I told him, “Family’s not all it’s cracked up to be anyhow. Here’s to friends.”
“Fuck, yeah.” He grinned at me.
My rental stood just outside the downtown area, away from the water but with a good view. As we strolled down the street of luxury homes toward mine, Shane got quieter. I wished I’d rented one of the simple, brightly colored houses I’d looked at on the north end of town. I’d dismissed them as too small with old-fashioned bathrooms.When did I turn into a snob? How much room does one guy need?
“That’s mine.” I gestured. “I’m just renting.”
Shane eyed the Tesla in the carport. “Your car?”
“Yeah.”
“You know Elon Musk’s an asshole?”
“I bought it before he showed the full extent of his assholery. I wanted electric for the environment.”
“I guess. It’s a cool car.”
“Has amazing acceleration. Zero to sixty in three seconds.”
“Okay.” He didn’t sound enthusiastic.
“You could drive it sometime.”
He slanted a gaze at me from behind his hair. “I don’t know how to drive. My folks didn’t own a car. Never learned.”
Of course not, because it costs money.Our worlds collided again. My grandparents made sure I learned young, before it was even legal off the property, because being able to drive made me more useful around the vineyard. “I could teach you.”
“Maybe.” He bounded up the two steps to the front door. “Not my first thought right now. Should I worry that it’s yours? Will I come second to your beloved car?” He framed his groin with one hand.
“No.” I fumbled my keys but got the door open.
Shane ducked past me, and Mimsy followed him inside without hesitation. I closed the door behind us, threw the deadbolt, and turned to watch Shane take in the sunny, open main room. “Now this is what I call living. And it’s warm.” He slipped his jacket off, glanced at me, and tossed the worn denim over the white-upholstered sofa.
“This house has solar electric. Heat in the winter, AC in summer.”If I stay that long.“I set it at seventy. I can turn it down.”
“Nah. I like it. Luxury.” He stretched, tugging his T-shirt out of his belt. “So where’s the bedroom?”
“Over there.” I pointed down the hall. Butterflies started turning cartwheels inside me.We’re not just flirting. It’s really happening.I’d had a lot of sex, but this fluttery mix of anticipation and nerves felt different. With most guys, I was there to feel good, get off, and move on. That wasn’t what I wanted with Shane.
Mimsy meowed and jumped to the couch, patted at Shane’s jacket, then pranced along the back and leaped to the top of a bookcase.
Shane eyed her. “You okay with her loose in here? I don’t think she’ll knock something off a shelf just to see it fall, but I can’t promise she won’t.”
“There’s nothing precious to me. If anything matters to the owners, they shouldn’t have left it in a rental house.”
“I hate locking her in a bathroom.” Shane watched as she sprang down from the bookcase to a windowsill, peering out at the side yard. “I can pay for what she breaks.”
Probably not.But I would. “Let her have fun. Come on.”
“Yeah?” His smile went warm and his eyes sparkled. “Eager to get laid?”
“Been a while,” I told him. “I need the bathroom first. You?”
“Good idea.”
“Over here.” I ushered him in and leaned my shoulders against the wall outside, waiting my turn. My dick had risen half hard and I pressed over my fly with the heel of my hand, reminding myself to be cool about this.
I didn’t know why the combination of Shane’s lean body and his determined independence so completely did it for me. Yeah, it’d been a while since I got laid, but thinking about Shane kneeling over me on my big bed instantly made my breath come short and heat pool in my groin. I liked his long-fingered hands and the easy way he moved, and the shine of his blue eyes. I liked the way he could be funny about serious stuff, but that didn’t mean he didn’t know what mattered. His kindness with Mimsy made me feel I’d be safe in his hands.
