"Can't I stay?"
The pillow beneath Noah's face smelled of sweat and musk with faint traces of citrus shampoo. Breathing it in, he let his straight blond hair obscure his face as he twisted his neck slowly so he could see the man sitting beside him on the bed. Big, almost stocky, with a thick thatch of dark hair covering his chest that was a few shades darker than the short buzzed hair on his head. He was mostly in shadow since the only light in the room came from the open door behind him, but Noah knew well enough what his big blue puppy dog eyes looked like. A good looking guy. But not the one he wanted. How did I ever think he might be the one?
"Probably not a good idea."
Bob's eyes wandered from Noah's face to his bare back. He reached out to pat Noah's shoulder. The pat turned into a caress. The caress spilled down the curve of his shoulder, down Noah's spine, to the dip of his lower back, right next to where the green sheet lay over his ass.
Noah's skin tingled but he was sated enough not to respond. He squirmed aside, not quite out of reach. "Bob."
The hand stopped. Bob heaved a sigh and pulled back, standing. Jeans and dress shirt were back on. He'd even buttoned up. "Yeah, I know. Time for me to leave." His attention returned to Noah's face. Despite the shadows blurring his blunt features, Noah could see the open longing in his face. "Can I see you again?"
No. Guilt tugged at Noah. "Bob, we talked about this." And that should have been Noah's first hint. Noah should have trusted his existing instinct about Bob.
Bob nodded, his face showing that he heard the unspoken negative loud and clear. "I know, I know." He ran a hand over the buzzed dark hair on his scalp. "You're a beautiful man, Noah."
"Thank you." He resisted the urge to pay back the compliment. It'd only give Bob hope where there was none. Stupid to sleep with him. You knew he couldn't be the one. But it was too late now.
With a little smile, Bob lifted his hand in a wave. "See you around." He turned and left.
Sighing, Noah closed his eyes and snuggled back down on the pillow, resting for just a bit before he went to clean up. His soft sheets were damp from exertion. The sex had been good. He'd enjoyed it. He knew Bob had enjoyed it as well. He did not have to feel guilty. He'd been perfectly upfront with Bob, just like he was with all of his lovers. Bob didn't have to know that Noah had held out a secret wish that he might be someone far more intriguing to Noah's heart.
The sound of voices in the kitchen reopened his eyes. They were faint, but he heard the words loud and clear.
"Hey, Mitch."
"Hey, Bob."
Mitch?! Noah pushed up to his elbows, eyes wide on the open bedroom door. The door that had been open the entire time he and Bob were ... "Ah, shit." He scrambled out of bed and snatched up the soft ivory lounge pants draped over his desk chair. As he stepped into them, he heard the front door open and close. Spearing two hands through his hair and tying it in a quick, loose knot at the nape of his neck, he checked to make sure there was no stray spunk on his skin before heading for the kitchen.
His roommate, Mitch, sat at the kitchen table in one of the uncomfortable plastic and metal chairs, face and remote control aimed at the 13" television seated on the table against the wall. His dark brown curls were freshly trimmed, revealing the back of his neck, and the blue plaid flannel shirt he wore was new. A plastic tub with the familiar pale shapes of lemon bars in it sat at his elbow. So he had gone to see his mother.
"What are you doing here?"
Mitch glanced over one big shoulder at him and smiled. "Hey."
Noah stalked over to the table to see Mitch's face properly. Strong square chin, long-ago-broken slim nose, and thick black brows over steely gray eyes. Only the absurdly long eyelashes and curved sensual mouth saved that face from looking too harsh. "What are you doing here? What happened to your mom?"
Mitch continued to channel surf, the smile still playing around his sharply defined lips. "She's fine. She got called in for a late night shift so I came home instead of staying over." He nudged the plastic bin closer to the empty chair beside him. "She sent the sweets you love so much."
"Oh." It was a measure of Noah's distress that he didn't pounce on the plastic tub. He glanced back toward his bedroom, chewing his bottom lip. How had he not heard Mitch come through the front door? "How long have you been here?"
Mitch chuckled, tossing chin-length black curls back from his face. "Long enough."
"Oh. Shit. I'm sorry." He grimaced. "You said you weren't going to be home."
"No sweat. My fault." Mitch paused to listen to the football scores. "Sounded like you enjoyed it." A sly look. "Or, at least Bob did."
Noah went to get a glass from the strainer on the counter by the sink. "Yeah. He's loud."
"I'll say. Damn. He thinks you're something special."
Noah winced. Never having slept with Bob before, he hadn't known how loud he was. And descriptive. Even Noah blushed at hearing some of the ways Bob had described him. He filled his glass with milk from the refrigerator. "Yeah."
Mitch turned in his chair, draping one arm over the back as his steel-gray eyes regarded Noah. "I'm kind of surprised. You don't usually bring your dates home."
Noah put the milk back and closed the fridge. "You weren't supposed to be here."
"Do you bring them back when I'm not here?"
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