Player

by Sean Ashcroft

Julian was enjoying hanging out, too. He just would have preferred to do it in a situation where he didn’t have to be good at sport.

  “Hey, catch,” Isaac said, tossing a tennis ball over the net to Julian.

  By some miracle, Julian caught it one-handed. Even though he’d been distracted by the strip of skin exposed between the waistband of Isaac’s sweatpants and the hem of his t-shirt, which had ridden up while he’d been stretching.

  Stretching was probably important, but Julian hadn’t done it. Too late now.

  He gripped the ball tightly for a moment, feeling the weight of it in his hand. Isaac grinned over at him, clearly waiting for him to serve.

  “Before I die of old age,” Isaac prodded.

  Julian snorted, but tossed the ball in the air and batted it over the net.

  Isaac hit it right back at him—and past him—without even moving his feet.

  “I told you not to expect much,” Julian called as he chased down the ball. He didn’t expect to beat Isaac, at all, but he had thought he might be able to provide some meaningful opposition.

  Apparently not.

  “We’re just warming up,” Isaac said kindly. “You’ll get into the rhythm of it.”

  Julian sincerely doubted that, but he tossed the ball back over the net to let Isaac serve this time. He wasn’t confident that was the right way to do things, but it seemed sensible to take turns.

  Isaac hit the ball over the net in a wide, slow arc, giving Julian plenty of time to get his racquet under it and smack it back over. He grinned as it bounced on the other side, and watched Isaac hit it back.

  Going easy on him, as promised.

  He managed to return it again, but on the third attempt, fumbled the hit and ended up knocking the ball with the very edge of his racquet, sending it bouncing off to the side.

  At least chasing it down every time he missed was good exercise.

  They followed the same pattern for a few more rounds, though Julian could feel himself getting better at it as time went on, anticipating Isaac’s moves even if he didn’t even seem to be breaking a sweat.

  At least he was learning something. And this was fun, like when they were kids and Isaac was just starting to get serious about this. He’d outgrown Julian as an opponent quickly, but Julian had been honored to be chosen in the first place.

  He was honored again now. Isaac probably picked his tennis partners carefully, and Julian knew that this morning made him one of a select group.

  To his shock, the next time he hit the ball over the net, it bounced once, too far away for Isaac to get to it in time, and hit the back fence of the court.

  Julian stared, his mouth hanging open, shocked at what he’d just done.

  “Hey, you’re getting this,” Isaac said enthusiastically.

  Julian’s whole face broke into a grin. His muscles ached, he was dripping sweat, and he was sure he’d looked ridiculous the entire time, but… he’d gotten a ball past Isaac.

  That was worth celebrating.

  “I beat you,” he said, awe in his voice.

  “You did,” Isaac agreed, tossing the ball back to him, since it was his turn to serve.

  “So… if you’re number fourteen in the world, and I beat you, does that make me number thirteen?” Julian teased.

  He knew Isaac was still going easy on him, but he was never going to beat him like that again. He planned to milk it for everything it was worth.

  “I think the scoring system is a little more complicated than that,” Isaac said.

  Julian shrugged. “Nope, that sounds right to me. Get into position so I can launch my tennis career.”

  Isaac chuckled, still beaming at him, obviously having a good time.

  This was nice. Julian had never thought of himself as much of a sport person, but he could have gotten used to lazy Sunday mornings doing this.

  Playing, he supposed. The play part was fun, even if it was already wearing him out.

  He served the ball, watching closely as Isaac hit it back, running to get into position.

  A bright slap of pain hit Julian directly in the eye socket. It was enough to make him stumble back, tears springing up in his eyes at the surprise, his hand going up to cover his injured eye instinctively.

  “Shit,” Isaac said, running around the net to get to him. “I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean-”

  “I know,” Julian said, his voice tight from the shock and the pain. He didn’t think for a second that Isaac would deliberately hurt him, but it did really, really hurt.

  The last thing he wanted to do was cry in front of Isaac, but he didn’t have a whole lot of choice.

  To his surprise, Isaac’s hand landed on his shoulder, pushing him toward the bench off to the side of the court. Isaac lead him over and nudged him to sit, crouching down in front of him.

  “You gotta let me see,” Isaac said gently.

  As much as Julian didn’t want to move his hand, his instinct to protect his eye too strong to expose it to the world again just yet, he forced himself to let it fall to the bench beside him.

  Isaac hissed as soon as he did.

  “That bad, huh?” Julian asked. He wasn’t game to actually try to open his eye yet, and Isaac’s reaction didn’t help.

  “Could’ve been worse, you’re not bleeding. I’ve seen hits like that cut people up pretty bad. You’re gonna have a helluva bruise, though.”

  Before Julian could come up with a response to that, Isaac’s hand touched the sore side of his face. He was avoiding touching the injured area around Julian’s eye, but his hand was warm and grounding against Julian’s cheek and temple.

  Julian swallowed. Isaac was so close to him right now, and his face was so soft and gentle. There was guilt written all over it, but something else, too. Concern, probably.

  Julian wanted to kiss him. For a few seconds he even thought Isaac might close the distance between them, even just to press a kiss to Julian’s brow to make it better.

  Isaac shifted, wetting his lips, still meeting Julian’s gaze.

  Maybe he was going to…

  Julian’s breath hitched as Isaac moved again, his heart hammering in his chest. This was it, this was it—

  “Hey, are you guys done with the court?” a man’s voice called out from somewhere behind Julian.

  Isaac backed off. Whether he’d always intended to or whether that was the worst-timed interruption of Julian’s life, he’d never know.

  He wanted to believe that Isaac had been about to kiss him. Even if he’d missed out this time, that meant there was still a hope in hell that he might, one day.

  Julian’s heart had never quite given up that hope.

  “Yeah, we’re done,” he said, standing and offering Julian his hand. “Come on, there’s a first aid kit inside. We’ll get an ice pack for you.”

  Julian took Isaac’s offered hand, still unwilling to open his eye just yet. He desperately wanted to cover it again, but now that there were other people watching, he couldn’t bring himself to.

  Isaac squeezed his hand and tugged him toward the office.

  “I’m never gonna stop feeling guilty about this,” Isaac said as they headed inside.

  “Don’t,” Julian murmured. “Think of the story I’m gonna tell when I get into work tomorrow.”

  “My best friend hit me in the eye with a tennis ball? Oh, by the way, he’s actually supposed to be good at tennis.”

  “You are good at it. This happened because I’m not. Seriously, don’t feel bad.”

  “I dragged you out here this morning,” Isaac said, apparently determined to take his part of the blame.

  Julian let himself be taken into a little first aid room off to the side, where Isaac got an ice pack from a small freezer in there. Obviously, this place had its share of injuries.

  That made sense. People hurt themselves playing sport all the time.

  “How’s the shoulder?” Julian asked as he pressed the pack against his eye, sighing with relief as it started to t
ake the worst of the pain away immediately.

  “Fine,” Isaac said, rolling it in demonstration. “I guess it’s never gonna be quite the same, but if this is as bad as it gets, I’m fine.”

  Julian made a soft, sympathetic noise.

  “You’re in worse shape than me, trust me,” Isaac said. “I’m sorry.”

  “Quit apologizing,” Julian said. “It’s okay. I forgive you. I even had fun today.”

  Isaac snorted. “Yeah, well… I’ll try not to injure you next time we hang out,” he said.

  Julian beamed at that. As long as there was going to be a next time, he could take one little bruise.

  Chapter Nine

  Isaac started awake, panting for breath and soaked in sweat. His mind raced as he remembered the last few fleeting details of the dream he’d been having.

  Julian.

  Isaac swallowed. It had felt so real. Up until a moment ago, he’d been able to feel the warm weight of Julian’s body on top of him.

  The anticipation still sat heavy in his chest, a tight ball tucked under his heart. Julian had been about to kiss him. And it wasn’t the first time.

  He’d been with Julian, and he could remember the softness of his lips, the taste of his skin.

  Isaac glanced to the other side of the bed, just to make sure that Julian wasn’t there with him.

  Something that almost felt like disappointment twinged in his chest as he realized he was alone. He swallowed, trying to get his thoughts into order, but all he could think of was Julian smiling down at him, about to kiss him.

  His cock throbbed between his legs.

  Without thinking about it, Isaac trailed his hand down his stomach, hissing as he let it rest on his thigh. The skin there was oversensitive, nerve endings sparking everywhere he made contact.

  His cock was achingly hard, desperate to be touched. With a soft moan, he wrapped his fingers around it, a jolt of pleasure hitting him in the gut as soon as he had a firm grip.

  Was he really getting off on thinking about kissing Julian? Just kissing?

  Well… not just kissing. There’d definitely been a little grinding, and a lot of touching.

  And soft, eager laughter, and breathy moans. All of it had made Isaac’s gut feel tight, his pulse pound. He hadn’t been this turned on in a while.

  Need spurred him to tug on his cock, thumbing a bead of precome away from the head and spreading it down the length. Isaac bit his lip as he slicked the way, his hips rocking up into his hand, eager for more.

  In the safety of his own bedroom, he could admit that he’d been a little turned on the one time he’d actually kissed a man. It’d been new, and exciting, and maybe…

  Maybe he wanted that with Julian, because Julian was safe, and Isaac was all kinds of curious right now.

  Maybe he wanted Julian on top of him, grinning down at him, all that bright, teasing playfulness they’d had yesterday lighting up his eyes.

  Julian was mesmerizing when he was having fun. When he was happy.

  Maybe Isaac just wanted more of that.

  As much of it as Julian would give him, even. Maybe he wanted to pull Julian to him, grab hold of his hips and pin him against the wall. Kiss him breathless and panting, grinding against him, hands fumbling with buckles and zips...

  Tension pooled in his belly as he thought of it, of Julian’s hand replacing his own, of Julian whispering that he’d take care of Isaac now.

  You wanted me to teach you, Julian said in his mind, a smirk playing around his lips.

  Isaac did. In this moment, right now, he wanted Julian to show him everything. Everything he didn’t know. All the ways things were different—and the same—with another man.

  With Julian, specifically.

  Isaac thumbed at the sensitive underside of his head, the seam where it met the length of his cock, raising a knee, spreading himself out unconsciously. Waiting eagerly for Julian to come to him, just like he had in his dream.

  Waiting for the door to creak open, a shaft of light spilling through, and then Julian. Julian slipping into the room, stalking over to the bed, climbing on top of Isaac’s hips.

  His mouth would be so hot, so soft and needy, as desperate for Isaac as Isaac was for him.

  Heat bloomed in Isaac’s stomach at the thought, his hips rocking up into his hand, breath coming in shallow gasps as he let the fantasy play out in his mind.

  God, he wanted Julian. Wanted what he’d had in his own dream, the warmth and affection, the sureness that this was safe, that it’d be fun, that it was what he was meant to be doing.

  He’d wanted to kiss Julian twice, now. Once in the bar, when they’d been so close, and Julian had been glowing with sweat and joy and dancing with Isaac, laughter glinting in his eyes.

  Then again, when Julian had been in shock from being hit in the eye, and Isaac had felt so overwhelmingly guilty, so afraid for a moment that Julian would be mad, call the whole thing off. He’d wanted to kiss it better, beg Julian to spend a little more time with him, not to leave him when they’d just found each other again.

  The feeling had been gone a split second later, but the memory of it lingered, curling up in the back of Isaac’s mind.

  Isaac groaned, the thought of Julian’s mouth on his, hot and wet and so damned good, after so long, bringing him close to the edge. He could imagine the weight of Julian’s body on top of him, their bellies pressed together, hard cocks sliding against one another, hands grasping and groping and…

  Isaac grunted as he came, spilling all over his hand. His orgasm took him by surprise, his heart hammering in his chest as it washed over him, leaving him arching his back off the bed as he stroked himself through it.

  His head pounded for a few long moments as the last few waves of pleasure rolled through him, thoughts and feelings tangled up together too tightly to separate any of them out.

  The only thing he could really think of was that he’d just come from thinking about kissing Julian. That he’d been dreaming about it before then.

  That was probably why. No one could control who they had weird sex dreams about, and waking up after one, well…

  It wasn’t the first time Isaac had desperately pulled himself off at five a.m., chasing the warmth and arousal of whoever he’d been dreaming about.

  Hell, it wasn’t even the first time it’d been Julian, though he’d been a teenager last time, and too shocked to get himself off. The thought had haunted him for days, come back to him in flashes every time Julian got close.

  Like most sex dreams, he supposed. His subconscious was just usually kind enough to let him have them about people he didn’t have a lot of contact with.

  Or alternatively, people he was already screwing in the real world.

  Isaac sighed, shaking his head to clear the last tendrils of the dream from his mind.

  That didn’t have to mean anything. Sex dreams never did, not really. Except maybe that he was due to get laid.

  He’d get to work on that when the tournament was over.

  Chapter Ten

  Julian’s heartbeat sped up as he rang the doorbell to Isaac’s mother’s home, trying not to let nervousness get the better of him. This was a familiar place, one with a lot of happy memories, but he hadn’t been here in a long time.

  He wasn’t sure what to expect. Everything he’d expected of Isaac had been turned on its head in the few short days they’d been back in regular, close contact again. Not in a bad way, but…

  The door swinging open halted Julian’s train of thought. Isaac’s mom smiled broadly at him, opening her arms wide and pulling him into a warm hug.

  Apparently, some things hadn’t changed. Julian breathed in the comforting scent of her perfume—still the same, or very similar—and felt himself relax.

  “Did Isaac do that to you?” she asked, placing her fingers delicately to the side of Julian’s face, careful to avoid the bruise.

  “Not on purpose,” Julian defended. “I mostly did it to myself.”

&
nbsp; “I heard the story. He feels guilty, you should take advantage of that.”

  Julian chuckled as Mrs. Hudson took her hand away, offering the bottle of wine he’d brought with him.

  She accepted it, glancing at the label before smiling. “Look at that. The little boy I used to worry about so much has grown up into a handsome young man with excellent taste in wine.”

  Julian grinned, thrilled that he’d picked an acceptable bottle. No one needed to know how much help he’d gotten doing it.

  “Where are my manners,” Mrs. Hudson continued after a second. “Come inside, come inside. I didn’t hear your car pull up.”

  She moved out of the way, leaving room for Julian to slip into the hallway.

  Hanging his coat here felt a little like coming home. This place had been his second home, once, and it was amazing how much the sense of peace he felt here hit him.

  Even after all this time.

  “I don’t have a car,” he said. “I took the bus.”

  Mrs. Hudson tutted. “You should have said so. Isaac would’ve picked you up. And he will take you home, and I’m not gonna take no for an answer.”

  Julian smiled wryly. Yeah, she hadn’t changed. Still looking out for her second baby, as she’d called Julian maybe a hundred times.

  He was glad to be back here. It was already doing his heart good.

  “Head through to the kitchen,” she said. “Isaac’s in there, and I’ll be with the two of you in a moment. Gotta change out of the power suit.”

  Julian glanced at what she was wearing, a beautifully-cut charcoal pant suit that would have made her look intimidating if not for the fact that he knew her so well. It was a long way from the floral sundresses he remembered, but it worked just as well.

  As promised, Julian found Isaac in the kitchen, stirring something on the stovetop. Isaac turned to look at him as he came in, grinning broadly for a moment before wincing.

  “Oh wow. That’s a helluva shiner,” he said.

  Julian smiled wryly. “Thanks. You look great, too.”

  “I’m sorry about…” Isaac waved in his general direction. “That. Mom’s got a bruise cream somewhere, I think. I’ll get it for you later.”