Within seconds, footsteps pounded up the stairs, and he opened the door to watch Ash climbing the last few steps. Ash pushed his hair off his forehead, then met Drew’s gaze and grinned. “Damn. You couldn’t live on the first floor?”
An image chased in his mind and out just as quickly, of Ash bending over him on the couch. Since that made no sense, he blinked one or two times to clear his mind and held the door open wide. “Come on in. Are you going somewhere?”
Ash cocked his brow and followed him into the apartment. “No, why?”
Drew gestured with his chin. “I dunno; you’re kinda dressed up for a Sunday morning.” His gaze raked over the man who was in a white button-down shirt and black pants. “I’m like a slob compared to you.” He laughed and rubbed his chin.
Like a breath being held, an anticipatory waiting for something to drop and cause havoc and mayhem, a heavy silence hung in the air. Ash’s glittering eyes scrutinized him, traveling with slow precision up his body. Though he stood several feet away, it was as if Drew could feel the press of Ash’s fingers on his back and the hush of Ash’s breath on his skin. His skin prickled with the heat rising in his face. He never could control his blushing. It drove him crazy.
“Don’t be a fool. You’re perfect.”
Drew let out a self-conscious laugh. “Ah, yes. Must be why the women are beating down my doors.”
Ash’s face shuttered, closed and dark. “Perhaps you’re looking for the wrong person.”
Their eyes met, and once again the silent air fairly vibrated with tension. Drew licked his lips. “Um, go ahead and sit down. You want some iced coffee or a beer or something?”
“The coffee sounds great, thanks.” Ash strolled into the living room while Drew fixed the coffee. He brought the cups in, but there was nowhere for both of them to sit, as the blanket still lay on the sofa.
Ash placed his cup on the table, took the blanket, and folded it. “Here, why don’t you let me put that back in the bedroom?”
Puzzled, Drew looked from the blanket to Ash’s face. “How did you know where it came from?”
Ash froze at the entrance to Drew’s bedroom, a guilty expression coloring his face red. “I, uh…” He looked up, down, and everywhere but at Drew’s face.
“You came back here, didn’t you? I thought I was going crazy with the thoughts in my head.” Drew pressed the heel of his palm hard into his eyes. “Shit. I really have no recollection of what happened. I’m no drinker.”
“Yeah, that was obvious.”
He tried to look affronted, but Ash huffed out a laugh. “Come on, Drew, you were trashed.”
Finally he broke out in a grin. “Yeah, I’m kind of a lightweight when it comes to booze.” He licked his lips, nerves skittering inside him at the question he was about to ask. “Um, so what happened when you were here?”
Ash returned to the couch and sat next to him. His soft voice, the drawl a little more apparent, sparked a confusing, heated response in Drew’s blood. “What makes you think somethin’ happened?”
If a fire truck plowed into his apartment right now, it couldn’t have pulled his attention away from Ash’s strong jaw and firm lips. Or that little wedge of skin, so soft looking even with the dark curl of chest hair peeking through. The man smelled like warm sunshine and coffee. Heaven and desire.
“I, um, I had some weird dreams,” Drew choked out, embarrassed now that Ash sat before him. But the man wasn’t smiling. In fact, he looked terrifyingly serious.
“Did you now?” It didn’t seem strange at all for Ash to reach over and brush back the curls that insisted on falling into his eyes. “Why don’t you tell me about them?”
He shook his head, unsure where to begin, afraid he might reveal too much of the confusion inside.
A ding from the computer broke the mesmerizing spell between them. “Shit. I forgot about her.” With reluctance, he turned his attention to the computer and the series of chat messages with the woman he’d been talking to. What was her name again? Alyssa, right. Wow she had a lot to say.
Hello, hello?
Are you still there?
I guess you aren’t that interested.
A warm breath teased his ear, sending chills rippling down his spine. “Are you? Interested in her?”
Drew found it hard to swallow. Ash’s lips, his mouth were a mere breath away from touching his hair. Much as his mind sought to ignore it, his body responded. With supreme strength, he wrenched away from the magnetic pull of the man and shut the laptop, effectively ending the conversation with poor Alyssa.
“I, um, don’t know. It’s only the first time I’ve done that.” For the life of him he didn’t know why he sounded so defensive. It wasn’t as if he owed Ash an explanation. And speaking of explanations…
“You never did say why you came by yesterday after the party.”
