Fit for the Job (20 page)

Jay clenched around his cock, making Bodie inhale sharply. “God,” Jay said. “Your voice is gonna make me come.”

Bodie grinned. “You like my voice?”

“I do when you’re fucking me,” he said. “So be quiet. I don’t want to come yet.”

Bodie thrust into him a tad faster. “Afraid of losing the challenge?”

Jay’s eyes squeezed shut as he moaned. “No fair,” he whispered. “But God, don’t stop.”

Jay’s voice was having its way with Bodie’s body as well, and he felt the tingles of orgasm threatening.
No way. I’m not coming before him.
He hooked Jay’s other leg and held his knees up, then fell down onto him, his cock sliding deep. A high-pitched sound left Jay’s lips. “What’s the matter?” Bodie asked as he began hitting him with short, hard strokes.

“Stop talking,” Jay whispered, then groaned. “Ah, fuck it, keep talking.”

But Bodie suddenly found himself devoid of naughty replies, Jay’s increased arousal making his head spin and his balls tighten.
Damn. Maybe I
am
gonna lose it before him.
It was crazy. He never lost control this fast, even when a body was new to him. But the combination of fucking Jay and watching his face had him teetering on the edge already, and try as he might, he couldn’t decelerate his impending climax.

It was now or never, so he eased back onto his thighs and gripped Jay’s cock, stroking him in time with his thrusts as he fucked him.

“Oh damn,” Jay said. “Oh...damn...”

“Let me feel you come,” Bodie huffed out.

“Not yet,” Jay said, his voice pleading.

“Yes.” Bodie doubled his strokes on Jay’s cock as he pounded harder into his ass. “Yes, Jay.
Now
.”

Jay’s cock gushed, and it was a good thing, because Bodie was only a hair’s breadth behind him. As he milked Jay, his own orgasm crashed down, flooding the condom as he gave a final thrust, legs trembling.

The climax was so intense he couldn’t even cry out, rendered silent as it shot through him, spilling out his cock, pulsing through his ass, making his toes curl. He thought his eyes might have crossed. Then finally he collapsed, tumbling onto Jay, breathless.

“Holy shit,” Jay whispered, his heart pounding against Bodie’s chest.

“Yeah,” Bodie said. “I know.” He remained there until he caught his breath, then pushed himself up on his arms, looking down at Jay. “Who are you again?”

Jay laughed, wiping sweat from his brow. “Fitness guy. Remember?”

“Ah, right.” Bodie rolled over beside him. “You’re the guy I’m starting to like.”

“But not finished yet. Right?”

Bodie reached over and grabbed Jay around the waist, tugging him in close. “Not yet,” he said. “Not by a long shot.”

Chapter Nine

Jay sat alone in the kitchen of the guest house, sipping the glass of wine he’d left there, enjoying the night breeze coming through the open window. Bodie was gone. They’d both agreed it would be wiser for him to sleep back in the main house tonight, since everyone would be up bright and early for the canoeing trip. And Jay knew he should get his own ass to bed as well. But he couldn’t sleep yet. No fucking way, not after that sex.

He smiled, relishing the memory of it. Relishing even the soreness in his ass. And he couldn’t stop thinking about the way Bodie looked at him before he left, as they stood at the door, after a final kiss. Jay had never been one to fool himself into seeing things that weren’t there. But still...that lingering gaze. There was something raw and wistful in Bodie’s eyes, like just leaving Jay for the night was difficult.

Jay knew Bodie liked him, that much was obvious. But Bodie was so damn hot, Jay felt like he was definitely getting the better deal. Because of that, he hadn’t expected that Bodie would end up...
liking
him. Not seriously liking him.

Jay knew his own weaknesses—he’d always had trouble with casual sex. Not because he got too emotionally involved. In fact the times he’d done it, when he was lonely and just needed another body, he’d ended up wanting to get as far away from the person as possible afterward. But that wasn’t exactly a satisfying feeling; it wasn’t the kind of sex he preferred.

Bodie had struck him as the type that
would
prefer that kind of sex, casual and dispassionate. But Bodie didn’t seem dispassionate about Jay, and that changed things. Jay probably could have kept his heart in check if Bodie made clear this was nothing special. But the idea that Bodie might be falling for him...Jay got a goofy grin just thinking about it.
Yeah, I’m sure as shit gonna get my heart broken
this
time.

Maybe this was Jay’s punishment for breaking other people’s hearts. He’d never meant to, but he had, several times, before and after he dated Will, his ex. In fact, that was probably
why
he agreed to get serious with Will, to prove to himself he could want something enough to forsake all others. He’d wanted to feel wowed, consumed by passion, so he’d convinced himself that he was. But it fizzled quickly, like most of the others. And he’d had enough choices presented to him to be able to compare and contrast.

It wasn’t that he’d been promiscuous exactly. But when that transition happened, and he went from being just Jay to being
Jay from the gym
, his dance card was suddenly fuller than it had ever been. It wasn’t like he had the popularity of Eben Wright, or someone like that. But this was Rhode Island. Jay had become a rather big fish in a very small pond, and suddenly found himself surrounded by people who wanted to get their hooks in him. Luckily he never let it go to his head; he saw it for what it was. But the vast amount of romantic options available to him allowed him to test the waters, and what he discovered was depressing; there was nothing out there that bowled him over, made his heart dance, left him breathless and aching for more.

But now there was Bodie. Bodie didn’t just bowl him over. Jay felt like he’d been run down by a tank. He rubbed his chin, which was raw and sore from Bodie’s stubble.
And I’m still feeling the tread marks from that tank.

He finished his wine, but knew sleep was still a ways away, so decided to go for a walk outside, take in the night air.

Once outside, he crossed around behind the house, wandering out into the vast field of land out back. It was a surreal experience, in the dark of night with the river glimmering off to the left beyond the fence. Night bugs creaked, a summer breeze carrying the scent of roses. He looked up at the map of stars in the sky. The vast speckling of the cosmos didn’t make him feel small exactly, but it did make him ponder his existence. Men and women wandered through life, thinking they were the masters of their own destiny. But life shifted the tracks when you least expected it, and here he was, standing alone in the night on a property rented by Eben Wright. Who would have thought?

But it wasn’t the famous movie star who’d bowled him over. It was the movie star’s cousin, a minion in his employ. Jay was sure many people would have been envious of him because of the position he currently held. His family had never been so reverent of Jay’s success as they were now, even though he saw this job as a side road, a tangent off what he truly wanted in his career, which was to have his own gym. Working for Eben Wright was not the pinnacle of his life.

People treated celebrities like gods. But if anything had struck Jay since his indoctrination into the Wright family, it was that they were unexpectedly down to earth. Sure, their drama was high, their quagmires far more complicated than most families. But the stars in the sky didn’t look any different simply because they shone on the house Eben Wright inhabited.

Jay moved to the fountain and sat down on the ledge, facing the house. Amber lights brightened several windows along the back, but most were dark. His eye was drawn to movement in one of those lighted windows on the top floor. He felt like a voyeur suddenly, and was about to turn his eyes away from the house, when he spotted what looked like someone stumbling and swaying.

Hopping off the fountain, Jay broke into a slow jog toward the house. As he grew closer, he made out the distinct figure of Eben through the top floor window, wearing a white button down shirt. The front of his shirt, below his chest was stained a deep red.
What the fuck. Is that blood?

Eben took a step, then stumbled against the window, hard enough that Jay could hear the impact as his palms slapped on the panes of glass. Sliding down it, Eben fell, disappearing from sight.

Jay ran in a full sprint across the lawn, rounding the house, slowing his steps only when he reached the side door. He rapped hard. When no one answered, he knocked again. He was about to ring the bell when Tate appeared, frowning out at him.

Tate opened the door. “What’s the matter?”

“Where’s Eben?” Jay asked, trying to catch his breath.

“I heard him come in about an hour ago. He and Sassy were screaming at each other for a while, but she’s gone back to her room, so I assume he’s retired to his.”

“I saw him through the window.” Jay tried to step inside but Tate stopped him with a hand to his chest.

“I just told you, Eben’s in his room. You’re not allowed up there,” Tate said, squaring his shoulders.

“Tate, I think he was bleeding.”

Tate hesitated only a second, then turned and sprinted off inside the house, leaving the door open.

Jay didn’t wait for an invitation, but followed after, trailing behind Tate as he rushed up the staircase.

When they reached the top, Jay followed as Tate sprinted down the corridor, past Sassy’s room. At the end, the hallway turned, and Jay saw Tate standing before a closed door, knocking. “Eben?” Tate shouted.

A moan sounded from behind the closed door.

Tate tried the knob, and the door pushed open. He darted inside. “Eben!”

Jay stepped into the room after him, and immediately saw Eben, sprawled on the floor next to a huge bed, lying on his back. The front of his shirt was soaked in blood.

Tate knelt down beside him, slapping Eben’s face. “Eben,” he said.

Jay ran over and stood beside Tate. Eben opened his eyes, blinking.

“What happened, Eben?” Tate asked.

Eben laughed. “What happened? I got drunk,” he slurred.

Tate’s stiff shoulders relaxed a bit, and he quickly unbuttoned Eben’s shirt. He sighed, and looked at Jay. “There’s no wound.”

Eben sat up, swaying a bit as he did. He looked at Tate, then looked down at his open shirt, wiping his hands on it. “Oh. We ran late today, so I didn’t change before coming home.” He climbed to his feet, swaying, and Tate caught his arm, steadying him.

Eben’s gaze landed on Jay, and he let out a drunken laugh. “Sorry, guys,” he said. He glanced down at his shirt. “Oops! Spoiler alert! I get killed at the end of the movie.” Eben fell into giggles and slid to the floor again, rolling over onto his side.

Jay let out a long breath of air. “Fake blood.”

“Damn,” Tate said. “Eben, you scared the shit out of me.”

“I’m sssorry.” Eben sat up, leaning against the bed. “I’m sorry. For everything. For everyone.”

Tate leaned over and removed Eben’s shirt, tugging it off his arms. “I’ll get this washed for you,” he said. He gripped Eben’s arm. “Let’s get you into bed.”

“No!” Eben pushed Tate’s arm away. “I have to bring that shirt back, just leave it. And I don’t want to go to bed. I have tomorrow off.” He tried to stand, then thought better of it and plunked back on the floor. He pointed to Jay. “I told them. I told them, you ffffuckers need to give me tomorrow off. It’sss...my daughter’s birthday. I want to wish her...hug her before she leaves.”

“Are you sure you don’t want me to put you in bed?” Tate asked. “You don’t want to sleep on the floor, buddy.”

Eben pointed at Tate. “Thisss is my house. My life. If I want to drink ’til I throw up, it’ssss my...my...life.”

Tate stepped back and raised his hands. “All right. But I’m gonna check on you in a while.”

“I’ll fire you if you do,” Eben said. “Fuck off.”

Tate rolled his eyes as he passed Jay. “Come on. Leave him be.”

“Wait,” Eben called. “I want Jay to sstay for a minute.”

Tate turned back to Eben. “You want Jay to stay?”

Eben nodded slowly, looking like one of those bobble head dashboard dolls. “Gotta talk to him about Ssssassy.”

Tate looked at Jay. “Don’t let him drink any more, okay?”

Jay nodded, and Tate left the bedroom, closing the door.

“Jay!” Eben shouted. “Bring me that whiskey on the dresser, will you?”

Oh, great.
Jay hesitated a moment, glancing at the dresser, and the whiskey bottle that sat there, more than half empty.

“Jayyyyy,” Eben said. “Don’t you start, too. I’ve been working my ass off, and I’m a grown man. I can...” He belched. “I can drink if I want to.”

Jay sighed and walked to the dresser, grabbing the bottle. He wandered over and handed it to Eben, then sat down beside him, leaning against the bed. Smears of fake blood stained Eben’s bare chest like war paint. “How you doing, Eben?”

Eben turned his head and blinked those heavily lashed eyes, looking like Sassy. “Everybody hates me,” he said.

Jay smiled. “That’s not true. I don’t hate you.”

“Ah.” Eben took a pull off the whiskey bottle. “Wait ‘til you get to know me. You will. I’m a bastard.” He took another sip, coughing against his arm.

Jay said nothing. Just minutes ago he’d been pondering the strange, sudden changes life could hurl at a person. Now he was sitting next to a drunken, shirtless Eben Wright, and had no idea what to do about it.

“Sassy’s mad at me ’cause I’m drunk,” Eben said. “And I’m drunk because Sassy’s mad at me.” He wheezed out a laugh and looked at Jay. “That’s kind of funny, don’t you think?”

“She’ll get over it,” Jay said, unable to think of anything else.

Eben shook his head, and his face crumpled.

Oh shit. Don’t cry. Please don’t fucking cry.

Gasping, Eben let out a howl.

Fucking hell.

“I didn’t mean it,” he said between sobs. “The things she heard me say. How could I mean it? I love that girllll!”