Take What You Want (25 page)

Chase followed the scents of
fresh brewed coffee and toast down the hall and into the kitchen.
Alex was washing dishes in the sink with his back to him. He looked
across the room and saw the round kitchen table in the bump-out area
of the room. Sun bathed the entire room; especially in this section.

Alex had set a bowl of fresh
cut fruit and a plate with several toasted English muffins in front
of an empty chair. Different flavored jams and butter were
positioned near the plate. Again, Chase smiled and ran his palm over
his face.

Yep, Alex could
definitely play host at a B & B.

“
Wow!
You look much better,” Alex said. He had turned to face Chase
and was drying his hands on a towel.

“
I
feel better,” Chase said. Why couldn't he erase the stupid
smile from his face?

“
I
also like the way you look wearing my clothes,” Alex said. He,
too, had a ridiculously silly grin curling his lips.

“
What's
all this?” Chase asked, pointing at the table.

“
It's
your breakfast,” Alex said. “I would've made you eggs,
but I don't think your stomach is ready for that.”

Chase rubbed at his belly.
“I'm definitely not ready for eggs.”

“
Go
ahead and sit down,” Alex said. “I'll get the coffee.”

Chase pulled the chair out
in front of the fruit bowl and sat down. A moment later, Alex was
there to fill the mug sitting beside the plate with the toasted
English muffins and then he sat down beside Chase.

“
Why
are you being so nice to me?” Chase asked.

Because
I think I love you.
Christ!
The words were right there on the tip of Alex's tongue, but he
couldn't say them. It was way too soon to be that honest with what
he felt was happening between them. Revealing that piece of himself
to Chase now could quite possibly scare Chase off for good and he
wouldn't risk it. He'd wait until he knew for sure what the hell he
was feeling before he said a damn thing to jeopardize what he had
with Chase.

“
I
made you breakfast,” Alex said. “That doesn't exactly
make me a candidate for sainthood.”

“
You,
a saint?” Chase laughed at that. “That'll never happen.”

Alex leaned close to Chase
and messed up his damp hair. “It's good to see you smiling
again. Now, eat something.”

Chase nodded and reached for
half of a muffin and lightly spread raspberry jam on it “Did
your friends make their plane on time?” he asked.

“
Barely,”
Alex said, and shook his head. “Wheland asked me to say
good-bye to you for them.”

“
I'm
sorry I missed them leaving,” Chase said. He took another bite
of his muffin and washed it down with his coffee. “What else
did I miss?”

“
What
do you mean?” Alex asked.

“
Did
I do anything to embarrass myself – besides passing out and
puking?”

“
You
don't remember the sex show?” Alex asked, keeping his
expression as serious as possible.

Chase nearly choked on his
food. “Please tell me I – or we, didn't do that!”

“
I'm
busting your chops, Middleton.”

Chase massaged his forehead.
“I can remember a few things before the tequila annihilated
me.”

“
Like
what?”

“
Your
friends are cool,” Chase said. He spread more jam over another
English muffin half and bit into it. “It was nice to feel free
to be myself around them.”

The smile slowly faded from
Alex's face. He placed his hand on Chase's thigh and squeezed the
firm muscle beneath the shorts. “You can always be yourself
around me or my friends, Chase.”

“
Your
friends have a different level of tolerance than mine,” Chase
said. “They've also been exposed to a lot more; things my
friends will never know exist,” Chase said.

“
That's
probably true,” Alex said.

Chase
set his hand on top of Alex's and laced their fingers together. His
eyes stared at their clasped hands on his thigh. “It felt
good,” Chase said, “To be able to … be with you,
and not worry so much about what anyone thought. I wish I could have
that in my life.”

Alex
slid his chair closer to Chase. “It doesn't happen overnight,
but it
can
happen, Chase. Depends on how badly you want it, and how willing you
are to ignore the bullshit people will want to throw at you.”

“
You're
really close to the guys in your band, but you seem more connected to
Wheland,” Chase said.

“
They
may not be blood relatives, but my band mates are family,” Alex
said. “And, Wheland and I go so far back, he really does feel
like a brother.”

“
You're
lucky to have them,” Chase said.

Alex
squeezed Chase's hand. “It means a lot they got to meet you,”
he said.

Chase's gaze was still
focused on their combined hands. He slowly digested Alex's words,
then his eyes lifted to Alex's. Was it possible Alex had feelings
for him, like he had for Alex? A tiny bit of emotion began to
glisten in corner of his eyes. He blinked several times to tamp it
down, but it didn't work. There were things he needed to say, but he
was still too chicken shit to admit any of it out loud. If Alex was
just being a nice guy and nothing more, he'd die of embarrassment if
he admitted to what was growing inside him.

Chase drew in a deep breath
and opened his mouth, wanting to make one more attempt to say what he
wanted Alex to know, but Alex cut him off by pressing his mouth to
him. One quick flick of Alex's tongue against Chase's lower lip and
every thought in Chase's head disappeared. The one thing his brain
recognized was the undeniable heat he felt whenever Alex kissed or
touched him.

Alex was the first to pull
back; taking in a deep gulp of air. “There's something you
should know,” he said.

Chase's shoulders slouched.
“I don't like the sound of that.”

“
I
think your friend Jayson saw us on the lounge chair earlier,”
Alex said.

“
We
weren't doing anything, right?”

“
Other
than lying close together, no, we weren't,” Alex said. “But,
I had my arm around your waist and, like I said, we were …
close; almost cuddling. Jayson might ask questions. That's all I'm
saying. I wanted you to be fair-warned.”

Chase sat silent. He
finished eating the muffin and even some of the fruit Alex had cut up
for him. Alex ate a few pieces, too, using his fingers, then stopped
and looked at Chase.

“
I
also need to ask you something,” Alex said.

Chase nodded for Alex to
continue and set his fork beside his plate.

“
How
was Jayson able to drive his truck onto the property?” Alex
asked. “Does he have the security code?”

Chase
cursed under his breath, then nodded. “I'll talk to him about
that,” Chase said. “He's used the code in the past to
come see me, but he knows better than to use it when someone is
staying in the main house.”

“
I'd
rather no one have access to that gate, except you, Danni, and me,”
Alex said. “At least while I'm staying here.”

“
I'm
sorry about that,” Chase said. “It won't happen again.”

Alex smiled and ran his
fingers through Chase's nearly dried hair. “Think you're
sobering up, yet?”

“
Definitely,”
Chase said. “Thank you again for taking care of me like you
did.”

“
Danni
would have done the same thing,” Alex said.

Chase shook his head and
chuckled. “I was drunk – beyond drunk. She would have
let me drown in my own vomit, not rub my back while I was praying to
the porcelain gods.”

“
I'm
glad I could help,” Alex said. The stupid smile had returned
to his face and nothing Alex did seemed to diminish it.

“
How
is it you don't seem to suffering any ill effects from all the booze
last night?” Chase asked. “I know you had just as much
to drink as I did – maybe more.”

Alex shrugged. “I
don't know. I guess I have a higher tolerance for it. Or maybe
you're just a little pussy.”

It
took a second for the comment to register in Chase's sluggish brain.
Soon as Alex saw the recognition flash in Chase's eyes, he bolted out
of his chair and ran down the hallway toward his bedroom, with Chase
right on his tail.

Alex threw himself on top of
his king-sized bed and Chase landed right beside him a few seconds
later. They rolled together and met in the middle of the pile of
pillows at the headboard.

“
Pretty
lame tactical move on my part to get you into my bed,” Alex
said. He rubbed his nose against Chase's.

“
If
you wanted me here, all you had to do was ask,” Chase said.

Alex brushed his lips to
Chase's, but it was Chase that stole the kiss – and the air,
right from Alex's lungs. He rolled Alex onto his back and came up
over him; pinning him to the bed. Chase dropped to his elbows; his
eyes never leaving Alex's. Hot, heavy breaths bounced between them
and bathed their faces. Another kiss pitched Chase's internal
temperature higher and he rocked his hips against Alex.

“
You
make me want you so bad,” Alex sighed.

“
Likewise,”
Chase said. He sat up, straddling Alex's hips, and pulled off his
shirt, then his fingers went to work on the button and zipper at the
waistband of his shorts. Below him, he could feel Alex's cock
thickening. He ground against the hard ridge and smiled down at
Alex. “You must like what you see,” Chase said.

“
Very
much,” Alex said. “I also love you on top. That alone,
gets my dick hard.”

Alex watched the strip show;
missed the contact of their groins when Chase shifted to remove his
shorts, then groaned when Chase slid back over him. Naked. His
hands wanted to touch, but Chase held his wrists to the mattress. He
arched off the comforter, aching for more contact with Chase.

“
Since
you didn't strip, I guess I'll have to do it for you,” Chase
said. He bent lower and sucked Alex's bottom lip into his mouth,
then nipped at it. He heard Alex's breath catch and his tiny gasp
turned into a low rumble of pleasure.

“
You're
playing with fire,” Alex hissed.

Chase sat up and began
undoing the buttons on Alex's linen shirt. “I don't mind the
heat,” he said, “And, I'll do my best to handle it.”

Alex sat up slightly and
allowed Chase to remove his shirt. His shorts came next, with
Chase's fingers working the button and zipper, then pushing them off
Alex's legs. Alex did his part by kicking the garment from his
ankles and onto the floor.

Chase slid up over Alex
again; skin to skin this time. The light dusting of body hair on
them added just enough friction to the easy rocking motion Chase was
creating, as he slowly rolled back and forth on top of Alex.

Chase
pressed his chest to Alex, their mouths fused; lips and tongues
teasing the other. Chase released Alex's mouth and Alex groaned his
disapproval, then signed when Chase's lips nipped at his neck. Chase
moved lower, licking and sucking along Alex's collarbone and down
over his breastbone. Another few inches brought his lips and tongue
in contact with Alex's ultra-sensitive nipple and Alex cried out.

“
Oh,
fuck! Yes,” Alex said. Alex's fingers sifted through Chase's
short hair and massaged the scalp. He spread his thighs wider, then
held Chase where he wanted him most; grinding against his groin.

Chase slid lower, leaving a
trail of hot, wet kisses as he inched closer to Alex's hip bone.
When his lips circled the head of Alex's cock, Alex arched off the
bed. Chase smiled around the organ filling his mouth, inch by inch
he sucked it inside, until his nose rubbed Alex's trimmed patch of
pubic hair.