“Well, that doesn’t sound like a no to me, Baby J.”
“Yes, Athena. Yes, he is handsome. He’s hot, even. He’s older and he’s really sexy. Is that what you want to hear?” Joel unplugged his phone and started to restack the records.
“No, what I want to hear is why you’re telling me you need to leave the handsome stranger’s home when you basically told me you would absolutely let him inside of your cute little butt if he asked nicely enough.”
Athena was not ever going to stop until she got Joel laid. She had asked him once if he was asexual and he’d told her no, just painfully afraid of being a disappointment, and ever since then she’d made getting him laid her number two goal in life, right behind getting herself laid.
“Because he’s a stranger, Athena. I don’t want to fuck a stranger, no matter how handsome he may be.” Joel started dumping clothes out of his duffel bag.
“What’s his name?”
“Gabriel.” Joel grabbed a pair of jeans and a clean pair of briefs.
“Then he’s not a stranger anymore, Baby J. Listen, I gotta go. It’s almost lunch time here and I need all the strength I can get to take on Mr. Dom Photographer later tonight.” She laughed, throaty and deep.
“Athena, wait, I wanted to ask if...” Joel stopped himself. He didn’t want to ask at all. He’d been secretly hoping that Athena would have offered to pawn him off onto Adonis.
“If?”
“Nothing. Never mind.” Joel was back to not knowing what the hell he was going to do.
“You were going to ask if I'd ring up Adonis for you, weren’t you?”
“Yeah, but no. Never mind. It would be weird.”
“Your bad luck continues anyway, Baby J. Adonis is shacked up with a triad of stray Siamese kittens he found in a box behind the grocery store. You’d literally die. Whereas if you suck it up and stay with Gabriel, the sexy not-stranger, you might only figuratively die… of orgasms! I love you, Baby J, bye!” Athena spoke the last sentence quickly and before Joel could even object to her ludicrous suggestion, she hung up.
“Fuck.” He threw the phone back down onto the bed and slid a pair of pajama pants on so he could go to the bathroom and shower. He wanted to rinse off how much he hated Athena in that moment, in addition to washing off the pitiful burst of cum that had dried on the shaft of his cock.
Joel opened the door to the bedroom and looked down the hallway. He heard the sounds of flatware against porcelain, indicating Gabriel was most likely in the kitchen, so Joel skittered down the hallway and quickly closed the bathroom door behind him. Turning the water on to hot and stripping down, he stepped in the shower, pulling the door closed behind him.
Joel lathered some soap into his hand and gave his dick a quick tug, trying to loosen the dried cum, but his cock started to harden under his fingers, obviously having a better idea. He wasn’t sure he had it in him, after the disappointment from this morning, so he released his hold, surprised to see his dick swell and rise the more he thought about Gabriel walking in on him. Why was the idea of Gabriel barging in and catching him in the act making him so turned on? Was it that, or was it Gabriel himself doing it? Joel couldn’t figure it out, and didn’t have the brain power to try, as his cock was now standing fully erect, bouncing and practically begging for attention.
Giving in to the urge, he rinsed the soap off his hand and squirted some conditioner into his palm, using it as makeshift lube to slick the length of his cock. He gave a few more tugs along the entire length, being sure to rub his slippery palm over his sensitive and leaking slit on every up stroke. Joel was tired, though, so he redirected the spray of the shower and squatted down in the basin of the tub before laying down and stretching out his body so he could jerk himself in earnest and not worry about balancing himself through what he could already tell was going to be a strong orgasm.
Joel bent his toes against the porcelain at the end of the tub and flexed his feet and leg muscles as he continued to rub his hand up and down his cock, quickening his strokes. He gave a quick tug to pull his balls down, attempting to extend the duration of his pleasure, and then brought up his hand to pinch and roll one hard nipple between a finger and thumb. Even though he was expecting it, the shock of the pain shot through his entire body like a bolt of lightning and he gasped, opening his mouth wide and arching off the floor of the tub.
He imagined Gabriel walking in again, catching him. He imagined Gabriel standing in the doorway, loosening his own pants and pulling out a thick and throbbing cock. He imagined Gabriel tugging a large hand down his length and stalking forward, crawling into the shower with Joel, fully dressed.
Joel closed his eyes and he could picture the way Gabriel's wet shirt would cling to the planes of his chest, and the smattering of hair he would see showing through the soaked fabric. He could see, in surprising detail, the way the drops of water would cling to Gabriel’s inky black hair before falling free to spatter across Joel’s face. He imagined Gabriel straddling his head, one knee on either side, and then leaning forward to feed his cock into Joel’s mouth. Joel brought his hand up to his throat, mimicking the pressure he would feel if it was Gabriel’s body, and with one final pull on his cock, cum shot out of him in a rush.
Joel jerked his body up and folded in on himself, overwhelmed by the severity of his orgasm. As he slowed his breathing and released his now-sated cock to drop against his thigh, Joel lay back against the floor of the tub with his eyes closed.
The real world came crashing back around him as he stood up and started to wash himself, being sure to avoid his overactive dick as much as he could. He felt better, sure, but what would he do now?
CHAPTER TEN
Gabriel Opens His Home
Gabriel was convinced Joel would give him a goddamned heart attack. He set his phone down on the kitchen counter and braced his weight fully on his arms, resting on either side. He leaned in and pressed his dick, hard, into the edge of the counter, willing the erection to go away. But his cock ignored him, far too enthralled with the vision that was Joel on the floor of the bathtub, jerking off with his hand around his throat.
Shoving his own hand down his pants, Gabriel readjusted the persistent and ill-timed hard-on, hoping it would at least lessen itself slightly before Joel came out of the bathroom. Gabriel flipped his phone over, unable to watch one more second of Joel’s slender and soaking-wet body as the shower washed away the ribbons of cum from his chest and belly. Gabriel wanted to lick him clean and then pin the boy down and kiss him hard, using his tongue to explore every crevice of Joel’s mouth.
Fuck.
Stop it. Stop it. Stop it, you fool.
Gabriel heard the bathroom door open and Joel's feet on the carpet, but instead of going toward the bedroom as he expected, they moved closer, approaching the kitchen. Gabriel groaned, smashing his erection into the counter one more time in a last-ditch attempt to quell it, then picked up his coffee, taking a long drink.
“Um... good morning.”
Joel’s voice was timid behind him. He took a deep breath before turning around, noting how different Joel sounded now from how he spoke to Athena. Gabriel had seen them together during the past year, and of course overheard the phone call this morning. The fact that Joel found him handsome was not something he intended to overlook, and would prefer to exploit, but at a later moment.
Athena was as large in personality as she was in stature, and while Gabriel had initially fully expected her to engulf and consume Joel, instead she seemed to bring out the person Joel really was, or at least the person Joel wanted to be. Gabriel couldn’t fault her for that, but either way, he wanted to find a way to extend her trip. Three days was not enough time with Joel.
“Good morning, Joel. I’m so sorry about earlier. I should have knocked, it was unbearably rude of me to enter without permission.” Gabriel turned to face Joel and walked to the opposite end of the breakfast bar, taking a seat and still focusing most of his mental faculties on subduing his erect
ion.
“Well, it’s, I mean, it’s… whatever,” Joel mumbled. “Anyway, I’ll be leaving now, once I put everything back in my bag. I spoke with my landlord this morning. I appreciate you letting me stay last night.”
“Oh, you did? Is your apartment dry already and ready for you to go back?” Gabriel questioned, taking another drink of his coffee and knowing full well it wasn’t the case.
“No, it’s not. I mean, it will be in a bit. I’m gonna stay with my friend when she gets home in a few days, so it’s not a big deal.” Joel tapped his fingers one at a time against the breakfast bar, looking down at the pattern in the marble.
“What are you going to do until then?” Gabriel prodded, and Joel shrugged in response.
“It’s fine, I’ll sort it out.” Joel pushed away from the bar.
“You can stay here, Joel. You should stay here. It’s not an inconvenience at all, and I’m inclined to insist upon it.” Gabriel set down his coffee cup, looking at the top of Joel’s head as Joel was looking down. “Joel,” Gabriel spoke again, with an edge of severity and firmness in his voice this time. Joel immediately looked up, raising his eyes to meet Gabriel's. Good boy, Gabriel thought, feeling a smile tug at the edge of his lips.
“Stay. Three days will hardly put me out.”
Gabriel watched Joel shift his weight nervously and self-consciously from side to side, and in that moment, Gabriel had never hated his brother more. Gabriel was barely older than Thomas, and while his barbs hurt, Gabriel was equipped to handle the emotional challenges that came with losing your entire family over something you had no control over. Joel, on the other hand, was this tiny sliver of a man with the most delicate and purest of hearts. Thomas had done everything he could, shy of physically assaulting him, to ruin Joel’s precious innocence.
It had been years since Gabriel had gone to try and reconcile with his brother. It had been years since he’d first laid eyes on Joel and vowed to protect him in the ways that Gabriel himself had not been protected. Somewhere, though, after Joel’s last birthday, Gabriel’s feelings had gone beyond a familial sense of protection and devotion and turned into something more than that. Gabriel was an intelligent man, and would never venture to use the word obsessed, but he could fully admit he was… invested in controlling the outcome of the things in his life.
Especially this thing.
Especially Joel.
Gabriel had seen a light inside Joel the first time he’d caught sight of him, a spark Thomas had tried to extinguish with all his might but thankfully, didn’t succeed. Even though Joel had been on his own and had struggled, he still had that spark. It was buried, though, Gabriel could see that, but Gabriel was more than ready to dig for it.
As he watched the wheels in Joel’s mind turning to find a reason to say no, Gabriel, for the first time, questioned his plan. Had he been right to leave Joel to struggle alone? To only watch and supervise from the sidelines while Joel’s happiness was buried deeper and deeper? Gabriel hadn’t meant to interfere originally, he supposed, so what had changed? What happened that made his feelings become so much more? He was rationalizing now, and he knew it.
“Joel,” Gabriel spoke again, louder, and with as much dominance as he could muster. “Stay.”
Joel nodded. It was barely a nod, but it was an affirmation, and it pleased Gabriel beyond measure. He exhaled a relieved sigh and pulled a stool out from the breakfast bar to sit down. Gabriel was done letting Joel dig himself deeper into a fucking hole. It was Gabriel’s turn now, and he was fully committed to digging Joel out of that hole, no matter what.
“Join me, Joel. Do you want coffee or juice?”
“Coffee, please,” Joel answered weakly.
Gabriel poured a mug full and slid it over to Joel, taking the sugar from the pantry and sliding it across the counter as well.
“What if I take milk, too?” Joel queried, pouring sugar into the mug.
“Do you?” Gabriel knew better and was not surprised when Joel shook his head.
“While you’re here, Joel, anything I have is yours. If you want milk, it’s in the fridge. There’s food in the pantry, fridge, and freezer. Help yourself to any of it. You can read the books in your room, listen to the records, watch TV or sit on the balcony. You can even stay holed up in your bedroom the entire time. Just be here, Joel, okay? My bedroom is in the same hallway as yours, and my office is on the other end of the condo, if you ever need me and can't find me.”
Gabriel watched as Joel took a tentative sip of coffee, testing the temperature, before taking a proper mouthful and swallowing it down.
Joel nodded his head. “Thank you, Gabriel. I do appreciate it. I’m afraid it’ll inconvenience you, and I have work and stuff tomorrow, so when you get home from work, let me know so I can come back.” Joel had managed to drink almost the entire mug of coffee in one shot, so Gabriel leaned across the counter and refilled it for him.
“You won't inconvenience me, Joel. I work from home mostly. I sometimes go into the office, but I try to avoid it. Either way, though,” Gabriel pulled open a drawer and pretended to rummage around inside, even though his fingers were already wrapped around the item he was looking for, “take this.” Gabriel slid a brand-new brass key across the countertop to Joel. Joel's head snapped up and he started to stutter.
“Th-that’s insane, you know that right? You don’t even know me and you’re giving me a key to your fucking house? What is your deal, dude? Are you so rich and handsome that like, real-world shit doesn't apply to you or something?” Joel was becoming loud. Gabriel recognized a glimpse of the Joel only Athena seemed to see, and it pleased him immensely. Gabriel also noted that Joel had called him handsome, too, and it seemed Joel noticed as well because he immediately clamped his lips shut. Gabriel arched up a brow, bringing his coffee mug up for another drink.
“Rich? Yes, very. Handsome? Thank you for thinking so, Joel. As for giving you a key? You’re going to be living here, why wouldn’t I? What are you going to do, Joel? Steal my TV? Have a friend over and eat me out of house and home? What threat should I be perceiving that you think I’m overlooking?”
“It’s just...it’s just not what people do, Gabriel.” Joel was emphatic, and Gabriel could barely suppress a laugh.
“It’s what I do, Joel. Take the key. I do have to go into the office for a while today, so you’ll need it if you intend to go out.” Gabriel turned to the sink and rinsed his mug out and dried it before returning it to a cabinet above the coffee maker.
“What do you...what do you do for work?” Joel spoke up, but he sounded timid.
Gabriel wondered what had made the real Joel go back into hiding. Take it easy, he told himself. Take it slow. For God’s sake, don't scare him off.
“I’m an attorney,” Gabriel said. “I run one of the largest firms in Los Angeles County. Hunter, Greene and McAllister. I founded it with two friends from law school about ten years ago.”
“Oh,” was all Joel had in reply to that. Gabriel wasn’t sure what response he’d been expecting, but he’d expected more than that.
“Oh?” Gabriel repeated, laughing softly at Joel's surprise and chagrin.
“That’s super impressive,” Joel said, looking flustered. “I work in a bookstore.”
“You’re still young,” Gabriel mused. “You can do anything you want to, Joel. Don’t sell yourself short.” Joel shook his head in disagreement. Gabriel rounded the corner of the breakfast bar and put his hand on Joel’s shoulder, causing him to start from the contact and look up. Gabriel sucked in a breath, already having forgotten how unimaginably blue Joel’s eyes were.
“Anything, Joel. I promise, you can do anything.”
Joel blinked at him, mouth slightly agape. Gabriel squeezed his shoulder before dropping his hand and forming it into a fist. He quickly tucked it away into the pocket of his slacks. He pulled out his wallet and removed a business card, placing it on the counter in front of Joel.
“Like I said, Joel. I need t
o go into the office for a while, but here’s my cell phone number. You can call me if you need anything. There’s a house phone in the living room if you need it.” Gabriel tucked his wallet away and took one last look at Joel before offering a goodbye and heading down the hall to the front door.
Gabriel’s breaths didn’t feel deep enough, as if he was inhaling air, yet none of it was reaching his lungs. Joel was so real now, and so close–almost too close. As he fled his own condo, he pulled the door closed behind him, leaning back against it and finally sucking in a lungful of air that didn’t smell like the boy he had fallen in love with.
CHAPTER ELEVEN
Joel Gets a Push from Athena
Joel finished his coffee and washed the mug, then put it away in the cabinet above the coffee maker. For lack of any better options, he decided to go spend some time in the bedroom he'd been given. Joel had seen some good records when he was on the phone with Athena, and he wouldn't mind listening to some Tom Petty right now so he could think.
As the music started to drift through the bedroom, Joel laid down on the floor and spread out like a starfish, digging his fingers into the plush, beige carpet. He rubbed the fibers between his fingertips, and it was another harsh reminder of what a shit show his life currently was. The carpet in Joel's apartment was that shitty carpet in churches and kindergarten classrooms. No body to it. No life, no comfort in any way. Joel didn't even like walking barefoot in his apartment half the time, but he would easily and without second thought rub his entire naked body across this floor. He straightened his fingers and smoothed the indentations he had made as the next song on the album began to play. Joel smiled and started to hum along. This one about the wildflowers had always been one of his favorites.
Joel took a deep breath. Stop avoiding the issue at hand, stupid. The issue at hand being Gabriel. Gabriel Hunter, according to his business card.
The whole thing this morning, with Gabriel walking in on him, should have been terrifying and awkward, or at least left Joel feeling unsafe. But it had done none of those things. In fact, Joel had jerked off again minutes later thinking about it. Was he so starved for attention that he’d turned to exhibitionism? Should he start going to some of the clubs off Hollywood Boulevard that had seedy side doors and play lofts upstairs to get his rocks off? No. No, that wasn't it. The idea of any stranger seeing him wasn't what turned him on. It was Gabriel. Something about Gabriel himself.
His Kind of Love Page 6