Eight
OWEN
I stare at Zak for a long time. Memorizing his features. Is he as lovely as I remember? No, he’s even better. Sweet and beautiful, with big eyes and dark hair. That pretty flush on his cheeks just does me in every time.
“I’m starving,” I say. “Want to grab some food with me?”
Zak nods. I take his hand before I can think better of it. His grip is strong and I smile. Thank fuck, because I’ve been dying to touch him again for weeks. Just to feel his soft skin. To kiss his pretty lips.
And do all the things to him.
That will have to come later. If I can convince him to come home with me.
But first, we need to spend money in this place.
The food is free; included with the purchase of a ticket to the event.
I’m not sure Zak understands that this isn’t just an invitation based party.
It’s a fundraiser with purchased tickets.
There are different tiers of tickets depending on what you wanted included up front.
Since he has an envelope of tickets, he must be at the top tier.
Whoever his aunt is, she didn’t tell him all the details.
Assuming there’s a reason for that, I keep the information to myself as we move through the deepening crowd.
“What do you feel like eating?” I ask as we head for the wall of food stations. They’re food trucks, but instead of running on loud gas-powered generators, they’re plugged into the power grid. Thankfully. That would be an awful lot of noise.
“I like most food,” Zak tells me.
I look at our options and choose one with the shortest line. We get a rice bowl. The bowl is made out of a deep-fried tortilla and it’s filled with everything under the sun. Also, it’s enormous. I grab two forks and find us a bench to sit on while we eat it.
“How’s your hockey thing going?” Zak asks.
I nearly snort in amusement. Hockey thing. Ha!
“My hockey thing is going well,” I say, trying to keep the laughter from my voice. “We’re at a 29-15 standing, so it’s looking good so far.” Zak nods as if he understands, but I can see the way his brows pucker. Grinning, I explain, “We’ve had twenty-nine wins and fifteen losses.”
“Ah,” he says, flashing me a shy smile. “That’s pretty good, right?”
“It is. We’ve won nearly twice as many as we’ve lost.”
“You don’t have a game today, though, right?”
I shake my head. “We’re on break right now. My next game is on February first, against the Vancouver Phoenixes.”
“In Vancouver?” he asks, eyes wide.
“Not this time. Our first three back are home games. Vancouver, Dallas, and… L.A., I think.”
“Wow. From all over.”
I nod as I chew. “Yep. We get to travel a lot, but there’s very little time when we’re in all these places to see anything. So I guess despite being well-traveled, I haven’t experienced shit.”
“I’ve never been outside the city,” Zak says.
It’s on the tip of my tongue to tell him I’d happily take him away somewhere. Right now. There are a few more days before I need to be back for practice. But I don’t. I have a feeling that Zak is easily spooked.
We finish eating and begin playing games using his tickets. It isn’t long before I realize he doesn’t know anyone here. At all. Curious. I introduce him and he immediately follows it up with the fact that he’s Faith D’Angelo’s nephew. Almost as if that explains why he’s here.
Still, I don’t ask about it. When we get to the back, I find a sign for a sleigh ride. Gripping Zak’s hand tightly, I pull him to it.
When he sees where we’re going, Zak shakes his head. “I don’t have a ticket for that,” he says. “I didn’t bring any cash.”
“That’s fine,” I say. “We’ve been using your tickets all day. I’ll get this.”
“No way. It’s $100!”
I glance at him and decide that he definitely knows the value of a buck. Besides, it starts at $100. The trip I want is the top tier one. I need to spoil this man. I want to woo him. Convince him to come home with me so I can spend more time with him.
Besides, the number of tickets he had in his envelope is far more than what I’ll be spending on this sleigh ride.
Without arguing any further, I step up to the man with the card reader and conduct the transaction in silence. I swear, he knows I don’t want to speak about it. As soon as it goes through, he ushers us to the door.
It’s cold. Thankfully, there’s not much of a breeze and the sun is out with just a few clouds in sight. So it could be much worse.
We’re loaded into a sleigh and immediately wrapped up in thick blankets.
A heater at our feet and another gets flipped on at hand level.
And then a thermos of hot chocolate is handed to us.
Once we’re settled, the driver takes the reins behind the two massive horses wearing jackets and we’re off at a leisurely pace.
Zak burrows deeper into the blankets. I use this as an excuse to wrap my arm around him and pull him into my side. The blankets are heated, so it’s nice and toasty warm.
“Have I told you that I’m glad you’re here today?” I ask.
He ducks his head and nods. “Yeah.” His hand lands on my thigh and his dark brown eyes meet mine. “I’m sorry I didn’t call.”
“You’re not obligated to if you don’t want to,” I say.
Zak’s shoulders tense. “I just… I truly don’t have a phone right now.”
“I believe you.”
“I had a lot of fun with you. I did want to see you again, I swear. It’s just…” he trails off, bowing his head again.
Cupping his cheek, I pull his attention to me. “Come home with me after this?” His breath catches, eyes widening. “Let me spoil the fuck out of you, Zak.”
He swallows. Instead of answering, his mouth lands on mine.
The ride is forgotten as I lose myself in his kiss and how he feels against me.
His hand curls around my thigh, moving closer to my cock.
I feel his thumb press against me and fuck, I’m thrilled he’s on the same page I am.
That his desires align so thoroughly with mine.
I keep my touch PG-13 because if I start now, I’m not going to fucking stop. I’d get us both kicked out of here. However, I’m so lost in his kiss, I don’t notice the ride’s come to an end until someone clears their throat.
Zak pulls himself free and looks around with bright red cheeks.
“Sorry,” I tell the gentleman who’s watching with a smirk.
He has two tall, steaming travel cups in his hands.
Probably the cocoa we didn’t drink since we started kissing right away.
We climb out and I’m slightly amused to see Zak trying to hide his arousal by pulling down his adorable knitted sweater.
He’s in leggings. There’s just no hiding what’s going on downstairs.
Zak thanks the man for the cocoa and rushes inside. I give him a big tip for his patience. While I almost tell him I don’t want the drink, I take it because I think Zak will drink it.
I find him waiting inside the door, sipping on the cocoa as his eyes move around the room. We’ve used most of his tickets at this point, so I think we can probably sneak out of here and say we’ve done our part.
“Want to leave?” I ask.
He groans and nods. “I’ll meet you at the door, okay?”
I nod. As soon as I do, he takes off into the crowd. It’s gotten busier now. It actually feels like a carnival with the groups of people moving about. I had my doubts about this event when Orson told me about it, but I came anyway. Just like I always do.
His father has always been kind to me. Our parents should give lessons on what co-parenting should be about.
Yes, Orson and I are adults and were when my dad married his mom, but his father has included us in their family gatherings and celebrations since the moment his mother announced her engagement to my father.
I didn’t just gain a stepbrother. I gained an entire extended family.
Just as I reach the exit, Zak finds me. He’s sans drink, so I hand him mine. His grin tells me I made the right decision to grab the second cup.
I drove here, so we wait inside the door for my car to be brought around.
With traffic, it’ll take us nearly forty minutes to get back to my condo.
If I’d have had any idea that he’d be here, I would have taken a rideshare so I could spend those forty minutes touching him.
I have almost an entire month to make up for.
But the forty minutes go by quickly once we start talking. It’s not about anything specific, but the first time he laughs, everything inside of me lights up. I need to hear it again. So I spend the rest of the drive trying to make him laugh with stories about my teammates.
Thankfully, Linden is a sweet bonehead, so the stories are endless. By the time we’re stepping into my condo, my cheeks ache from smiling. His laughter is addictive. I just need more.
However, when he practically climbs me once we’re inside and kisses me, one addiction is replaced by another. I press him against the wall and devour him, bringing my cold hands under his sweater to touch his soft skin.
Zak yelps and shoves me away, laughing. Then he turns and starts stripping on his way through my house.
My dick had taken the memo that we needed to wait, but no longer.
We’re ready. I follow, leaving my trail of clothes alongside his, and meet him in my bedroom.
He’s sitting on my bed, giving me sexy fucking eyes.
I toss the condoms and lube on the bed before joining him, digging my hands into his hair and pressing him into the bed. “I fucking missed you,” I say, biting his lip. Zak whimpers and I swallow the sound so it’ll snake through me and touch every nerve ending.
There’s no hurry, because I’m going to keep him here for as long as I can. I want to make him feel good. I have all the best of intentions, but when he yanks his mouth from mine and demands, “Get inside me. Fool around later.” I shiver and do as he commands.
This time. Because yes, I fucking want that. That doesn’t mean I don’t stretch him properly. The absolute last thing I want to do is hurt him.
Movement to my right makes me look up and I spot my closet door open. The large mirror on the inside of the door is playing our moves back to us and I grin as I rearrange how we’re on the bed. Putting Zak on his hands and knees facing the end of my bed, I pull his head up so he can see the mirror.
“Look at us,” I tell him, just as I begin to push inside.
His eyes widen, but I’m not sure if it’s from what he sees or my cock.
Knocking his knees further apart, I bear into him, pressing my weight into his back and keeping his head propped up with my hand around his throat and chin so he can see us in the mirror. “Look how hot you are.”
He whines, and the sound touches my fucking balls. Pulling him up so we’re both on our knees, I give us the sexiest view ever. His body stretched against mine. His dick hard and dripping. He brings his hands up to grip my forearm tightly.
And he stares, his eyes wide, as he watches us in the mirror.
“We look so fucking good together,” I say. “Don’t we?”
Zak nods as I pull out. His mouth gapes again when I gently, slowly glide back in. His groan is long and deep, his body shaking. With the hand on his hip, reach around and grip his cock, giving him a sensual rub. He twitches, moaning again.
“I really need to see you come. Just like this,” I tell him, my lips at his ear. “Then you’re going to watch as I continue to fuck you. Understand?”
He whimpers and nods.
I’m not quick about it. I keep my rhythm slow and deep, matching it with the tempo of my hand on his dick. Zak’s entire body shakes deliciously. Sweat drips from his forehead. But I watch his face as it contorts with pleasure.
When he comes, I nearly lose my mind. Seeing it in the mirror, watching him cover us both with his load, is so fucking hot. I wait for him to finish and then drop my hand to cup his groin. Keeping his softening dick and balls in my hand while using the position like a handle.
Then I fuck him for real. The entire time, I make sure he’s watching. Keeping his eyes glued to where our reflections move together. He grows rigid in my hand for a second time as I lay claim to his body, and his sounds get louder as I fuck him harder.
The entire combination has me losing my mind and I finally fill the condom in his ass. With a low, deep groan, I come hard. Staring at us in the mirror.
It’s a common claim that your life flashes before your eyes right before you die. But in this moment, my life flashes. However, it’s not the life I’ve already lived. It’s my life yet to come, and this man is the star of every scene.
We’re going to have fun with this mirror.