“You’re walking funny. You bottomed!” Gregory called out. Jace shut his bedroom door, and reached back to push the lock in, smiling when he heard them at the door.
“Details! We need details! I’m the bottom! You never bottom!” Jace couldn’t tell if Jonathon or Gregory yelled at his door. They were both crazy and had zero sense of decorum. They would do or say anything.
“Way off base as usual,” Jace yelled back, grabbing his iPod and shoving the earbuds in his ear. He totally ignored his roommates as he selected a playlist and stretched out on his bed, thinking about Colt.
There was a game plan to dating. Jace wondered if he’d said yes too quickly? Nobody wanted the guy who was ripe for the picking. Jace struggled with his feelings. No question, he was already falling hard for Colt. After one session in a locker room and a brief conversation on the phone, he was completely lost. What would spending days in a tropical paradise do to him? If he went through with this, he was most definitely setting himself up for heartbreak.
No way would Colt Michaels come out any time soon. Besides, if Colt did come out, he’d be the most sought after gay man on campus. He was too good-looking and drop dead sexy.
If Jace had said no to Hawaii, he might not ever get another chance to spend time with him, and he would most definitely regret that decision for the rest of his life. Fuck the rules of dating. He had to at least give them a chance, didn’t he?
Colt circled the McDonald’s parking lot searching for Jace through the front window of the fast food restaurant. Jace started almost every morning here, having a fruit and yogurt parfait and orange juice before his first class. This being one of the many things Colt had learned by watching Jace from afar over the years. Colt now started his day following this same routine because something about seeing Jace first thing in the morning tended to make his day a little better.
As he circled back around the side of the building, he got a glimpse of Jace’s blond hair through the large plate glass window. He quickly scanned the rest of the restaurant. The place was emptier than normal, which was a good thing. Colt circled again and came up the side of the building where he spotted some of the players at the front ordering. Damn it! He’d have to wait before going inside, and he prayed Jace didn’t finish before the others left.
Colt parked in a back spot, strategically watching the front door. After a few minutes both players left. That meant Jace was alone inside. Colt tugged his ball cap low on his head, got out of his car, and jogged across the parking lot to the front doors.
The element of surprise was on his side. Jace sat in the corner of the booth, reading the newspaper, oblivious to his entrance. He was able to make his way to Jace’s table unseen. Colt slid in the booth, punching the newspaper with his hand, and got an angry look from Jace before he realized who sat across from him. Colt’s heart gave a little jolt of excitement when Jace’s face lit up with recognition.
“Hey you,” Colt said.
“What are you doing here?” Jace asked, and then got instantly red-faced, averting his eyes, looking back down at the table. “Duh, you’re getting breakfast.”
“Nah, I just know this is where you usually come in the mornings, and I got your ticket. You might need this,” Colt said, sliding an envelope across the table. “I tried to get us on the same flight, but everything’s all booked up. I’ll be arriving a few hours before you. I also got a rental car in your name. All the information’s in the packet because we won’t be leaving together. Now I just wish I’d let them book me two tickets when they first offered up the beach house,” Colt said, keeping his casual attitude, but staring directly into Jace’s eyes.
Jace picked up the envelope, opened it, doing a quick thumb through of the contents inside. The cost of the ticket was evidently still in the flight itinerary. “Colt, this was so much money, are you sure your agent’s good with this?”
“I’m positive. I probably won’t get to see you before we leave. I’m sorry about that, but we’ll be alone on the island,” Colt said, as a couple of students walked into the restaurant. They noticed Colt immediately, giving a nod before looking over at Jace. Colt caught the subtle look, but it was still a questioning glare nonetheless. “I gotta go. I just wanted to give you this and tell you thank you again for last night.”
“Wait, how did you know I would be here?”
“I told you, I’m a creeper where you’re concerned. I know all about you,” Colt said with a laugh, but meant every word. He quickly slid out of the booth and walked away, not giving Jace a chance to respond.
Chapter 3
Shit! Colt ran across the Hawaiian bungalow to the kitchen stove, sliding to a stop as he grabbed the boiling pot and pushed it off the burner. In his need to get everything just right for Jace’s arrival, he’d almost overcooked their dinner. Not good!
Colt glanced at the large clock that hung over the brightly painted turquoise and yellow sideboard. Shit! Jace’s plane just landed. He figured he had about twenty minutes before Jace got through baggage claim and left the airport. The drive to the beach house would take another thirty minutes. That gave Colt a little under an hour to shower, dress, and get the fire started. He also needed to put the fish he’d purchased from the restaurant over the fire to warm, and he still needed to set the table properly. With all the time Colt had to plan for Jace’s arrival, he never thought he’d be this far behind. Shit! Shit! Shit!
Dumping the seafood in the colander at the sink, he flung the pot on the stove and ran to the bathroom. His hair would take the most time, but he desperately wanted to look his best for Jace. Because Jace always looked so fucking hot. A grin he couldn’t contain spread across his face as he tore his T-shirt over his head and tossed it in the general direction of his suitcase. Excitement filled his soul. Colt was happy. Seriously, emotionally happy for the first time in a long time, maybe even ever, and didn’t that just feel fan-fucking-tastic!
“Is he seriously not here?” Jace said aloud to no one as he stood at the front door to the bungalow waiting for Colt to answer his knock. The doubt that plagued him for the last few days reared its ugly head. He knocked again, this time using the side of his balled up fist to pound against the wooden door. Jace stepped back on the porch and looked at the house, before stepping forward again and sticking his ear to the door to listen inside. He saw and heard nothing. No one was home.
Stop doubting everything. He wouldn’t have fucked you, called you, texted over and over, and flown you here as some sort of sick practical joke. Right? Jace stared at the house. Already dusk outside, the night was coming on fast and Jace palmed his phone. Maybe he had the wrong house. And he had absolutely no signal. Great!
So he knocked again, actually banging hard on the door this time. Five minutes later, he steeled up his spine and moved. The pending dusk was turning full night, and if this was a practical joke, it needed to go ahead and happen so everyone could get a good laugh and he could find a ride back to the airport.
This certainly wouldn’t be the first time he’d been on the receiving end of a cruel prank. Nothing he hadn’t endured before, many times over. Jocks, in his opinion, could be among the worst homophobes. They always tried to one up each other in some kind of sick, dick measuring contest to prove how alpha manly and hetero they were.
Jace left his bags on the front porch and walked the length of the well-kept bungalow. He stepped cautiously off the porch, through the flowerbed, careful not to step on any of the colorful blooms or mess up any of the tropical plants as he pressed his face against the dusty glass of the window to peer inside. He searched for any movement.
Disappointed there had been no sign of Colt, he made his way back to the porch where he’d left his bag. Jace stood there, his back to the door, mentally cussing himself for letting his guard so far down. Was this the big end-of-college joke for the senior football players? He didn’t doubt it one bit. Going after a gay male cheerleader would provide endless hours of fun for those guys. He gave in and looked up,
giving the overhang of the porch a quick scan to see if there were any cameras.
To say Jace had been made fun of quite a bit over the years was an understatement. Jokes were still a daily occurrence that never seemed to get old to those playing them. Hell, Jace traveled regularly with bullying, testosterone-filled, mean-spirited jokers hiding behind the semblance of a football team. Practical jokes and sexual orientation slurs were part of daily life, but it never occurred to him Colt might have planned something like this.
Being abandoned in Hawaii… how was that even funny? Except there was no way he could afford to get home. Colt had his return ticket. Everyone knew he didn’t have a dime to his name. Jace was on a straight up academic scholarship, with cheerleading footing the rest of the bill. And, for whatever reason, his heart dropped. Jace had really started to believe Colt was truly into him. What was he going to do now? Fuck!
Sounds other than the ocean pulled Jace’s attention to the backyard. He took the stairs down, his flip flops kicking up sand as he tracked his way to the back. On guard, he took in his surroundings and noticed the next closest neighbor was still a distance away. He only knew there was a neighbor because he could see the roof of a bungalow in the distance. The properties were separated by dense tropical foliage. Jace rounded the corner to the back of the house, stopping dead in his tracks. A grin came to his lips, and he stood there for just a moment, staring.
Colt was alone in the back, lighting tiki torches that illuminated the path from the back of the house all the way down to the beach. His swim trunks hung low on his hips, and he was shirtless. Jace watched the muscles flex in Colt’s back as he lifted his arm to ignite the torch. Damn! Jace studied Colt’s profile as the guy turned and lit another wick. Intent on his task, Colt hadn’t noticed him staring.
“Hey,” Jace called out, his grin growing bigger as he walked toward Colt. Colt startled and spun around, almost dropping the lighter.
“Damn it! You’re already here? Shit!” Jace stopped in his tracks, his smile fading instantly. Maybe this was a practical joke after all. “I wanted to meet you at the front door, surprise you with all of this. I thought I had ten more minutes!” Colt abandoned the lighting of the torches, his bare feet sinking in the sand as he headed straight toward him. He wore a big sexy smile on his face as he reached out to take Jace’s duffel off his shoulder.
“Have you eaten yet?” Colt asked. Just like Jace had come to expect, Colt was the definition of random emotion, jumping from one thought to the next, never really hanging on to any one mood for too long. Colt leaned in for a quick kiss, slinging the duffel over his shoulder, and took Jace’s hand as if it was the most natural move in the world.
“No, you told me not to.” Jace tried to catch up with everything going on around him.
“And you listened? See, you were made for me,” Colt teased. He was back to humor, now dragging Jace toward the house. Jace tried to look over the backyard, spotting a table set up close to the water. Two chairs were anchored in the sand. A lit fire pit lay close by. “Are you tired? I have this whole thing planned out here, but if you want to sleep, or something, go ahead. I can wait.”
“Did you do all this?” Jace asked and realized Colt was already walking them up the steps to the back door. “Why are we going inside?”
“Well, maybe you don’t listen so well after all. I’ll have to remember that,” Colt deadpanned. “And to think I was so proud of our progress.” He pulled Jace into his arms, steps from the back door. “I made dinner for us. There’s some beer out there. You like Corona, right?”
“How do you know that?” Jace asked. His attention fully on Colt’s body pressed against his.
“I’ve traveled all over the world with you, cheer boy. I know what you drink. I know you eat almost no meat, but tons of seafood. You like fresh, raw foods as opposed to cooked. See?” Colt gave him a wink, clearly proud of his knowledge.
“How do you know that? You seriously keep shocking the hell out of me, Colt,” Jace said. Colt’s grin widened as he took Jace’s arms and wrapped them around his waist.
“Good. Now answer me? You ready to start this vacation, or are you tired or something?” Colt asked. His expression turned thoughtful as he studied Jace’s face.
“No, I’m definitely ready to start our vacation,” Jace said, holding Colt tighter in his arms.
“Let’s get you inside. I bought you a pair of island swim trunks. You don’t have to wear them, but I thought of you when I saw them. I thought we could share a room, but if you want your own space, I can bunk in the other one,” Colt said with another abrupt mood change; this time from fun and flirty to tour guide.
Colt stepped from the embrace and took Jace’s hand to pull him through the bungalow to a back bedroom. Jace barely had time to absorb any of the details, they were moving so fast, but he didn’t miss a beat in the bedroom. His heart picked up the pace at the thought of Colt spending so much time preparing for his arrival. Unlit candles were spread over every available surface. There was an open bottle of wine chilling in a stew pot by the bed. Wild orchids, plumeria, and hibiscus flowers were handpicked and placed all around the room, adding to the tropical decor. Colt didn’t seem to notice his pause. He dumped Jace’s bag in the closet without much care. On the bed was a pair of brightly-colored swim trunks, handpicked and waiting for him. The sweet gesture didn’t escape him.
“Here are the swim trunks I was telling you about.” Colt motioned to the bed and turned back toward him, his smile faded and his brow narrowed as he looked over to Jace. “Why are you by the door? Do you want another room?” An expression of what must have been disappointment crossed Colt’s face, and there was another abrupt change in his posture. Jace was growing to love all the moods of Colt.
“Thank you for the trunks. Did you do all this?” Jace slowly stepped inside. Impressed with the visible effort and thought Colt obviously put into his arrival.
“Yeah?” he narrowed his brow again, clearly confused, and looked around the room. “You don’t like it?”
“Is it for me?” Jace asked, stopping when he stood directly in front of Colt.
“Yeah.” This time Colt really looked confused. “Who else…”
“Do you do this kind of stuff all the time?” Jace inquired as he turned to the bed, scooping up a bloom, bringing it to his nose. He shut his eyes, breathing in the sweet scent. For the first time since Jace arrived, chatty Colt went silent. He opened his eyes, watching Colt intently.
“Do you not want to answer that question? It’s okay if you’ve done this before. I’m just glad you did it for me,” Jace continued. He placed the flower back on one of the pillows and turned his full attention to Colt.
“I haven’t ever done this before. It’s probably dumb. I just wanted it special for you. You’ve made me happy. I always envisioned you laughing at me if I ever approached you. I can’t remember ever being this content before. I just wanted to give that back to you,” Colt replied quietly. He dropped his hands to the nonexistent pockets of his swim trunks, and when the movement failed to achieve the desired result, he shoved them behind his back. “I want this to happen between us. More than you know.”
Jace stood in front of Colt, studying him, not missing the nervous fidget from the usually overconfident Colton Michaels. Was he worried? Surely not! Jace’s attention was immediately drawn to Colt’s mouth as his tongue darted out, leaving a wet trail across his lower lip, before he began to worry the lip with his teeth. God, he was gorgeous.
They were closer to the same height than Jace first thought. They fit well together, and Jace knew that for a fact. Colt’s long dark lashes brushed his cheek when he blinked. When he focused those ice blue eyes on him, Jace’s heart melted. Every bit of resistance he’d used to keep himself at even a small distance dissolved, and he reached up, taking Colt’s face between his hands.
“No one’s ever done anything like this for me before, Colt. Thank you,” Jace whispered as he leaned forward initiating a
kiss between them for the first time. He slanted his mouth over Colt’s, trying to gain entrance. They only really kissed once in their locker room experience.
The hours they’d spent on the phone together, the dozens and dozens of text messages, combined with the effort Colt had gone to for him was better than any foreplay Jace had ever received. Colt opened, and Jace manned up, making the move to tug Colt closer to him. Their hips met, and he groaned at the contact, sliding his tongue forward at the same moment Colt snaked his arms around his waist and fused their bodies together.
It was spontaneous combustion. Colt’s hips rolled into Jace. They were both hard and ready. The grinding of their cocks almost undid Jace. He thrust his tongue deeper into Colt’s sweet mouth, deepening the kiss as his hands slid down Colt’s perfect ass.
And then he was sucking air. A second passed before he realized Colt wasn’t still in the kiss. Wait! What?
Colt reached forward and gave him a peck on the lips one last time before he dropped his arms, releasing Jace from their embrace, and slowly backed away, completely severing all contact between them. This was not in Jace’s current game plan at all! Why was he gone? Jace looked around, completely confused. What the hell just happened? Why aren’t we in bed?
“I want to do this right this time. You change into the trunks, if you want, and come down to the beach. I’m sorry I can’t take you out on a date just yet, because… well, you know. But I can spend time with you here, be with you right now, and that’s what I want. Get dressed and come outside,” Colt said, now standing by the bedroom door. Jace didn’t even have time to protest.
“Change! And stop looking like that. Let me do this right, Jace, baby,” Colt said, and left the bedroom, Jace still completely at a loss as to why they weren’t already naked with their dicks in each other’s mouths. They should be having sex by now. When did that stop being the plan?
Nice Guys Collection With Added Bonus Material Page 3
