Jevon lay down, surprised by how natural it felt to stretch out beside Rhys. “Stuff? Sounds ominous.”
“Not really. I just want to make sure I don’t push you too hard.”
“Sounds like you wanna be my coach,” Jevon blurted with a vodka-loose tongue. “Like those porn films.”
Rhys shifted onto his side. “Can you imagine? I mean, I don’t think I’ve got time to teach you everything in one night, but still. I can’t deny thinking about it is just about killing me.”
For the thousandth time since Rhys had walked into the pub, heat crept up the back of Jevon’s neck. “You’re thinking about fucking me?”
“Amongst other things, but right now I’m wondering if you’ve ever been naked with a bloke at all. Like, just lie around with someone, shooting the shit. When I first figured out that I liked men, it took a while for me to relax around them, and until then, sex was awful.”
“Awful?”
“Yup.” Rhys smoothed a wayward dread back from Jevon’s face. “I was so worked up about getting to touch a bloke’s body for the first time, I forgot to enjoy it. Too busy shaking and shoutingOh my god, it’s a real-life dickin my head.”
Jevon laughed again, despite Rhys’s touch and close proximity eliciting all the responses Rhys was warning him about. “The shit that goes through my head when I’m anywhere near a queer man is unbelievable.”
“It probably isn’t. We’ve all been there.”
Jevon would have to take Rhys’s word for that, as he couldn’t imagine him being anything other than the beautiful, chilled-out man who was touching his face. “I haven’t been naked with a fella outside of football training. Tried a couple of times, but it’s never quite panned out, and I don’t get much chance to put that right.”
Rhys hummed, his hand travelling idly down Jevon’s neck, lingering at his collarbone. “I’m going to take my T-shirt off. You can touch me if you want, or we can just watch the telly. Either way is fine with me.”
His hands slid from Jevon and he rolled away, lifting the hem of his T-shirt as he went. Every inch it rode up revealed a swath of flawless skin, a muscular back, and broad shoulders. Jevon licked his lips, his hands tingled, and he was on his way to hyperventilating by the time Rhys turned back to him, treating him to the sight of his strong chest.
“Jesus fucking Christ,” Jevon muttered before he could stop himself.
Rhys raised an eyebrow. “What?”
“You’rekillingme.”
“Revenge,” Rhys replied with a smirk, but he didn’t advance on Jevon again. Merely lay back and left the ball in Jevon’s court.
Jevon’s heart pounded. Again.Damn. Am I going to make it past this night without having a coronary?But he battled his nerves and fingered his own T-shirt. He wasn’t as broad as Rhys, but he was in good shape, lean and strong. What did he have to lose?
Sober Jevon could probably have written a list, but drunk Jevon fought hard to move past caring. He ripped his T-shirt over his head and tossed it over his shoulder before he could change his mind.
Something flickered in Rhys’s dark gaze, but he didn’t otherwise react, prompting Jevon to lean forward and reclaim his spot in Rhys’s personal space. Rhys’s bare skin was so close that it seemed to shimmer, like heat was rising from it. Jevon’s hand hovered over Rhys’s abdomen, fingers trembling.
“Go on,” Rhys whispered. “Touch me.”
“You want me to?”
“Yes.”
Jevon let his hand fall. His palm connected with Rhys’s ripped stomach and absorbed Rhys’s answering shudder. He dragged his fingers over every ridge of muscle and slid up to Rhys’s chest. Rhys’s nipples were perfectly round and pink, and they puckered when Jevon grazed them.
Rhys moaned softly. “That’s a jackpot spot for me. Goes straight to my dick.”
“Really?” Jevon tried—and failed—to cover his fascination. “No one’s ever touched me there.”
“Let me?”
Jevon kept his hands on Rhys as he fell onto his back. Rhys came with him and leaned over barely enough to press their bodies together while still leaving room for him to touch Jevon’s torso. He mirrored Jevon’s hands on him, tracing a path from Jevon’s abdomen to his chest, over the intricate tattoo etched on his skin, until he reached his nipples. Rhys skimmed his palms over the sensitive flesh and twisted them lightly between his fingers, grinning when Jevon gasped. “Imagine that with your dick down someone’s throat. Or when you’re getting fucked.”
Jevon groaned. “Stop.”
“Stop touching you? Or talking?”