Locked Down

by Jess Anastasi

  “Yes, I did establish that before I decided to forego my dignity and call you.”

  Gabe laughed again. “Come on, it’s not that bad. I mean, I can’t say I’ve ever gotten locked in a bathroom. But, you know, it happens. Apparently.”

  “And the flat tire and the way I ended our date? I think the universe is trying to tell me something.”

  “What do you think that might be?” The knob stopped rattling, but there were a few short, sharp thumps moving across the door, as though Gabe was trying to figure out weak points.

  “That maybe coming to Texas was the worst idea I’ve had in a long, long time.”

  “Or maybe,” Gabe replied, his tone somehow lower and more teasing, “you keep falling into my path for a reason.”

  “Oh.” He hadn’t thought of it like that. It did suddenly seem like the universe was conspiring to put them in each other’s way. Weird. And great, now his stomach felt all squirmy.

  “Okay,” Gabe said as if he’d come to a decision. “I think I’m going to have to take the hinges off. Can you hang there for a few more minutes? I’ve got some basic tools in my case that should do the trick.”

  “Wait. What? How much is the motel going to charge me for removing a door?” He wanted to get out, but he could practically feel his credit card melting from all the extra charges.

  “Not a thing if I get any say.” There was a rumble of antagonism in Gabe’s tone. “They should ensure their doorknobs aren’t faulty and don’t result in their guests getting trapped. If you’d called 911, the fire department or cops probably would have done the same thing.”

  “And my embarrassment would have been complete.” Thank God he hadn’t needed to call 911.

  “Lucky you’ve got me,” Gabe replied cheerfully.

  “Yeah, I really am.” His tone came out more serious than he’d meant it to, but he couldn’t take it back and swallowed down his nerves. “Thank you, Gabe.”

  “You can thank me properly when I get you out of there.”

  There was no way he was imagining the heat and suggestiveness in Gabe’s tone. Matt’s breath caught and a weird thrill of anticipation and edginess swept through him.

  “I need both hands,” Gabe continued, not missing a beat. “So I have to hang up now. Shouldn’t take me more than a minute or two, though.”

  “I’m fine,” he quickly assured Gabe.

  “Okay, see you in a few.”

  Matt murmured a goodbye and disconnected the call before gulping a breath.

  Oh crap. Gabe was out there and as soon as he got the door open he was going to expect— His mind went blank, but his body heated, even as he tried not to have a mini panic attack. He spun to the counter and quickly brushed his teeth, then rinsed with mouthwash and glanced at his hair. It was a mess, still damp and drying into those annoying not-quite-curl waves it always did when he didn’t style it with product. But he hadn’t brought the gel in with him; it was still out in his suitcase—

  The door shifted just as he glanced down and realized he was still wearing the towel and nothing else. He turned toward where he’d left his jeans in a heap on the floor, but by then it was too late. Gabe wiggled the door out of the way and then propped it to the side, casting him a triumphant smile. He was wearing a pair of gray sweats, his feet bare, and a tight black tee stretched across his chest. Dressed down, but still somehow managing to look sexy as hell.

  “See? Easy.” Gabe’s gaze dropped down, quite obviously taking in his bare chest and the damp towel wrapped around his hips, ending midthigh.

  “I, uh—hope I didn’t interrupt anything when I called you.” Matt gripped the towel a bit tighter, wanting to escape for some clean clothes, but Gabe was standing firmly in the doorway.

  Gabe gave a loose shrug. “Just work. Wanted to note down a few things before I hit the sack.”

  “Well, don’t let me keep you.” He wanted to grimace after the words came out, worried it sounded like he was ungrateful and now trying to get rid of the guy.

  Gabe, however, took a slow step forward, deep brown eyes intense. “You haven’t thanked me for the rescue yet.”

  “Oh,” he breathed out, heart drumming. “What did you have in mind?”

  “I don’t know.” Gabe was somehow closer still, and now there was barely a step between them. “What do you think I deserve as my reward?”

  Everything, he wanted to blurt out. But he swallowed down the word and released an unsteady breath, gathering his courage as he shifted forward.

  A satisfied smile flitted over Gabe’s features a second before Matt closed the distance between them and sealed his mouth over Gabe’s full lips. Matt caught Gabe’s shoulders for balance, entire body immediately melting at the lush, damp heat of Gabe returning the kiss. The kiss itself was pure ecstasy, every wicked promise he couldn’t even begin to imagine inundating him. And when Gabe’s hands landed on his hips, he swore the heat of the other man’s fingers was branding his skin. He pressed closer, not caring about his near-nudity any longer, just needing to experience the consuming sensation of plastering himself against the lean muscles beneath Gabe’s clothes.

  One of Gabe’s hands shifted to his lower back, urging his hips in tighter, until their groins were pressed together. The reaction starting to harden under his towel was the same one he could feel growing in the front of Gabe’s sweatpants. The kiss deepened and Matt groaned, a delicious shudder pouring down his spine at the thrust of Gabe’s tongue in his mouth.

  Matt’s fingers tingled, needing to feel skin. He tugged up Gabe’s T-shirt, earning a moan of approval from the other man. He skimmed the warm flesh along the waistband of Gabe’s sweats and when he came to the drawstring, didn’t think twice about tugging it undone. He could feel Gabe’s erection pressing against his hip, and he wanted it. He wanted it all. Wanted to make Gabe come apart in his hands. Wanted to wrap himself around the other man until they both found an explosive end.

  He pressed Gabe back, shuffling him a few steps until Gabe bumped into the wall next to the toilet and had nowhere else to go.

  Matt pushed down the elastic waistband of Gabe’s sweatpants, the kiss getting a little wilder, one of Gabe’s hands in his hair, their tongues rubbing sensuously together. When Matt slid his fingers down inside the cotton of Gabe’s underwear, he broke the kiss, uttering a strangled curse as Matt wrapped a firm hand around his hard arousal.

  Oh damn. The guy was utterly beautiful. Eyes closed, head tilted back, full lips damp and just-been-kissed pink. The breathy groans Gabe made felt like they were rippling over Matt’s skin. He watched, transfixed at how Gabe’s shoulders tensed and muscles bunched beneath the thin cotton of his T-shirt as Matt caressed him.

  He leaned in to kiss his way along Gabe’s jaw, relishing the slight abrasive burn of whiskers on his tongue and lips. Gabe’s breathing became erratic as Matt started stroking faster, tightening the pressure of his hold at the top and loosening again as he went down. Gabe took up a rocking rhythm in counter-time to the strokes, slouched back against the wall as he moaned low and gravelly, every sound shooting through Matt’s body and straight to his own erection.

  When a few drops leaked from the tip, Matt dragged his fingers through it and spread it down the length, making his strokes liquid smooth.

  Gabe pulled him in harder, catching his mouth in another drugging kiss as his thrusts became more frenetic, body tensing and straining. Matt pushed closer and Gabe rewarded him by pressing a thigh between his legs, against his aching erection, letting Matt practically ride him as his strokes became quicker and Gabe’s hold on him tighter.

  Suddenly Gabe arched, uttering something that wasn’t even in English, followed by a broken moan, hips jerking as he came, breathtakingly gorgeous as pleasure overtook him.

  They were both panting by the time he was done, yet Gabe didn’t move, simply opened his eyes to stare at Matt with a hooded gaze, surprise and satisfaction in the dark depths.

  Oh yeah, he might spend half his life second
-guessing himself and prefer his own company a lot of the time, but when it came to sex, he knew what he liked, what he wanted, and had no qualms about taking it. Gabe wasn’t the first bed partner he’d surprised with that fact.

  “That was a revelation.” Gabe straightened, all loose-limbed and practically glowing. He stripped off his T-shirt since it was now undeniably dirty, then shucked his pants and grabbed Matt’s hand in a firm but gentle hold. Gabe tugged him out into the main room and over to the bed.

  Matt held his gaze, anticipation thrumming through him as Gabe pulled the towel from his hips and carelessly tossed it aside. He gently pushed Matt backward, so he let himself fall onto the bed, eager to see where things would lead.

  Gabe stayed standing and from down here, the view was amazing. Gabe’s wide shoulders tapering into a narrow waist, all that bronze skin and the smattering of dark hair covering his defined pecs leading into a thicker trail down past his navel. Gabe was half-hard, satisfied after Matt’s ministrations, but maybe on the way to getting turned on all over again.

  Gabe was studying him just as intently, gaze raking over his body. “Think I’m going to taste every inch of you.”

  Matt couldn’t take it, waves of need and pleasure lashing at him, and he closed his fist around his erection. Gabe’s eyes darkened, clearly enjoying the show as Matt stroked himself slowly, but then the other man shook his head and pulled his hand away.

  “When you come, it’s going to be because I made you.”

  Oh baby, yes. Matt had no reply, barely any coherent thoughts at the images those simple words evoked.

  Gabe set a knee on the bed, then reached down and wrapped a hand around Matt’s ankle. He lifted Matt’s leg and pressed his mouth against the arch of his foot. Matt shivered at the contact, watching his every move, practically vibrating with anticipation as Gabe’s mouth traveled along his calf, around his knee, and then traced a path on the inside of his thigh. He sucked in a breath of eagerness at where Gabe’s mouth was going to end up, but he skipped over it and nipped at Matt’s hip, leaving him groaning in frustration and Gabe giving a low, wicked laugh.

  “All in good time, hot stuff,” Gabe promised with a heated glint in his dark eyes.

  Matt forced himself to relax into the mattress and let the guy have his way. Gabe’s mouth was exquisite torture as he tasted and teased his way around his body. By the time he finally returned to his stomach and skimmed down, Matt was a trembling mess. His entire body jerked uncontrollably as Gabe laved along the length of his erection. Oh God, he wasn’t going to last long. He could already feel the familiar tightening low in his abdomen.

  As if knowing how oversensitized he’d become, Gabe eased his mouth around him slowly. Matt caught his breath, tensing every muscle, wanting to draw this out, wanting to make it last, trying desperately to hold off. But as soon as Gabe started sucking, he was done for. One hand fisted the duvet beneath him, the other gripping Gabe’s short, thick hair.

  Gabe drove him onward, unapologetically dragging him right to the edge and then shoving him over. His breath stuttered out as the pleasure whitewashed all of his senses for a few amazing moments. By the time he came down, Gabe was quite thoroughly licking up every drop of him and then kissing his way up Matt’s body until he collapsed next to him, flinging one arm above his head and giving a satisfied huff.

  “Pleasure doing business with you,” Gabe murmured, eyes closed but a grin on his face.

  “Huh?” Matt half rolled and propped himself on his elbow, unabashedly studying Gabe while that intense, dark gaze was hidden away.

  “You got your prize for beating me at darts, and I got my reward for rescuing you. Although, I believe I’ve rescued you twice now.”

  “The flat tire doesn’t count. I was already half-done by the time you pulled over.” He poked Gabe in the ribs and was rewarded with a cute yelp. Matt leaned down and kissed his shoulder as Gabe opened his eyes and cast him a playfully unimpressed look.

  “Mm-hmm,” Gabe returned, the nonverbal reply laced with skepticism.

  Gabe reached up and cupped a hand around the back of his neck, pulling him down for a lazy, curious kiss as they measured and learned each other’s responses. Matt couldn’t remember the last time he’d enjoyed making out so much. But with Gabe, it wasn’t just kissing, it was a whole-body experience. The way he used his lips and tongue, Matt swore he felt it echoing through every cell.

  Already getting hard again, he slid across onto Gabe, who spread his thighs so Matt ended up between his legs, their hips coming together, groins pressing and rubbing, making a tingle start in his lower back and shoot up his spine.

  The kiss became deep and languorous, Gabe’s palm sliding up from the back of his neck into his hair. His other hand slid to Matt’s ass and urged him to rock slowly against him, even as Gabe thrust up. They found an almost hypnotizing rhythm together, as though they’d been doing this together for years. Their bodies fit perfectly, no awkward shifting or straining to find the right position, only the easy settling into a give-and-take like they’d been made for each other.

  He didn’t know how long they languidly moved together—time ceased to have any meaning. The buildup was more gradual, but no less intense. Just when he started needing more—more friction, more pressure, more speed, more everything—Gabe reached between them and wrapped his hand around both of them.

  Matt let a long groan escape, thrusting eagerly into the fist as Gabe wrapped a leg around his waist and urged him to go faster. He lost himself to the sensations, nothing existing beyond Gabe beneath him, their bodies moving in a seamless, intrinsic rhythm.

  Wave after wave washed over him, each one a little higher, a little harder until one finally crested into an eruption of pure euphoria. Gabe shuddered beneath him, coming at exactly the same moment, leaving them moaning breathlessly against each other’s mouth.

  After the last echo of pleasure washed gently away, Matt was going to drop next to him on the bed, but Gabe pulled him directly down. Matt sunk onto his chest, neither of them particularly worried about the wet stickiness between them. For a few minutes they lay in silence as they caught their breath and their heart rates slowed. God damn. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d come twice in such quick succession. Certainly not since he’d been a horny teenager. Gabe’s hands and lips and mouth and tongue—pretty much his whole body was like an aphrodisiac on steroids he had a feeling he was fast going to get addicted to now that he’d gotten a taste.

  Sleepiness dragged at him, so he blinked his eyes open and pushed up on his elbows to look down at Gabe, who looked like he was already half out of it himself.

  “I’m going to take another quick shower.” He wanted to tell Gabe he didn’t have to leave, but he bit his lip over the words as Gabe lazily opened his eyes to stare up at him. He’d had short relationships in the past but hadn’t ever had a one-night stand before. He had no idea what he was doing here or what Gabe expected next. Maybe he was ready to leave now?

  Except Gabe sent him an easy, relaxed smile. “Think there’s room for two?”

  The relief that went through him was far more acute than it had any right to be. “We’ll have to get up close and personal, but yeah, I think we should both fit.”

  Gabe rolled them, gave him a quick but thorough kiss, and then got to his feet with a teasing grin. “Just don’t expect me to lock the door.”

  CHAPTER SEVEN

  THE SOUND of his cell phone trilling snatched Gabe out of a deep, restful sleep. He nuzzled into the warm body next to him, not wanting to get out of bed, but work was calling and he’d never been one to ignore his responsibilities.

  As he untangled himself, Matt stirred, murmuring sleepily before curling into the blankets. God, he was cute. Gabe kissed his nape and then rolled out from beneath the duvet, searching the pockets of his hastily discarded sweatpants to find his phone just as it stopped ringing.

  He redialed the last number and it was answered by Sheriff Hayes on the second rin
g.

  “Lopez, sorry to call you so early,” the sheriff greeted.

  “Nature of the job, sir. What can I do for you?” He dragged a hand through his hair, turning at the movement in the corner of his eye to find Matt pushing up to sit in bed, blinking against the golden sunlight creeping in around the edges of the curtain. His hair was sexily disheveled, his blue eyes seeming to pick up all the light in the room and reflect it back, the frame of dark lashes only heightening the effect. It was all Gabe could do not to hang up on the sheriff and tackle Matt into the mattress. The guy had definitely surprised him last night. For all the reserved aspects of his personality, he’d been abandoned in passion and clearly comfortable with his body in a way few people were.

  “Remember the case I ran by you yesterday?” the sheriff was saying, dragging Gabe’s attention from the temptation currently staring at him from across the room.

  “The vandalism and threats?” he clarified.

  “That’s the ticket. One of the victims was found beaten within an inch of his life this morning.”

  More awake now, Gabe realized he could hear background noises that could only mean the sheriff was at a hospital.

  “How is he?” Like he’d told Hayes yesterday, this was probably a bit out of his scope. He’d been planning to call Special Agent Yasmin Quinn to talk the details over with her. But if the culprit had progressed from threats to action, then he’d have to bump up the timeline on that.

  “Serious but stable. Hasn’t been coherent enough to tell us exactly what happened yet. He was found by his wife in the driveway of their home in the early hours of this morning.”

  “Shit,” he muttered.

  Matt scooted to the edge of the bed and then padded over to his suitcase to pull out a pair of his own sweatpants; a navy-blue pair with a sports brand name emblazoned in white down one leg. He left them riding low on his hips and then stretched. Gabe forced his gaze away before he started drooling.