The new first officer, Alex, was there too, and it appeared he was the sober one of the crew. A muscled bear, he was new to flying with the airline and like most newbies, took his time before he would fully embrace the culture of crew life abroad. He was merry though and put his arms around me and posed for a photo as requested by James. Alex pulled me in closer once James had confirmed he’d got the shot and then Alex kissed my cheek. His beard scratched me, and I had to push back while I gave him my thanks and untangled myself without appearing rude. I was more determined now to find Antonio and apologise to him.
Except, he found me first. His face was red and nostrils flared.
“Antonio,” I whispered.
James twirled around to see who I was talking to, but Antonio had already turned around and headed out of the casino.
Chapter Fifteen
I sprinted after Antonio, desperate to catch up with him and explain what had happened. He was faster than me and when I got outside of the casino I could see he had already made it across the side road and was headed back to the Bellagio.
My safety was the last thing I thought of when I dodged the vehicles to get across the road. Cars beeped at me and lights were flashed, but I made it across the other side. Only then did I see Graham and cursed my luck that I would see him again now, but at least I knew why he wasn’t answering his hotel room phone. Deciding it would be best to speak with him, I called Graham’s name. He looked around for the source of his name being called and scowled when he saw it was me.
“Graham, I’m sorry I tripped into you,” I breathed out. “I’m not drunk, honest. You can ask the rest of the crew when you see them.”
“I have no time for this, Max. I’ll deal with you when we fly back.”
“But, Graham,” I cried.
“I’ve said my piece.”
“Fine,” I spat and continued to run after Antonio.
The lift took forever to get to the floor, and as soon as the doors opened, I sprinted to Antonio’s room. I still had my key card and used it, except the door didn’t open fully – he had put the latch on.
“Antonio, please let me in. I’m sorry.”
There was no answer. I called his name a few more times, continued to say I was sorry and even tried to say it in Italian.
“I’m not going until I see you,” I said defiantly.
“Oh, now you want to see me?” His voice came from the other side of the door. “What about when I called your name. When I text you. When I phoned you. You didn’t want to talk then.”
“I’m sorry, I fucked up.”
“You did. More than once. Who was that guy?”
“He’s the first officer.”
“Are you fucking him too?”
I went cold. “No, Antonio, I’m not fucking anyone but you. Open the door; let me explain. Please.”
The door closed, the chain removed, and them he pulled the door open again. He had taken off the jacket and more buttons of the shirt were undone, showing off the hair on his chest and down his belly. I drew in a sharp intake of breath, he was gorgeous. He had removed his socks too, and there was something about that which made me tingle. When I looked him in the eyes, I wasn’t prepared for the look he gave me. His sweet brown eyes had turned hard, and there was a shade of red to his face.
I took a step towards him, but he held his hand out in front of me.
“Tell me, first.”
“I’m sorry I ran away,” I started. “I was scared what Graham would do without me telling him I wasn’t drunk. I ran to the hotel to find him, to tell him, but he wasn’t there. I can’t lose my job, Antonio. It means too much to me.”
He dropped his hand, but didn’t step back into the room. I still had to tell him more.
“My phone died, I had to wait for it to charge up. I tried to call him from my room, but he wasn’t picking up. Then James knocked on my door and convinced me to call you—”
“You needed convincing to call me?”
“No,” I screamed. “I wasn’t thinking straight. I—”
“You what, Max? Needed another man to fuck?”
“No! James could tell I wasn’t drunk. He wanted witnesses to say I wasn’t drunk because his word wouldn’t mean much. Alex, the first officer, is new, he was a bit tipsy, but he could be counted on. Everyone knows he doesn’t drink much. James suggested a photo, and for some reason he kissed my cheek. Then you showed up and I ran after you.”
“You can’t run very fast, I’ve been here for ten minutes before you showed up.”
“I saw Graham. I told him I wasn’t drunk, but he wouldn’t listen again. Then I came here. To where we are now.”
“Okay.”
His face didn’t change when he said the word.
“Okay as in I can come in, or okay we’re through?”
He stood there in silence.
A part of me wanted to scream at him, another part wanted to tell him to fuck off. But more than anything I wanted him to let me in. I needed him, more than I’d ever needed anyone before.
“Antonio, I’m sorry. I told you I fuck things up. Please, I like you. I want…” I wasn’t sure it was worth pleading my case.
“Want what, Max? Getting with you has been harder than anything I’ve had to do before.”
“I know. I don’t make things easy.”
“Why? Why should I bother?”
I went out on a limb. “Because you would have shut the door on me ages ago if you didn’t think there was something between us. Because you feel the same thing I do.”
A brief ghost of a smile slipped across his face, and then he turned around and walked back into his room. “Close the door behind you.”
I didn’t need telling twice and rushed in before he changed his mind.
“I need to return the suit; you need to take your clothes too.”
My heart sank, and it took all my energy to not cry again. I couldn’t muster any words, but admitting defeat, I started to take the jacket off.
“Wait.”
I stood still as he walked towards me. There was nothing on his face, nothing to tell me what he was thinking.
“Your hands might be dirty. I’ll do it.”
“My hands aren’t…”
Smirking, his hands went under the jacket and moved it off my shoulders. He threw it on the bed and started to unbutton the shirt. His fingers danced down the buttons and then he pulled the shirt out of the trousers. His hands went to the cuffs and undid those before he relieved me of the shirt with a kiss on my bare shoulder which sent a buzz through my body. Antonio dropped to his knees and lifted my leg to take off one shoe and sock, and then the other. I held onto his shoulder for balance and squeezed him, scared that if I let go, I’d lose him.
With my shoes gone, he kissed my belly button as he undid the button on the trousers. Antonio made easy work of them and pulled the trousers down. Again, I used him as support as I stepped out of them. His fingers raked up my legs until they got to my pants and his fingers delved under and started to pull them down.
“These are mine,” I croaked.
“They’re mine now. If I have them, you’ll have to come back to me.” He pulled my underwear down and let my cock free. It bobbed up and down in front of him before he took it in his mouth. My cock was painful from the amount of use over the last couple of days, but his mouth soothed it, soothed me, and when his finger found my arse and went inside, I didn’t have the ability to tell him I was coming until it was too late.
Chapter Sixteen
It was dark when I opened my eyes, but Antonio’s arms were draped over me. His soft breathing in my ear filled me with contentment. I didn’t want to move, but I needed to pee and didn’t think I could hold it any longer.
Antonio didn’t stir when I slipped out of bed and relieved myself in the bathroom. I looked in the mirror and smiled. A strange look on me, but it was for good reason. After he’d taken all I had, he’d stripped quietly and we went to bed. We’d kissed and car
essed each other, and I found a spot on his stomach that drove him wild.
Back in the bedroom, I tiptoed around to check my phone. It was three in the morning, and I had a couple of messages from James. I sent him a quick message to say I was with Antonio and it was all good. I was surprised when he replied and told me to make sure I didn’t fuck it up. My chuckle woke Antonio.
“What’s happened?”
“Nothing, baby, go back to sleep.”
“Baby?”
“Argh, sorry, it slipped out.”
“It’s okay. I like it. Come here, I’m cold.”
I jumped into bed and straight into his arms. The fur on his chest was soft and I liked the way it brushed against my back. His fingers trailed up and down stomach and chest as he gave me a kiss on the back of my head. I moved my arse about to let him know he could have me if he wanted, but he kissed me once more and promptly fell asleep. I lay awake for a while, thinking about him, my job, and what would happen. His breathing became rhythmic and soothing, and soon I fell asleep too.
Antonio nibbling my ear woke me up. His hands raked up and down my body before he pinched my nipples. I let out a groan and gasped when his hand squeezed my hardening cock.
“Morning,” he whispered into my ear as his cock pushed at my arse.
My hand found his cock hard and sheathed. “Someone’s prepared,” I purred at him.
“Always.” With a gentle push at my arse, he entered me, then thrusted as my body accepted him.
It was fast and furious and over in minutes, for him anyway.
“You didn’t come?” he said a few minutes later.
“I think you took all I had last night.”
“Last night was good.”
“Oh yeah.”
“Come on, get dressed. We have to go.”
“Where?”
“I need to go to the gym. I’m missing training today to be with you. We can go to the gym here.”
“Haven’t you had enough training today?” I used air quotes to make my point.
“Ha. Yes. But no. You get my heart racing, but not enough of a workout. When we make love next time, I will take my time.”
My dick bounced in approval. Antonio growled at the sight, and then shook his head. “Come, then we have breakfast.”
“I’m not working out. I’ll watch. Spot you or something.”
His eyebrows stitched together. “You can run with me.”
“I’ll grab a magazine and watch.”
“No, you run with me.” He grabbed my arse and kissed me on the lips. “I’ll make it good for you later.” Then he kissed me again.
This time his tongue delved into my mouth. I groaned when he stopped kissing me but enjoyed the view as he put a jockstrap on.
“Don’t you ever shower?”
“Of course. Not worth it now, not when I will get hot and sweaty.” He trailed a finger down the hair in his chest.
I rolled my eyes in mock amusement but moaned when he got dressed. He looked hot in a vest and shorts. I could get used to this. Especially if I got to undress him later.
The clothes I’d brought with me wouldn’t be any good in a gym, and we were different sizes so there was no point in me borrowing his clothes. However, I made do with my swim shorts and a T-shirt.
In the gym, Antonio took it seriously. Too seriously for my liking, but I had to admit I enjoyed watching him build up a sweat. I ran on the treadmill for a bit, and then slowed my pace to a walk before I stopped altogether. He must have used all the weight machines in the place. As he sat down at one machine, he asked me questions about my mum.
I gave him the short version: I came out, stepdad kicked me out, and I never spoke to my mum or little sister again. He didn’t accept the short version though and wanted to know more. The gym was empty and I thought about how much to share, but in the end I shared everything. I told him all about my life and what had happened. How James and I were best friends and did everything together, although he was always better at saving than me, which is why he owned the flat and I paid rent. It took me a while, but I realised that he had me talking about myself, and nothing about him.
“Your turn,” I said as he finished his cooldown.
“Later.”
“What about now? You’ve heard everything about me, what about you? I want to know about you.”
He kissed me on the lips and walked out of the gym.
“Why can’t you tell me stuff about you?”
“Later. First, we shower, and then eat.”
I didn’t like how one-sided this was becoming. “You can tell me when we eat then.”
“Maybe,” he said as we stepped inside the lift.
“No maybe about it, you need to tell me—” He stopped me with a kiss. I tried to pull away, but his hand on my back stopped me then slid down to squeeze my arse. His cock prodded my leg as he grinded into me. Part of me wanted to tell him to stop, but he made me feel so good. He drew back.
“It’s hard. For me. Okay? I will tell you but give me time.”
“We don’t have much time though. I go back to England tonight.”
“Then next time we see each other.”
I did a mental check of my schedule. I had New York and South Africa coming up. Nothing on the West Coast that I could think of.
“Why that face?”
“Because I don’t know when I will see you again.” I wasn’t prepared to feel such a hole in my soul when I said that.
“Where are you going next?”
“I’ve got four days off, and then I’m going to New York.”
“Maybe there.”
“You can’t fly to New York to see me.”
“Why not?”
We stepped out of the lift and he took me by the hand as we walked to the room.
“Because it’s too far for you to travel for a couple of days.”
“Then I’ll come to England.”
“Antonio, stop.”
He stopped walking. “What for?”
“You’d spend hundreds of pounds, dollars, to travel to see me?”
He started walking again. “You’re worth it.”
I stopped him this time and spun him around. “Why?”
He closed his eyes, took a deep breath and then opened them again. “Have you ever felt that moment when suddenly everything in the world makes sense? When I saw you in the bar that night, nothing else mattered. My friend pinched my arm to get my attention because there was only you in my sight. When I’m with you, I don’t care about anything other than making you happy. Seeing you with that guy hurt me. Then you showed up the next night in the bar, it was as if I was given a second chance, yet I was scared. So scared I pushed you away. I kicked myself when I got out of the bar, and when I went back there you were with other guys and I knew then, I needed you.”
“Oh.”
“Is that enough for you now?”
I nodded. “But I want to know about you too. Okay?”
He nodded in reply then walked towards the room and let us in.
We took a shower together, taking our time until our stomachs grumbled. Antonio ordered room service, and we stayed in the robes the hotel provided, kissing on the bed. There was nothing sexual to it; it was tender and loving, sensual and soft.
The knock on the door made us jump. Antonio went to answer it, and I could see him pulling the robe around him tight to make sure his erection didn’t make an appearance. He ushered the food to be set up on the table by the window, and then gave a generous tip to the server.
Antonio pulled out a chair for me to sit down and together we started to eat.
“Tell me about your family?” I asked. I wanted to know more about him and where he had come from.
He sighed at first, and then nodded. He didn’t look at me when he started to speak. “My older brother told me I was gay before I knew it. Not in a funny way, but he said it was okay I liked other boys. I talked about a friend of mine all the time yet was shy around him.
The boy was straight though, and my brother consoled me when I found out he had a girlfriend. He told me not to say anything to my parents. They wouldn’t get it.”
“Was he right?”
“Kind of. I told Mamma first. She laughed and said she knew. She told me not to say anything to my father. He wasn’t an easy man.”
“I guess most fathers aren’t.”
“Not true.” He shook his head. “My uncle was a good man, when my cousin came out he hugged him. My father. My father beat me.”
My hands shot out to hold his. I wasn’t sure what else I could do.
“It’s okay,” Antonio said. As though it was nothing. “I don’t think about it anymore. He isn’t anything to me.”
“What does your mum say about it?”
“Nothing. He’s her husband. I see her when I go home, but not him.”
“How does that work?”
“I stay with my brother, he invites Mamma over. My father doesn’t even know I’m in the country.”
“That’s so sad.”
“It’s the way it is. Nothing will change it.”
“Yeah, but—”
“No, Max. Don’t be sad for me. I’m okay with it.”
He flashed me a smile, which I could’ve sworn didn’t hold the sentiment behind it, but I had to let it go. I did so along with his hand.
Chapter Seventeen
“What time do you have to go today?”
I didn’t want to answer the question. Instead I picked up a piece of toast from the plate on the table and took my time swallowing it before I answered him.
“We leave the hotel at three. I need to be there for two to pack everything up and get into uniform.”
“I want to see you in your uniform. Not to have sex with you in uniform. I think you will look good in it.”
I waggled my eyebrows at him, which was enough for him to jump up and drag me to the bed. His hardness poked through the dressing gown and he moaned as I grabbed and jerked him a couple of times. He bit at my mouth as he kissed me, and I wanted him to devour me. Antonio growled again, but it was different. He stopped kissing me.
“What’s wrong?”
Up in the Air 2: West Coast Page 11
