Leaving Home by Chase, A. (life books to read .txt) 📗

at him, and it was obvious he

wasn’t going to get any support from them.

“Well, no, I didn’t think you would let me into your life just like that, Peter. I know

you’ve found good friends who took you into their home and hearts. That makes me happy.”

“Then what the hell do you want?” Peter shouted.

Roscoe ducked his head. “Well, you see, I’m in a bit of a bind, and I need some help

paying off some debts from starting up my business.”

A light went off in Peter’s head, and he started laughing. “Oh my God, I should’ve

known a man who would abandon his pregnant girlfriend and force her to end up marrying

his brother would be the type of guy who does something like this.”

Margie grabbed Roscoe’s plate and told Chaz, “Why don’t you and Peter escort Mr

Skinner out?”

“With pleasure,” Chaz snarled as he took Roscoe’s arm in a tight grip.

“Wait a minute. Peter, I really did want to get to know you, and to find out how your

mother was.”

Snorting in disbelief, Peter followed Chaz and Roscoe to the front door. “I think you

decided getting to know your first born son was an opportunity to get some money from me.

Your spies in town probably told you who I was living with, and since Les has money, you

thought you’d come and see if I’d help my long-lost dad out.”

“Man, that’s low, and I thought the rest of your family sucked.” Chaz opened the door

to shove Roscoe out on the porch.

“Peter, please.”

“I don’t want to see you again, Roscoe. I don’t care if you’re my dad or not. You know

what? Having a blood family isn’t important to me anymore. What is important is people

who let you into their lives because they choose to, and not because they have to take you in.”

He slammed the door shut, then leaned against it. Folding his arms, he met Chaz’s gaze.

“Well, this sucks.”

Chaz nodded. “Have to agree with you. Is it always so exciting around here?”

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LEAVING HOME T.A. Chase 100

Peter shook his head. “Not even when Les and Randy are here. Can you believe the

bastard would try something like that? All because he found out who Les was and figured

I’d be able to get money to help him out.”

“I’m sorry it didn’t work out quite the way you were expecting.” Chaz wrapped his

arms around Peter’s waist to pull him closer to him. “But you still have all your friends, and me. I’ll be more than happy to cheer you up.”

Peter pushed closer into Chaz’s embrace, crushing their mouths together with a low

moan. He slid his hands down to grasp Chaz’s butt, then dug his fingers into the firm flesh.

Chaz arched his back, bringing their groins into contact.

God, he wanted this man more than he’d ever thought he could want anyone. A noise

coming from the kitchen caused Peter to remember where they were. No way would he get

caught making out in the hallway. It didn’t matter that Les and Randy had it happen to them all the time. Peter really wasn’t into exhibitionism.

“We need to go and help Margie with cleaning the kitchen before we do anything,” he

whispered.

Disappointment crossed Chaz’s face before he nodded. “You’re right. I don’t want to

leave her having to clean up after she went to all that trouble to cook us dinner.”

Peter reached down to adjust himself, glad he was wearing jeans and not sweats. He

didn’t want to give Margie an eyeful when they came into the kitchen. Chaz watched him,

then winked as he did the same.

“I think, to make up for how crappy a day you’ve had, you should be given a chance to

pop your cherry,” Chaz murmured to Peter as they returned to the dining room.

Inhaling sharply, Peter glared at Chaz. “Thanks for that. I’m not going to be able to

stand up straight while we rinse the dishes.”

The smirk Chaz shot in his direction made Peter chuckle. Margie gave Peter a hug when

she came back from the kitchen.

“Honey, you know we all love you here, and you have a home here for as long as you

want to be with us.” Margie patted his cheek. “Did you want to finish eating? If not, you can put the rest in the refrigerator, and have a midnight snack later.”

With her affirmation of his place at the Hardin ranch, Peter found his appetite again. He picked her up and swung her around.

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LEAVING HOME T.A. Chase 101

“Thank you, Margie. I think I’d like to eat now, and after that, Chaz and I will clean up, so you can go and put your feet up.”

She giggled, and that sound made Peter’s heart swell. It wasn’t often Margie let go of

her stern façade, and usually it was only with Les.

“Come on, Chaz. Let’s enjoy Margie’s marvellous cooking. We’ll need our energy for

later on.”

Chaz’s surprised expression drew laughter from both Margie and Peter. That was the

theme for the rest of their dinner. Peter allowed himself to forget about Roscoe and what the Skinners had done to him. His last name might be the same as theirs, but he didn’t consider himself as one of them. He was a member of the eclectic collection of people who gathered on this ranch, calling it home and the people who lived here family.

When Chaz laughed at something Margie had said, Peter studied him. Would Chaz fit

in with the rest of the guys? Was there a future in this relationship? Peter found himself making a quick decision. He would do what he had to do to keep in touch with Chaz once

the man left for Tulsa. It would be worth the effort to see if Chaz could be the one he became serious with.

* * * *

An hour later, Peter put the last plate into the dishwasher. He and Chaz had spent the

time chatting about nothing important while they restored the kitchen to its spotless

splendour. Margie had gone to her suite of rooms, and Peter knocked on her door.

“Yes?” she asked as she opened it.

The TV was on, and