39. Chapter 39
Chapter thirty-nine
Ozzy
The dinner had been remarkably light. He and Ev had obviously gone out for Czech food before, but it usually left Ozzy feeling at least a bit laggy. This had been lots of pickles and caraway and vegetables. Admittedly, Ozzy had chosen carefully from the menu, avoided stewed meat and potatoes, and in spite of what he said about the toothpaste and mouthwash, he’d made certain to avoid anything that seemed to be primarily onions.
On their way back, the little bakery place had still been open, although the older couple tottering around seemed to be tidying up, so they made quick choices. Evander bought three pounds of chewy caramels in all sorts of different flavors and picked up a simple drip coffee. Ozzy also got a coffee and, in spite of himself, he couldn’t resist getting a couple of the oversized pastries in the display case. A bear claw and some sort of crescent filled with pistachio and white chocolate cream.
When they got back to the hotel, there was zero question. They both kept talking, finally catching up on the last two years as they rode the elevator upstairs together and headed toward Ozzy’s room.
As they rounded the corner, they almost had a collision with Aras. He was in a tank top and sweatpants, carrying an empty ice bucket, and he scowled and sneered…until he saw who it was that bumped into him. His face went past neutral, all the way up to a smile as he looked at them. “Well, don’t you two look chummy. And dapper.” He made a big show of stepping aside. “Don’t let me get in the way of your canoodling. Just try to keep it contained for once.” He moved past them, heading for the little alcove that held the ice and soda machines. Not without his commentary continuing, however. “There are children present at the job site.”
Ozzy almost rose to the bait, but Evander took his hand and led him the opposite direction and it passed. Ozzy took out his key card and opened the door to his hotel room. He deposited his pastries on the top of the dresser and tossed away his empty cardboard coffee cup, then toed off his shoes and headed for the bathroom. He kept the door open and went straight for his toiletry bag. He didn’t look back at Evander, just pulled out his half-used travel-sized toothpaste, his toothbrush, and his backup toothbrush and laid them out on the counter. Then he turned on the water.
Evander sidled up next to him. Right next to him. Close enough Ozzy could feel heat radiating from him. Every movement he made, from grabbing the still-wrapped toothbrush to leaning in to wet it under the faucet, somehow brushed some part of himself against Ozzy. That heat and pressure collected in Ozzy’s middle, then headed down, teasing his cock harder. If there had been any doubt about Ev’s intentions—there hadn’t been—these deliberate little touches clarified everything.
Ozzy brushed his teeth, making sure to get his tongue all the way to the back, then rinsed and spit before pulling out the mini mouthwash. It was almost empty. He’d need to pick up more at their next stop. He took a bracing swig, then set it down and turned so he could watch Evander.
It was ridiculous, of course, but watching Ev brush his teeth felt so familiar, so domestic, so right and wonderful, it made Ozzy somehow harder than those little glancing touches. Maybe it was watching his mouth move and shift around something, or maybe it was just too many memories from so many years together. He could recall so many times they’d come home from a date and eyed each other up while doing these sort of normal, menial tasks. Brushing their teeth, doing their skin care routines, collecting up clothes to throw in the laundry. They’d never officially lived together, but they spent so much time at each other’s houses, they may as well have.
So often, they couldn’t keep their hands off each other when they were alone like that.
I want it back. The longer he stood in that perfect scene of domesticity, buoyed on the back of a remarkably talkative, pleasant date, the denser and more complete that desire became. He’d been clear with Evander that they needed to try friendship, that they couldn’t keep doing the same thing they’d always done.
He didn’t know if it was too soon to say if they’d broken the pattern. All Ozzy knew for certain was he didn’t want to go back to being apart. This date had been too good, and when they were on, they were on .
“So, you want to do this again?” Ozzy tried to sound cool, but his voice cracked on ‘again’ like he was a nervous teenager.
“Of course.” Ev turned around and hopped up on the counter, wiping a little streak of foam from his lower lip. “Do you? I know that wasn’t on your to-do list. No pressure.”
Last chance to back out . It was a familiar voice that spoke it out, doubt and fear and self-preservation…things that he didn’t need. Ozzy knew the risks of this, and he knew the rewards.
The rewards far, far outweighed the risks, now that he was back in them. “Yeah. I do.” Ozzy smiled. “If you’ll take another chance on a douchebag boyfriend.”
Evander rolled his eyes. “I’ve been trying to get a douchebag boyfriend for the past week. If you hadn’t noticed.” He hopped down and closed the distance, wrapping his arms around Ozzy. It felt damn good to be back in his embrace. And, when he pulled in close, Ozzy could feel he wasn’t the only one who was getting bricked up.
Ev blew out minty breath in Ozzy’s face. “Did I cover up the onions?”
Ozzy leaned in and kissed him, slipping his tongue past Evander’s lips as his hands curled up and tangled in Ozzy’s hair, holding him down into it.
When Ozzy parted, he shrugged. “I think that’ll work.” He pecked Ev’s lips again. “I do want to bring up one thing, before we get to the bedroom.”
Ev nodded, backing up just enough that Ozzy could look at him properly. “Let’s get it all on the table.”
“Well, it’s not that serious.” Though it did feel a little awkward. In spite of their history together, and the fact they’d traded head not too long ago, this felt a lot more like a fledgling relationship than he expected. But he would take a leaf out of Evander’s book and just be totally and fully honest. “I picked up a bit of a taste for spanking since we’ve been broken up. I know you brought it up when we were together before. If you’re still into it, I’m open.” More than open, but Ozzy didn’t want to push too hard.
Evander grinned, something wicked sparking in his eyes. “Giving or receiving?”
It was stupid to be embarrassed, but Ozzy couldn’t reason his way past the heat that rushed across his chest, up his neck, and into his cheeks and ears. “Receiving.”
“Well happy birthday to me.”
Ozzy chuckled. “You don’t have to. Not a deal breaker.”
Ev closed the distance back up between them. “I would be honored.” He kissed Ozzy again, and his hands thwacked down, one on each of Ozzy’s ass cheeks, driving him a little taller and flooding blood to his cock.
Ev pulled out of the kiss and whispered, “You get ready. I’ll be out there waiting.”