by Jet Mykles
Izzy toyed with the spatula sticking out of the deep-dish pan between them, clearly contemplating another slice. “You sounded really down when you called.”
“Oh. That.”
“We don’t have to talk about it,” Izzy hastened to say. “But…if you did…want to talk, I’m happy to listen.”
The space around Rabin’s heart warmed. He shook his head. “Just having trouble with the band. We’re not finding the right vibe.”
The spatula rose, laden with another slice that Izzy brought to his plate. “Something wrong with the music?” He smiled and nodded at Oliver, who came to whisk away the empty glass.
Rabin sipped his beer, deciding how deep he wanted to get into this. “No.” He set the beer down. “Not really. We haven’t gotten that far.”
“Huh? You guys have been at it every day for a week and a half.”
“Yep. And something’s gone wrong every day.”
“Ouch. No wonder Brent hasn’t looked happy.”
Rabin winced.
“For the record, he doesn’t say anything bad about you.” Izzy’s eyes were on the knife and fork he used to cut into his slice. “He’s just frustrated that things aren’t moving faster.”
Rabin wanted to ask if Brent had said anything about Zane, but decided he didn’t want to know. “It’s hard. Especially since we haven’t found a bass player that fits in.”
“That could be tough, I guess. You’ve had some guys come in, though.”
So he has heard some details from Brent. “A few. Zane didn’t like them.”
“Zane.”
Rabin nodded, having deliberately used his friend’s name. “Zane.”
“Why not?”
“Don’t have a fucking clue, to be honest.” He raised his eyebrows and shrugged. “He’s being an asshole. Nothing new.”
Izzy considered that, chewing slowly. “Nothing new?”
Rabin took a bite and waited until he chewed and swallowed to answer. “Zane took it hard when the original Knights broke up. He was really attached to the lineup, and he misses the other guys. I didn’t realize that he’s not ready to move on.”
“Will he be?”
“Who knows? If not, there won’t be an album. If Brent gets sick of us and kicks us out, that’s pretty much it. And please don’t say any of this to him.”
Dark curls bounced as Izzy shook his head. “No, no. I won’t.”
“It’s just depressing, y’know?” Rabin watched his fork cut into the delicious red goop on his plate. “I don’t know what I’ll do if this doesn’t work out.”
“It will work out. It has to.”
Rabin gave him a halfhearted smile. “Can we talk about something else?”
Big eyes studied him a moment. Then Izzy smiled. “Sure. I’m going to Taste of Chicago next week. Ever heard of it?”
“No.”
Again Izzy’s face lit up with a wide grin. “Oh man, it’s the best! My mom used to bring me to the city to go every year. So much food!”
Chapter Nine
A warm breeze caressed them as they bid good-bye to Oliver and Amanda and left the pizzeria. Rabin stuck his hands in his pockets, a little depressed that the dinner was over. But no more bread or dessert could keep them at the table.
“You headed home?” Rabin asked as they walked down the block toward the train station.
Izzy didn’t immediately answer, gazing up at the faded blue sky. “I could.” He twisted to meet Rabin’s eyes, then quickly glanced away. “Or we could…stay…together.”
Rabin felt his neck flush and dropped his gaze to the sidewalk. “We can’t go to my place.”
“Right. Zane. Well…” Izzy’s shoulder bumped Rabin’s arm. “There’s a motel down the street. It’s nice. Families of students at the school stay there all the time.”
Part of him thought he should say no. He wasn’t gay—really—so he shouldn’t be doing stuff with Izzy. No matter what Izzy said, he’d probably get the wrong idea. But he so very much did not want this pleasant time with Izzy to end. Not yet. “You sure?”
“About the hotel?” Izzy smiled, proving he was teasing. “Yeah.” He bumped Rabin’s arm again. “About tonight? Oh yeah. If you are.”
Inside his pockets, Rabin’s hands curled to fists. Then he felt himself nodding. “Okay.”
“Okay.” Izzy grabbed his arm and forced him to turn. “We need to go in here.”
Surprised, Rabin looked up at the LIQUOR sign above them just before they crossed through the double glass doors. His suspicions of why they were there were confirmed when Izzy walked boldly up to the counter and leaned on it, pointing out the condoms and lube behind the clerk. Amused but a little horrified at Izzy’s boldness, Rabin hung back, pretending to be distracted by the magazine rack. He flipped through the latest edition of Guitar World and even gave a thought to buying it, but when he heard Izzy’s chipper thank-you, he shoved the magazine back. Izzy joined him, gave one glance at the magazines, smiled, then led the way out of the shop.
When they got to the motel desk, Rabin got his wallet out before Izzy could.
“You sure?”
“Yeah.” Rabin gave the clerk a credit card that should have plenty for the night.
“Okay.” Izzy didn’t sound convinced, but he didn’t argue further.
Rabin was glad, because he was busy staring down the man behind the counter who took note that they had no luggage. But he made no comment and was otherwise perfectly nice as he handed Rabin’s card back with their key card. Izzy was humming slightly as they left the tiny office and approached the stairs. Rabin couldn’t help but watch Izzy’s pert little ass as he led the way up. Their room was three doors down on the left. Rabin opened the door and let Izzy precede him inside.
He got a brief impression of a bright orange wall and the orange-and-gray-striped bedding on the queen-size bed, but it was only brief. Izzy tossed his plastic bag onto the bed, rounded on Rabin, and slammed him against the wall near the opening for the bathroom.
Lithe arms wrapped around Rabin’s neck, forcing him to bend. “I’ve been wanting to do this all night.”
Then Izzy was kissing him—devouring him, really. Rabin had no choice but to open his mouth and wrap his arms around the eager body pressed against him. Not that it was a hardship. He was more than happy to do his own share of devouring, tongue wrestling with Izzy’s as one of his hands found rich, soft hair to sink into. He slipped a little on the wall, legs sliding from under him to put his mouth on level with Izzy’s. The new position allowed Izzy to straddle one of his thighs, pressing eager hardness into his muscle.
Making adorable little whining noises, Izzy unwrapped his arms so he could paw at Rabin’s shirt. “Off.”
Rabin yanked Izzy’s shirt up. “You too.”
“Yeah.” They were having trouble separating their mouths, though, so it took a few more minutes before Izzy finally tore himself away, even taking two steps back. “Enough.” He stood there panting, dark eyes gleaming over a swollen-lipped smile. “You need to get naked.” He grabbed the hem of his pink shirt. “Now.”
Rabin’s lips grinned all by themselves as he pushed himself off the wall. Izzy backed farther away from him, unbuttoning his jeans, as Rabin tore his own shirt off. Izzy managed his slip-ons while still standing, but Rabin had to sit on the edge of the bed to untie his boots. Izzy used the time to shimmy out of his jeans, leaving him in just some bright blue briefs.
Rabin tossed aside his second boot. “Come here.”
Izzy hesitated by the desk. “You need to get out of those jeans.”
“In a minute.” He kept his voice soft and beckoned. “Come here.”
Izzy blinked, then stepped toward him. Rabin gathered him closer with arms around Izzy’s waist and shoved his nose into the soft dip right under Izzy’s rib cage. He shut his eyes and just breathed for a second.
Hands stroked his hair. “Hey?”
Rabin stuck his tongue out to taste Izzy’s skin, then tilted
his head to lay on a wet kiss. Izzy shuddered as Rabin kept kissing soft skin, smoothing his hands over Izzy’s back and sides as he kissed his way down. He tucked his hands into the back of Izzy’s briefs, better to get two good handfuls of tight buttocks. Izzy sighed as Rabin eased the briefs down while sipping at Izzy’s navel. He carefully eased the briefs over Izzy’s rigid cock, then let them drop down his legs while caressing his thighs.
Izzy jumped when Rabin kissed the tip of his cock. “Hey, wait—”
“Shhh.” Rabin reached around to regain his handfuls of ass.
“But…?”
“’S okay.” He lapped at the tip again, tentative about the taste. Of all they’d done, putting his lips to Izzy’s cock seemed like a big step. But he wanted to do it more than he was willing to admit to himself. With Izzy fidgeting under his hands, Rabin opened his lips and slipped them over the smooth head.
“Oh.” Fidgeting shuddered to a stop, and Izzy’s fingers tightened in Rabin’s hair as he slowly slid his tongue around the head. Knowing how good it felt on his own cock, Rabin pointed his tongue and rubbed underneath the ridge.
“Okay, wait.” But Izzy’s sigh and the run of fingers through Rabin’s hair were at odds with his breathy request, so Rabin ignored it. He played a little more around the head, then slowly slid his lips down the shaft, letting velvety skin rub his tongue. The tip pushed at the back of his mouth, and he carefully stopped when he felt himself start to gag. Even so, he could get most of Izzy’s cock into his mouth, his nose just touching the curly dark hair at the base.
“Rabin, God.”
He experimented with ways to squeeze with his tongue and suction, loving the impatient groans that spilled from Izzy and the way the ass cheeks in his grip tightened and relaxed. Christ, I’m sucking cock. He didn’t let the foreign concept deter him, however, as he wetly pulled his mouth back up to the tip. A whimper from Izzy sent him right back down, and he set up a slow rhythm of up and down that he decided should feel pretty good.
Izzy let him go on for a while, but then he dug his fingers into Rabin’s hair and pulled gently. “Rabin, please, stop.”
Pulling away slowly, Rabin rolled his eyes upward. Izzy’s hungry, dark gaze was fastened on his mouth.
Izzy licked his lips. “I want to come with you inside me.”
Who was he to argue with that? He tilted his head and let his tongue swirl the head for one last suck, then released Izzy’s cock. Hands cupped his jaw, angling his face for the desperate kiss that descended on his lips.
“I…” Izzy’s breath warmed Rabin’s lips, his brown eyes open and so close. Then he groaned, closing those eyes. “Oh God, stand up and get naked, would you?”
Chuckling softly, Rabin stood after quickly shedding his socks. While he dropped his jeans, Izzy knelt in the middle of the bed, rummaging through the plastic bag to take out the box of condoms and the lube. He had the little bottle of lube open and a condom unwrapped by the time Rabin joined him on the bed. Ignoring the paraphernalia, Rabin framed his face with both hands and kissed him. Loving the whimper, he used his greater size to coax Izzy onto his back so he could stretch out on top of him. Warm and slim and firm, Izzy’s body was both exciting and comforting, a mouthwatering dessert after a bleak and awful day. The push of his cock into Rabin’s belly was still new, but new like a delicious new icing on a cake.
“God, Rabin, please.” Izzy turned his head aside to avoid Rabin’s mouth. So Rabin traced the line of his jaw and sucked at the throbbing pulse underneath. Izzy whimpered, lightly punching Rabin’s side. “Please, Rabin. God, fuck me, please. Fuck me now.”
This time, Izzy’s request was not to be ignored. Rabin slowly pulled back on his knees to sit on Izzy’s thighs. As soon as there was room, the smaller man proved by holding it up that he’d held the opened condom the whole time they were kissing. Rabin plucked it from his fingers and rolled it on.
Izzy fidgeted underneath him, fingers digging into his thigh. “Let me turn over.”
“No.” Rabin didn’t know what came over him, but he went with it. Condom on, he braced his hands on Izzy’s hips to keep him there, then maneuvered in between his legs. He grabbed one of Izzy’s knees and pushed it up toward Izzy’s chest. Looking down, he let the tip of his cock nudge the tiny little opening under Izzy’s balls. The condom was lubed, but he didn’t want to take the chance, so he let go of Izzy’s leg to grab the bottle. “Hey!” he protested as Izzy scrambled onto his side.
“Want it this way,” Izzy rasped, finishing the roll onto his belly.
Rabin was disappointed, but he didn’t make a thing of it. What did he know about gay sex, really? Maybe it didn’t feel as good face-to-face, although he was pretty sure it was possible. Unwilling to dwell on it just now, he let Izzy rise up onto his hands and knees, then poured a good gush of lube at the top of Izzy’s crack. He caught the liquid with his fingers as it got to Izzy’s hole, and smeared the skin, the rim, and then inside the hole.
“Rabin!” Izzy had his cheek pressed to the pillows, hair splayed over his face, fingers digging into the stuffing. “God, now, please.”
Rabin fell forward, bracing on his arm over Izzy’s back. With his free hand, he rubbed his cock over Izzy’s entrance. “You beg so pretty, Iz.”
“Whatever. Now. Please.”
Rabin pushed in.
“God, yes!” Izzy thumped the mattress with his fist, burying his face in the pillow as Rabin slowly speared into him.
So hot. Rabin smoothed his palm over Izzy’s back as it arched, muscles straining while Izzy pushed back. He combed Izzy’s hair free of his neck and leaned in to kiss the warm curve.
“Fuck, Rabin.”
Rabin eased out, then pushed back in, taking his time, amazed by the hot squeeze around his dick. Izzy’s pleading encouraged him to a little more speed. Still braced on one arm, he wrapped the other around Izzy’s chest, using it to hold his writhing body close and almost still. The mild restraint drove Izzy crazy, making him rock and arch into Rabin. He moved so much, Rabin had to let go so he could lean on both arms, his thrusts picking up speed to match Izzy’s.
“Fuck, I’m gonna—”
“Yes!” Face in the pillows, braced on one elbow, Izzy reached between his legs to pull on his cock.
They strained together in perfect sync. It was gorgeous, amazing. Rabin’s lungs labored as he slammed into Izzy’s willing body, spurred on by pillow-muffled cries.
Then he remembered. He leaned in as close as he could to Izzy’s ear. “Come for me.”
Izzy’s neck arched, his temple rubbing against the side of Rabin’s jaw. “Aw, fuck!” His entire body froze, trembling. A high, strangled cry ripped from his open mouth as his body jerked in a spasm. Then another. And another.
Caught off guard by the intensity, Rabin groaned when an orgasm tore through him, his dick exploding deep inside Izzy’s shuddering body.
He collapsed onto Izzy’s sweating back, panting hard and unable to move a muscle. Beneath him, Izzy was in no better shape, so only the sound of their breathing filled the quiet room.
Fuck. When finally he could think, move, he rolled his head so he could press his lips to the meaty spot between Izzy’s neck and his shoulder blade. “Fuck.” Yes, that needed to be voiced.
“Fuck,” Izzy agreed, dragging one arm up to his face. “Oh man, fuck.” He pushed sweat-damp hair from his face.
Rabin pushed up onto his elbow and blew on Izzy’s face, trying to help cool him. He watched long lashes flutter as Izzy tried to open his eyes. Gorgeous. Overcome, Rabin leaned in to kiss the corner of his mouth. Izzy sighed, melted, and they managed to twist him enough onto his side so they could kiss full-on. Rabin’s cock had to leave Izzy’s warmth for it, but it was an okay trade-off since his cock was well and truly spent. Rabin pushed Izzy all the way onto his back and framed his face, determined to explore every last centimeter of Izzy’s mouth with his tongue.
It was he who eventually stopped, slowing his kisses and pulling back
so it became a brushing of moist lips. When he did stop and open his eyes, it was in time to see Izzy slowly drag his own open. Chocolate brown surrounded by a lacework of shining black, framed by softly rounded cheeks and arched black brows. The face of an angel.
His angel.
Oh man.
He sighed and rolled to his side, still half draped over Izzy. “I’m worn out.”
Izzy chuckled, wiggling out from underneath him. They lay on their sides, facing each other. “Not surprising with the way you fuck. Not that I’m complaining.”
Rabin smiled, punching one of the pillows into place under his head. “I don’t think I can get up.”
Which made Izzy laugh aloud. He sat up, stretching. “You should at least get the condom off.”
“What? Oh, right.” As Izzy stood, he pulled the latex from his dick and tied it off, then dropped it into the plastic bag Izzy held up for him. “Thanks.”
Izzy smiled, left the bag on the table, and disappeared into the bathroom.
Rabin lay on his back, staring at the ceiling. They hadn’t even opened the bright orange curtains or pulled down the cover on the bed, too intent on fucking each other’s brains out. And boy, had they. He’d even sucked cock. And liked it. Maybe there really was something to this gay-sex thing.
He startled, eyes opening when the mattress jounced.
“Sorry.” Still naked, his wet hair finger-combed back from his face, Izzy held the remote. “Did I wake you?”
Rabin stretched. “Must have.”
“You need to sleep?”
His eyes closed. “Probably.”
“Mind the television?”
He shook his head, pulling the pillow free of the spread. “Nope.” Rolling mostly onto his belly, he hugged the pillow beneath his head. “I just need a little…”
Gentle fingers stroked his cheek. “No worries. I’ll keep the volume low.”
Rabin nodded. He intended to say thank you, but sleep claimed him before he got the chance.
Chapter Ten
The day dawned brighter. Even if that perception might have been his fancy, he did feel much better for the night with Izzy. Despite the fact that he wore the same clothes—or maybe because that fact reminded him of why, which warmed his heart as well as places a little lower—he felt pumped and ready to tackle the day.