by Kit Fortier
Jake stepped past the threshold. He was an arm's length away, and Fox could feel the man's heat radiating from him.
"Free and clear for…?" Jake asked. His inflection seemed to lead somewhere that Fox had to fill in.
"For…" The urge overwhelmed him. Fox reached up his hand and brushed the crumbs out from Jake's chest hair. It was a soft, thick mat that sent jolts of want up Fox's hand and through his brain. He needed to smell the moisture on Jake's skin.
He wanted to clear the corner and suck on his fingertips to taste the man. It was stalkerish, to be sure, but damn if he wasn't utterly turned on by the moment, by the sensations.
"You can do that again," Jake whispered. "You don't even have to ask."
Fox's heart pounded as his gaze went from Jake's gorgeous, firm chest to the man's remarkably silver eyes. There was want there, for sure, but there was also curiosity. Trepidation. Fox lowered his hand, tracing his fingertips through the mat. When he reached Jake's belly button, Fox withdrew his hand altogether.
"I want to," Fox murmured. "Are you okay for a little later this afternoon?"
Jake smiled. "I'm just relaxing, catching up on sleep."
"Oh. I don't want to interrupt your--"
"I wouldn't mind if you did," Jake interrupted. "Company's worth it."
Fox gaped a bit like a goldfish. "I'll be by a little later then. Four okay?"
Jake nodded. "See you then, Fox."
Four in the afternoon couldn't come soon enough, and at the same time, it came all too soon. Fox stood at the door to the room where he placed Jake. He shook his arms and shoulders and tried to psych himself up. The next step in what seemed like a promising weekend, maybe week or two, if the powers that be would allow. He raised a knuckle to the door, hesitating before his hand hit the metal.
"Damnit," he grunted to himself. He thought of the man behind the door-the pale blue eyes, the salt and pepper hair that seemed out of place with his years. From the graying, Fox would have thought the man in his mid-forties in the broad light of day. Were he to guess, Jake was no older than thirty-five. Considering how fit the guy was, Fox really had no baseline to work with. He remembered the quiet confidence, both from the moments a couple of evenings ago to earlier this morning. Then he kicked himself for letting his thoughts drift south the way they did. But that was natural, right? As Jake observed, the pickings were slim indeed.
What did Fox want? Jake was a hiker, backpacking his way through god knows what to god knows where. Was he homeless? He didn't seem like it. At the least, Fox could have a one-night stand and be done with it. It was better than the yearlong dry spell since his ex.
Shit. Why was he thinking of the ex?
Fox inhaled and held his breath. He knocked on the door a few times.
The two parted ways around ten that morning. Fox looked at his watch, noting it was now four, on the dot. He gave himself enough time to step into his own room above the front office for a shower, shave, change of clothes. A light button-up tee, shorts, and a pair of running shoes seemed appropriate. Nothing slutty, he thought. The rains had moved on, and a brisk, clear, cool day was upon them.
It took a minute, but Fox heard a padding behind the door. It opened to a sleep rumpled Jake, wearing the room's complimentary robe. Fox's mouth watered at sight of the robe opened low on Jake, revealing the cut of his chest, his strong midsection. The belt barely kept the robe closed enough to keep him from exposing himself to the world. That thick pelt of salt and pepper hair covered the exposed skin. Jake's physique spoke of a gym-body in a functionally athletic capacity-fireman, perhaps? Police officer? Soldier, maybe. He had thick muscles, though not defined like a professional body builder. He had softer edges than that. He sported a more than noticeable six-pack. The indented line that bisected his midsection was extremely appealing. In Fox's imagination, Jake lifted logs, moved boulders, climbed mountains, and kayaked through white waters.
"Room service," Fox said sheepishly.
Jake smiled, and reached out his hand. Fox took his hand, and for the second time in so many days, he noticed the little jolt between them. It was like their handshake in the front office--like the slight shock of a hand-sized battery. And as soon as Jake's hand close around his, he was playfully pulled into the room, with the door closing loudly behind them.
"Jake--" was all Fox managed to get out. He found himself chest-to-chest, nose-to-nose with the handsome, mysterious traveler. They were eye to eye, which was unusual to Fox, being that his own father came up to his chin. Fox smelled toothpaste. He resisted squirming against the man who had him pinned against the wall. They stood this way for a while, breathing together, silently.
"Did I catch you sleeping?" Fox said, his voice almost a whisper. He didn't want to break the reverie.
"I've been trying," Jake replied. The older man's focus bore into him-he couldn't look away from the silvery-pale eyes in front of him. "I did try. But every time I closed my eyes, all I could see was this beautiful fox chasing me through the woods."
Fox's ears warmed up, and he didn't miss how Jake's eyes tracked to them. Jake leaned in, and Fox heard him inhale. He couldn't resist but to do the same.
"I'm guessing you don't hear that a lot," Jake said, his mouth against Fox's ear.
"Not a lot of opportunity," Fox gulped. "Isn't that something you normally tell ladies?"
Jake's warm arms enveloped Fox. The two moved away from the wall, with Fox returning the embrace. It was warm, remarkably warm.
"Beautiful means pleasing the senses or the mind aesthetically. A man can be beautiful, just as a woman can be," Jake said, punctuating his words with a kiss on Fox's neck. At that moment, Fox was sure Jake knew he shuddered.
"I want to hold you," Jake said.
Fox laughed. "You are."
Jake smiled and shook his head. "No, I mean, I haven't had a lot of sleep, and I miss the feel of holding someone while I do. Can I…?" Jake laughed, breaking up the pregnant pause. "That wasn't awkward at all."
For the first time in their shared moments, Fox heard Jake sound uncertain. He met Jake's gaze, and nodded. Jake grinned softly and took Fox's hands, pulling him along until they were beside the unmade bed.
"How do you like to sleep?" Jake asked.
"Uh, in my underwear," Fox replied.
"Hop to it," Jake chuckled. Fox nodded, undoing the buttons on his shirt. His fingers stumbled when he saw Jake take off his robe and draping it across the comfy chair next to the bed. All Fox saw were miles of thickly muscled tanned skin. He had a dusting of salt-and-pepper hair in all the right spots. No underwear. When Jake turned to face him, Fox's mouth went dry.
"You're… I've--" Fox choked out.
Jake simply grinned. Fox's heart hammered in his chest. He got out of his shirt, kicked off his shoes, and pulled off his shorts. He stood there for a moment, eyebrows furrowed.
"I was right," Jake said.
"What? Right about what?"
"You really are beautiful."
Fox's breath got knocked from his lungs. Jake's earnest look and the honesty of his words gave him gooseflesh. With confidence, he pulled off his boxers and climbed into the bed.
The two men both pulled up a pillow, propping their heads up as they faced each other. They stared for a while as sunlight began to filter into the room.
"I don't know what I was expecting," Fox said. Jake smiled. He reached out a hand, and grazed Fox's jaw with his fingertips.
"I mean, I know what I was thinking, but this is great too."
Jake traced Fox's lips with the same outreached hand.
"This isn't a habit or anything," Fox continued. "I'm not in the habit of handing out rooms to hot guys," he stammered. "You look a lot like a model I like. I have all his calendars. He plays rugby. And you're bigger. And your hair's so cool, and… And your eyes--I mean, I'm saying… You're hotter. And he's already pretty hot. He runs an anti-bullying foundation." The word vomit stopped when he connected with Jake's intense, silvery stare. Ja
ke's fingertips glided down Fox's chin, across his collarbone. He breathed into Jake's touch as the other man propped himself up, moving closer.
"Did you--" Fox's ramble was interrupted as Jake pulled him close. Then there was a kiss.
Jake's lips were slightly chapped, but that was okay. Fox relished in the gentle roughness of Jake's mouth on his own. The touch of Jake's tongue on his lips tasted of mint and man. He demanded entry, and eventually, Fox opened his mouth, submitting, letting Jake in.
They kissed for a while, languidly, enjoying the taste, the texture, the softness, the warmth. Jake pulled Fox in, holding him close.
"I do need some shut eye, handsome," Jake said, his chin resting gently on Fox's head.
"It's okay," Fox said. "I could use a nap."
"Let's… lunch… later."
Fox smiled into Jake's neck as the man's breath even out. Lunch later sounded good.
*** Jake
He sat up on a thick bed of moss. Night air and night sky surrounded Jake. Through the canopy, a full moon illuminated the darkened sky. Stars flecked the inky blue velvet, uneven and random, but as bright and brilliant as sunlight on the ripples of the ocean. Directly in front of him sat a tree stump, worn, slightly hollowed from a natural fall, likely decades ago. The slight yip of a forest creature beckoned Jake to the edge of the foundation of dead wood.
A beautiful fox stared back at him from inside the stump. In the pale light, its fur shone a rich shade of copper contrasted with pristine white hair from the lower part of the creature's muzzle, down its underbelly, and part of the insides of its legs. A bushy copper tail capped with white fur lay curled around at the fox's feet, giving the animal a regal appearance.
The little animal leapt playfully from its perch within the stump, circling Jake. Its fur tickled his bare skin as it brushed against him like a faithful pup or a loving feline. As he watched the fox, it darted off, only to pause when it got a few yards away. The fox gave a soft yip and stood there.
Jake thought the creature was waiting for him. He rose to his feet, enjoying the softness of the moss under his soles, between his toes. The balmy night air swirled around Jake gently as he moved closer to his little newfound friend. As he approached, the fox darted off again, and again, the forest animal stopped and gave Jake a strange chirping sound and a playful yip. Jake picked up speed, and before he knew it, he was chasing the little beast through the forest.
Between them, the trees flew by, and the path only deviated slightly, left or right. Jake could still see it, hear it as the fox yipped and chirped again as if it was at play, like it enjoyed the chase. Jake lost sight of the fox briefly as it wove around a tree in its way-and when next Jake expected to see it, he saw…
He saw Fox instead. The young man peered behind the tree; his nakedness was obvious from the moonlight shining off his shoulders to his hips to his shins. Fox tipped his head out and gave Jake a clear view of his boyish, handsome face. He winked at Jake, and then, like the forest animal before him, Fox took off, laughing.
Their chase continued. They ran until they glistened with sweat. Fox was always just beyond Jake's reach. In the distance, Jake could see a clearing, with mountains contrasting against the night sky. Fox stopped at the edge of the clearing. Jake managed to get within a few feet of his quarry when he realized the clearing was actually a body of water-a lake at the foot of majestic mountains hovering over the both of them.
Fox put a finger to his lips, and he held up his hands as if he wanted Jake to stay still. For him, Jake does. The moonlight danced off Fox's flawless skin and gave his auburn hair a vibrancy much sharper and richer than before. Jake saw the wispy sprouts of that same color hair blossoming from the center of his upper chest outward, up to his shoulders, down through his groin.
Fox crossed behind Jake. He sensed Fox's warmth on his back, the young man's breath on his neck. Fox lifted Jake's arm where he stood and held it out, pointed over the water. A warm, moist kiss pressed against the back of Jake's neck, and power surged through him from that contact. Something large burst from the across the lake hundreds of yards--perhaps a mile-out. In the moonlight, Jake saw it glisten as water slid from it. It appeared to be a column of copper, pulled from deep beneath the water's surface. It glinted in the night's light, as if it were pulled from the depths as pure, refined, polished metal.
Fox pressed against Jake, closing what little space there was from his bare front to Jake's naked back. The older man felt every inch of Fox against him as the young man's kisses traveled from the back of Jake's neck to the sides of it. The weight of Fox's head pressed against Jake as the red-head leaned his chin on Jake's shoulder. He lifted his own arm underneath Jake's other, relaxed one. Fox held out his own hand, pointed at the column of copper. Jake was aware of Fox's mouth opening, but he heard Fox say two words in his head instead of his ears:
"Kiss me."
Jake did as the voice in his head asked. He turned his face to Fox's and leaned slightly, and the two men met each other gently. Their lips touched, and a surge rose up between them. Only when Fox deepened the kiss did anything happen. Jake let Fox's tongue into his mouth, and Jake's slid against his--
And a column of light and radiating heat fell from the sky.
Time slowed. Jake broke the kiss and watched the play of light and power unfold before them. The lightning burst touched down with tendrils like dendrites in the human brain, branching off of the main bolt, arcing outward.
Atop the pillar, a form rose from the copper. Its shape twisted and trimmed down, becoming a humanoid statue. The slow-moving light cast its brightness over the form which shifted from copper to flesh. Instead of a statue, it was a man.
A young man with jet black hair and eyes as blue as the sky.
Even from where Jake stood, he knew who it was--It was Ben, and he was between billions of joules and a massive body of conducive metal.
Energy leapt from the copper column upwards, tangling against the descending bolt of electricity. With an earthshattering crack, the lightning struck the copper. Light surrounded Ben, and the roar of the strike overwhelmed Jake's senses as he reached out, screaming his son's name, and
"Jake!"
Jake's eyes snapped open. There were arms around him. Jake thought he had been doused with a bucket of water. There was breathing against his ear. Jake's hands were gripped around the forearms that held him close. He was caught in a rocking motion that soothed him as he relaxed into it.
Jake gently peeled his hands off of the arms around his chest. The blanket he was tangled up in got pulled off, exposing his damp skin to the cool air of the room. Hands rolled off him from his side to his back. One of those hands spread across his chest. Finally, Jake turned and saw a worried look on Fox's face.
Fox rubbed his hand up and down the cleft of Jake's chest. Jake breathed in deep, soothed by Fox's touch.
"I'm sorry."
"For what? Having a nightmare?"
"No, for the bruising on your arms."
Fox looked down. Two large handprint bruises darkened his skin.
"Not exactly the marks I intended to give you."
"Are you alright?"
Jake sat up. He realized he was exposed, both physically and emotionally.
"I will be." Jake took Fox's hand in his own, intertwining their fingers. "I could use a shower."
Fox nodded. "Want me to get you anything?"
Jake smiled. "Well, I did invite you over for company, so keep me company in there?" he said, pointing at the bathroom.
Fox laughed. It was bright, unfettered. "If you say so. It's about one, right now. After the shower, we can get some lunch?"
Jake nodded. "Sounds good. Let's go."
Fox threw off the covers over his own legs and padded toward the bathroom. Jake ran his eyes over the young guy's backside, the dimples in the small of his back, the flex of his thighs, calves.
"Like what you see?" Fox asked as he turned on the shower. Caught again. Jake chuckled.
&n
bsp; "Bet your ass."
Jake hopped out of the bed and dashed into the bathroom.
"What was that? I couldn't hear you over the water running," Fox joked.
"I said you have a nice ass," Jake replied, as he ran a hand over Fox's rear. The skin was soft to the touch, yet taut when Jake pinched it.
"See, this is how a lot of porn starts," Fox snickered. He turned around and put his hands on Jake's hips.
"Well, yeah. Random drifter, hot, lonely hotel clerk-we've got the setup all worked out." Jake leaned into Fox, kissing his neck, trailing his tongue over sensitive skin. "But seriously, I'm fine with the slow burn." He sucked gently at the spot just above Fox's collarbone and relished in the frisson it caused.
"I… I like…" Fox whimpered as Jake kissed the soft area beneath Fox's chin. He crossed over, giving both sides of Fox's neck the same, agonizing, tender treatment.
"You like?" Jake murmured as he licked at Fox's earlobe. Another full-body shudder.
"You're killing me," Fox groaned. "Slow burn. I like."
Jake laughed as he pulled back to look Fox in the eyes.
"I can feel how much you like it," Jake grinned, grinding his bare groin against Fox's. "You like it a lot."
"Damn right."
"Feels like a Louisville Slugger down there," Jake said, his voice heated and low.
"More like an Easton. West coast is the best coast," Fox said, straight faced.
"So, you know baseball bats, huh?"
"Yep. Played baseball throughout high school, and a couple years at Sheridan. Nothing serious."
Jake made a face of acknowledgement. He called it.
"Serious enough to give you these," Jake said, running his hands up Fox's well-defined arms. "Or these," marveling at the firmness of Fox's rounded shoulders. "Or this," Jake said, his voice reverent, no louder than a whisper, as he ran his hands over Fox's broad, firm chest. He snickered at the slight dusting of rusty-red hair he felt. "Soft. I like that."
Fox hummed as Jake caressed him. He opened the door to the shower and stepped in, water cascading down his shoulder and over his body. Then he pulled Jake in after him.