Chapter 21
MAX
A fter a much-needed shower—and mutual hand jobs—Dylan and I stumbled back to my bed and fell asleep, tangled up in each other.
I woke early the next morning and spent a long time staring at his face as he slept beside me.
I was content to lie there and stroke his honey-colored hair, listening to the soft sounds of the water lapping against the ship and the occasional cry of seagulls. I felt totally at peace.
I had completely lost my mind.
Last night I’d asked Dylan what he’d done to me. It wasn’t a rhetorical question.
I didn’t get possessive with my lovers, and I certainly didn’t call them cutesy nicknames.
Did I call him ‘baby?’ Ugh, I did. And I didn’t stare into their eyes and cuddle with them after sex.
Not even with Dante. I always had the itch to get up or roll over after the deed was done.
I’d never been comfortable with romantic displays of affection. If I had any displays to offer.
What was it about Dylan that made me want to wrap him up in my arms and never let go?
I shook my head, bewildered by my emotions.
I knew I should get up, shower, and head outside but I couldn’t make myself move.
I wanted to drink in the sight of him in my bed and savor every moment because I knew this was temporary.
He would go back to the West Coast, and I would return to New York.
Bright and beautiful, Dylan burst into my life like a shooting star—fleeting, and totally out of reach.
“Mornin’,” Dylan murmured, his rough-edged voice sending a shiver through me. He should narrate his audiobook—there was no question he’d be popular. I’d listen to him talk day and night and never get enough.
Then those beautifully verdant eyes popped open, and I was transfixed.
But I was mistaken.
Dylan wasn’t a star. He was a witch, a warlock, and I was completely under his spell. Why else would I be behaving in a manner so unlike me?
“Good morning,” I said as I smiled and leaned forward to take his mouth.
“No.” Dylan turned his head and muttered, “Morning breath.”
“Shut up,” I whispered in response, taking hold of his chin and demanding his mouth.
I didn’t give him any room to pause. I needed his kiss.
He grunted in surprise but surrendered to my touch. When I teased his tongue with mine, everything in my body electrified. Now that I knew how good we were together, I couldn’t get enough. My cock grew stiff, and I slid on top of him, both of us moaning.
I was overcome by the heat of his skin, the smell of my sandalwood soap mixed with his sweat and his salty, musky taste.
Fuck, I wanted to take him again. Then I remembered that he was probably sore from last night.
I moved my lips down over the stubble on his face, loving the raspy feel against my tender lips, then kissed my way down his jaw.
Dylan’s neck was sensitive to the slightest touch, his moans increasing in volume as I playfully nipped and sucked hard, marking him.
“Let’s have a shower together and then head outside for breakfast,” I demanded as I reached his collarbone, teasing him with feather-light touches.
“I don’t want to leave this bed,” he groaned as he thrust his hips against mine, our stiff dicks sliding against each other, back and forth, sticky with pre-cum. “I’m afraid once I get up and leave this room, I’ll wake up from this incredible dream.”
“Not a dream. Our chemistry is very, very real,” I whispered as I cupped his smooth balls in my hand and slid down his body.
I loved giving head, and I wasted no time sucking his cock into my mouth, swirling my tongue around the sensitive glans and then swallowing him all the way down.
I breathed through my nose and relaxed my throat, taking him deeper, his answering groan the only thing I needed to hear. Dylan gripped my hair and tugged hard.
“Fuck, you’re too good at that,” he growled “Pull off, I want to mark your face with my load.”
I quickly popped off his cock and watched as he took himself in hand, using my saliva and his pre-cum to jack off.
Faster and faster, until his whole body tensed and he shouted my name.
Hot cum lashed my chin, my cheeks, my lips.
I humped the mattress and spilled my load all over the sheets, unable to control my reaction to Dylan’s undoing.
Before I had a chance to catch my breath, I was hauled back up against his body. Then he gave me that grin—the one with the killer dimple—and kissed me, tasting himself.
Maybe Dylan had a point; we should stay right here in bed.
“That was amazing. But you’re right. We need to get up and have breakfast. You’ve depleted all my energy,” Dylan quipped as he used the corner of the sheet to wipe my face.
I was about to protest until my stomach let out a loud growl.
Dylan chuckled and took the opportunity to give my ass a hard slap. “We can wreck the bed again later.”
All I could do was nod at this point since I had unloaded all my brain cells along with my cum. Dylan slid out of bed and held out his hand, and I readily took it.
A half hour later, freshly showered and changed, we headed up to the bridge deck to find Rowan and Andrew finishing up their breakfast. It was another cloudless day, the bright sunshine making everything on board gleam and sparkle.
Between that and the azure water around us, the scenery was almost too beautiful to believe. Much like the man beside me.
“Good morning. I was about to send in a search crew to see if you were both still alive,” Rowan greeted us with a smirk.
Besides the obvious beard burn and red, swollen lips, there was the ridiculously sappy grins on our faces that we couldn’t get rid of. There was no point in denying anything, and I prepared myself for the third degree.
We sat down at the dining table, me beside Andrew and Dylan beside Rowan. Jana greeted us, offering coffee and juice and taking our breakfast order. Once she headed back inside, Rowan wasted no time.
“Should I collect a deposit from you in case of damages to your room?” Rowan laughed. “The interiors were carefully chosen for durability, but after the ruckus we heard last night, I’m not sure the furniture will make it to the end of the week.”
“Zip it, Ro. Like you two are any better?” Dylan replied with a smirk as he sipped his coffee.
“You had the couch in the lounge replaced but it was brand new on my last visit a few months ago. I seem to recall Andrew telling me you spilled something on it. I bet it’s tough to get cum stains out of white canvas,” he remarked with a dirty chuckle.
“Wanker,” Rowan muttered in response, but his smile belied his snarky tone.
“Anyone need a cushion for your chair this morning?” Andrew looked between us and chuckled. Dylan gave him a choice finger.
“All right, all right, that’s enough,” I intervened, using my teaching voice. I reached my hand across the table to take Dylan’s. “They’re jealous.”
“Damn right,” Dylan rubbed my hand as he smiled at me. God, he was sexy. I wanted to…
“It’s too early for displays of that nature. I’m going to throw both of you overboard to cool down,” Rowan quipped, but his worried gaze belied his words.
Then he leaned forward and the sober expression on his face made me pause.
“On a serious note, are you sure this is wise? If the press finds out...I mean, Dylan, you haven’t come out publicly yet, and Max, you’ve got a daughter at home to consider.”
“Max and I are going back to our separate lives soon,” Dylan replied. “What happens on the ship stays on the ship. So there’s nothing for the press to report on, or for anyone to worry about.”
Rowan glanced at Andrew and a look of understanding passed between them.
I didn’t say anything, but angry bile rose in my mouth. It tasted as bad as Dylan’s words.
I noticed Jana approaching with our food and quickly pulled my hand back.
“So, what’s the plan for the day?” Andrew asked as Jana passed us our plates.
“I have to call my daughter, then Dylan and I need to work on the book since we have five more chapters to complete,” I replied quickly as I cut into my savory crêpe.
My appetite had waned, but I took the first mouthful. The mix of thinly sliced ham, sautéed peppers, and buttery hollandaise was a winning combination. Too bad I was too unsettled to appreciate any of it.
“Andrew and I are taking the tender to the city marina and renting a car so we can scout nearby properties,” Rowan commented. “The captain will drop anchor just off the coast of Nice around noon. How about we meet up in the evening for dinner?”
Given our limited time, I preferred to be alone with Dylan. But I didn’t want him to forego a visit with his friends.
“I’m staying put. I have to work on another manuscript. Rain check?”
“Of course. Dylan?”
“I’m gonna stay here. I have a call with Warren to discuss the book launch,” Dylan replied and took a sip of coffee.
“Okay. By the way, I talked to my brother this morning. He’s in France for a photo shoot and would like to stay on board for a few days. I hope that’s all right.”
“Course it’s all right, it’s your ship,” Dylan replied with a chuckle. “I can’t wait to see him. Should we warn the captain?”
“Already done. I hope those two can be civil for a few days. I detest shouting matches. Angry ones, that is,” Rowan chuckled as he pointed at Dylan.
Yes, we had been loud last night. But it was worth any amount of teasing this morning. Dylan’s face flushed as he glanced at me. I felt my cheeks heat in return as our gazes held and all the blood in my body began to rush south. Fuck, I didn’t need a boner right now, so I quickly looked away.
“Your brother doesn’t like the captain?” I asked, curious to know more.
Andrew snorted and Rowan shook his head. “It’s mutual. They had a rather vitriolic argument last Christmas, and it’s been tense ever since.”
“Tense is not the right word,” Andrew scoffed. “Just wait until you see the two of them interacting, Max. Serious hate-fucking is about to unleash.”
“Jesus, Andrew! I told you not to say that in reference to my brother,” Rowan muttered and rubbed his stomach as the rest of us laughed. “There goes my breakfast.”
“Now I’m seriously intrigued,” I chuckled. “There must be something special about this ship, Rowan.”
“Nothing interesting happened until Andrew came aboard, so we can blame him.” Rowan winked at his husband. Andrew reached across the table and picked up Rowan’s hand, kissing it gently and smiling in a way that anyone would envy. The love between them was palpable.
“I’m starting to believe that a merman put a love spell on Now, Voyager and now all who board are susceptible to its power,” Andrew said, and paused dramatically. “Or, as Ro said, it started with me. Us southern boys, we got it going on.” Andrew bumped fists with Dylan while Rowan rolled his eyes.
“Beware of these two, Max. Andrew will start singing along to some country music song and Dylan will unfortunately join in. Then you’ll understand why Dylan was never offered a role in any Broadway musical production. Ever.”
“Duly noted,” I laughed and took the last bite of my crêpe.
My phone buzzed and I glanced at it, reviewing the notifications. “I hate to break up breakfast, but I have to call my daughter.”
I excused myself from the table and headed back to my room. I responded to an email from a university colleague and then I called Blake.
“Have you booked my flight to France yet?” Blake’s voice demanded as soon as she picked up. No ‘hi’ or ‘hello’ or other pleasantries. Direct and to the point. She was my daughter after all.
“Hi, Blake, how’s summer camp? Tell me everything,” I asked, purposely ignoring her question.
“Daaad,” she whined. “Just answer the question.”
“Yes, your flight is booked, and I sent the details to Daddy. Why?”
“Can I come sooner? Camp is sooo boring,” she sighed, and I took a deep breath.
“How can it be boring? You have all kinds of activities every day.”
“I’m over it. It’s been two weeks of swimming, bonfires, and useless craft-making, and I’ve had enough. I can’t do this for another month. I’ll go insane with boredom.”
“But you’re there with your friends, aren’t you having fun?”
“It’s okay, but Jaclyn is leaving next week to visit her mom in Thailand. Thailand, Dad. Beaches, culture, amazing food. And I’ll be stuck here in the boonies of New York state eating hot dogs and covering myself in calamine lotion because of the mosquitos.”
She sounded so dramatic, I almost let out a laugh. “Blake, we’ve talked about this. I’m working right now.” Even though every spare moment was spent with Dylan doing less-than-book-related things. Guilt ate away at me. “And Daddy doesn’t want you to be here for more than a week.”
“Don’t worry about that, I’ll talk to him.”
Shit, I was going to get an angry phone call from Dante later on.
“I gotta go, Dad. It’s time for my horseback riding lesson.”
“Okay sweetie, I’ll talk to you later. I love you.”
“Love you too, Dad.”
I had to speak to Dylan in case Blake convinced Dante that she should fly out here earlier. Then again, maybe it would be for the best. By then, maybe Dylan and I would burn out our desire for each other and resume our professional partnership. And friendship, we had that for sure.
Right now, we were having fun, a summer romance. Don’t use the word romance. A fling. I didn’t like that word either.
And least of all, I didn’t like knowing that any time I had with Dylan had an expiration date.