbed Gavin’s hand and put it on his jean-covered erection. “I’ve been hard for you all day. I’m really not sure this is a good idea. It’s your call. Tell me to stop if you want me to. No hard feelings. This is completely separate from the job.” And then his mouth owned Gavin’s again.

Gavin wanted to be owned.

He should take Mason up on his chance to pull the brakes on things. He worked for the guy, and they both obviously had big shit going on in their lives. But he wanted this. He wanted Mason. Wanted a man. And he hadn’t taken something for himself in too damn long.