“Yup.” Dom had the weirdest urge to whip out his phone and show off pictures of his mismatched siblings. He never did that with hookups, because it led to larger explanations. Hell, sometimes with his hookups they barely exchanged names before getting down to business. “Three sisters and a brother.”
“Five of you? Damn, your parents were busy.”
He had no reason to tell Coop that each one of them was adopted. But he wanted to. “I was never bored,” he said instead. “You?”
“I’m bored all the time.”
He lightly punched Coop in the shoulder. “Do you have siblings.”
“Only child.” The way his mouth pinched up suggested not a fun topic.
The hotel’s blue and white sign appeared in the distance, about a block away. They didn’t talk the rest of the ride, and Dom was extra careful making a left turn through summerbeach traffic, even with a green arrow. Instead of pulling into the garage, he double-parked near the main entrance. “I’ll run everything up and be back in a few,” Dom said.
“Cool.” Coop stuck in a pair of purple earbuds. “I’ll be here.”
The keyboard case was extra heavy with one hand, and he probably could have left that in the trunk, but he didn’t want to risk a six-hundred-dollar piece of equipment getting stolen. So he hefted that and his violin to the elevator. As expected, the room was empty. It reeked of beer and yesterday’s supreme pizza. The windows weren’t the kind that opened, so he jacked up the air-conditioning.
It was barely eleven, and the room was predictably still empty. The bed was tempting, but he had a funny feeling that finding a private place to fuck in this town was going to be an adventure worth experiencing.
He dug into Linc’s bag for a condom and a lube packet. Dom hadn’t expected to get laid during their stay on the shore, but Lincoln went everywhere prepared. “Never miss an opportunity to enjoy yourself” was his life philosophy. Dom checked himself in the mirror. No unexpected zits. Hair still perfectly gelled. He needed to shave but whatever. Coop probably wouldn’t care. Some guys enjoyed a little beard burn. Dom certainly wasn’t opposed to some extra heat between his cheeks, and the mental image of Coop rimming him sent blood right to his dick.
Walking through a hotel lobby with a hard-on was never fun, but Dom still made it back to the car in record time. Coop pulled the earbuds out as soon as Dom’s ass hit the fractured leather driver’s seat. “So where to?” Dom asked, resisting the urge to adjust himself. “Since you’re the local, I figure you know the best spots.”
“How do you feel about go-karts?”
His answer was going to get him made fun of, Dom had no doubt. “I have no real feelings about them because I’ve never actually driven one.”
Coop’s exaggerated shock made him look like an outraged kid. “What rock did you grow up under?”
“Hey now. Don’t mock my hometown rock. I drove a stock car on an actual NASCAR track once.”
“Seriously?”
“Yeah. My dad knew a guy. Me and my two older siblings. We couldn’t go over forty, but whatever.”
For some reason, that left Coop in a kind of giggle-snort fit that was insanely appealing. Everything about Coop was appealing, from his thickly lashed green eyes to the small scar on his chin, and especially the faint hint of dimples when he smiled. “So you want to do go-karts?” Dom asked once Coop got control of himself. “I thought you didn’t like riding in cars.”
“Real cars. Go-karts have rubber bumpers and are almost impossible to crash.”
“Sort of like bumper cars at a fair?”
“Yeah, but with wheels and a longer track. I know a guy who manages one. He can get us in for free.”
Dom grinned. “A cheap date. I like it. Point the way.”
“Go back out to the light and head south. All the way down past First Street.”
With traffic the drive would take about ten minutes. Dom was crazy curious about Coop, but he wasn’t sure how personal the guy wanted to get. Family was definitely off-limits as a topic of conversation.
Coop helped him out by asking, “So how many instruments do you actually play?”
“How many do I play? Or how many do I play well?”
“Seriously? I know you’re a fucking prodigy on the violin, and seem to know your way around a Yamaha.”
“I love strings. Violin is absolutely my first love, but I’m really good with the piano and classical guitar.”
“I’m more of a bass man, myself.”
