Untitled (See A/N inside!)

So! Here’s the next chapter… I’m not sure how I feel about it yet. It’s not as long as the others, and I haven’t done too much explaining about Landon’s past, but more of that is coming soon… but, by the end of the chapter, I hope you all will be VERY pleased with me… =)

Once again, thanks so much for your support and positive reviews! Keep them coming! =) Also, I’m still unsure about a name, so any suggestions…
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“What happened to your lip?” Bryce asked, looking concerned when Bryce got in the car. “You look like you got punched.”

“It’s nothing.” Landon said, shutting the car door and fastening his seatbelt. “Misunderstanding.” he glanced back at the house and waved at Hannah, who was sitting on the front porch. It was almost nine, and he knew she should be heading to bed soon. She returned the wave, and Landon turned to Bryce. “So what’s the plan?”

Bryce shrugged one shoulder and pulled out the driveway. “I thought we might go to my house, watch a movie.” he suggested. Landon gave him a good once over while he was preoccupied. He looked even better in casual clothes than he did in a suit. Well fitting blue jeans with a tiny hole in one knee, a blue tee shirt with a white and lime green scrawl of swirls and spikes up the bottom left side, and a pair of black sneakers made him seem a little younger, a little more at ease. His hair was messier than normal, framing that sharp, expressive face in a pale halo. Landon half smiled and looked away before Bryce could catch him.

“That sounds fine.” Landon said. “What kind of movie?”

“I’m pretty partial to Aronofsky films.” Bryce told him. “Have you ever seen Pi?” Landon shook his head. “It’s a little weird, but it’s really interesting. I haven’t watched it in a while. Thought maybe we’d watch that.”

“What’s it about?” Landon asked.

“A mathematician.” Bryce said vaguely. “It’s kind of hard to explain.”

“Well, okay.” Landon shrugged. “Do you live far?”

“About a fifteen minute drive.” he said. He glanced at Bryce and flashed him a smile. “Thanks for wanting to see me again.”

“Truth be told, you’re sort of rescuing me right now.” Landon admitted.

“How so?”

“Just having some problems with Dean.” Landon said. He saw the way Bryce tensed and frowned. “What?”

“Did he split your lip?” he asked.

“I totally deserved it, in retrospect.” Landon assured him. “And don’t give me that ‘violence is never an answer’ crap, sometimes a punch needs to get thrown.”

“You really believe that?” Bryce asked.

Landon shrugged. “If someone had said what I’d said, I would’ve punched them.” he reasoned.

“Why’d you say it then?” He sounded merely curious.

Landon sighed. “Because I’m vindictive.”

“Noted.”

Landon laughed. Not often, but sometimes…” he ran a hand through his hair. “Sometimes I can be a bitch.”

“Also noted.” Bryce said this with the tiniest of innuendo in his voice, and Landon shot him a playful scowl. “Well, that is good information to have about the guy I’m currently trying to woo, whether he‘s top or-”

“I’m being wooed?” Landon interrupted, grinning. “Really? Where are my flowers, my sonnets?”

“I’m not that traditional, trust me.” Bryce told him. Landon laughed, and Bryce watched him out of the corner of his eye. “So that vindictive streak of yours, it doesn’t come out often?”

“No, I’ve made it one of my life goals to control my temper, which was pretty volatile as a teenager. When I lived in Wichita, I spent some time with a shrink, learned some good techniques, that sort of thing.” he paused, then chuckled. “Wow, I can’t believe I just said that.”

“Said what, that you saw a therapist?” Landon nodded. “I still have a therapist.” he said. “I see her twice a month.”

“Really?” Bryce nodded. “Why?”

“I have control issues.” Bryce said, shrugging. Landon gave him a curious look, but Bryce didn’t explain. “So you lived in Wichita? Like, Kansas?”

“Yea, for about a year, before I came here.”

“How long have you lived with Dean and the girls?”

“Almost ten months now. I don’t really talk about Wichita.”

Bryce glanced at him. “Bad memories?” he asked.

“No, not exactly.” he sighed. “This isn’t really a good conversation to have on a second date. All this important, serious stuff.”

Bryce shrugged. “I figure if you’re not saying something important, you probably shouldn’t be talking.” he offered. “But if you don’t want to talk about it, then that’s fine.”

“Not that I don’t want to, just that I never have.” Landon clarified, and Bryce nodded. Landon looked around. “This is your neighborhood?”

“Yep. My house is there.” he pointed ahead of them before turning into the driveway of a narrow, two story house that looked old but well kept. “Now I should warn you, my dog’s a bit of a spaz.”

“You have a dog?” Bryce nodded, smiling, and they got out of the car. Landon followed him up the stairs, and as soon as the door was open a huge, fluffy white thing came flying out, barking howling. It looked roughly the size of a polar bear, and vaguely resembled one. “Holy shit.” Landon stepped back as the dog came right at him, tongue lolling.

“Winston!” Bryce snapped, and the dog stopped short. “Don’t jump.” the dog just stood there, staring at Landon. “Pet him, or he’ll never let you in. Once we’re in the house, I’ll put him in his room.”

“He has a room?” Landon reached down and scratched the dog of the dog’s head. The dog immediately rolled over onto his back, his tail wagging fiercely.

“All his own.” Bryce replied. “Come on.” he went inside, and Landon followed. The dog jumped up and trotted after him. “Okay, Winston, in your room, let’s go.” he lead the dog down the hall, and Landon stood in the living room, looking around. The walls were bright white, covered in framed photographs of landscapes and a few framed canvases, mostly of birds. The couch was small but looked comfortable, and dark blue. There was a rather small entertainment center in comparison to the monstrous one Dean had at home, and lots and lots of books. There seemed to be stacks of books on every available surface. The floor was hardwood, with an area rug in the middle. It looked cozy.

Bryce came back into the room. “He’s a good dog. He actually behaved better than I expected him to.”

“He’s huge.” Landon said, and Bryce laughed. “Your house is nice.” He appreciated how clean it was, aside from the books. But that didn’t bother him much.

“Thanks.” Bryce was staring at him strangely, and when Landon met his gaze and tilted his head quizzically, the blond man stepped forward. “I’m sorry.” he said quietly, reaching up and slipping his hand around the back of Landon’s neck. “Can I just get this out of my system real quick?” he asked, a moment before he pressed his mouth to Landon’s. He was painstakingly careful, minding the cut on Landon’s lip, but still managed to make Landon a little weak in the knees. They broke apart, and Bryce smiled. “I’ve been thinking about that all day. I hope you don’t mind.”

“No.” Landon said softly. “No, that was fine.”

Bryce let go of him and moved to sit down. Landon sat beside him. “You were talking about Wichita.” Bryce reminded him.

“I thought we were going to watch a movie.”

“I’d rather hear more about you, honestly.” Bryce shrugged. “Like I said, we don’t have to talk about it, but I’d like to hear about it.”

Landon sighed and leaned back against the couch. Bryce’s arm was slung over the back, so he sort of ended up in the curl of the blond man’s arm. “I went to Wichita after my boyfriend from college killed himself.” he said flatly, and Bryce looked at him awkwardly. “I spent a year there getting sober and trying to deal with what happened. I had a temper for years, bad enough for me to get into trouble. I got suspended a lot in high school, had charges pressed twice in college.” he shrugged. “Nothing new or really all that astounding, considering some other people I’ve met, but bad enough for me to be a little wary of people knowing.” he gave Bryce a critical look. “That was it in a nutshell.”

“I see.” Bryce nodded, looking thoughtful. “It’s nothing for you to be ashamed of, Landon. Everyone’s got things like that in there past. I’m actually glad I know it now, instead of later.”

“Later?” Landon asked.

Bryce shrugged. “If you want there to be a later. This is only our second date, so let’s not put too much thought into that word.” he smiled softly, and Landon nodded. “I appreciate you opening up to me about it. Can I ask you a question about it?” Landon shrugged. “You said sobering up. Did you mean-”

“Not drugs or anything.” Landon assured him. “I had a pretty bad drinking problem for a while. I don’t do liquor anymore. I’ll have beer every once in a while, and yesterday at the restaurant was the last time I drank that much in a long time.”

“I’m a bad influence.”

“No, I was nervous.” Landon admitted. “I haven’t gone on a date since college, and I haven’t been with anyone since…” he stopped, frowning. “Actually, I can’t remember how long it’s been.”

“And you agreed to go out with me? Really?” Bryce pressed the hand not on the back of the couch to his chest. “I’m flattered, Landon.”

Landon smiled at him. “Well, you asked.” he said, and Bryce rolled his eyes. “Honestly though, I’m glad you did.”

“So am I.” Bryce said, reaching over and brushing his fingers along the line of Landon’s neck. Landon leaned forward this time, initiating the kiss, and Bryce let him control the pace of it, simply wrapping his arms around Landon’s neck and leaning back. Landon nudged the blond man’s lips part, touching their tongues together, and let out a tiny moan at the contact. It’d been so long since he’d touched someone, since he’d even thought of anyone other than-

He immediately attempted to swerve his mind back to the man he was kissing, not the man at home. He reached up, pushing his hands through Bryce’s white blond hair, liking the slightly coarse texture of it against his fingers, and deepened the kiss until Bryce made a low groaning sound against his tongue. Then he pulled back, gasping.

“Wow.” Bryce smiled, kissing the corner of Landon’s mouth, then the tip of his nose.

Landon pulled away gently. “Let’s watch that movie.” Bryce moved after him, keeping the distance between them practically nonexistent. “Bryce-” he was cut off by that mouth again, harder this time, and Bryce took control quickly. Landon almost didn’t realize how quickly he went from sitting up to laying down, but when Bryce’s fingers slid down his chest and caught the hem of his shirt, he jerked and pulled his mouth away. “Wait a second.” he rasped out, feeling Bryce’s mouth slide down his throat and his hand slide up under the fabric of his shirt, skating along his ribs. He was painfully aroused, despite the fact that his brain was panicking, insisting this was way too much, way too fast, but when Bryce scraped his teeth against Landon’s pulse all argument flew out of his head and he uttered a low, desperate, “Oh, fuck.” as he arched up against the blond man. Bryce took the opportunity to slide his other hand under the small of Landon’s back, keeping his hips up and pressed again the blonde’s own. He thrust lightly, and Landon gasped. Bryce’s fingernails dug against his skin, mimicking the slightly painful sensation of his teeth against Landon’s throat. His very confused, very fuzzy brain was barely working at all, other than to record and respond to physical contact. Bryce’s fingers brushed against his left nipple, and choked back a whimper. “Please.” he hissed, unsure of what he was doing, unsure of what he wanted. Bryce made a low, grumbling chuckling sound against his neck, thrusting his hips against Landon’s again, and Landon pushed back, opening his mouth and whispered, “Dean.”

They both froze. For a very long moment neither of them moved. Then Bryce lifted his head and looked carefully at Landon, who was brick faced and near tears. “Did you…” Bryce whispered.

Before he could continue, Landon shoved him away and got off the couch. The raging erection he’d been sporting a split second before was gone, and he felt sick to stomach. “Oh my fucking God.” he moaned, pushing his hands through his hair. “Christ, Bryce, I am so sorry.”

Bryce didn’t reply, and when Landon risked a look the older man was sitting in his original spot on the couch, his hands in his lap, looking absently up at the ceiling.

Landon wrapped his arms around his own stomach and closed his eyes. “I did not mean to say that.” he said, knowing he sounded stupid.

Bryce laughed, a quiet, unbelieving sound, and then sighed. “Wow.” he mumbled. “Just… wow.”

“I should go.” Landon said quietly. He opened his eyes, and watched Bryce scrub his face with hands and then laugh again, shaking his head. He looked both shocked and a little disgusted. The expression did nothing for Landon’s stomach, which did a rather sickening flop. He turned on unsteady legs and left the house without another word.

He walked a few blocks down until he found a park with a bench, then sat down and called a cab. He waited for it, his head in his hands.

When he got home, he went inside and was immediately greeted by screaming. Wincing, he realized quickly that it was Hannah.

“…whenever the hell I want!” she shrieked.

“Don’t sweat at me, Hannah.” Dean snarled, and Landon deduced they were in the kitchen. “I’ve told you how many times now? There is no way that I’m going to let you go to some concert with some girl I’ve never met before on a school night.”

“I’m not a little kid anymore!” it sounded as though Hannah had stomped her foot on the tiles.

“You’re acting like one.” Dean told her.

“Abby gets to do whatever she wants!”

“No, she doesn’t.” Dean insisted. “And she’s almost seventeen.” Landon walked into the kitchen and Dean looked up at him, somehow managing to look both upset that he was home and happy to see him at the same time. “Back me up on this one, Lan.”

“He’s not my father.” Hannah snapped.

“I’m getting a little tired of hearing that.” Landon quipped. “No one ever suggested I was, Hannah.”

She spun around, glaring daggers at him. “You have no right to tell me what to do!”

“He has whatever rights I give him.” Dean told her. “Landon, is Hannah old enough to-”

“Do whatever you think is best, Dean.” Landon cut in, surprising his brother-in-law into silence. “I’m going to bed.” he went upstairs without a backwards glance. He dug through one of his drawers, found a bottle of sleeping pills, and took two. Then he laid down, closed his eyes, and wished he could disappear for a while.
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Landon and Dean spent the couple of days straight finding ways to avoid each other. If any of the kids noticed it, none of them made a comment. Landon did what he always did; he cooked, he cleaned, he looked after the kids.

On Monday, he and Eleanor built a castle out of every building block she had, which took roughly two hours. They baked cranberry muffins and he taught her how to French braid on her dolls, which she practiced until she was sleepy eyed and cranky.

Abby had her official date with Josie on Tuesday, and Landon sat with her while she got ready, soothing her worries and exclaiming multiple times just how beautiful she looked. He waited up for her, sitting on the porch, and averted his eyes during the goodnight kiss. Abby came floating up the stairs, rosy cheeked and beaming, and they sat on the bench while Abby detailed their date. Landon kissed her goodnight and sent her in, then went up to bed himself.

On Wednesday, he spent the day with Hannah, who had found a new love for gardening ever since he’d had her help him in the back. They went to the nursery and she picked out two rose bushes, a few kinds of ferns, and about a million dahlias, and then they planted them in the front and side of the house. She started school again on Monday, and seemed to be dreading it. That night, she admitted to him that she’d been really enjoying her time alone with him, and she was worried that once she went back to school, he wouldn’t have as much time for her. It was a touching moment coming from her, considering how angry and spiteful she’d been lately.

On Thursday, he went to the bookstore and dropped off the kitchen knives to get sharpened. That night, he balanced Dean’s bank account, which he’d been doing anyway before Maddy left, since Dean seemed incapable of even remembering he had a bank account. He was sitting on the floor in the den, going through the paperwork, when Dean wandered in, looking confused.

“I got a letter.” he told Landon, who looked up from the pile of documents he was sifting through. “It said missed parent teacher conferences at Abby‘s school.”

“Dean, that was almost three weeks ago.” Landon said. “You had to work late that night, remember? We had pot roast.”

Dean sighed. “Why didn’t you tell me about it?”

“I did.” Landon started shuffling through the papers again. “I told you while you were sitting at the counter, eating the ice cream Eleanor and I had made from scratch that day. It was the same day I fell on the back porch and bruised my tail bone, remember?”

“No.” Dean told him, sounding sullen. “I remember you falling that day, and I remember working late, but the rest of it…”

Landon sighed and put the papers down. “I’m sorry that you don’t remember that, Dean.” he said as calmly as he could. “Was there anything else?”

Dean frowned. “What are you doing?”

“Balancing your account.” Landon said. “Like I do every third Thursday of the month.” Dean shuffled his feet and said nothing for a very long time. When Landon could finally no longer stand the silence, he said, “Dean if you have something to say-”

“You haven’t been out with Bryce this week.”

Landon winced at the reminder of the blond teacher. “Uh, no.” he said. “So?”

“Did something happen?” Dean asked.

Oh, boy, did something happen. Landon snorted and ducked his head to hide the fact that his face flushed immediately. “Bryce has been busy.” he said vaguely.

“He called today.” Dean said quietly. “While you were at the book store.”

“Oh?” Landon said, attempting to keep his voice light.

“He wants you to call him back.”

Landon looked up at his brother-in-law. “And you’re just telling me now?” he asked, arching his eyebrows. “It’s almost midnight.”

“Did something happen?” Dean asked again. “Between you and Bryce?”

Landon looked backed own at the papers, shuffling through them unnecessarily. “I told you-”

“You’re not a very good liar.” Dean told him. “Not when you’re asked a direct question.” he walked over and sat down behind Landon on the couch. It made Landon a little uncomfortable to have Dean lurking back there. “What happened?”

“Nothing happened, Dean.” Landon said. “Nothing important. Things went too fast, okay?”

Dean made a strange sound, and then very quietly asked, “Did you sleep with him?”

“Not that it’s any of your business, but no.” Landon snorted. “I’m not that fast.”

“You’re not going to see him again?”

“I don’t know, Dean. I haven’t decided.” he’d actually been avoiding the entire thought of Bryce entirely. It was far too embarrassing. “Right now I’m uncomfortable with the idea of being around him.”

“Oh.” Dean was quiet for a moment. “Can I ask you something?”

“Sure.” Landon said with a shrug. Part of him just wanted Dean to go the hell away, but he knew that they had do this eventually, so he figured now was as good a time as any. “Go ahead.”

“Why do you stay with us?”

Landon half turned, looking at his brother-in-law like he’d gone nuts. “You’re joking, right?” Dean shook his head. “Because I love those girls, Dean. We’ve talked about this before, haven’t we?”

“Yes.” Dean said thoughtfully. “But things are different now.”

“Not to me.” Landon said. “Nothing’s changed for me.”

“I know about how you feel.”

“No, you don’t. You know I’ve thought about you in a sexual manner.” Landon shook his head. “That’s hardly having a complete grasp of how I-”

“You’re in love with me, Landon.” Dean was staring directly at him, and he said this as calmly and blankly as though he were simply stating the weather. Landon’s mouth opened, but no sound came out, so he just shut it again, turned his back on Dean, and dug through the papers once more. “Ignoring me doesn’t make me not here anymore.” Dean pointed out.

“Yes, that’s exactly what happens.” Landon said childishly. “Ostrich syndrome. If I can’t see it, it’s not there.” Landon felt his eyes well up and he blinked furiously to banish the tears. “Now, if you’ll kindly take your arrogant ass out of the den, I have some-”

Dean’s arms slithered around his shoulders, making him jump so badly he nearly screamed. It felt precisely how he’d always expected it to; roughly equivalent to be hugged by a very warm wall. He felt Dean’s breath against his ear and shuddered involuntarily. “Dean, let me go.” he said, his voice sounding far away even to his own ears.

“Am I still not here, Lan?” Dean asked quietly. “Can you still ignore me?”

“Stop it.” Landon tried to shrug him off, which did absolutely nothing. Landon realized he’d never been totally aware of how much bigger than him Dean was up until now. “Whatever fucked up little game you’re playing, just stop it.”

“I thought this was what you wanted from me.” Dean mumbled, and Landon’s brain nearly exploded. There was no way in hell he’d just said that. Dean lowered his head, resting his mouth against Landon’s shoulder. He didn’t kiss, or anything like that, but the press of his lips was enough. Landon jerked away, fleeing from his brother-in-law on his hands and knees, knowing how stupid he looked and not caring. He got halfway across the room, turned, and glared at Dean.

“What the fuck, Dean.” he snapped.

“Come over here.” Dean said, kneeling where Landon had left him.

“Now what the hell makes you think I’d do something like that?” Landon asked him incredulously. “You must think I’m nuts… No, wait. You’ve gone nuts. That’s the only explanation for your behavior.” Landon got to his feet, and Dean mimicked him. “Stay away from me, Dean. I don’t know what the hell you want from me, but just stay over there. I’ll leave the den, you stay here, okay?” He was rambling, but he couldn’t help it. The whole situation had taken a turn into a place Landon had no ability to cope with.

Landon moved quickly towards the doorway, and for a moment, Dean just watched him. Landon had a split second to believe he’d get out of this without any further insanity. Then Dean, moving freakishly fast across the room, caught him by one wrist and spun him around to face him. Landon let out a startled shriek as Dean balled the front of his shirt up with his other hand and then took one solid step forward, shoving Landon bodily into the wall.

“For fuck’s sake!” Landon wailed, struggling to get some sort of dominance over the situation. “Are you completely off your rocker? Let me go!”

“Stop struggling.” Dean barked at him, pushing the hand holding Landon’s wrist up and back until Landon’s arm was pinned to the wall beside his head. “I don’t know why you’re fighting so much.”

“Because you’re nuts.” Landon told him immediately.

Dean ignored this. “See, I’ve been thinking.” he said quietly. “I can come up with a million reasons for my behavior lately, but they all feel like bullshit when I say them out loud.” his eyes were flickering back and forth rather rapidly, as if trying to find something on Landon’s face. “So I thought, ‘here’s a wacky little idea, what if I’m just jealous?’.”

Landon stilled instantly. “What?” he croaked out. “Why would you be jealous of me?”

“Not of you, stupid.” dean said with a tiny shake of his head. “Of Bryce.”

“What?” Landon said again. He started to struggle again, and Dean pulled him forward quickly, then shoved him back again, hard enough to stun him, but not enough to hurt.

“Stop it.” Dean snapped. “You always have to be so thick-headed.” he sighed. “Just hold still. If you really want me, you’ll like this, so just hold still.”

Landon felt like screaming hysterically, but all that came out when he opened his mouth was a very mouse-like, very scared sounding, “What are you going to do?”

Dean smiled, a devilish sort of smirk that made Landon both crazily aroused and terrified of a slow, painful death. “I’m going to test my theory.” he said huskily, and Landon had a split second to take one huge, gasping breath before Dean bent his head and crushed their mouths together.