“Who’s Leslie?”
“A friend. The one who’s a surfing instructor. I asked him to meet us today and bring an extra surfboard since I only have the one.”
Cary sighs, looking absolutely torn. “I’d like to stay like this for a while longer, but I do want to see you on a surfboard.”
“Don’t get your hopes up. It’s been a few months and I’m not sure I’ll be as steady on my feet as usual. You kind of wiped me out with that five-star blowjob.”
“I like wiping you out,” he says, sounding extremely pleased with himself. “Not sure I could get it up again anytime soon, so I guess we should go anyway. I could meet your friend. I’d like to see what your friends are like.”
“You might meet my bestie, Bridge, if she’s decided to join the land of the living by the time we get out of the house. It all depends on how late last night she stayed up playing Overwatch.”
But when we tiptoe our way into the bathroom, the entire place is quiet and Bridget’s door is firmly shut. I run us a shower, during which we mostly grope each other. Mindful of the time constraints and the limits of our own bodies, I don’t nudge us toward sex again. It’d be a shame to have Cary stumbling and cracking his head on something because he’s too tired to pay attention while surfing.
No distractions for you!
* * *
I can see Cary almost physically start when he catches sight of Leslie leaning against his truck, two surfboards propped against the side, shirtless and sun-kissed in loud red sunglasses.
“Leslie has that effect on people,” I whisper as we walk toward him. “Promise not to get attached to him. He’s not a relationship kind of person.”
Cary snaps a startled look sideways at me. Then he frowns, steps faltering. “Does he have that effect on you?”
I shrug. “When we first met. We tried dating, but he’s not quite my type.” I waggle my eyebrows at Cary. “I like my men a little more vers.”
A smile lurks at the corners of Cary’s mouth. “Good. And I won’t get attached. Not to him.”
“Good,” I say, clearing my throat. I glance away and wave at Leslie before I’m tempted to drag him back into the car to kiss him senseless.
“Holy mother of God,” comes Leslie’s greeting when we get near enough. His sunglasses come off, and he rakes an admiring gaze over Cary’s physique. “Damn, dude. You are one fine specimen of man.”
Cary laughs, clearly flattered by Leslie’s frankness. “Thanks. I’m Cary. And you’re Leslie, right?”
“What I am is so gay for you. Please tell me you’re into guys. And a top.”
“Oh, yeah,” I interrupt before Cary can answer. “He’s into guys. As for the topping thing…” I wind my arm through Cary’s. “Don’t think you’re ever finding out.”
“Oh, is that how it is?” Leslie asks, glancing between me and Cary, surprise and amusement twinkling in his eyes. “You stake your claim already?”
Cary beams at Leslie. “The claiming’s mutual,” he says, his eyes finding mine for a brief second.
“Yeah,” I murmur, trying to keep my voice light, keep it a joke. The ache in my chest at being claimed by Cary, even temporarily, kind of scares me. How can I be feeling so much so soon? This is even worse than the last time I was stupid enough to fall for a client.
It’s been three days. Get over yourself. Live in the now.
Leslie shakes his head. “Lucky bastards. Guess I’ll have to console myself with watching you shirtless and wet in the water today. Life is so hard.”
I grin. Yeah, this is going to be fun. “Operative word is ‘hard’?”
Leslie winks at both of us. “Obviously. Come on, boys. Let’s get you on your boards.”
The morning passes in a flurry of activity, with both Leslie and me trying to give Cary pointers on surfing positions and the coordination of movements from paddling to sitting up, to standing as the wave crests. Cary and Leslie seem to be getting along, even if Cary still shoots Leslie wary looks when he thinks neither of us are watching. His jealousy is oddly sweet in a way I’ve never experienced before.
After more than a few false starts, Cary manages to surf his first wave completely standing, and the joy and excitement on his face is so beautiful I feel like my lungs are too weak as wonder fills me, making it difficult to breathe.
“Did you see?” he calls, running toward me with his loaned surfboard in tow, hair slicked back with water, skin glistening with droplets. “I can’t believe I just did that!” So proud and elated. And fucking gorgeous.
“I saw,” I say. I clap his shoulder. “You surfed. You’re a surfer now.”
Cary laughs, and it’s so sweet I can’t help joining him. “Are you getting in the water too? Want to see you.”
I’ve been sitting on the sand keeping an eye on our stuff, but Leslie looks like he’s heading toward us too, so I nod. “I can get Leslie to watch our stuff for a while and go out with you. He’s probably been surfing all week, anyway.”
Once Leslie is safely settled with all our stuff, I let Cary lead me out to the water, and we paddle together side by side to position ourselves for the next wave. It approaches us quickly after, and the feeling of riding a wave with Cary right beside me is exhilarating. This activity I’ve done countless times before is transformed, made into something more, something new and shining.
“Love this,” Cary calls out to me as we round back and paddle out again, anticipating the next wave.
“Yeah,” I call back. Me too.
Chapter Nine
Cary
“So that’s another thing ticked off your list,” Fei says, starting up the ignition and flicking on the radio as he pulls out of the parking lot. We’ve just had dinner at Helena’s, his favorite Hawaiian restaurant. After an entire day spent surfing and swimming, my body was hugely grateful for the food. “Only the palace left for the last day.”
“The last day?”
Fei keeps his eyes on the road. “Tomorrow is Sunday, and after that you have your interview, right? No more time to run around the island with me.” His tone is almost cheerful.
I frown, chest suddenly aching. I can always make time for you, I want to say. But he isn’t asking for more time. He isn’t asking for anything.
“When do you leave for home?” He speaks before I can think of what to say.
“Monday afternoon at two. I’ve got to get back to work on Wednesday, so I thought it’d be best to leave right after the interview.” Now I’m kicking myself. More time to spend with Fei, to figure out this thing between us, would’ve been great. Maybe I can change my flight.
“You look tired. You want me to drop you off at the hotel? Let you relax?”
I drum my fingers against my thigh. What is the right answer here? Does Fei want to get rid of me? We haven’t been apart since yesterday morning, and I don’t want us to be apart now. Not if we don’t have much time left.
“Cary?” He sounds unsure, and somehow that makes me feel more certain.
“I can grab a change or two of clothes if we swing by the hotel. But if it’s fine with you, I’d like to stay over again. It’s nicer at your place.”
The grin on Fei’s face is enough to tell me I haven’t chosen wrong. “It’s more than fine. Like my bed better than the hotel’s?”
The hotel bed is a little more comfortable than Fei’s, but it doesn’t come with him in it.
“Yeah. It’s your bed I can’t wait to be in,” I tell him, just to see his reaction.
He laughs, his hand landing on my thigh and working its way quickly northward. “One day with Leslie and you’re already absorbing his naughtiness.”
“Are you sure it’s not all this time I’ve spent with you?”
“You telling me I’m naughty?”
“You’re the one with all the dirty talk.”
“Oh, baby. You’re the one who loves the dirty talk.”
“Yeah, I do.” That’s not all I could love.
But that’s not so
mething I can tell him. Not right now, when he’s determined to believe this is ending after tomorrow.
* * *
Fei’s roommate is in the living room when we arrive, a dark-skinned girl with short, spiky hair and piercing brown eyes, which she blinks curiously at me.
“Wow, is this locker room dude?” she asks.
“Huh?” I ask. Locker room… Did she just mistake me for Daxton Hutch? The thought that Fei’s talked about Dax Hutch of all people with his best friend doesn’t make me very happy.
Fei makes a growling sound in the back of his throat. “Nope, we’re not going there.”
“Why not?” I ask, looking from him to the roommate.
“Just because. Bridge. This is Cary. Cary, Bridget. Cary’s sleeping over tonight, so I’m gonna need you to put in your earphones if you don’t want a live porn show.”
“Fei,” I say, laughing and growing red. That isn’t what I thought he was going to say.
Bridget waves from her seat on the sofa, her sharp features softening with a smile. The sofa where Fei gave me that mind-bending blowjob. “Hey, Cary. Nice to meet you. Don’t worry, I’m not interested in the kind of porn you have to offer. Strictly girls-only pornography here.”
I nod, still laughing. “Good to know.”
“Okay, now that that awkward encounter is over with, I’m going to drag Cary into the shower and do dirty things to him.”
“Brag,” Bridget calls to Fei over her shoulder.
In the shower, we strip and wash each other as we’ve done before. I love the way Fei’s hair goes flat and drapes over his forehead when it gets wet, giving him a sleek, slick appearance and making him look a little more vulnerable.
“What dirty things are you planning to do to me?” I ask quietly against his mouth, before kissing him slow and open-mouthed. He hums in pleasure, leaning into the kiss, the hot length of his cock rubbing into my thigh.
“Ever been rimmed before?” One of his eyebrows raises, and there’s a devious curl to his lips. My pulse pushes into overdrive, all the blood rushing south to my cock.
“No. Never.”
“Want to be your first. Turn around and brace against the wall if you want it too.” As simple as that, leaving everything in my court. I swallow and turn, putting my palms flat against the wall. Fei reaches his hand around to stroke me, pulling me back against him.
“I wish I were tall enough to fuck you just like this,” he murmurs against the back of my neck, kissing and licking. “That’d be sexy as fuck. But this’ll have to do.” He pulls away briefly, and I can hear him getting down onto his knees, his hands coming up to cup my cheeks and pry them apart. Warm breath hits my skin, and then, almost before I’m ready for it, a hot, wet slide of tongue.
“Oh, God, Fei.”
“Mmm. You’re so tense, baby. Let’s loosen you up.” He begins licking in earnest, alternating between circling around my hole and, fuck, pushing the tip in. A thick, ragged moan fills the walls, the acoustics echoing it back. It must come from me, because Fei’s mouth is still busy driving me senseless, each touch of his tongue against me, each scrape of stubble on my skin adding to the tingling, sparkling pleasure that rolls through me.
It isn’t long before I’m writhing, seeking more and more of the maddening sensations. “Fuck, fuck. Fei. Come on.”
“Something you want from me?” he rasps, his hot breath almost as overwhelming as the rest of it.
“Yes. Fuck me.”
Laughter, and then another wet, thrusting lick. “Not here. Height issues, remember? But maybe this.”
His fingers breach me. The thickness makes it immediately evident there’s more than one going in, and I groan and relax to let him work them into me. I’ve loosened enough from the rimming that it doesn’t hurt, just a pleasant burn that makes my balls tighten and my cock twitch against the cool shower tile. I let out a small whimper when he finds my prostate and rubs it, knees nearly buckling from the sensation overload.
“No,” I manage to grind out, even as my body pushes back on its own accord. “Not enough. I want—”
I can’t seem to articulate what it is I want. My brain’s gone blank as I chase the high of Fei’s fingers on my spot.
“Mmm,” Fei groans. He licks again, teasing his tongue between where his fingers and my rim connect, a sharp, bright feeling that makes me see white.
“Fei.” I cry out, orgasm hitting me by surprise, cock pulsing against the tile walls, ass spasming around Fei’s fingers.
“Oh, shit, did you just—” Fei starts, then pumps his fingers in just enough to tap my prostate again, making me shudder and moan with aftershocks. “Jesus, Cary. So fucking hot. Coming around my fingers without your cock being touched. Love how responsive you are.”
Love you, I almost say. I stop myself, not because I don’t want to say it, but because I’m not even sure it’s true yet. Everything seems to be in a constant high with Fei. I don’t know if that’s because the lines were already blurred when we started, or if it’s just Fei’s effect on me. After all, I’ve always been fascinated by him.
But love… Most people would balk at that. Love in four days. Impossible, right?
“Want to make it good for you too,” I tell him, turning around on shaky legs.
He laughs, sitting back and tilting his head up to watch my face. “Won’t take much. You’ve got me on edge just with the noises you make.”
I give him a hand up, loving the way each movement still allows me to feel the stretch of his fingers in me. “Want my hand?” I ask.
“Yeah,” Fei whispers back, nipping at my collarbone, along my neck. “Get me off.” I do just that, fingers wrapped around his cock in a smooth, tight grip. I stroke him until he’s shuddering and clutching my arm, cock jerking in my hand.
“Dirty enough for you?” he asks a little later when we’ve washed off and are stepping out of the shower to towel ourselves.
“Oh, no,” I say, laughing. “Better try harder next time.”
Chapter Ten
Fei
The rest of the weekend passes in a haze of physical intimacy that doesn’t let up for one second. Cary, beautiful in the morning with his hair tousled and sticking out in all directions, fucks me on my hands and knees when we wake up.
After that, we rush off to do our tour of the palace, which turns out to be a short one-hour interlude in a day otherwise filled with more sex, cuddles, and conversation.
It’s the conversation part that stymies me. It’s so easy to talk to him about everything and anything once I tell myself not to stop. Especially when he looks so damn awed and grateful every time I do it.
Riding back to the hotel after a late lunch on the other side of the island, I feel a sense of inevitability settling down on us. We’re both quiet, me with my sunglasses on to combat the late afternoon sun, Cary staring out the window at the passing scenery that must, by now, be commonplace to him.
“What time is your interview tomorrow?” I ask. Then I realize I already know, because he’s told me before.
“Ten o’clock,” he answers anyway. “They’ll probably keep me for lunch.”
“And you’ll need to go almost directly to the airport.”
He’s still staring out the window. “I tried to switch the flight for a later one, but I didn’t find anything that wasn’t insanely expensive. And I didn’t know if you’d want me to stay.”
I want you to.
I’m not going to say that to Cary. It’s unfair of me to even want that. What do I have to offer him, aside from a few more rounds of sex and affectionate touches and… what? The future I’m imagining in my head, where Cary comes home at the end of the day and visits me in my game shop? Kisses in the morning upon waking, just like we did today, and more kisses goodnight?
Don’t you dare think about it.
I only realize I haven’t said anything in response to him when he sighs, so soft I almost don’t catch it over the ambient traffic noise.
“It’
s not that I don’t want you to stay.” Because I do. I want it so much it scares me. “But this can’t be anything more than it is. Staying an extra hour or two won’t change that.”
“Why can’t it?” he asks. The hurt tone of his voice makes my chest ache, like someone’s popped a boulder in there and it’s taking up all my breathing room.
When I don’t answer, he sighs again and says, “Stay with me tonight?”
I nod, unable to speak past the huge weight in my chest. I shouldn’t agree to even this much. It’s too much, all this emotion for someone I barely even know. I’m getting way too attached, and it’s going to hurt. But I can’t say no even if I wanted to. And I don’t want to.
Instead of driving directly to the hotel, I take a detour up Liliha Heights.
“Where are we going?” Cary asks, when it’s clear we aren’t headed anywhere near Waikiki.
“There’s this place I want to show you. One of Bridget’s exes showed it to her, and she showed it to me. And I always thought I’d want to show it to…” a guy I like. “… someone.”
“Okay,” says Cary. “Show me.”
It doesn’t take us long to get to the little community park with its gravel driveway, no more than three parking stalls for guests.
“It’s… a lot of grass. And a jungle gym.”
I grin at him. “Not that. Come on. We’re doing a bit of walking.”
“Walking?” he asks, but climbs obediently out of the car and follows me to the edge of the grassy field, where, behind the tall grass, there’s a path leading upward into the mountains.
“It’s a hiking trail, see the footpath? But it’s not popular and there’s never any trouble parking. Hardly anyone comes here.”
“Is there going to be a waterfall at the end?” he asks, nearly tripping over a clump of dried grass on the path. I catch him just in time.
“It’s not far.”
It’s only a three-minute climb up the windy path until we arrive at the little clearing at the top. Tall grass and trees surround us, and in front of us a view of the landscape below extends out to the harbor, where the water shimmers from the sunset.
Kissed in Paradise: Valentine’s Inc. #9 Page 7
