Chapter 45
Chapter Forty-Five
SAM
Day Thirteen
‘Do I look okay?’ I ask. I tug at my pleated white polo shirt, brushing imaginary fluff from my black chino shorts. Last night was everything. We fucked, and it took all my will power not to go for another round this morning.
But instead, we simply laid together the whole day, sunlight streaming through, the sounds of the coffee shop rising from below. It was everything we needed.
Now, early evening, we’re getting ready, because Will sprung on me a dinner date with Lydia.
‘Amazing,’ Will says, looking me up and down. ‘Better if you were in the buff, though.’
Sat on the end of the bed, Will reaches out for me. I join him, standing in between his legs, looking down on him.
‘You let me get all dressed up and now you want me naked?’ I ask. ‘You wasted my time, mister?’
‘We still have time.’ Will’s hands rise, cupping my bum.
‘You’re at the perfect height.’
Will’s eyes flicker to my waist, then back up again.
‘We better go,’ he says. ‘Otherwise I’ll do something I shouldn’t.’
‘Like what?’
Will leans back, and I see the bulge in his shorts.
‘You know what you’re doing to me,’ I growl.
‘Do I?’ he asks, spreading his legs even further.
‘In those shorts?’
Will wears a T-shirt that stretches against his broad chest, so that I can see the indentations of his nipples in the fabric. But it’s his shorts that catch my eye. Hugging his thick thighs, his hairs curled around the fabric.
‘VPL.’
‘I think you got Lisa Vanderpump’s initials in the wrong order,’ Will jokes.
‘Visible penis line.’ I point at his shorts, as if he needs to be told where that visible line might be.
Will leans back on his elbows. ‘What of it?’
‘It’s kind of hard to ignore,’ I say.
‘Sorry about that.’
I groan, my eyes moving back to his. ‘Come on, Will. We’ve got to get out of here.’
‘Shame,’ Will says, and he brings my hand to his face, placing my finger in his mouth. His teeth graze my skin as he pulls back, letting my finger brush over his lips, down his chin.
I place my hands on his shoulders, pushing him onto the bed. I climb on top of him, my legs either side of his chest, before lowering my lips to his. He lifts my shirt from my chest, my tanned torso on display. I remove his T-shirt, kissing his neck, his nipples, his stomach.
Then, his fingers touch my shorts, and he looks at me.
I stand, slip out of my shorts, and Will does the same. I straddle him.
He takes my dick in his hands, his tongue wetting it. My head rolls back, and I close my eyes as he tries to take it all. He gets halfway before moving back to the head.
‘You like my cock?’
‘Mmhm,’ Will says, mouth full.
‘You good boy.’
I reach behind me for his cock, already wet from his excitement. I brush the tip of his dick with my fingers and taste the reward, making him groan.
He pumps my dick with his hand, expertly running his tongue in all the right places. My legs buckle, my hands gripping his shoulders.
‘Fuck, Will.’
‘Mmhm,’ Will manages, still not relenting.
‘Will, if you keep doing that…’
I could try to hold it. I could try to make this last longer. But Will knows his way around my body, and as my hands grip his hair, my legs wrapping around his frame, I let out a sound that I didn’t even know I could make.
Will doesn’t splutter. He doesn’t flinch. Instead, with concentration, he swallows every drop.
Mostly. Another burst sends cum all over his face.
I stroke Will, and within a few moments, I’m covered in his cum.
We giggle.
‘I need a towel,’ Will says, semen running dangerously close to his eye. ‘Sam, I might go blind.’
I hop off him, yelping, and falling. Will gasps.
‘My legs. They’ve cramped,’ I say, trying to get myself up off the floor.
‘Sam, this is going to sting.’
Laughing, losing my breath, I hobble to the bathroom, coming back with a towel. Will dabs at his skin, his eye.
‘Keep it all in your mouth next time,’ I say.
I wink at him, seeing him flush.
Refreshed, ten minutes later, we walk out of the apartment hand in hand.
I grin at neighbours who take us both in, and try not to read their expressions, or think too deeply about what they think, or if I need to fear for our safety.
Even though they say hello with kindness, even though their greetings are warm.
Will doesn’t seem worried. He doesn’t even notice the people that keep looking after he says hello.
We are safe. I am safe.
I resent the world we live in, where straight people can kiss one another without a second thought, but we have to check who is around us, or rethink if we are not in a safe place. A world where Will had to research if his travel destination was safe.
It hurts.
The optimist in me hopes times are changing.
Will holds my hand a little tighter.
Taste of Athens is on a side street, with cobbled floors and whitewashed buildings.
Wisteria clings to the outside of the restaurant, thick vines giving off a purple and white plumage.
Peering inside, candles on the tables are the only source of light.
From the entrance, I can see straight into the kitchen, where pizzas are being made in a stone-based oven.
‘Have you been here before?’ Will asks, as a waitress shows us to a nearby table. Most of the tables look reserved for couples, but we’re the first to arrive at one with six seats, a little reserved sign in the middle, illuminated by more flickering candles.
‘No,’ I say. ‘But I’ve heard of it, it’s known as a romantic place.’
‘Not even with friends?’
‘I don’t have friends.’
Will pouts, and I browse the menu, his hand massaging my leg under the table.
‘Sam, are you lonely?’
Wow. My head snaps up. ‘No one has ever asked me that before,’ I say.
‘I’m sorry if it was the wrong question to ask.’
I take his hand, kissing it gently. My eyes never leaving his.
‘Not at all,’ I say. ‘You’re incredible.’
Will baulks. ‘I just mean—’
‘No, I mean it. Will, no one has ever read me like you have. Yes, I’m lonely. I’ve been lonely since I moved here.’ I close my eyes. ‘Wow,’ I say. ‘It feels good.’
‘What does?’
‘To tell someone and admit it. I’m lonely.’
‘Now, you’ve got me.’
‘For however many days.’
Will looks back at his menu, smiling. ‘Why do you think you’re lonely?’
There are many reasons why I’ve shut myself off, but one answer comes to me before the rest. ‘I’ve found it hard to make friends here, because I never met someone like you. And then the business. I kind of fell into the routine of work, no play. Like I say, never had any serious lover.’
‘Even though you’re hot?’
‘People don’t think that.’
‘Please, it must be so tough being hot,’ Will says, defusing whatever moment this is. ‘I’m pleased to be blessed with my mediocre looks.’
‘You’re not mediocre,’ I say. ‘What defines beauty, anyway?’
‘Um, literally ancient Greece,’ Will says.
‘No. Seriously. What defines beauty? You find me attractive … I hope?’
This is an afterthought, something I want to know.
‘Hm. Still deciding,’ he quips.
‘Okay. But you don’t like me just for my looks and body, do you?’
‘Undecided,’ Will says.
‘Do you?’ I lean back in my chair.
‘They’re part of my attraction to you,’ Will says, and immediately I realise we are on new ground.
We are talking about us. ‘But there’s more to it.
To me, Sam, you’re safety. You’re familiar.
A missing piece. You’re smart and you’re a dreamer.
You’re an optimist, and a bundle of joy.
You’re warm, rebalancing my cold pessimism.
Excitement I didn’t know I needed. You’re someone telling me that maybe I can feel something other than dread, sadness and God knows what else. ’
My heart jumps.
‘I don’t think you’re just a pretty package,’ Will says. ‘You’re someone I want to have around.’
Tears prick my eyes and I look down, reaching for the napkin on the table. I can taste them, feel the way my throat waters.
‘Sam?’
‘Sorry,’ I say, before clearing my throat. My voice is deeper, gruff, trying to stop him detecting the tears.
‘What are you doing with your voice?’
‘Nothing,’ I huff.
‘The macho man look is hot and everything, but are you okay?’
I finally look at him. ‘I’ve never felt appreciated like this.’
Will pulls me towards him, kissing me. I hope he’s not tasting the salty tears. I hope it’s not damp and disappointing. But equally, I know what I need to do. I want to make this proper. I want to be able to call Will my boyfriend.
‘Should we make this—’
‘There you are!’