by J P Sayle
Brody stilled.
His fingers went lax on the glass when a wave of emotions rushed through him. His hands trembled, forcing him to put the glass down. Sensations he wasn’t used to, or if he thought about it, maybe he’d just avoided, finally allowed the legitimacy of what he’d done to register.
The brush of Nick’s warm hand on his forearm sidetracked him from the sudden feeling of his life being out of control.
Forcing the anxiety to the back of his mind, Brody pretended interest in the conversation flowing around him. Failing miserably, he found, instead, his sensors seemed more attuned to Nick. Glancing away from Nick for the umpteenth time, Brody’s eyes rolled heavenward as he tried to figure out why there was such a difference from Nick’s usual combative belligerent behaviour, which presently was nowhere in sight. This new laid-back, jovial replacement was making Brody nervous.
Unsure what had caused the change, Brody was wary about reaping all these rewards. Especially the wandering hands, which gave him equal measure of pleasure and pain. The pleasure he wanted to argue outweighed the pain. He was sure that his rock-hard cock would beg to differ. No matter how many times Brody readjusted his tormented cock, it couldn’t find enough room in his previous loose-fitting jeans.
He shifted again when he felt Nick rub his firm thigh against his leg. He shot him a “stop it” stare, only to be met by a look of faked innocence.
Trying not to sigh, Brody did his best to listen to the others. His thoughts took him back to the other dilemma he didn’t want to think about: work.
He sucked in a breath, then another when it failed to take the edge off the panic rising in the back of his throat. Gripping his thighs with sweaty palms, Brody glanced at Aaden. The familiar confident, cocky smile aimed at him eased some of his newfound nerves at being jobless for the first time in his life. A life that now meant he’d never have to return to the hell hole that was his previous existence.
Brody didn’t notice the silence descending or the concerned stares he was receiving from around the countertop.
Jerking, Brody blinked slowly, trying to focus on what Aaden had said.
“You all right, Bro?”
Deep grooves etched around Aaden’s thinned lips, and Brody loosened his aching jaw and unclenched his teeth to respond. “Yeah.” He heard the lack of confidence in his own voice, and he steeled his spine.
He winced when he caught a wary expression cross Nick’s face. Brody wanted to allay Nick’s fears that it was nothing to do with him, so he blurted out, “I just realised I’m jobless and what…”
“What the fuck do you mean you’re jobless?”
Brody found Nick inches from his face, shouting. His kitchen stool fired back, clattering across the wooden floor.
Brody gulped at the strength of the anger sparking in Nick’s puce face.
He willed himself to keep hold of his own temper when he saw the hurt under the angry accusation in Nick’s cerulean glare.
“Nick, sit down, please.” He eased Nick back, pulling the abandoned chair closer. He nudged Nick, encouraging him to sit down. When Nick relented, Brody released the breath he had been holding. He offered what he hoped was a self-assured smile, even when he felt anything but confident.
Nick’s gaze pinned him to the spot with a silent demand to explain, and fast.
Brody cursed silently, breaking eye contact first. A feeling of uncertainty spread when he considered how he’d yet again got himself into hot water with Nick.
You didn’t tell him what you were up to, you arse! No, you were too busy trying to get him naked instead of talking.
He ignored the voice of reason and started talking. Brody did his best to keep to the facts and not make matters worse. As he explained about resigning and his plans to work with Aaden, he couldn’t help but notice Nick’s scowl deepen.
When Nick’s pale eyebrows shot up under his blond fringe and didn’t return at the mention of Ellie, Brody forced himself to shut up.
Brody bit his lower lip, uncertain if he should say anything more when the silence lengthened, adding to the tense atmosphere. An atmosphere that suddenly felt far thicker than the cloak of Manannán the locals talked about. That had a tendency to blanket the island, making it impossible to navigate through it. Much like him now fumbling around trying to find a way out of the mess he’d just created.
When Nick remained silent and tilted his body away from him, Brody swept his gaze to Aaden, beseeching him to do something to help. Then he wished he hadn’t when Aaden opened his mouth, making it worse.
“Listen, Nick, I’m not sure what’s got your panties in a twist, but I asked Brody to keep our plans to himself until they were finalised. You know I’m a superstitious bastard. I just wanted everything signed, sealed, and delivered before we said anythi…”
Aaden trailed off when Nick fired a murderous stare in his direction.
He gave Brody a quick shrug, indicating he was on his own. Aaden wished he’d kept his big mouth shut when his redheaded beauty gave him a death stare.
Aaden braced for the angry tirade he knew was coming.
Greg ground out, “Let me get this straight.”
Aaden winced at how fast his cock sprang to life, clearly not getting the memo Aaden was in deep shit and Greg wasn’t up for the games his cock wanted to play. Aaden lowered his hand, aiming for nonchalant. He pushed on his dick willing it to go down.
“I know what you’re doing. I can read your thoughts, or had you forgotten,” Greg hissed.
Laughter erupted around the counter, and a wave of heat flared over Aaden’s cheekbones. He immediately sensed the tension ease with Greg’s pot shot. Though grateful, Aaden still gave Greg a warning glare. He barely stopped himself from huffing in frustration when it was met with an unrepentant eye roll and smug smirk.
Aaden frowned when Greg carried on, seemingly not seeing Aaden’s silent demand to let the subject drop.
“I get why Aaden didn’t say anything about starting a business, Brody. That didn’t mean you couldn’t have mentioned quitting your job. You’ve been here since Friday night. You’ve had three days to slip that little gem into a conversation, but no, nothing, nada, zilch. Why?”
The softly spoken accusation didn’t take away the sting of the blame being laid at his door. The brass light hung above the island revealed the extent of the damage Brody had caused by not having this conversation earlier with Nick. He looked close to tears; his cerulean eyes glittered out of a face filled with stark defeat.
Brody stood, fright stabbing at his chest. His heart demanded he put this right. He stepped closer, lifting Nick’s lifeless hand from the countertop. Brody was shocked by the coldness of his skin. Deep regret filled him as he gently clasped Nick’s hand between his, sliding his rough palms back and forth, creating heat. The overriding sense he’d fucked up big style got worse when a tear escaped and rolled down Nick’s pale cheek.
Brody’s breath hitched inside his chest. Nick’s obvious distress was more than he could bear. Going with his gut instinct, he released Nick’s hand and lifted him bodily off the chair. Paying no mind when Nick squirmed in his arms, he shifted, gripping him tighter before stalking to the door.
A warm glow melted some of the icy dread when Nick’s arms finally wound around him and he burrowed into the hollow of his neck, inhaling deeply.
He fired over his shoulder, “Don’t disturb us for anything.”
Heading out of the kitchen, down the hall, Brody hoped he’d stressed his point enough to both men. Taking the stairs two at a time, Brody felt lust curl in his belly from the press of Nick’s body tightly clasped around his.
Brody pushed open his bedroom door with his shoulder, flicking on the light and kicking the door shut behind him. Uncertain Nick wouldn’t come back to his senses any minute, Brody kept his arms locked around him. He sat on the edge of the bed and positioned Nick’s legs so he was straddling his lap, facing him.
When Nick refused to look at him, Brody let out
an exasperated exhale, praying he hadn’t fucked things up too bad. He took hold of Nick’s bristly chin, raising it so he could look him in the eye. The mixture of transient emotions flickering across Nick’s face left Brody at a complete loss.
Mentally slapping himself upside the head for being a cowardly dick in the first place, he forced himself to speak. “I fucked up. I’m so sorry.” Brody stopped when a hint of a sad smile tugged at Nick’s luscious mouth. “You like me saying that. Well, you’re gonna love what I say next.” Wetting his lips, Brody met Nick’s expectant expression with one of apology. “I made a big mistake with starting this thing between us.”
Brody growled when his head fired back with the solid punch he received to his mouth. The taste of copper flooded his mouth as his lip burst open. The unexpected pain had tears form in his eyes, blurring his vision. The ringing in his ears made it hard to get his mouth to form a coherent sentence.
Brody struggled to shake off his confusion and hold on to the wild cat in his arms.
“I’ll give you a bloodyshittingmistake.” The next thump missed his face by inches, landing on his shoulder when Brody dodged.
“What the fuck!” Brody growled. Jumping up, he deposited Nick in a heap on the bed, stepping back out of harm’s way when a booted foot aimed for his crotch.
“You don’t fucking know.” Nick’s incredulous tone gave Brody pause. Mystified, he scratched his head and tried to recall what he’d said to set Nick off.
He froze. “No, no, no, shit no, you got me wrong. I didn’t mean we’d made a mistake. I meant the way I’d gone about things was a mistake.” Brody didn’t recognise the high-pitched, panicked voice that came out of his mouth. Too freaked out to care when all he wanted to do was get control of the situation. Fuck. He felt he was driving a car with a chocolate handbrake. It was both useless and ineffective, much like his mouth every time he opened it and stupid shit poured out.
Brody stomped away from the bed. Pacing, he yanked on his hair. The pain hardly registered over his thundering pulse and gut-wrenching fear.
Taking several deep breaths, he found the courage to look back at Nick.
He cast his eyes heavenward, thanking his lucky stars Nick had remained where he’d left him and hadn’t run for the door. Though the furious expression and clenched fists gripping his duvet cover meant he wasn’t out of the woods yet.
Thrusting his trembling hands into his jean pockets, Brody forced words past the tightness in his throat. “I don’t know why I keep fucking things up so badly. Seriously, this is the hardest thing I’ve ever done.” Brody gave a big sigh of defeat when Nick’s face shuttered right before his eyes. “I don’t mean that in a derogatory or demeaning way. It’s just the truth. I think I want this so bad that I can’t seem to find any solid ground.” Licking his lips, Brody swallowed. Crouching down in front of Nick, he took a chance he wouldn’t try and sock him one again.
Looking earnest, he rushed on when Nick didn’t move. “Yesterday felt like we had this in the bag, you know. We talked about our feelings, and then the universe decided to play another trick on us.”
Sensing Nick might be a bit more agreeable to his touch. Brody carefully tugged on Nick’s fisted hands, cupping them gently when he begrudgingly released the duvet.
Brody hissed at the dark bruise forming on the knuckles of Nick’s left hand. Offering a look of regret, Brody lifted Nick’s bruised hand and laid a soft kiss on the damaged skin. Brody let his mouth linger, tasting a hint of Nick’s body wash.
A low moan and the telltale sheen of unshed tears in Nick’s eyes cut Brody off at the knees. Emotions rode Brody hard enough to make him fight to keep his breathing even under the onslaught.
Sitting gingerly back on his heels, Brody whispered, “Please, oh, God, don’t cry. Please, I couldn’t stand it if you cried. I am sorry. Really I am. I never meant to hurt you. I love you. No, no, no…” Air exploded out of Brody’s lungs while he struggled to keep upright when Nick tackled him. His arms flailed, but he couldn’t keep his balance.
They crashed to the floor with an almighty thud in a heap of arms and legs. Pain stole his breath as it radiated through his body. Brody had no chance to drag in a breath to curse. Instead he found his mouth devoured in a hot, wet kiss.
Breathing was overrated, so Brody’s mind simply shut down. Any thoughts of talking were lost under the attack of Nick’s delicious mouth and wandering hands.
Pain sliced through the layer of desire when Nick bit his split lip, flooding his mouth with an unwelcome taste of coppery blood. Shifting his head back and gasping, Brody swiped at his sticky mouth.
“Sorry.” Nick panted breathlessly.
“Hey, you got nothing to be sorry about. If I’d explained myself better, then you wouldn’t have wanted to kick my arse.” Brody’s chuckle turned to a groan when he shifted to stretch out his legs and get comfortable. The feel of Nick’s hard length pressing against his groin was more than his excited cock could take. Clasping Nick’s hips, Brody’s knuckles whitened when he fought the urge to dive right back into the deep, drugging kisses Nick’s luscious mouth was offering.
He chanted repeatedly to himself, talk first, talk first. Brody willed his body to behave. He gave a mournful sigh when it paid no attention to him as Nick wriggled his bum against his groin. Exasperated, Brody shifted Nick onto his thighs and created a gap between them, ignoring the raised blond brow questioning his actions.
Brody closed his eyes to prevent Nick from tempting him further and worked on figuring out what he wanted to say. The whole time he tried to get it into his thick skull that he needed to work on building a relationship and not just jump straight into sex first. It would seem that was harder—no pun intended—than expected.
Working on not creating any more misunderstanding, Brody asked, “Can you hear me out, Nick, before you say anything? It’s important, okay?”
He got a firmer hold as he felt the sudden tension in Nick’s body. Nick offered a small nod.
“I want to try dating.”
Brody’s anxiety levels shot through the roof at the flabbergasted expression on Nick’s face. He forced himself to continue. “We’ve known each other for years, but we’ve always been at each other’s throats. And I think with Christina’s shit, it’s kinda messed things up for us. I know I love you, and I think you love me, but I don’t think you like me or trust me.” Brody held up his hand when Nick opened his mouth, his cerulean eyes looking angrier by the second. Nick acquiesced begrudgingly, his lips whitening as they pursed.
Brody rushed on nervously. “I’m not trying to make you mad. If you’re honest with yourself, this thing between us has so much crap blocking the way. It would be fucking easier to find our way out of one of those complicated mazes than navigating our way through all the shit we’ve got going on between us. So I propose we date, get to know each other before we jump into bed.”
Brody barely resisted pumping his fist in the air at the instant look of regret Nick threw at him when he mentioned no sex.
“I’ll agree… but only if we set a deadline for when the dating ends and we get to the good stuff.” At the seriousness in Nick’s tone, Brody chewed his lip.
“All right. How long were you thinking?”
“A day.” Nick giggled.
“What!”
“Okay, I was kidding. Sort off.”
Brody’s lips twitched at small shrug Nick.
“What about a fortnight? I think two weeks of going on dates will give us the chance to really get to know one another and work on ‘the being friends first part.’” As he heard the way Nick stressed the friends first, the anxiety gripping Brody’s chest eased. That was until he noticed a devilish gleam light Nick’s eyes. Brody’s teeth ground together when a feeling that the other shoe was about to drop washed over him.
Nick rose gracefully, sidestepping Brody’s legs. Brody watched him closely to see if he could figure out what Nick was up to.
“I think there is one more th
ing we need to discuss before we start this dating lark.”
Brody froze. His tongue glued itself to the roof of his mouth when Nick lifted his arms, pulled his loose T-shirt off, and dropped it to the floor. He continued as if he was talking about the weather, stripping down to the two gorgeous scraps of pink silk and lace.
The overhead ceiling lights showed off every magnificent inch of Nick’s body. A low growl rumbled up his chest. Brody fought the violent compulsion to pounce and touch all the gloriousness displayed before him. Creamy smooth skin and toned muscles perfectly complemented the sexy underwear. The lacy top fitted like a second skin, showing a glimpse of Nick’s rosebud nipples. The erotic sight of peekaboo wasn’t only confined to the top. If he hadn’t noticed how strained the pretty pink panties were trying to contain the hard flesh beneath, the darker patch on the silk was evidence enough of Nick’s arousal.
Brody licked his lips, his body tilting forward. He stilled when Nick shook his head and stepped back.
“Uh, nope, you don’t. Dating, remember.” Nick’s big arse grin of satisfaction had him sink back, defeated.
“Your rules, Brody.” Nick chuckled, “Let’s see if you can stick to them. But I want you to know… This is the real me. I need you to understand the manties is not a fad for me. I wear them every day, and some days I wear other stuff too under my clothes, to make me feel sexy.”
Brody groaned as he saw Nick’s hand slid down his lace-covered chest. “I love it, all of it. I might not have considered it would be something I’d like before you. But fuck, Nick, you dressed like that, touching yourself, I think I could come untouched,” Brody hissed mindlessly.
His chest heaved when Nick took him at his word and let his hands tease over his lace-and-satin covered skin. The damp patch spread before his eyes when Nick stroked himself through the silk. A low moan was followed by a long needy whimper. Brody strained to sit still and do no more than watch the sexy show before him. His cock pulsed inside his trousers, desperate to participate.