41. Chapter 41
Ody’s mind raced. If Steve saw them like this, bodies pressed together, Mano shirtless and breathing hard, it would be game over.
The door rattled again, making both of them jump. “Yeah, I’m here!” Ody called out.
Mano shot him a startled look. What the hell are you doing?
“Come on, dude, why aren’t you answering? I heard a noise. You good?”
“Yeah, man. I was tying my shoelaces and lost my balance,” Ody said, not daring to look at Mano, even though he was still inches away.
“Alright… You coming out?” The sink turned on.
“In a bit.”
“Where’s Mano? Have you seen him?”
Their eyes snapped to each other. Ody answered fast. “His phone rang. He stepped outside to take a call.”
“You want me to wait for you?”
“Nah, go ahead. I’ll be there soon.”
Footsteps faded before the door opened and closed. The hallway fell quiet again. Ody exhaled hard and backed away, finally giving them space. Mano shook his head in disappointment.
“What?” Ody asked.
Mano grabbed his shirt and yanked it over his head. “You’re a damn good liar.”
Ody clenched his jaw. “What exactly did you want me to say to him? If you’re so brave, why didn’t you open your mouth and say something?” He shoved him in the chest.
Mano stepped into him without hesitation.
Ody’s back hit the tiled wall. Their faces hovered inches apart, breaths mixing, but there was nothing soft about it.
The air between them tightened like a live wire pulled too tight.
Mano’s gaze dropped to Ody’s lips for a heartbeat, then dragged back up to his eyes.
Heat snapped between them, angry and hot.
Then Mano tore his eyes away, yanked the stall door open and walked out.
Ody stayed frozen for a moment, staring at the empty doorway.
His pulse was still hammering in his ears.
He couldn’t walk out right after him. He forced himself to stay put, pressing his palms against the stall walls, trying to steady his breathing.
Thirty seconds. Maybe a minute. Long enough that Steve or anyone else wouldn’t think twice about it.
When he finally stepped out, he splashed water on his face, straightened his shirt, and fixed his hair. He looked almost normal. Almost.
Then he headed back toward the table, pretending he hadn’t just been pinned to a wall with Mano’s face inches from his.
When the food arrived, the group slipped into easy conversation.
At some point, plans for a night swim started forming, everyone getting excited about it.
The idea spread fast, laughter picking up around the table.
Ody barely reacted and Mano stayed quiet, while the rest of the group made their plans.
They stayed there for hours, eating, talking, and settling into that lazy vacation rhythm. By the time they finally left the restaurant and made their way back to the hotel, the sun was already turning warm on the buildings.
It was 4 p.m when they reached their rooms, the night swim set and agreed upon.
Anna curled against him, peeking at his phone. “Babe, what are you up to?”
“Just scrolling.”
Under the sheets, her hand slid over his sweatpants.
“What are you doing?” he asked.
“Playing,” she murmured, giving him a slow squeeze.
He kept his eyes on the screen, but then she tugged his sweatpants and boxers down and slipped under the sheets.
“Anna,” he flinched, still gripping his phone. Warmth hit him hard. His head dropped back. “A… Anna,” he breathed, most of him fighting it back, but a small part slipping through, a tiny spark that jolted right through him.
The phone slid out of his hand as a single image slammed into him. Black hair. Honey eyes. Strong body. Tattoos. That low voice that lived under his skin. His hand found the top of her head through the sheets, but his mind had already betrayed him. It wasn’t her he felt.
“Ma…” The sound slipped out of him on a low, shaky breath, almost a moan he couldn’t hold back.
She froze and threw the sheet off her head. “Ma?”
Ody’s stomach dropped, but he kept his expression steady. Inside he was spiraling, but on the surface he gave her exactly what she expected to see. “Ma… My baby, I love it when you do this. Keep going,” he blurted, breath shaky.
Suspicion faded from her eyes. She lowered her head again.
Ody pressed a hand to his forehead. The guilt crawled through him, thick and heavy.
Anna kept going, and Ody felt his body react, but it wasn’t because of her.
It was because the sensation pushed him deeper into the place he had tried so hard to avoid.
Every pulse of heat twisted straight into the same thought, the same face, the same man he couldn’t get out of his head.
His breath caught. His fingers dug into the sheets. It wasn’t her touch that turned him on. It was what he wanted but couldn’t have. Desire slid through him, sharp and wrong, dragging Mano’s image with it. He wanted him. He wanted him so much it made him feel sick.
Ody flipped her onto her stomach and stood up. “On all fours.”
She obeyed. He wet his fingers and pushed them inside her, making her moan. He gripped her hips and thrust into her as her voice filled the room.
He shut his eyes. And the second he did, it wasn’t Anna beneath him. It was him.
He kept his eyes shut, chasing the image that wasn’t hers, losing himself in the one he couldn’t stop wanting.
When it was over, he collapsed beside her, chest heaving, sweat cooling on his skin. Only then did the guilt sink in. He turned to the side, unable to look at her. His mind wouldn’t stop replaying the face he had pictured the entire time.
He ended up drifting into a restless sleep, exhaustion pulling him under.
By 6 p.m most of the group had gathered around the pool, buzzing with excitement about the night swim they had planned. They were already stretched out on the loungers, talking and laughing as the sun softened.
Steve glanced around, noticing the empty spot where Ody should’ve been. “Where’s Ody?”
“Sleeping. I let him rest,” Anna said casually.
Ranya arrived a moment later, greeting the group before settling beside them. She looked around too. “Where’s Mano?”
“He’s coming soon,” Antony replied.
“Tell him to wake Ody before he comes,” Steve said.
Ranya pulled out her phone and sent Mano a quick message, asking him to stop by Ody’s room before joining them.
Mano sighed when he read the message. He slipped his phone into his pocket, grabbed his card, and headed out of his room. He wasn’t thrilled about playing alarm clock, but he was already on his way to the pool.
The hallway was quiet. He stopped outside Ody’s door and knocked twice. Nothing. He waited a few seconds, then knocked again, harder this time.
Inside, Ody groaned into the pillow, half-asleep, the sound muffled and irritated. Mano exhaled through his nose and hit the door again, louder, fist thudding against the wood in a steady rhythm. He wasn’t leaving until Ody answered.
Sheets rustled, followed by the sound of heavy footsteps dragging across the room. “I’m coming,” Ody finally called groggily. He fumbled with the lock and pulled the door open. His brown hair was tousled from sleep, eyes barely open.
Mano was mid-knock, fist frozen in the air inches from Ody’s face. His eyes ran over Ody’s sleepy face, the messy hair, then finally his bare torso.
“Mano?” Ody asked, voice hoarse.
Mano looked away and scratched the back of his neck. “Uh... the guys wanted me to wake you up. They’re at the pool.”
“Uh... yeah. Um, come in.” Ody stepped aside, still half-asleep. “Give me a sec to wake up.” He dragged himself into the bathroom to splash water on his face.
Mano walked in and sat on the edge of the bed. His thoughts spun, tangled with everything that had happened lately. That kiss on the beach. The bathroom stall. The way Ody looked at him.
None of it made sense anymore. Every time he tried to push the whole thing out of his head, another image shoved its way in. Ody pinned against the wall, breathing hard, his eyes dropping to his lips… His own body reacting before he could think.
He rubbed his palms against his shorts, trying to steady himself.
This was supposed to be a normal trip. Friends.
Sun. Pool. Nothing complicated. Instead his chest felt tight, like something was building in there and he didn’t know how to stop it.
And he hated not knowing. He hated even more that Ody was the reason.
He looked around the room, trying to ground himself.
Ody’s clothes thrown over a chair. A necklace on the nightstand.
The faint scent of his cologne on the sheets.
Mano dragged a hand through his hair. He didn’t come here to think about this.
He came to wake him up. So why did it feel like walking into this room had knocked the air out of him?
A light suddenly filled the room. Ody’s phone screen lit up on the nightstand. Mano glanced at it without thinking, then looked away, ready to ignore it.
But the name registered in his mind. His eyes snapped back. Kash: How’s the trip? I miss you... Can’t wait to do more things to you when you get back...
Something dropped hard in Mano’s chest. He stared at the message, reading every word twice, then a third time, as if it might change. He checked the sender. Checked the profile picture. Checked the name again.
Heat rushed through him. Shock. Anger twisting under his ribs. This could not be real.
The bathroom door creaked open. Mano didn’t move. His eyes were wide, disbelief carved deep into his face.
“I’m awake now. Let me get dressed and we can go,” Ody said with a sleepy smile as he stepped out.
Mano just stared at him, like he was trying to put together pieces that didn’t fit anymore. “This can’t be real,” he murmured under his breath. “This is not real.”
Ody’s brows drew together. “What?”
“This has to be a joke,” Mano said, voice low and strained.
“What happened? What are you talking about?”
Mano jerked his head toward the nightstand. “You have a message.”