Chapter Eight
JACK
I was frozen for a moment, unable to look away from the way Arlo hollowed his cheeks as he sucked. His hand working in tandem with his mouth. I could hear his moans even from several feet away.
That realisation had my brain kicking into gear. If I could hear and see them, then anyone could.
“Arlo!”
Arlo’s eyes flew open in horror. He hastily stood, wiping his face with the back of his hand. Scarlet coloured his cheeks, and he couldn’t quite look me in the eye.
“Wait, why are we stopping?” the man said before glaring at me. “Who are you? Some disgruntled ex?”
My blood was pounding in my ears as I stormed over. As soon as Arlo was within reach, I yanked him to me and shoved him behind my body. It was something I’d done many times before. Never in a situation like this, but it was instinct to make sure he was safe.
“Leave,” I barked at the other man, who was shoving his now soft cock back into his jeans.
“Whatever,” the bloke muttered with an eye-roll. “Too much drama here for me.”
I glared at him until he vanished from sight. Only then did I turn to Arlo. “Listen—”
“No, you listen,” Arlo cut me off, practically hissing as he squared up to me. “You’ve gone too far this time, Jack. You can’t stop me having a sex life, for fuck’s sake!”
“I can if you’re at risk.”
Arlo laughed, no humour in the sound. “At risk of what, Jack? Having some fun? Getting off for a change? Flirting with a man who’s actually interested in me?”
I had no idea what he meant by that—I’d yet to see him hit on anyone who wasn’t interested.
“At risk of being seen,” I said, my voice low and calm. “You’re in a public place, Arlo. Anyone could’ve walked up on you. You could’ve been papped, for Christ’s sake.”
He made a big show of looking up and down the empty alley. “Gosh, you’re right! Just look at all these people waiting to get a shot of me on my knees. Can’t believe I didn’t notice them.”
He might have had a point, but I knew better. I’d seen how fast a situation could go south.
Ignoring his brattishness, I steamed ahead with the other thing he’d done wrong. “You left without notifying Simon or Dylan. What were you thinking?”
Arlo rolled his eyes and my blood pressure shot up further. “Gee, I dunno. Maybe I was thinking I could get my dick sucked without an audience.”
“You’re famous, Arlo. You need protection.”
“There’s a difference between protecting someone and stopping them living their life,” Arlo said hotly, stepping right into my space. “I think you’ve forgotten that, Jack. You aren’t even supposed to be here.”
“Well if this is the way you behave when I’m not around, perhaps it’s a good thing I ignored you.”
Arlo’s nostrils flared. “I’m not a child.”
“Then stop acting like one.”
The second I said the words, I wished I could take them back.
“Arlo—”
“Leave it,” he muttered, shoving past me and stalking off down the alley. “Either take me home, or I’ll ask Simon to do it.”
There was a strange ache in my chest at the sight of the defeated slump of his shoulders. Fuck. We never argued. What was going on?
I caught up to him before he left the alley, draping my suit jacket over his naked shoulders. Arlo didn’t thank me, just pulled it tighter around himself.
His silence continued the whole way home. I trailed after him into the house, wondering if I should leave. It’d been so long since I’d spent the night in my own house that I didn’t even consider it home. Not anymore.
Arlo didn’t stop in the house, walking straight through it and out into the garden.
I hovered in the kitchen, unsure what to do. We’d never been in this situation before.
A tiny orange glow appeared through the window, and my decision was made for me as my temper flared once more.
Arlo didn’t even look up as I stormed into the garden, just took another drag on his cigarette.
Yanking it from between his lips, I dropped it to the ground and crushed it beneath my boot. “Come on, don’t you remember how hard it was to quit the last time?”
Arlo didn’t blink, just held my gaze steadily as he extracted another cigarette and lit it.
Cursing, I ripped it away and dropped it.
He did it again.
And again.
I ground my teeth together. “I can do this all day.”
“So can I.”
“You can’t out-stubborn me, Arlo.”
He raised his chin defiantly. “Wanna bet?”
I rolled my shoulders in frustration. “What’s going on, Arlo? You’ve been acting weird all day.”
“I always act weird.”
“No,” I said, “you act like you. But this…telling me to not to do my job, hooking up with a stranger in public, now smoking? This isn’t you, Arlo.”
Something crumpled in Arlo’s expression, a small chink in his armour that I was determined to exploit. “Maybe this is the real me.”
“No,” I repeated, softer this time. “I know you, Arlo. You act out when you’re frustrated about something. Tell me what it is. I can’t help you unless you do.”
“It’s not your job to help me,” Arlo said wearily.
“It is,” I insisted. “Come on, Arlo. Throw me a bone here.”
Arlo gave a slightly hysterical laugh. “That’s rich.”
My brow furrowed. “What?”
He was still laughing, clutching at his sides as tears streamed down his face. “Throw you a bone. If only, Jack. If. Fucking. Only.”
Okay, I was completely lost. Was Arlo having some kind of breakdown?
Arlo’s laughter trailed off. He straightened up, pulling my jacket closer around him. He should’ve looked ridiculous wearing my clothes, given I was a few sizes bigger. Arlo didn’t look ridiculous though.
He looked good.
He looked like mine.
“I want to help you, Arlo. Tell me what I can do to make you feel better.”
“There’s nothing you can do. Unless you can go back in time and stop yourself interrupting my hook-up.”
“Is that what this is about?” My voice rose in disbelief. “You’re being weird because you’re horny?”
“I’m twenty-seven with a healthy sexual appetite. I’m allowed to get off with whoever I choose. And when you stop that happening?” He huffed. “Of course I’m going to be frustrated about it.”
I didn’t get it. Not really. Sex had never been a big deal for me.
I got off from time to time, but it wasn’t something I needed.
I didn’t understand the fuss, to be honest. It was fine, but that was it.
Just fine. Most of the time, I’d leave the encounter wishing I’d just jerked off alone at home instead.
Clearly though, it wasn’t the same for Arlo. Arlo who was still glaring at me, waiting for a response. “It’s not about who you’re hooking up with, it’s where you choose to do it.”
That wasn’t strictly true. Whenever Arlo got off with a stranger, it left a sour taste in my mouth. He couldn’t trust them. How did he know they wouldn’t hurt him?
Not that I wanted him to find a boyfriend either. That opened up a whole other can of fears and concerns.
Arlo started to pull his cigarette pack out, and my hand was around his wrist, stopping him before he could.
“Jack,” he said, warning glinting in his eyes. “Let me smoke.”
“No.” Honestly, I didn’t know why I was fighting this so hard. At the end of the day, it was Arlo’s body, he could choose what to do with it.
Even if I didn’t believe that. Not really.
Arlo was mine. Mine to protect. In all the ways.
“If I’m not getting off, then I’m going to smoke.”
“Who said you can’t get off?”
Arlo smirked, his inner brat shining through. “You offering to help, are you?”
My pulse began to race in my ears. “No, of course not. But no one’s stopping you getting off on your own. It’s called masturbation, Arlo. Everyone does it.”
“You’re such a twat sometimes.” He sighed, glaring up at me.
“I don’t want to get off on my own, Jack.
I do enough of that. I want to stroke myself while someone fucks my throat.
I want to feel the weight of his cock on my tongue as I suck him down.
I want his hands in my hair, controlling how deep I take him.
I want to choke on his cum. That’s what always sends me over the edge. ”
He drew closer, walking his fingers up my chest tauntingly. “Bet you didn’t know that about me, did you, Jack? You think you know everything, but you know nothing about what I actually need.”
He was right, I knew none of this. He’d never said anything like this before—not to me, at least. A distant part of my mind wondered why he was telling me now, but most of my brain was stuck on the image Arlo had painted for me. How he took his pleasure from being used by someone. How he needed it.
Why the fuck was my cock hard?
I was speechless as Arlo drew closer. “So no, Jack. Being by myself just ain’t gonna cut it tonight. So unless you’re offering to let me suck your cock, you need to fuck off inside so I can smoke and try to calm down.”
His words were meant as a taunt, but my mind hooked onto them.
I was straight, but I was hard. The thought of Arlo doing that…
for some reason, it wasn’t freaking me out.
We cuddled and touched all the time—this was just an extension of those touches.
Another way I could help him out and make him happy.
Right?
My chaotic thoughts sorted themselves into order, presenting the most logical possible solution.
If Arlo was getting off with me, I wouldn’t have to worry about him being hurt by someone else. I’d be happy knowing he was safe, and Arlo would be happy because he’d be getting what he needed.
It made perfect sense.
We were still touching, Arlo’s hand resting on my shirt, my fingers around his wrist. He tried to pull out of my grip, but I tightened it.
“Jack?” He looked up at me, puzzled. “What are you doing?”
I didn’t answer him. Not letting go, I walked briskly towards the house. Arlo gave a small grunt of surprise as he stumbled along behind me.
Once we were in the living room, thick carpet beneath our feet, I finally released him.
“Jack, what the fu—”
His words trailed off as he spotted what my hands were doing. Eyes wide, he didn’t look away as I lowered my zipper and released my aching cock.
“Well?” I drawled, feigning a confidence I definitely wasn’t feeling. “What are you waiting for, Arlo? On your knees.”