It must have been the sun, I figured. Too much heat and lemonade, and my brain was jumping all over the place.
But despite how unexpected that was, it didn’t bother me. The whole fantasy came and went so quickly, it was like it was out of my control. And I definitely wasn’t going to complain about an orgasm that strong. My muscles were still trembling as cum dripped from my tip.
I chuckled as I flipped off the water. At least Kentucky wasn’t boring.
Chapter Five
Shawn
Standingin the kitchen in just his cargo shorts, Cass made a satisfied grunt as he gulped down the lemonade. Sweat dotted his forehead, and on his chest swirls of dark hair were matted to his pecs, flat against a black-and-crimson tattoo of a rose. The waistband of his boxers stuck out above his shorts, and my eyes went straight to his abs and the V of his hips.
Cass put the glass down, then stepped closer. “Shawn, Shawn, Shawn,” he said.
I stood there, frozen to the spot. Outside, the banging started up again but much louder than it had ever been before, like there were drums outside of every window.
“Cass,” I answered.
He approached me, then pressed his palm against my chest. I gulped as he felt my body, his big hands exploring and groping while I quivered on full display.
“I’ve always wanted you,” he said. In a flash, we were both naked, and the banging at the windows became explosive, shaking the walls.
“Look at that,” he said, staring at my stiff cock. “Just like I imagined.”
My heart leapt to my throat as I woke with a startle. I was slumped over the desk, and in the distance, I could hear the steady beat of Cass’s drums. I shook my head, chasing away the dream, although one feature lingered with me.
I hurried over to my bed, kicked down my pants, and jerked off. When I was done, I was fully awake again. The sun was setting outside, which meant I had been napping at the desk for at least an hour. After spending several days trying to adjust to a night schedule, I was still in a weird limbo, waking and passing back out at the most random times.
At least I had the night ahead of me. And with the Lyrid meteor shower coming, I was ready to make it a long one. I grabbed my hoodie from the hook by the door and headed down to the kitchen to make a cup of tea. The meteor shower would last all night, and I wanted to get some writing done under the stars.
Writing the book was proving to be a lot more difficult than I expected, and I knew I couldn’t blame it all on Cass. Sure, he got me all hot and twisted, but the construction noise wasn’t that bad, and all I had to do was flip on my white noise machine to block out the drumming.
Most afternoons, though, I indulged in a little time just listening. He banged out these fast, hard rhythms, the kind of music that would normally turn me off. But his drumming felt steady, too, like something you could hold onto. And when I let myself get swept up in the motion of it, it was like some valve was loosened, and I could write again after.
Too bad it only lasted a minute. I had lots of thoughts and phrases jotted down in my notebook but only about five pages written in the first chapter. And although I didn’t know a ton about publishing, I did know that you needed more than a notebook with clever phrases you’d scribbled.
The kettle whistled, and I poured hot water over my tea. Because the back porch butted up to Cass’s room, I had dragged my telescope over to the side of the house and stored it in the garage a few days earlier. I didn’t need a telescope to see the Lyrids, but I did want it on hand in case my curiosity pulled me somewhere else in the galaxy.
“Oh, hey, there you are.”
Cass appeared from behind the corner, a bottle of beer dangling in one hand. There was a new moon in the sky, and the night was getting dark fast as crickets chirped nearby. He was wearing his cargo shorts with an old crewneck sweatshirt, and the white light from the house showed me the slight smile on his lips.
It was perfect. It always was. Easy and natural, like he was inviting you to smile with him.
I’d never met a man who made me want to smile the way Cass did, straight or gay. And for once, I didn’t even flinch when I saw him or try to hide the telescope. I just took a big breath and let myself smile back.
“Hi, Cass. Were you looking for me?”
He nodded to the house. “I was going to make some pasta for dinner. Wondered if you were hungry?”
We’d started leaving leftovers out for each other, even though we weren’t really sharing our meals. I didn’t make much of it, figuring Cass was just being practical, but the fact that he came looking for me gave me a deep, satisfying sensation. “Sure, if you’re offering.”
He took a swig from his beer, then glanced up toward the stars. “Are you working tonight? Want to show me a few more things up there?”
“Really?” I scrunched my mouth to the side. Damn, it was really hard to convince myself he wasn’t just taking pity on me all the time. Still, though, if he was asking, I didn’t really turn down an opportunity to talk about the stars. “Sure, anytime.”
He crossed over, and when he spoke, his voice was low and quiet, like a steady rumble. “I was thinking about that galaxy you showed me while I was drumming the other day.”
“Oh yeah?” I took in a breath, and his scent went straight to the core of me.
