"I know what you're doing, Adrian. I know it better than they do, but you're right it's difficult to skirt that line, especially for you. You're such a smart-arse," he said smiling.
Stephen hugged him, keeping Adrian close. "You are strong, and I don't need you to prove anything, not to me, but if you want to do it, if you want to stay, I'll take you under, but it's going to require some pushing, because no matter what we say, you are different from Liam and those two." He leaned down to kiss Adrian again. "I'm so glad we never went to Midori's party this summer," he said smiling. "If we can't do this, we'd never be able to survive a night there."
He pulled back. "So what do you want to do?" He touched the collar. "Forget this for a moment. I want to know what you really want here."