He reminded me of that poor rainbow trout I’d caught. “I’m happy to let that record fall. Like, now, if you want.”
“What…?” He cleared his throat. “Uh…what are you talking about?”
I didn’t believe for even a fraction of a second that he was that naïve or clueless. “I want to show off my skills.”
“By giving me a blow job?” His voice went a little squeaky on that.
“Well, yes. Because I’ve seen your boots—and they’re fucking ugly. Not even Gucci could coordinate with that. So, a blow job it’ll have to be.”
His eyes widened even more than he rubbed his forehead. “You don’t even know if I’m gay.”
I nodded. “You’re right. I don’t know if you’re gay, bi, bicurious, or straight. I mean, blow jobs from guys might not be your thing. But seriously, what guy doesn’t love being blown?”
He blinked. “Look, you put too much emphasis on pleasing others. You’re always trying to impress your dad. And even giving blow jobs to make people like you is something you need to work on changing. You’re a smart guy. Have you ever thought about whatyouwant?”
I held his gaze. “Sometimes.”
“Great.” He appeared genuinely enthused as he grinned.
My will faltered.
“Come on. Tell me. I promise I won’t laugh. What would, in this moment, make you happy?”
I pursed my lips in a pout. “It’s not that I think you would laugh—it’s just that you’ve already said I can’t blow you.”
“On that note, I think it’s time for bed.”
I didn’t argue. The daylight was gone, which meant it was past four. I wasn’t tired, but I hadn’t actually done anything remarkable today. Well, except for trying to burn the cabin down and getting a sliver when I tried to chop wood. Not exactly my best day. But not my worst either—I’d had fun. When Marco let down his guard a bit, he’d made me smile.
Plus, I’d transcribed his numbers properly. That made me super happy. “So what about you? If you could have anything you want—like right now—what would make you happy?”
“For your father’s company to stop polluting the waterway near a small town. He doesn’t know that I know, obviously. I’m hoping my research here—on his turf—will convince him I’m serious about the ecological damage he’s causing.”
My breath caught. This guy was so damn earnest. And about the same age as me. Here I was, staying out all night partying and crashing Lambos, while he was trying to save the world onewaterway at a time. “Okay, so is there anything else? Because I can try to influence my father, but that’s unlikely.”
“Well…” He bit his lower lip. “Maybe the blow job I turned down earlier?”
This time, I blinked. “So you are into guys.” I tried to keep the smugness out of my voice.
“I think you could say…bicurious? I mean, on a few of those arctic trips, I fooled around with some guys—nothing serious.”
“As in…” I gestured for him to continue because I wanted to know exactly how much of a virgin we were talking—if at all.
“Hand jobs…blow jobs…frotting…” He sort of shrugged. “That kind of stuff.”
“That’s…something.” I considered. “And women?”
“Hand jobs…blow jobs…frotting…” Again, with the sort of shrug.
I licked my lips. “This is going to be fun. Of course, it’ll be more fun if we’re naked.”
His eyebrows shot up to his hairline. “You do realize just how cold this room is?”
I held my arms toward the roaring fire. “We’ve got enough wood—even after my disaster.”
“That’s true.” He tapped my thigh.
I stilled because, aside from when he was pulling the sliver out of my shin, this was the first time we’d touched.
