“Considering I’m probably going to get turned on from getting the back rub, I wouldn’t hold that against you.”
“As long as you hold something against me.”
Quinn groaned. “God, I walked into that one.”
“Leave the door open, I’ll take the opportunity.” Jake went up to the tub, behind Quinn, and put his hands on the slim, angular shoulders. When he dug his palms and thumbs in, Quinn groaned, but the muscles stayed tight and tense.
Jake worked them over, sliding his hands up and down, tracing Quinn’s spine as he did, then following his rib cage back up and trying to loosen those shoulders. “You really are tight.” Pieces fit together in Jake’s head, and he debated on voicing any of it. Quinn clearly wasn’t the biggest fan of being asked about his personal business. But Jake didn’t have the self-control to hold it in. “Everything good at work?”
Quinn snorted. “God. Don’t get me started on that. Any work you’ve done to get rid of the tension’s going to go to waste.”
“I’m pretty good with my hands.” Quinn hadn’t instantly rebuffed him, so he pressed a little more, sliding his hands belowthe water, running them down Quinn’s ass crack and playing around his hole before sliding back up. “And I could get in there with you. Really get some elbow grease going while you unload your worries. Or unload…other stuff.”
Quinn leaned back, and even though Jake wasn’t in his hole, he still felt the tight ring clench and unclench at his touch.What I wouldn’t give…
“Convince me of your skills.” Quinn grabbed onto the edges of the tub and pulled himself to his feet. Milky water dripped down, following the curve of his hips, funneling down his crack, darkening the faint hair on his legs until it was actually visible—although so close to him, it probably would have been anyway.
Quinn turned around and gestured into the tub. “This only works if you get in behind me. And I sit in your lap.”
Jake bit his lower lip. “I don’t need a second invite.”
Chapter twenty-one
Quinn
Jake stepped into thetub, water splashing up. His movements were big and strong, even with something as simple as that, which made waves and stirred up even more of the salt from the bottom, clouding the water further. Quinn only paid such close attention to the behavior of the water because he was watching as Jake’s thighs dipped down, covering the stark tan line from his boxers, then over his balls and his still-hard cock, then the wiry blond pubic hair and his happy trail and the damn outie belly button that Quinn shouldn’t have been so into.
But he was. He was into all of it, and it took all his self-control not to go into the tub front-facing and let his tongue explore. His back wasn’t even sore anymore. Either that, or he was too distracted to care.
With a sigh, which he hoped came off as contented, he slid back into the hot water and breathed in the bright, floral scent.He’d been right about one thing: lemongrass and lavender smelled pretty damn nice.
His ass slid right along Jake’s cock as he took a seat, shooting pure, molten steel up through his shaft and making him fully erect.
Once he got settled again, Jake’s hands returned, applying even more force, reminding Quinn justhowsore the day had made him as they reawakened aches and pains, only to knead them away.
“So. This a good enough massage you can risk talking about your day?”
Quinn tried his best not to tense, he really did. It didn’t work. A wave rolled up and brought his shoulders higher. He took a few breaths in an attempt to calm himself.
“If it’s too much, that’s a-okay.”
“No. It’s just been a lot more than I expected.” He closed his eyes and leaned forward, giving Jake a little easier access to his back and neck and shoulders. He gave it a few seconds, letting Jake work him over, up and down, while the water and the fragrance swirled around him, then opened his mouth and let it spill. “The project they have me working on was thorny and messy, but I usually don’t run into quite so many interpersonal issues in my line of work. And I like it that way.”
“Interpersonal how?”
He sighed, focusing on the feel of hard calluses digging into his back and shoulders instead of the whole mess of this job. “Family enterprise. Lots of businesses. Messy to untangle, so of course it’s already stressful. They gave it to me because they know I can do it, and even though Icanask for help, they absolutely expect me to do this on my own. That’s never been in question.”
“Did they ever tell you that, or did you decide that on your own?”
“They didn’t have to tell me. But that’s not even that bad. I could handle it if it was just the work.” He felt the rising tension again and forced himself to relax, to lean into the massage, feel every available inch of Jake beneath and behind him. “I was fine until I got to the scans of the letters and the forwarded emails. I had to read through them to get pertinent information. And I’m used to that. I can mostly skim. But skimming…you still get the gist of what you’re reading. So as much as I try not to, I have to learn how one of them dipped into their parents’ retirement fund, and how another tried to forge a will, and then affairs, everyone sleeping with each other’s husbands and wives, payoffs to keep different staff members quiet, all of them mingling personal and business finances so I can’t just skip any of it or write it off.” He blew out a harsh breath. “I came out today after I had to go through all the back and forth when the grandpa died.”
Jake’s fingers stopped working for a split-second, then dug in again. More gently, slower. “That had to be rough.”
“I can’t believe how bad it was. I guess my grandpa was a better situation overall. He didn’t have anyone left to leave anything to other than me, so no fighting.” He shook his head. “That’s not the case with them. They’restilltrying to sue each other over it to get what they think they deserve, and they’ve somehow tied it all into their businesses, so I have to go through it.”
“Did you try telling the higher-ups it’s too much? I’m sure they’d understand, given everything.”
Quinn let out a shuddering breath, then leaned all the way back so he could rest his head on Jake’s chest and shoulder, look up into his eyes. “I don’t want to just abandon it. And I don’t want to make somebody else go through it. I just…I needed a break, and I thought working on the house would be a good chance.”
