Page 191 of Captivated
“Well, wecouldsit out here for the next hour or so, debating how we both feel…” Nate swallowed. “Or I could take you inside and show you.”
Heat crawled through him, trickling through his veins, reaching his extremities.
“Sounds good,” he croaked.
Nate stared at him. “You’re as nervous as I am, aren’t you?”
Zeeb rolled his eyes. “Duh. This is all new to me too.” Then Nate was out of the car and walking around it to hold Zeeb’s door for him.
Apparently, they were done talking.
By the time they got through the front door, Zeeb’s heart was pounding.
“How do you… where…”
Nate chuckled. “Thehowwe’ll work out as we go along. As for where, I vote for the bed. I want you to be comfortable.”
It was like watching a cocoon open to reveal the most beautiful butterfly he’d ever seen. Nate was showing his true colors, and it made Zeeb’s heart swell with pride to witness it.
A twinge in his shoulder brought him smack dab back into reality.
“Iwant not to have my arm in this sling,” Zeeb muttered.
Nate widened his eyes. “We can always wait. How many weeks did the doctor say it would take for you to heal fully?”
Zeeb gaped at him. “No way. Uh-uh.” Then Nate’s lips twitched, and Zeeb gave him a mock glare. “Oh,Isee. You think it’s funny to torture me?”
“You should see your face.” Then Nate froze. “Is there something we need to talk about?”
“Such as?”
“Safe sex?”
“Trust me, with this shoulder, that’sallwe’ll be havin’.” Except this was suddenly a practical—and serious—conversation. “Okay. I’ve used condoms in the past. I don’t have any at the moment because it’s been that long since I did anything, they’d have expired. I get a regular physical at a clinic in Bozeman, so I know everything’s as it should be under the hood.”
Nate snickered. “Of all the analogies you could’ve made, you went with your truck.”
“Hey. Bite me.”
His eyes twinkled. “Is that a request? I had no idea you were into that. Especially after you said teeth were bad.” Nate clicked his together. “But hell, I’m willing to try anything once.”
Yeah, Zeeb was loving this new Nate more and more.
He rolled his eyes. “What I’mtryingto say is, if it’s okay with you…” He looked Nate in the eye. “We go bare. And then we make it a thing to go get tested—together. There’s a clinic up in Bozeman where they do that. Butch told me about it.”
Nate gazed at him in silence, and Zeeb’s stomach gave a flutter.
“Isthat okay with you?”
Nate nodded. “Something in me likes the idea of having nothing between us. It also likes the idea of trusting someone enough to go for it.” That mischievous glint was back. “So now we’ve cleared that up, we get to fuck like bunnies? Metaphorically speaking.”
Zeeb winced. “Unfortunately, no, not with this injury. More like sloths with attitude.”
He chuckled. “I like that.” Nate stilled. “Is there anything I need to do…first? Maybe in the bathroom?”
All of a sudden, the situation switched from hypothetical tohey, this is really happening. It also became clear who was doing what.
Zeeb coughed. “Just make sure there’s nothing blocking the tailpipe.”
