Thomas Durling escaped his small-town upbringing for over ten years, until a single phone call drew him back. Told his mother has been diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s, he returns to the small northern Michigan town he once called home to find a mute stranger taking care of her in his stead.<br><br>On the surface, Andre seems harmless enough, but Thomas has enough problems trying to deal with his mother’s illness. He doesn’t need a gorgeous young man to distract him, especially in a town that drove him away once already with its homophobia.<br><br>But Andre has nowhere else to go. A wolf without a pack, he’s been on the run since witnessing his father’s murder, always looking over his shoulder, never looking ahead. Taking care of Thomas’s mother has given him a welcome sanctuary, as well as a place he can call home for a couple months. He wants to stay, but more importantly, he wants to help, even if Thomas isn’t ready to accept that they could actually be friends ...

Moon-Touched

Without turning, Thomas stretched an arm behind him until his hand came to rest on Andre’s flank. His fingers moved just as slowly, caressing the muscle in small inches that sent an array of goose bumps across Andre’s butt.


He had to lift his head to glance at the clock. With Thomas’s eyes still closed, he couldn’t sign the answer, but Thomas hadn’t let him go to reach for the pad, either. Time to take a risk.


Taking a deep breath, he nuzzled the space below Thomas’s ear before catching the lobe between his teeth. He nipped once, then deliberately released as a shudder wracked through Thomas. A corresponding tremor went through Andre, but he held off from taking what he wanted to repeat the nibble four more times.


Several seconds passed after he let Thomas’s ear go. Then, Thomas chuckled.


“It’s either somewhere around five, or you’re trying to drive me crazy.”


Chapter 30