It surprised him that it had taken a whole four days for someone to pay him a visit. Dylan understood Gage and Derrick being occupied by work and their girlfriends. But at least his mother should have checked in. Then again, she had James now, he thought with a sneer.

As soon as he thought it, he chastised himself for having the emotional maturity of a ten-year-old.

Dylan felt a deep sense of embarrassment that he still couldn’t seem to accept his mother having a steady man in her life. Hell, he’d known James for years. The guy was smart, decent and had always admired Dr. Barbara Warren. She could do much worse. Dylan loved her and should have been happy for her, but her coupling only pointed out how alone he truly was. God, was he really that selfish?

Ignoring his twin as he set down his briefcase, Dylan moved to the kitchen and poured himself a cold glass of tea. He’d come to the decision that he would join his mother’s and James’s office. It made financial sense, and it would allow him the freedom to segue into his own practice. Now he just had to learn how to deal with them.

“Hey, dickhead. I’ve been waiting for you,” Derrick fumed from the kitchen doorway.

“Oh, that’s the buzzing I’ve been hearing.” Dylan pretended fright. “You startled me. I thought I had some kind of infestation.”

“Ha ha. You’ve ignored me long enough. Now tell me. How did it go? I can’t call Natalie and ask, and I can’t seem to get ahold of Harper either.”

“Who?”

Derrick paled. “Oh shit. I forgot to mention him, didn’t I? Was he there?”

Dylan walked up to his brother and slugged him in the gut.

Derrick’s breath whooshed out and he bent over to clutch his stomach.

“That’s more like it.” Dylan felt better. “You not only gave me the wrong time for the meeting—which was at eleven forty-five, not noon—but you didn’t mention Harper. And, yeah, he was there. Luckily, he’s a decent guy and covered for us.”

“He knew we’d swapped?” Derrick wheezed.

“Yeah.” And he more than made up for it with a weekend of nonstop, amazing sex. Dylan cleared his throat. “He and I worked things out, but you owe him a big thanks. You never mentioned him before.”

Derrick winced as he straightened. “I meant to. Harper’s a great guy. He helps when Natalie gets her panties in a bunch. He’s smart too.” He frowned. “Why are you asking?”

“Because you should have told me he’d be there. As it was, I think only the fact that he respected you allowed me to get out of there in one piece. Natalie’s not that bad, but I wouldn’t want to piss her off.”

Derrick nodded. “And that secretary. Scary.”

“Marly’s actually very nice. She wears Vintage perfume, by the way. So mention it the next time you see her. Which is at eleven forty-five next Friday. Not noon.”

“You think Marly’s nice?” Derrick blinked, then smiled. “Way to go, bro.”

“You’re welcome. And we’re even.”

“Yeah yeah. Sure.” Derrick left the kitchen with Dylan and plopped down on the couch next to him. “So what’s new with you? Mom said you’ve been quiet.”

“Oh? I didn’t realize she’d noticed.”

Derrick stared at him.

“What?”

“What’s up with you and Mom? She seemed kind of weird when she asked me about you, and you’re being obnoxious.”

“I am not.”

“Yeah, you are.” Derrick glared at him. “What’s up?”

“She obviously didn’t mention James.”

“James? What about him?”

“She and he are now a couple. I guess I should have let her tell you, but I would have thought you knew.” He wondered why she hadn’t said anything. A mean, petty part of him hoped they might already have broken up.

Derrick gaped. “Mom and James? But they’ve known each other forever. Like, since before Dad died.”

Dylan winced. He didn’t like mention of their father’s passing. All of them, but their mother especially, had grieved for Andrew Warren. A beloved husband and father, he’d been all that Dylan could have ever wanted in a parent. And then, out of the blue, his heart had failed and he was gone.

“Does Gage know?” Derrick asked.

Dylan shrugged. “I didn’t want to know. I went to lunch on Friday and they told me. I guess I should be happy for them.”

Derrick didn’t seem to hear him. His shock turned him giddy, and he laughed. “Hell yeah. Mom and James. That’s perfect. Hey, remember how Mom looked at him when Sydney’s mom was at that dinner, hanging all over him? I remember thinking Mom looked jealous. She was!”

Dylan remembered that too. But he’d hoped his suspicions would prove false.

“I have to tell Gage.” Derrick giggled like a freakin’ girl.

Irritated with his brother, Dylan stood and walked to the door. “Yeah? Well tell him when you get home. I’m tired and have a long day ahead of me tomorrow.”

Derrick’s mirth faded. He stood and met Dylan at the door. “What’s up? Really?”

Dylan didn’t want to admit to being a mean-spirited snot of a son. “Nothing. I’m tired.”

“You don’t like Mom and James together. You can’t lie to me, Dylan,” Derrick said softly. “What’s wrong with them?”

“Nothing,” he blurted. “Nothing’s wrong, okay? I just need time to sort this out. Don’t tell Mom. I don’t want to hurt her. I just…let me work through it in my own way.”

“Dude, Dad’s been dead for over ten years. Don’t you think it’s time Mom lived a little?”

“She’s had plenty of dates since then.”

“But no one special, no one she really liked.”

“She’s liked plenty of guys. Mom’s attractive. I know she’s a woman besides being a mother.” So why can’t I be happy that’s she’s found someone she can really love?

Derrick goggled at him.

“What?” he snapped.

“I can’t believe Mr. Therapist is having issues with this. Dude, Mom and James. They’re perfect for each other. And I always said he had a thing for her.”

“Whatever.”

“I’m calling Gage.”

“Fine. Now get out.”

“You’re not being fair about this.”

“I said I’m handling it.” Dylan opened the door and shoved his brother into the hallway. “We’ll talk later.”

Derrick stared at him in shock. “What the fuck? Did you just throw me out?”

“Genius.” Dylan slammed the door in his face and locked it.

He heard his brother’s angry laugh, a few curses, and then nothing.

Feeling unworthy but knowing he had the right to deal with the issue as he saw fit, Dylan slunk to the couch and stretched out on it. “I need my own shrink,” he muttered, still hating the S-word.

Minutes later, a knock at the door interrupted his self-loathing.

“Go away,” he shouted to his brother.

The knocking continued.

“I said go the fuck away, Derrick,” he yelled again.

Another round of knocking.

Knowing his brother would keep pounding and no doubt involve the neighbors, he pushed himself to his feet and rushed to the door. He threw it open, intending to yank his brother back inside and give him the beating he deserved, when he saw Harper standing there with a questioning look on his face.

“Harper?”

“Hey, Doc. Problem?”

Harper took a step forward, and Dylan instinctively stepped back, out of his way. When Harper joined Dylan in the foyer and closed the door behind him, Dylan frowned. “How did you find me?”

“Public record of sale, my man. You bought this place six years ago. I know people who know people.” He paused, looking Dylan up and down. Then he grinned. “A tie? Did you know I was coming?”

Dylan snorted with laughter, immediately feeling better. “You’re an idiot.”

“Yeah, one that’s hung like a horse, remember?”

“As if I could forget.” Dylan’s body immediately responded. “Hell, come on in. Oh wait, you’re already in.”

He took Harper’s coat and hung it in the closet, doing his best not to visibly strip the man naked. Damn, but Harper could do flannel and jeans proud. “Want a beer?”

Harper walked to the coffee table and took a sip of Dylan’s tea. “This’ll do.”

“So what brings you by?”

“Wanted to see how the other half lives.” Harper grinned. “Nice digs. Figured you’d live in the uppity section of town.”

“What?”

“I’m in the building two blocks down.”

In the newly remodeled cotton mill. “Uppity? Here? That place is twice what I paid for mine.”

“Not if you know the right people. Besides, I don’t think we have one shrink in the entire building. Just a lot of well-connected schlubs.”

Dylan laughed. “Too bad. You could use a doctor.”

“Probably.” Harper drained the glass, then stuck his hands in his pockets. Unfortunately, that drew Dylan’s attention to the outline of a long, prominent erection. “I’ve got a problem, Doc.”

“Yeah?” His voice sounded scratchy.

“I can’t stop thinking about you.”

Dylan’s heart raced and gladness filled him, enough for him to admit, “I’m having the same problem.”

“Thinking about yourself all the time. Sad. But then, I could tell you’re a vain guy. All your clothes have designer labels.”

“Ass. I’m thinking about you.” Dylan confessed, “The sex was great. Incredible. Best I’ve ever had.”

“Same.”

“But, I mean, we really got along. I liked spending time with you.”

Harper’s grin faded. “Me too. And that’s kind of a problem.”

“Oh?”

“See, I’d like to take this further. Not a one-night, er, one-weekend stand. But something more. And that means experimenting more than you might be comfortable with. I thought I’d come over and lay it all on the line. You seem to be pretty okay in your own skin, so I figured, why beat around the bush? Why not flat-out ask him?”

“Ask me what?”

“First of all, were you going to call me?”

Dylan bit his lip, then decided fuck it. “Yeah. I’ve been dealing with family crap, and it’s stressing me out. I wanted to call you for sex, because with you I seem to forget everything else. Then I felt bad about the thought of using you, because I actually like you.”

Harper huffed. “Don’t sound so surprised.”

“I’m not.” He had to laugh at Harper’s pique. “Now who’s vain? My point is that I was trying to figure out why I like you so much. Because you help me forget my problems? Because you’re hung like a horse?”

“There is that.”

“Because I’d like to pursue a relationship?”

Harper sighed. “You just can’t go with a feeling, can you?”

“I wish I could. It’s the therapist in me needing to reason it all out. But you came by. So tell me. What do you think I might not be comfortable with?”

Harper sat on the couch and Dylan sat on a chair facing him. “It’s not that you can’t handle it, but will you want to try it?”

“Try what?”

“I want Freddy.”

“Freddy?” Dylan’s thoughts immediately went to the sexy blonde from the club last week.

“Yeah, the woman at the bar you couldn’t take your eyes off of,” Harper said dryly. “That Freddy. I think she’d be down for some fun, but you and I have to be on the same page before I ask her. I’ve been wanting her a long time. She’s really cool. You’d like her.”

“I liked what I saw of her. And more than her body. She seems confident, good at her job.”

“Does it matter that she bartends at a sex club?”

“No.” And it didn’t. “But what are you asking me? If I want a permanent third? A sexual fantasy made real? What?”

“I don’t know.” Harper shook his head. “Doc, you need to relax. Stop trying to get to the end of the story and enjoy the middle. You’re way too stressed.” He tsked. “Had any sex since Sunday?”

Dylan did feel tense. “No. You?” He held his breath, waiting for the answer. For days he’d wondered if he’d made more out of their weekend than was warranted. For all Dylan knew, Harper often had marathon sexcapades with strangers. Though disappointing, he couldn’t rule out the thought.

“Doc, I’ve been celibate for months before you. I don’t fuck around. One partner at a time for me. And I know we were a sudden thing, but I was hoping we could continue where we left off.” Harper rose to his feet and crossed to tower over Dylan.

He slowly unbuttoned his fly and let his jeans part to reveal a mouthwatering erection. Jesus, no underwear? “How about you take care of this for me while I do you?”

“Oh yeah.” Dylan stood, but before he could reach for Harper, Harper drew him into his arms and kissed him.

The embrace both gentled and aroused him, and Dylan responded without thinking. There was tenderness in the kiss, even as Harper stoked him to a fervent desire, rocking into him with that steely erection while seducing with his tongue.