Dangerous (21 page)

When he could hear himself think over the rush in his ears, he gently pulled out, smiling with satisfaction as he dragged his t-shirt off over his head and used it as a towel to wipe the cheeks now covered in his come, as well as those hot Maori tats. “How’re you doing in the dark, sexy?”

Still on all fours, Jeremy turned his head and sent Owen a shaky smile. “Ready to see my surprise. As soon as I can move my legs again.”

Owen bent down to kiss his hip then pushed himself to his feet, helping Jeremy up and kissing him gently on the lips. “You can lean on me.”

“Trust me, I plan to.”

When he looked over at the cabin he’d parked their rental car next to, Owen finally got his first clear-headed glimpse at what he’d only seen online—and cringed. The picture had been an evil lie. He’d thought they were going to a beautiful lodge with two stories, a deck with an outdoor kitchen—the works.

Reality was
nothing
like the picture. It was the set of one of those campground horror movies, where the first people to have sex got axed. Luckily they’d nipped that myth in the bud before the sunset.

Fuck.

Take him to some romantic getaway where none of our relatives or his friends from the convention can get ahold of him,
his cousin Brady had suggested. Of course, that was during the Great Rumming of 2015, when they’d both drunk too much and Brady had spouted all kinds of relationship advice he was in no way qualified to give.

Owen had rolled his eyes through most of it, but when he woke up with a mild headache the next morning, he couldn’t get Brady’s words out of his head.

You’re a Finn. We go all in or not at all.

That was how Owen had always tried to live. If he wanted something, he went after it. When he’d made up his mind that he wanted Jeremy, he’d knocked over every obstacle Jeremy threw in his path and ignored every good reason why they shouldn’t be together, to get him.

Of course, communication had never been one of his talents, and his actions didn’t always go over well with the man he loved.

He still remembered showing up late at the lake house with a
U-Haul
full of his things and realizing that Jeremy had thought they were over. He’d had no idea that Owen loved him, because Owen hadn’t bothered to say out loud what seemed so fucking obvious. What he thought Jeremy should’ve already known.

It still wasn’t easy for Owen to talk about feelings that weren’t lust and love. About needs that weren’t the basics like sex and hunger. Or sleep and sex. But he’d been trying…until he’d started seeing signs that their relationship was in trouble.

Owen tightened his arm reflexively around Jeremy’s waist. He couldn’t lose him. He refused to let it happen. He wasn’t going to let some coffee table book photographer swoop in and steal his happiness.

Jeremy was his. And Brady was right, Owen had wanted to propose the second his shamrock lamp found its new home in the guest room instead of the trash. Even before that, if he was honest with himself.

When he’d thought about it, Brady’s suggestion had seemed like the perfect solution. A getaway. Just the two of them with no interruptions for two weeks. No houseguest who wouldn’t leave. No wedding to plan for Stephen and Tasha or baby to shop for. No conventions, and no phone calls from other men that Jeremy had to take outside. Not even Badass, who was just too damn cute not to be an attention-stealer.

He could shout his love from the damn rooftops, and he would, but before he slapped a bumper sticker on their truck that showed his true colors to the world, he had to make sure Jeremy was tied down. In every possible sense.

So he’d scheduled his vacation, spent the next few days relegating his duties at the construction company and then packed their bags. He hadn’t
communicated
to Jeremy where they were going, and he’d hidden his phone. He’d wanted the cabin to be a romantic surprise.

Well, he’d gotten the surprise part right anyway.

Sighing, Owen released Jeremy and reached up to remove his blindfold. “Surprise.”

He watched closely as Jeremy blinked, getting used to the sunlight, and knew the moment his eyes finally landed on the cabin. “Wow.”

Fuck, he
sucked
at romance. “We don’t have to stay…”

“No,” Jeremy soothed, reaching down to pull his jeans up over his ass. “It isn’t that bad at all. It has character.”

Owen stared at him and Jeremy chuckled. “Okay it looks like a shithole, but it might be better inside. How did you find this place?”

“Online. I should have checked for reviews.” Owen followed him up the rickety steps to the faded gray cabin. He should also have been suspicious when the deposit was so affordable. “They said the key would be under the—”

“It’s open,” Jeremy said as he disappeared inside.

“Son of a bitch.” Owen looked for the welcome mat that was supposed to have his receipt and a spare key. Nothing but rotting wood. “Great.”

“Hey, there’s running water.”

Jeremy’s call from inside the cabin pulled him in against his will. He went directly to the light switched and flipped it up. Thank God. “We’ve got electricity too.”

Strong arms wrapped around his waist and he tilted his head so Jeremy could kiss his neck. “You might not believe me, but I love this surprise, Owen. Two weeks of no distractions? Just you and me with nothing to do but each other? Sounds like heaven to me.”

Owen felt a grumpy growl forming in his chest. Apparently, Heaven was a one-room cabin with a large copper bathtub…and no furniture.

Surprise.

Jeremy

Jeremy knew Owen was miserable, but he wasn’t sure what to do about it. From what he’d said before he went outside to “take a look around,” they were a half hour away from a super Walmart and a Loews, but he hadn’t seen a single hotel. He’d picked this place in the middle of nowhere, and now he was definitely regretting it.

It did have a
The Hills Have Eyes
kind of vibe to it, but Jeremy wasn’t too focused on that. He was still recovering from Owen’s “Welcome to our vacation” sex and enjoying the fact that he’d put this together in the first place.

Owen fucking Finn, the gorgeous, insatiable couch potato who believed there was no place like home, had planned a two-week vacation. Their first trip as a couple, and close enough to their one year anniversary to be called romantic.

“I’ll be damned,” Jeremy huffed out, smiling as he cleaned up dinner.

According to Owen, the fridge was supposed to be stocked—and it was. With frozen dinners and little else. When they’d made that discovery, they’d also seen a note stuck to the freezer that made Owen swear softly. “We’re in the right place, damn it. This says, ‘We hope you enjoy your stay, Owen and…Jenny.’” They’d chuckled, popped two Hungry Man’s in the oven and then eaten on the floor in silence.

Jeremy glanced over at the focal point of the room. That was one giant bathtub. Old fashioned, saloon-style and sturdy. He had a feeling it was just what the doctor ordered to improve Owen’s mood. He looked for something to wipe it down and got to work.

By the time Owen had come back in, the scalding-hot water was filling the tub and Jeremy had everything ready.

“I didn’t see anyone creeping around with bloody machetes, but there’s a workshop in the back,” Owen started as soon as he came in. “A sawhorse and—what are you doing?”

He let Owen’s gaze linger over his naked body before turning to bend over and shut off the water. “I think we could both use a bath, don’t you? If you take off your clothes and join me, I might even scrub your back.”

Owen eyed him suspiciously. “Are you sure it’s—”

“And fuck you.”

“I’m in.” Owen kicked off his boots, and shucked his jeans with such swift expertise that Jeremy had to laugh.

“You
are
a sex addict.”

Owen was in front of him, pulling him closer with firm hands on his hips before he could finish his sentence. “That’s not a nice thing to say,
Jenny
.”

“Payback is a bitch, Finn. Get in the tub.”

Jeremy studied the man who’d changed his life a year ago, the man who’d been his straight best friend for two decades before deciding he wanted to see how the other half lived.

Owen’s dark blond hair, bleached golden by the sun from his day job, was a little longer than it had been the first time Jeremy had run his fingers through it, and the lines around his crystal blue eyes were a little deeper lately—from whatever he’d had on his mind. But he was still the sexiest man in any room. Or plane.

Jeremy shook his head ruefully. He wasn’t exaggerating about that stewardess. She’s been on Owen since takeoff, so tenacious he wouldn’t be surprised if she’d slipped her phone number into his man’s pocket, and Owen hadn’t told him because he didn’t think it mattered.

It took some getting used to, being in a relationship with someone who seemed to emit sexual pheromones. If Owen hadn’t made sure the both of them went to bed too exhausted to move every night for the last year, Jeremy would be insecure.

But he wasn’t. Owen told him he loved him every day and rarely gave him room to doubt that he was happy. Until recently.

Shaking off his worry, Jeremy followed Owen into the bathtub and they splashed and swore, squeaking around in the tub and laughing together until they found the right fit.

Reaching for his soap on the chair he’d pushed beside the tub, he handed it to Owen before leaning back on his side of the curved copper. “All the comforts of home.”

Owen snorted. “I’m not sure where you’ve been living, Porter, but I’ll admit, any tub that can fit two men over six feet tall is worthy of praise.”

“We should get one just like it,” Jeremy said casually. “Think of the possibilities.”

Blue eyes darkened with interest and arousal. “Believe me, I’m thinking.”

“Give me that.” Jeremy took the soap and lathered his hands, washing himself and trying to ignore Owen’s long, lean legs resting over his.

Wash first, then fun.
“Did you say Tanaka took Brady home the other night?”

“He did. When Brady called me back the next morning he said Ken had hired him to help with a job. He sounded distracted, but it’s more likely he was hung over. The Finn giant put away most of the rum in the bar.”

Frowning, Jeremy asked, “Do you think he’s okay? Should we feel like shit?”

“He’s fine,” Owen said, shaking his head. “I promise you, he was ready for the change.”

Jeremy knew some of the guilt was his own baggage, hating the idea that anyone would feel unwanted in his home after what his parents had done to him. But Brady was more fragile than the other Finns knew. He couldn’t sleep. He could never relax unless he was doing something for someone else—almost to a penance level. He was running from some inner demons, and he’d managed to put a few of them to rest in their guestroom.

Owen was watching him. “You know I didn’t kick him out. I love that guy and he fixed our roof. But you have to admit the last few days have been nice. Just the two of us again.”

Jeremy smiled. “You’re just happy to get your high score back.”

“I’m happy because our Marine has gone without for at least eight months and Tanaka clearly has a hardcore case of lust. Hopefully before the job is done, he’ll tie my cousin down and help him release all that pent up sexual energy.”

“Even drunk, I can’t see Brady agreeing to that.” Brady couldn’t have made himself clearer every time the topic came up. Kink was
not
his thing.

But then, Jeremy had thought the same thing. Before Owen.

Jeremy dropped his hands to Owen’s legs, caressing them beneath the water. “Feeling better?”

Owen let his head fall back with a groan and slid down the side of the tub just enough to dip his hair into the warm water. He raised back up and swiped away the rivulets running down his face. “God, that’s good. But no. I have crashed and burned in the planning-trips department. Fuck vacations. As soon as you stop doing that I’m going to dig my phone out of hiding and change our flight. We’ll get home, order a pizza, play a little Swords…and do what comes naturally.”

His words didn’t match his tone. He sounded defeated. It wasn’t like Owen at all. Easygoing and full-steam-ahead—that was Owen. Jeremy didn’t like how worried that made him. What the hell was going on with his Finn?

Jeremy gripped Owen’s thighs and pulled him onto his lap, heedless of the splashing water. “No.”

“Wha—Jeremy what are you doing?”

“We’re not going anywhere. Not for the next two weeks.”

Owen looked at him as if he’d lost his mind. “Babe, look around. No bed, no couch, no radio or television. All we have here are frozen dinners, a tub and a cabin that could fall down around us at any moment. It’s my fault, and I’ll accept the blame, but those are the facts. Why in God’s name would we want to stay?”

Jeremy reached up and dragged Owen’s head down for a passionate kiss without answering. Their moans of desire mingled as they ate at each other’s mouths, tongues dueling and tangling, teeth scraping lips and biting hungrily.

Sliding his large hand around Owen’s erection, Jeremy stroked it the way he knew Owen could never resist. He loved the sounds he was making. Loved how quickly he could drive him wild.

Owen turned his head, panting. “Fuck, Jeremy. You know I can’t think when you do that.”

He was counting on it. “I want you on your knees, hands on the edge of the tub,” he ordered roughly. “You don’t have to think at all. Just do it for me.”

Owen shuddered and lifted himself off Jeremy’s lap, splashing more water onto the floor as he turned and positioned himself.

Jeremy got to his knees behind him. “That’s exactly what I wanted.”

He reached for the bottle of lube they’d brought with them and opened the cap, taking his time. He drizzled some on his erection and let more drip between the cheeks of Owen’s ass.

“I remember the first time I got inside you,” he murmured. “You were begging me, ordering me to take you, despite your virgin ass. I was so fucking turned on. And so worried I’d hurt you.”