by Larry Darter
“Let’s talk about something else,” Mike said. “Tell me about what happened when you were here this afternoon.”
I told him about the brief conversation with Bryce which had gone nowhere. Then after Bryce had slammed his door in my face, a cargo van had arrived as I was leaving. I told him about speaking with the van driver and learning the guy had come for a shipment of antiques he was meant to take to the air freight terminal at the airport.
“Great, we can put a hold on the shipment until we can get a court order to seize it,” Mike said. “Be nice to recover the rest of the stolen artifacts. It was lucky you happened to be here when the van showed up.”
“Need me to go to the station to write out a statement like last night?” I said.
“No, there is no rush,” Mike said. “We have a dead body this time, not someone we arrested. Bryce isn’t going anywhere. You can come in later this week and give your statement.”
“Then why did you ask me to come here?” I said. “I could have told you everything I’ve said over the phone.”
“You want the truth?”
“Why wouldn’t I?”
“I haven’t been able to think of anything but last night and this morning with you since leaving your house this afternoon,” Mike said. “I asked you to come because I wanted to see you.”
“Mike, not good,” I said. “We went over it all this morning. Despite how amazing it was last night—”
“And this morning,” Mike said grinning.
“Yeah, ahkay,” I said. “And this morning. Can’t forget that bit. Anyway, as I said, none of it meant we’re getting back together. We’re not. It was only a bit of seriously good sex. I meant what I said. Please don’t make me keep repeating it. I still have a love for you, Mike. But, you know there was a reason it didn’t work before with us. Getting back together isn’t what I want, and I won’t change my mind about it.”
Mike’s face looked like that of a sad little boy. It broke my heart, but what had happened between us had left me feeling conflicted and confused. I liked what I had with Nick, and I didn’t want to give it up. Not even for Mike.
“You’re right,” Mike said finally. “I had my chance with you, and I blew it. I don’t deserve you.”
“Mike, it wasn’t like that at all,” I said. “I loved being with you, mostly. You’re a great guy. We didn’t want the same things. That’s why it didn’t work.”
“It was my fault it ended,” Mike said. “You told me more than once I was smothering you and you weren’t ready for marriage and kids. I pushed you out of my life when all I ever wanted was for us to be together forever.”
“You couldn’t help what you wanted, Mike,” I said, “only I couldn’t help not wanting it. It was no one’s fault.”
“Okay,” Mike said. “It’s spilled milk now.”
“Yes, it is,” I said. “And, there is no point in continuing to talk about it. It only causes hurt for both of us.”
Mike nodded.
“Did the stupid cow move out after you told her and she punched you in the eye?”
“No, but she will,” Mike said. “She said she couldn’t get her brother to help her move her things out until Monday while I’m at work. She insisted she was staying at my place over the weekend.”
“She kicked you out of your own flat?” I said. “Why couldn’t she find somewhere else to stay the weekend?”
Mike pointed to his eye. “I thought it was best to cut my losses. Besides, I will already have to lie my ass off at work to cover up for Maki as it is. I will not cause Maki to lose her job. It’s only tonight and tomorrow, then she will be out.”
“So, do you have a mate at work who will let you crash at his place until Monday?” I said.
“No, I can’t ask any of my friends at work,” Mike said. “If I did, I’d have to tell them about the big argument and that I'm breaking up with Maki. Then they would put two and two together and figure out what happened to my eye. They are cops after all. The word would get out, and things would spiral out of control. I’ll just stay in a lonely hotel room tonight and tomorrow, unless you—”
“No, Mike. Not even. Don’t you dare to even ask me. We can’t be bloody trusted alone together. Last night proved that, thank you.”
“And this morning,” Mike said with a grin.
“Christ, Mike. Ahkay, yes and this morning, all bloody morning until noon. We mustn’t forget that bit. As if we needed further proof of the bloody obvious at this point.”
“But, I’ll be bored out of my mind sitting alone in a hotel room all day tomorrow,” Mike said. “You have a guestroom. Why can’t you let me crash at your place until Monday? I promise I’ll be on my best behavior.”
“No, Mike. No bloody way. What is it about the word no you’re not grasping? You can’t be trusted, and neither can I. We are never having sex again. It would be a foolish mistake putting ourselves right back in the position we were in last night. I won’t do it.”
“You know if our positions were reversed, and you needed a place to stay over the weekend, I’d let you stay at my apartment,” Mike said. “That’s what friends do.”
“Seriously, Mike? You’re going there? You’re sticking a knife in my gut and then giving it a twist?”
“Forget it,” Mike said. “You’ve made it clear you don’t want me at your place. I wouldn't dream of trying to pressure you into anything.”
Sad little boy face again.
“Christ no, of course, you would never dream of pressuring me into any bloody thing,” I said. “That would be so unlike you wouldn’t it Mike?”
“You don’t have to keep throwing it in my face,” Mike said. “I know I pressured you to get married and all that. I’m sorry I did. But, I already feel bad enough about it, and always will.”
I let out a deep sigh.
“Listen Mike,” I said, “and listen good. You may crash in my guestroom for the weekend, only the weekend. When you leave for work Monday morning, you’re not to come back to my house without an invitation. Is that clear?”
“Yes, that’s all I was asking for, just to stay in your guestroom for the weekend,” Mike said.
“And, there will be no repeat of last night or this morning. There will be no sex. None. You will confine yourself to the guestroom. I’ll sleep alone in my bedroom. It will be just like we are brother and sister. Are we clear? Feel me, Mike?”
“Feel you?” Mike said grinning. “Out here with all these people watching?”
“For fuck’s sake, Mike. I’m serious. Are you really taking the piss, mate? I’m mean it. If you even bring up the subject of sex, I’m kicking your sorry arse out the door.”
“Okay, okay,” Mike said. “It was just a little joke. And thank you. I really appreciate you letting me crash at your place.”
“No worries,” I said, “as long as you obey the rules.”
“I swear,” Mike said grinning.
The mischievous grin wasn’t making me feel confident.
“Ahkay, I’m going home then,” I said. “See you soon.”
“I should finish here in a few minutes,” Mike said. “I’ll be over within an hour, anyway.”
I nodded and went back to where I’d parked the motorbike. I climbed on and rode home hoping I hadn’t made another in my massively long line of questionable calls.
Twenty-Seven
I toasted a cheese roll after I got home, then I turned on Netflix and watched the first John Wick movie again while I ate it. My thoughts turned to Nick. Dammit. There was no way I’d be able to spend the day with him tomorrow at North Shore now. Mike wouldn’t be happy if I left him home alone all day tomorrow, not to mention, it would likely turn into all night since Nick and I couldn’t keep our hands off each other once we started. I was a bit sad about it. Nick’s idea had sounded massively hot and indecent. There was just something about the thought of nude sunbathing with a hot guy and the promise of shagging outdoors that made me tingle and ache. John Wick wasn’t helping with that.
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Bloody hell. Keanu Reeves was a seriously gorgeous, sexy man. If only he knew I was alive. He ticked all the boxes for me, at least physically. I’d be like putty in his hands. And the characters he played were always so hot and manly. I’d loved him since the Matrix and liked him even more in the John Wick movies.
I’d just eaten the last bite of cheese roll when the doorbell rang. Sadly, I knew it wasn’t Keanu. When I opened the door, Mike was standing there with two large shopping bags.
“What’s that?” I said letting him pass.
“We drank all your booze last night,” Mike said. “Since you invited me to crash here for the weekend, I thought the least I could do was to replace it.”
“Not sure 'invited' is the word you were looking for,” I said with a smirk. “But, come through to the kitchen and we’ll put it away.”
Mike followed me to the kitchen and set the bags on the bench. I shooed him away.
“Go make yourself at home in the lounge,” I said. “I’ll put it away. I’m watching the John Wick movie on Netflix. We’ll finish watching it when I’m through in here.”
“Netflix and chill?” Mike said smiling.
“Nooooo, Mike. Not bloody Netflix and chill. I mean it, Mike. This is your final warning. If you mention once more anything even remotely related to sex, out you go.”
“Jeez, Louise. Can’t a guy make a joke? You used to have a sense of humor.”
“Ahkay, it was a joke then,” I said. “No worries. Now off you go.”
“Okay, but will you bring me a beer when you’re finished in here?”
“Yep, sure,” I said. “I’m on to it.”
Mike went to the lounge, and I emptied the bags. He’d brought two six-packs of Kona Longboard. I preferred Corona when I wanted a beer, but Longboard was fine. There was a bottle of Tanqueray gin and a bottle of Plantation Grande Reserve Rum. Tanqueray was my favorite gin, and the rum he bought was bloody expensive. The man had good taste in liquor. There wasn’t any wine, but I couldn’t have expected him to find New Zealand wine in Honolulu in the time he’d had. However, he’d picked up a variety of mixers to go with the alcohol. At least my liquor cabinet was well-stocked again.
Grabbing two bottles of Longboard, I went to the lounge. Mike was stretched out on the sofa where I’d been sitting before he’d arrived. I slapped a leg, and he pulled his knees up to let me sit. I handed him a beer, picked up the remote, and pushed play to restart the movie I’d paused.
Good lord, I’d seriously love shagging that hottie, Keanu Reeves. The John Wick character provoked amazing feels in my nethers. A thought flashed through my brain, and I laughed so suddenly I almost spit out a mouthful of beer. The thought had occurred I’d already shagged two different sexy, attractive guys today, and here I was getting hot and bothered over the fantasy of being rooted by Keanu Reeves.
“What so funny?” Mike said. “We’re watching a guy get the crap kicked out of him?”
“It isn’t the movie,” I said. “I had a comical thought, one I’m not prepared to share, thank you. Watch the movie.”
Mike shook his head and went back to watching. He likely thought me a nutter. He might not be too far wrong about it if he did.
By the end of the first John Wick, we’d steamed through the first six-pack of Longboard. Mike loved the movie, likely for a different reason than me. Surprisingly, he’d seen none of the John Wick films, so I found John Wick Chapter Two on Netflix while Mike went to the kitchen and mixed us both a gin and tonic.
At the end of the second movie, I’d lost all track of how many gin and tonics we’d had. Between the alcohol and the random lustful thoughts of what I’d like doing with Kenau swirling about inside my feeble mind, the tingles and ache in my nethers had grown to unbearable proportions. I was definitely the girl who after drinking a fair number of tequila shots would happily climb atop the bar wearing nothing but my undies and bra to dance. Drinking alcohol had always made me feel more aroused than usual which had always been more than adequate without liquor, thank you.
In my inebriated state, I’d just worked out how to purchase John Wick Chapter Three from the cable pay-per-view channel when Mike returned from the kitchen with rum drinks. He said the gin bottle was empty, and he’d tossed it into the rubbish bin. I was past caring. The rum was just fine.
You foolish, foolish girl I repeated silently to myself like a mantra. I knew too well where imbibing too much liquor had led me the previous night. I was sitting on the sofa with my legs stretched out on the ottoman. Mike was in repose on the couch, only now I cradled his head in my lap while I stroked his dark locks. It occurred to me Mike would look quite like John Wick if only he had the beard.
Meanwhile, the fires down below were threatening to erupt like Kilauea. It amazed me that with his head laying atop ground zero Mike’s hair hadn’t already been burnt. I crossed my ankles and squeezed my thighs together looking for relief from the damnable clenches I was experiencing. Bloody hell, it only made things even worse. I was in a precarious position, on the edge of an enormous chasm.
◆◆◆
Deja Vu. I was lying on my side in bed, naked of course, facing the window. Paper thin shafts of sunlight were streaming in between the gaps in the window blind slats. I was yet again trapped in the grip of two strong hairy arms with the bare skin of my back pressed tightly against a smooth, warm muscular chest. Mike smelled faintly of the cologne he’d been wearing the day before combined with the musky scent of sweat. I felt it pressed firmly against my backside, of course. The big warm hands left my chest and traversed my sides centimeter by centimeter until stopping to grasp and firmly squeeze my hips.
He wanted it again. Of course, he did. Mike was an animal. Was it never enough? Perhaps Oshiro hadn’t been as accommodating—who was I kidding—as easy as me. Maybe Mike had been carrying around a massive store of animal lust, waiting for the right opportunity to unleash it. Or maybe Oshiro just hadn’t been as good in bed as me. Yep, I was sure that was definitely it.
What the hell had happened to me? We had done it the night before until we’d both fallen asleep from sheer exhaustion. Like the gin and tonics, I’d lost count of the times. Yet here I was craving it again, desperate for it, even when I used to never want it first thing in the morning.
Between my inability to suck in enough oxygen between the moans and the repeated intense contractions of a particular muscle group, my mind was rapidly being turned to mush. I felt powerless to resist the passionate thrashing. Not that I was the least bit interested in resisting anything as I surfed the massive waves of pleasure. Once things reached the proverbial climax, and the rooting slowed and then subsided, I released a final moan and rolled over on my back. With a deep sigh, I reveled in the tiny tremors and aftershocks that always visited me at the end.
Turning my head, I glanced at Mike. He was on his back too with his eyes closed and a happy, satisfied smile on his lips. After the passionate assaults my body had endured for days now, I was sure I felt much the same way a lady of the evening must feel after having enjoyed a particularly brisk trade at a Viagra users convention. I was exhausted. Worse, I didn’t feel confident I’d ever walk properly again. I had two eager, virile men in my life, neither of whom it seemed I could keep satisfied for more than an hour at most before they wanted it again.
“Mike Young, you’re a gluttonous animal if you wish to know it,” I said.
Mike chuckled. “I don’t recall hearing any complaints from you.”
“I’m laying my complaint now,” I said. “You’re wearing me out. You might have broken me. I can’t feel my legs.”
“You never had trouble keeping up with me when we were together,” Mike said.
I decided against mentioning there might be a good reason I was having a bit of trouble keeping up now, the other batsman in this sticky wicket who also could never get enough. Shouldn’t I feel guilty about this? Either toward Nick or Mike? Oddly, I didn’t. Even though I knew I didn’t even plan to fight
it with Mike anymore. As long as he didn’t try to pressure me back into a relationship, I was happy enough to shag both him and Nick for as long as it lasted.
“You probably need a coffee,” Mike said.
“Oh, yes, please.”
“I can’t have you weakening now,” Mike said. “We still have the whole day ahead of us.”
“Nooooo, Mike,” I said. “We aren’t staying in bed rooting all bloody day. Not even. I’m only human, flesh and blood, not some bloody blow-up doll existing for your personal pleasure.”
Mike laughed.
“While we’re on the topic,” I said. “What the hell happened to our agreement? Why are we naked, sweaty, and exhausted here in my bed together? You were supposed to crash in the guestroom and respect the rules I’d clearly laid out.”
“I don’t think it’s entirely my fault,” Mike said. “You were the one who got handsy while we were on the couch if I recall correctly. You didn’t even let me finish the third movie before we were kissing and pulling our clothes off. But, to be honest, I’m not entirely sure how we ended up in your bed.”
I sighed. “Argghh, bloody hell. You’re corrupting me.”
Mike laughed, one of those deep belly laughs of his I loved hearing so much.
“I know comparisons between partners is taboo, but I have to say this. Compared to you, Maki Oshiro is frigid.”
“You can stop right there, Mike Young,” I said. “I don’t care to hear any details supporting that rude statement. The last thing I ever care to hear is any details about your trysts with that slovenly, ill-mannered woman who I’d as soon see dead.”
“I think I better make the coffee,” Mike said. “Someone woke up crabby.”
I giggled. “Yep, I could use a cuppa.”
Mike rolled out of bed. I watched his bare, muscular bum until he disappeared into the hallway. Oh, good lord. He had a sexy arse.
Shit. Shit. Shit. I had to ring Nick soon and offer some lame excuse for why I wasn’t available to go with him to North Shore. I felt gutted having to miss out on it. It would have been a nice bit of naughty fun.