“Yeah, I deserve that.” I chuckled, hooking my foot around the leg of the chair next to me. Propping my feet up at least gave the illusion of being relaxed.
“And a hell of a lot more,” he scoffed. “Lucky for you,one of usdoesn’t hold a grudge.”
Yeah. Lucky me. We’d see if he changed his tune once I laid it out.
“So, to what do I owe the pleasure of this early morning wakeup?” Shit. If he’d still been sleeping, that meant he’d likely worked a late shift last night. Funny how I could keep from calling most people, but I hadn’t thought twice about disrupting him. That was probably because we used to talk all the time.
Looking back, I wondered— Nope, not going there. I was content where I was, and Blake and I never would have worked out. I didn’t see him that way, even now. And yet, I needed him to see…anyway… “Not to be rude and blurt out shit I’m sure you’re not ready for, but I need a favor.”
“Damn. Is it a kidney? A piece of my liver? Anything else and I’m going to have to turn you down because those are the only things I could go without a piece of,” he teased. That was always his way. When things got uncomfortable, Blake cracked jokes.
“I’m serious, B. I get that it’s hard to believe there’s anything short of an organ transplant that could make me call you to ask for help, but you’re the only one I can trust with this,” I admitted. I knew I was rambling, but it didn’t much matter at this point. I would drop to my knees and beg if that’s what it took.
“Shit. Sorry. You know how I am.”
“Yeah, I do.” I couldn’t fight the way one corner of my mouth turned up. Fuck, I missed spending time with Blake. “And I’m sorry if I woke you up. This…situation just came to my attention and, like I said, if you can’t help me, I’m not sure anyone can. You’re the only person I can trust at this level.”
“You’re starting to both freak me out and piss me off,” he warned me. “You’re not the type to talk in circles, so how about you lay it out for me.”
So, I did. I could hear him cracking his knuckles and letting out deep measured breaths as I explained how I’d met a man who brought out a side of me I hadn’t known existed. An ache formed in my chest, knowing I was likely causing him pain, but to move forward, there couldn’t be anything hidden between us.
“Damn, that’s a lot to digest before I’ve brewed a pot of coffee.” He let out a low whistle, then there was rustling on the other end of the line.
“I know, and I hate to throw it all at you like this, especially when I was such a dick to you…”
“Water under the bridge, brother,” he reassured me. If I’d closed my eyes, I could almost imagine him throwing an arm over my shoulder, pulling me into a quick hug. “And I’m assuming that story was necessary for whatever it is you want me to do. But you should know, between the shit you pulled back in the day, waking me up, and rocking my world before noon, you’re going to owe me.”
“You name the price and it’s yours.” I meant it. Seeing the blissed out look on Mav’s face would be worth all the money in my bank account.
“Eh, we’ll leave the terms open until I know what you want me to sacrifice,” he quipped. “I’d hate to sell myself short.”
Running him through the scenario Mav admitted to dreaming about, was one of the hardest things I’d done in my life. My dick pressed against my zipper just thinking about him stretched out. When I considered how it would feel to have someone who wasn’t me seeing him that vulnerable, my jealousy was only quelled when I pictured Blake being the one looking at him.
For some reason, I didn’t feel the same sense of possession knowing it would be him. In fact, the idea of it turned me on, and I wondered if my boy would eventually want to try some other things that would require a helping hand. Well, a hand and some other parts as well. Depending on how tonight went, I wanted to see if it was possible for Blake and me to repair our friendship.
“Fuck, J, you’re asking a hell of a lot.” He groaned when I finally finished running him throughall of it. Parts were just off the path enough, they even made me squirm. Blake was one hell of a top, I knew that from when we used to hang out at a now defunct club a couple of towns over, but this was the type of thing not everyone would be willing to do. “I don’t know what in the hell you did in a past life to get yourself a boy like this on your first trip down the gay lane, but don’t fuck it up.”
“Believe me, if I do, you can get at the back of the line of people waiting to kick my ass,” I promised him. “I still don’t believe any of this shit is real half the time.”
“And the other half?”
“I know I’m the luckiest son of a bitch alive. Wait until you meet him. It feels wrong to say this, but he’s just your type.”
“Gee, rub a little salt in the wound, why don’t you?” The line was silent, other than his breathing and the sound of nails skittering against wood floors. I smiled, wondering if that was Lucky or if he had a new dog now. “Tell me, what would you do if I said I can’t because I have a boy of my own now? Did you even think about that?”
Shit. I hadn’t. The last time we’d talked—yelled—he’d accused me of only thinking about how situations affected me. I’d denied it at the time, but I was sort of making his point now.
“You don’t need to answer. The silence says it all. Lucky for you, I don’t. I’m still pathetically single because I haven’t found a boy who’s a mix of the things I need,” he admitted with a soft sigh. “Do you have everything you’re going to need to make this happen?”
I scrubbed my free hand over the back of my neck. I wasseriouslypushing our not-even-a-friendship-anymore to the limits today.
“Figured as much. Text me where I need to be and what time. I’ll take care of the rest.”
* * *
So far,today had been going better than I’d imagined. Mav came down the stairs looking every bit the slightly built badass I knew he was. Although I hadn’t told him to put on makeup, I was impressed by how subtle it was while still obviously there. His eyes lured me in, begging me to take him back upstairs and strip him so only I could see what was underneath.
I wasn’t sure which of us it was harder for when I took his hand in mine and led him to the door. We had places to be, but before we could do anything I’d planned, it was time for me to take my boy on a ride.
