by A. E. Wasp
“And that’s good?” Dakota asked.
Bryce smiled down at him, laugh lines crinkling at the edge of his dark brown eyes. “I always wanted it to feel like this.”
Dakota’s heart thudded in his chest. The way Bryce had Dakota tucked up against him felt really good. Scarily good. A part of Dakota’s mind beat its terrified wings against his skull, telling him to get up and leave now. How did this happen? Dakota had a hard time letting his friends get close to him. He certainly didn’t cuddle with strangers.
Dakota had worried that Bryce would somehow imprint on him. Now Dakota wasn’t sure he wanted to let the man go. Not only was Bryce smoking hot, but he was also sweet, considerate, and kind. And, Dakota suspected, had the potential to be fantastic in bed.
Clouds moved in, and the room grew even darker. The dark gave Dakota courage to give in to the urge that had been building in him to unburden himself to Bryce. Something about the big man and the way he held Dakota made him feel safe.
“I like to lay like this,” he said as if it was something shameful. “I’ve missed it. My ex, he didn’t see the point. Once he was done, he’d just roll away, or even leave.”
“Sounds like a jerk.”
Dakota snorted. “Yeah. You could say that.”
Bryce kept playing with Dakota’s hair and his eyelids got heavier. He could fall asleep right here. He wondered if there were any blankets stacked up within reach of the bed. He’d been a little too focused on getting Bryce naked to do an inventory when they’d come in. A cold breeze slipped through a poorly fitted window, and Dakota shivered.
Bryce tucked him closer, reaching down to the floor for something. He came back up with Dakota’s shirt. “You cold?” he asked, handing the shirt over.
“A little.” Dakota pulled away just long enough to put his shirt on, then honest-to-god snuggled against Bryce. So what? Who would know?
“So,” Bryce said staring up at the ceiling. “I assume this is a one-time thing?”
Surprisingly, considering Dakota had been thinking the same thing, hearing Bryce say it like that stung. “Why do you say that?” he heard himself ask. Stupid mouth.
Bryce shrugged. “I don’t know. I guess I just thought that’s how it went with guys. I’ve heard that gay guys kind of, you know, have a lot of sex. And, we both did just jump into bed after like twenty minutes. It’s not how great romances start.”
Dakota’s irritation built. And the more irritated he got, the more annoyed he got with his own irritation. He was ridiculous.
Bryce must have felt him tense because he rubbed Dakota’s back. “Hey, I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to offend you. This is all brand spanking new to me. I’m afraid to leave this room because I have no idea what to do next.”
“I know what you mean.” He felt Bryce’s eyes on him but he didn’t elaborate and he didn’t look up.
“I have an idea,” Bryce said. “Tell me your darkest secret, and I’ll tell you mine.”
“What? Why?” Not going to happen.
Dakota’s head rose and fell with the motion of Bryce’s chest as he shrugged. “I guess I just want someone to know how I really feel about things for once, you know? Someone who I don’t have to worry about letting down.”
“I’ve got no one to let down but myself,” Dakota admitted. But the thought of being able to give voice to his deepest fears and desires, to have them heard and not judged, felt like an unexpected gift.
Where the hell had this guy come from and how had he managed to turn Dakota inside out so quickly?
“You don’t have to,” Bryce said.
“No. I want to.” Why not bare everything in this stripped down room on this naked mattress?
“Okay. I’ll go first,” Bryce said.
Chapter Eleven
BRYCE
What kept surprising Bryce about this unexpected encounter was the intimacy. More than the sex – did blowjobs count as sex? Had they had sex? It didn’t matter. What mattered was how right it felt to be holding Dakota and talking to him like this with no barriers.
He felt like there wasn’t any part of him he had to hide. Dakota would understand his past relationship issues, wouldn’t worry that Bryce couldn’t take care of him, and didn’t judge him for the years spent repressing and denying what he’d felt.
Now that the blinders were off, it was as if he were watching the movie of his life through completely different eyes. Now the way he felt around other players and some of the coaches, that confusing mix of envy and fascination, made more sense.
It wasn’t that he was jealous of their bodies or intimidated by their general awesomeness. He just had a crush. How had it never occurred to him that guys could have crushes on other guys?
He could tell this was going to take a lot of processing. This revelation was only the start of a long emotional journey he’d have to take. No wonder he had let Nikki down. He hoped his mother wouldn’t be disappointed in him.
Saying some of the crap on his mind right now would be a good first step. He shifted Dakota, tucking the other man better under his arm. He hoped Dakota didn’t mind being treated like a teddy bear, but Bryce had never lain like this with anybody so big before. He couldn’t get over how comforting it felt.
Dakota’s hair tickled his nose, and he had a strong urge to drop a kiss on the top of his head. But that felt too intimate, too sweet. That kind of a gesture belonged in a real relationship, not a roadside hookup.
Dakota poked him in the stomach. “Damn, you’re like a fucking rock everywhere, aren’t you?” He ran his fingers over Bryce’s chest and stomach like he had been doing ever since they lay down. It was as if he couldn’t help himself.
Bryce knew he had a great body and he was used to people admiring it, but knowing that it turned Dakota on was the hottest thing that had ever happened to him. Dakota’s surprisingly soft skin and long, lean body were turning him on again.
“Okay,” Dakota said. “What could a hot, buff, pro-athlete with what I’m going to assume is a crap-ton of money in the bank and adoring fans have to hide? Besides the obvious, of course.”
The mocking edge in Dakota’s voice eroded some of Bryce’s feeling of safety. Damn it. But Dakota wasn’t wrong. By most yardsticks, Bryce did have it all. He tried to laugh it off. “Well, when you put it that way, now I just feel like an idiot whiner.”
Dakota pushed himself up with a hand on Bryce’s chest and looked him in the eye. “No. I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have said that. That was me feeling sorry for myself and being a dick to you. Please. Talk. I promise to listen and not judge.”
Dakota scratched his fingers through Bryce’s beard. “I’ve been wanting to do that since you first got out of the car.”
Bryce tilted his chin to give Dakota more access. “Feels good. I’m probably going to shave it, though. Maybe cut the hair. I feel like I need a change.”
“Hmm,” Dakota hummed in agreement. “You do what you have to do.” He ran his thumb lightly across Bryce’s lips. “I’m sure you’ll be devastatingly handsome either way.”
Bryce tentatively reached out to cup Dakota’s cheek in his hand. “I don’t know the protocol for this kind of thing –”
Dakota cut him off and pretended to pull something out of his pocket. “Hold on, let me check the handbook.”
“Does that come with the gay card?” Bryce combed his fingers through Dakota’s hair, careful of the knots.
“You should get it in the mail in six to eight weeks. Call 1-800-BLOW ME if you don’t.” He rubbed his head against Bryce’s hand like a big cat.
“Are you done?”
Eyes closed in pleasure, Dakota nodded.
“Can I kiss you again, now?” Bryce asked with exaggerated patience.
“Absolutely.”
Bryce kept his hand cupped around the curve of Dakota’s cheek and pulled him forward.
Dakota kissed him like they’d done it a million times before and had a million more to look forward to. His lips were soft
as he pushed his tongue insistently into Bryce’s mouth. His hands made their way back into Bryce’s hair, and he hummed appreciatively.
Arousal built slowly through Bryce’s body as they kissed, less urgent than his first surge of lust, but richer. His cock stirred, and he rolled onto his side, reaching for Dakota.
Dakota smiled against his lips, then pulled away. “Let’s make a deal. You tell your secrets, I’ll tell you mine, and then we can get in some more practice on being gay for you. How’s that sound?”
“Sounds perfect.” Bryce settled back down on the bed. Dakota slipped right back into his spot under Bryce’s arm like he belonged there.
“I haven’t told anyone else this. Are you ready?” Bryce asked.
“Hit me.”
Bryce inhaled, and then let it out.
“I think I want to quit hockey.”
He waited for Dakota to tell him he was crazy. That he was selfish for walking away from all that money his family could use, for abandoning the team.
The silence stretched.
“Oh. Is that it?” Dakota asked.
Bryce laughed in a mixture of disbelief and relief. He’d forgotten that the thing that was his whole life was not even a blip on some people’s radar. ‘Quitting hockey’ carried with it implications Dakota had no way of knowing.
“My contract is up this year. The new one they’re offering is for twelve million dollars. Before bonuses. Then there are endorsement deals I might lose if I retire.”
He didn’t bother telling Dakota that those numbers were actually lower that what he’d gotten in his first front-loaded contract when he had been just eighteen. The older he got, the more giving teenagers millions of dollars to play with sounded like a terrible idea.
“Holy shit.” Dakota’s arm tightened around him. “Wow. I take it back. That is a lot to think about it. Why would you leave?”
Bryce shook his head. “Lots of reasons. That’s a much longer conversation.” Bryce nudged him. “Now you go.”
“Don’t you want to talk about any of it?”
“Nope.” He really didn’t. There was nothing he could do about any of his problems right this second, and it seemed like a waste of time to be talking. “Now you.”
Dakota rolled onto his back and threw his arm over across his eyes. “Mine’s bad.”
“No judgement. I promise.”
“How can you say that? You don’t even know what I’m going to say. Maybe I killed someone.”
By the look in his eyes, Bryce could tell Dakota wasn’t joking. Whatever his secret was, it was important to him. “No visible judgmental reaction. How’s that?” He doubted very much that Dakota had killed anyone. Everything else could be fixed.
“Fine.” Dakota rolled onto his back, and threw his arm across his forehead. “My ex-boyfriend embezzled from the guy who is — was — let’s just say my boss. It’s more complicated than that. But Kyle stole thousands from him and it’s my fault so I’ve been paying it back without anyone knowing.”
“Okay.” Bryce let that process for a few seconds. “Does your boss know about the embezzlement?”
Dakota shook his head.
Bryce probably should let it drop. His questions were violating the spirit of their agreement. Dakota didn’t strike him as stupid, but so much of what he had said didn’t make sense. “Do you think you should tell him?”
“He’s dead.” Dakota’s voice said quite clearly that the discussion was over.
Their conversation had gotten much deeper than Bryce had expected. Maybe the smart thing to do now would be to leave, for them to go their separate ways and figure out their lives.
But Bryce couldn’t do it. He couldn’t just walk away while Dakota was feeling so bad. Besides, he was the one who started them down this road. Hoping he wouldn’t be rebuffed, he rubbed soft circles on Dakota’s stomach. His hand looked large against the pale expanse of skin. “Hey. I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you.”
He stretched his fingers to see if he could span the narrowest part of Dakota’s waist. Not quite. But dragging his hand lower, he found he could touch both of his hip bones at the same time.
Dakota’s jeans were still unzipped from before and Bryce could just barely make out his soft cock resting against the soft nest of dark blond hair. He licked his lips at the memory of that cock harder and blood-hot in his mouth.
Dakota grunted softly and reached down to touch Bryce’s hand. “Fuck.” He covered the hand with his own. “I’m sorry. You shouldn’t feel bad because I’m a dick. You don’t need to hear my issues.”
Bryce rubbed his thumb back and forth along the ridge of Dakota’s hipbone, admiring the contrast of his darker skin against the light. “Well, I did ask.”
Dakota laughed. “Yeah, you did. Asshole.”
Bryce huffed a laugh, and then dragged his hand downward. They both watched as he trailed his thumb and pinky along the cut of Dakota’s hips until his palm covered Dakota’s cock.
Dakota inhaled through his teeth, cock twitching under Bryce’s hand.
“You said something about more practice?” Bryce asked.
“Oh, fuck yeah,” Dakota breathed. “What did you have in mind?”
Bryce gripped Dakota’s hip and tugged him onto his side. He slid his hand down Dakota’s jeans, feeling another man’s ass for the first time. Everything was the first time. He felt like a nervous teenager again.
He dug his fingers into the hard muscle, and Dakota clenched his ass, rolling his hips against Bryce.
“I want to touch you more. Everywhere. Get my mouth on you. And then I should probably work on my blowjob skills. Practicing basic skills is very important, you know. You have to build up that muscle memory.” He shoved his hand further down the curve of Dakota’s butt cheeks until his fingers grazed the crease where thigh met ass.
“Excellent game plan, coach. Sign me up. Let me make it easier on you.” He rolled onto Bryce until he was completely on top, his hands braced on either side of Bryce. “Now kiss me,” he ordered.
So Bryce did. And what did you know? Practice really did make perfect.
Chapter Twelve
DAKOTA
Dakota stood in front of the door to the cabin and focused on screwing the broken hasp back into the splintered shingle. He’d had to move the whole thing up an inch. There was no way to hide the fact that someone had broken in, but he didn’t see any video cameras, so maybe they wouldn’t get caught. Plus they hadn’t stolen or vandalized anything.
No, they’d just broken in to have sex, like a pair of horny sixteen-year-olds.
Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Bryce fingering the bruises Dakota had left on his neck during their second round. He wanted to push Bryce’s hand away and replace it with his mouth.
The marks Bryce had bitten into his skin stung, and he hoped they lasted. Bryce had been almost as surprised to find he liked biting Dakota as Dakota had been to find he liked being bitten.
Dakota really needed Bryce to leave now, or he might do something really stupid, like ask him to dinner. He knew there was nowhere for them to go from here. They knew way too much about each other now.
“You don’t have to stay while I do this,” he said without looking at Bryce.
“I know,” Bryce answered staring off into the street. The temperature had dropped precipitously with the cloud cover and the canyon looked less welcoming without the blazing blue sky. “It’s just, well, I’m kind of nervous about driving back down. What if the other tires blow? I mean, they are all the same age and from the same place.”
That thought had crossed Dakota’s mind as well. He tightened the final screw and stood up. “Where are you going?”
“Fort Collins. I have a hotel room there.”
“Do you have any friends you can call?”
“No one. I don’t know anybody in Colorado.”
Shit. Why was the guy even here? October wasn’t exactly prime vacation season in this part of the country.
&n
bsp; Dakota’s heart was still pounding from whatever it was that had happened between them in that cabin. Cabin number three.
The breeze picked up, and Bryce shivered. Dakota was struck with a ridiculous urge to wrap Bryce up in his leather jacket. Ridiculous because Bryce wouldn’t be able to get it up his arms. His shoulders were twice as wide as Dakota’s.
Spreading out on top of him had been amazing. What would it feel like to be under him? To feel all that power and strength pushing into him?
Fuck. Dakota had to get rid of the man.
Bryce shivered again, and he looked like an abandoned puppy. A six-foot-five, two-hundred and twenty-pound puppy with a porn-star dick.
Dakota felt trapped in the Chinese curse where if you save someone’s life, you are responsible for them. He couldn’t leave the guy on the side of the road, injured, scared, and having a mid-life sexual crisis.
Dakota was an asshole, sure, but even he wasn’t that much of an asshole.
Dakota sighed. “Fort Collins isn’t too far from where I live. I got a buddy who lives close to here. Let me get in touch with him and see if he can pick up my bike and take it back to his house. Then I can at least drive you back down the mountain.”
“Really?” Bryce’s smile lit up his face.
The guy was thirty-four years old with a full beard and long hair down to his incredibly wide shoulders, how could he look like a little kid and why did it turn Dakota’s crank so hard? “Get in the car,” he said gruffly.
Dakota walked up the road until he found a spot with some cellphone reception and made arrangements for his friend to pick up the bike. He left the keys under a rock in front of cabin three.
Tomorrow after the hell of meeting the new owner at the lawyer’s office, he’d drive his pickup back up and get the bike.
God knew he’d need the ride to calm his nerves. The best-case scenario was that he ended up with an uneasy agreement with some city boy who knew nothing about farming or running an orchard. Worse-case scenario, he ended up homeless.
