23. A Tango for Charity
Gabriel
Impatiently, I tug at the stupid bow tie that came with the penguin suit I have to wear for tonight’s event. Magnus comes over with two glasses of scotch grinning wryly at me.
He looks absolutely ravishing in his tuxedo. Obviously he feels comfortable in the getup. I, on the other hand, would rather spend an hour in the sauna in full hockey gear than have to sit through an entire evening dolled up like this.
"Leave the poor dickie bow alone," Magnus scolds as he presses one of the two glasses of amber liquid into my hand.
"I hate the stupid thing," I grumble.
Magnus laughs. "I think you should dress like that more often. You look like James Bond." He waggles his eyes suggestively.
James Bond? I can live with that.
"Bond. James Bond. Licensed to thrill," I murmur as I pull Magnus close enough to shimmy my hips against his. His surprised laugh makes him choke on the scotch.
"Bad. God, that was bad," he gasps as he struggles to get his breath back.
Sorenson and Dietrich, the two guys I play in a line with, come over.
"Do you want me to distract him so you can make your escape?" Dietrich asks Magnus in a fake concerned tone. "He's been holding you prisoner for almost six months now. I’ll rescue you!" He falls to his knees like a knight before a damsel.
I grumble something about stupid jokes, but I can’t help smiling. It’s incredible how much my life has changed. And for the better. So much better!
I'm still firmly convinced that Daniel, Nico, and Susan set up our reunion at the NHL game a little over a year ago — even if they vehemently deny it. Whatever! But after Magnus and me reconnected, it was clear to both of us that we wanted to be together. And we really wanted to be together. The logistics, however, turned out to be much more complicated than we expected.
Right after lunch the next day, I had to go back to Sweden, back to my team. So being “together” after that consisted of long phone calls and short visits. Long-distance relationships really are the worst!
It was extra difficult because a new hockey season always demands total commitment for me, and Magnus had to write his bachelor's thesis and study for his finals. We didn’t know what to do until Susan casually said that she didn’t know why Magnus couldn’t do his master’s in Sweden. I have no idea why it didn’t occur to us before!
It changed everything! It was as if there was suddenly a light at the end of the tunnel. We got straight on it, and it turned out unexpectedly easy to enroll Magnus for his master's degree at the University of Gothenburg. My crazy man suggested getting a dorm room. It wasn’t hard to convince him how stupid that would be.
My memories of the last few months are interrupted by Dietrich getting on Sorenson’s nerves even more than he is on mine, as he’s got him by his collar and is saying sternly, "Behave yourself!"
Dietrich shrugs totally unbothered.
"Thanks for the offer, Tom," Magnus says calmly to Dietrich. He's used to my teammate's antics by now. "But I am exactly where I want to be."
Aww! That’s cute.
In the beginning, Magnus was very reserved around my teammates, especially when it came to any public display of affection. He was even reluctant to hold my hand when we were out with the team. He’s gotten more comfortable with it in recent months, though.
No one on the team has really batted an eyelid about our relationship. But for the first time I understood what it felt like to be seen with a guy regularly rather than people just knowing I’m queer. My team knew I was with a man for several months before Magnus moved in, but when he started coming to games, there were some wry looks.
That’s behind us now, for the most part, at least. Although Sorenson still gets red ears when I get up close and personal with Magnus. Apart from that, he doesn't seem homophobic at all. Although it unsettled me enough to mentioned it to Magnus one time. He gave me a long look and said that I still had a lot to learn.
To this day I don't know what Magnus meant, but I was too embarrassed to ask.
Magnus and I watch the tussle that develops between red-eared Sorenson and Dietrich with amusement, and take bets on who’ll be the first person to intervene. My money is on our coach, while Magnus thinks Brigitte, the PR specialist, will come over. And, damn him, Magnus wins as usual. Why I bother betting against him is a mystery.
All of a sudden, Magnus goes rigid and I look at him in surprise. Then the reason becomes obvious as a familiar tune penetrates my consciousness.
The band is playing our song — “Por una Cabeza.”
It’s the tango we danced to for hours on that fateful cruise. Now there’s only one thing left to do!
"Dance with me!"
Magnus
I stare at Gabriel, stunned. He wants to dance with me? Here? In front of all his teammates?
"Haven’t got the guts, huh?" he teases when I hesitate.
"Are you sure you want to?" I ask cautiously.
Gabriel's grin gets even wider as he nods.
Well then ...
I take the hand he’s holding out to me, and we step onto the dance floor. Nerves jangle in every cell of my body, because not only are we about to dance in front of Gabriel's entire team, but we haven't tangoed since the cruise.
Gabriel takes my left hand in his right, and I look at him in amazement, "Are you really letting me take the lead?"
Jesus. What will his teammates say when he not only dances with a guy, but when he takes the traditionally female role?
Gabriel shrugs, totally relaxed, and says, "You were always better at it than I was."
However, the sparkle in his eyes lets me know what he really means.
"You're saying you're better at all the fancy bits, right?" I retort.
"Am I wrong?" he says with a wink, and I can’t deny it.
His joshing has done one thing — I'm not as nervous as I was a few minutes ago.
Then the music tempo slows as the piece changes to the second part of the tune which has much louder chords. I slide my left foot forward and launch us into the basic step. We flow through the sequence with surprising ease, and within moments, a wave of deep joy fills me. Who’d have thought that dancing the tango is like riding a bike — you never forget how to do it. But I'm still surprised by the broad grin on Gabriel's lips.
On the ship, Susan made us dance together and I’m glad she did. But the day Gabriel left I had the feeling we lost something and never got it back. It was as if these Latin American rhythms had stolen our hearts and are only just giving them back.
After we have danced the basic step a few times, I get bolder and lead us through a promenade. It’s perfect. I can hardly believe we do it so smoothly because our vacation on the Fascinata was almost a year and a half ago!
That gives me the green light to try something more technical — Gabriel's favorite figure. A kind of turn — I’ve forgotten its name — that ends in a rather complicated sequence of steps. We stumble slightly, but keep it together, and Gabriel grins at me.
"I completely forgot how much of turn-on dancing is," he murmurs softly.
"And I was just thinking that I’d forgotten how much fun it was."
My words were meant to tease Gabriel, but his gaze immediately softens.
"That too! But everything we do together is fun."
You'd never guess it from looking at this big man with his close-cropped hair, bushy beard, and tattoos, but he is utterly sweet.
The song is over much too quickly. Gabriel presses a quick kiss to my lips and then gallantly leads me off the dance floor on his arm.
"Maybe we should take dance classes again," he says thoughtfully, while Tom cheers loudly for us and Gabriel, quite casually, gives him the finger. I cast a concerned glance in Brigitte's direction, but the PR manager just rolls her eyes. This behavior is probably considered mild for these testosterone-fueled big kids.
After my conscience is soothed, I consider Gabriel's question. Another dance class? Why not? Susan may have had to force us into it at first, but it was fun after that.
I can't stop myself from saying sweetly, "How about a course in English waltzing? There are some very beautiful figures for the female." Although I have no idea whether that's true — it just popped into my head at the last minute. "I'm sure you'd look fantastic in one of those gorgeous flowing dresses."
Gabriel almost trips over his own feet, but when his gaze finds mine, he sees the cheeky grin on my face, and he bursts out laughing.
"Life is never boring with you ..."
I couldn’t have said it better.
Gabriel
That damn tango! I should never have suggested we venture onto the dance floor. Not because of the looks or comments — I couldn't care less — but because of what Magnus whispered during the dance.
I had completely forgotten how horny tangoing makes me. Being so close to Magnus, feeling his sexy body against mine — it’s the sweetest torture I can imagine. And Magnus doesn’t feel any different either, I can tell. That’s definitely not a banana I can feel in his pants.
As inconspicuously as possible, I look around the imposing hall where this benefit gala is being held. It’s a rare treat to be inside the Gothenburg Opera House. I love the building’s straight lines, endless space and huge windows that overlook the sea. Would it be inappropriate to drag Magnus to the bathroom and give him a blowjob? Probably!
Then my eyes fall on the open patio doors. It’s November. It's bitter cold outside. But it's dark and we’re super horny, so we won't be long. I drag Magnus towards the open door.
"What are you doing? Are you insane? I'll freeze my balls off out there," he protests.
I know he’s not a fan of the cold, but I’ll soon warm him up.
"Gabriel!" He tries to reason with me again, but I'm on a mission.
"Hey man! Sorenson and I are getting out of here!" Dietrich's voice says, and I turn to face him.
"I think we're leaving, too," I reply. Magnus looks at me askance but doesn't contradict me. So much for the fact that dancing wouldn't have turned him on ...
We rush to get our coats at the checkroom. I doubt leaving the gala this early is exactly the right thing to do, and we’ll probably get in trouble for it tomorrow, but it will have been worth it!
Once we get to the garage, I see Dietrich and Sorenson getting into the same car, which is unusual because they live at different ends of town.
I’m so distracted that I fail to notice Magnus getting into the back seat of my big Porsche SUV until he barks out, "Drive!" and I turn to him in surprise. Then he adds, "If I were in the passenger seat, I can't guarantee we'd make it home."
We should definitely tango more often.
I step on the gas and a good ten minutes later we're parked in the underground garage of our apartment building. The ride in the elevator drags on and Magnus stands as far away from me as possible. I’d love to wrap myself around him right now, but after our neighbor, Mrs. Petterson, caught us leaving the elevator with our flies undone, Magnus made me promise that we’d wait until we get to the apartment in the future. Tonight, I’m regretting that promise. I want Magnus. And I want him now!
He doesn’t seem to feel any different, because no sooner has the apartment door locked behind us, then Magnus is on me. It feels so good to kiss him! He tastes like scotch and himself. The tender caress of our lips swiftly deepens. Magnus moans into my mouth and my cock has been hard since our tango. I'm sure there's a wet spot in my underwear. This man turns me on so much!
Magnus pushes me in the direction of the bedroom. And as soon as we’re close enough, I fall onto the bed.
"Tit for tat," I say cheekily and tilt my head. That's always fun!
Magnus laughs and then says, "Good idea!"
Then he falls onto the soft mattress beside me. Before I know what’s happening, Magnus' knees are straddling my head, and he's somehow managed to unzip his pants on the way over. His bulging cock sticks out proudly and my mouth instantly waters.
I stretch my head up to try to trap Magnus' cock into my mouth, but he’s already bending forward and nimbly unzipping my pants. His stiff cock hovers above my face, so all I have to do is stick out my tongue to get my first taste. Then something hot and wet encloses my prick.
Oh! This is so good! It feels like the naughtiest 69 ever, lying on the bed like this, Magnus above me, and both still fully dressed in our penguin suits.
Magnus has taken my entire length into his mouth, and that's when I remember that I’m required to put in some effort too. I take a firm grip around the base of his cock and bring the tantalizingly thick head to my mouth. Magnus’ incredible taste explodes on my tongue.