Jake rolls his eyes. “My impromptu trip to the desert was a little unexpected, but not entirely new. And I’ve shown up for plenty of trivia nights in plenty of bars, Darren.”
I laugh often, but this one takes me by surprise, and I’m grateful I didn’t have a mouthful of liquor. Jake’s expression hasn’t shifted much, but the small curve in the corner of his mouth suggests he knows exactly how much he’s amused me.
Wiping the tears from my eyes, I wave toward the bull. “Okay, point made. You’re ready for a thrill, and I was hoping for exactly that. Let’s do this.”
Eager or not, Jake barely waits for the words to leave my mouth before he’s sliding off his stool and shrugging out of his leather jacket. I try and fail to keep from staring when he makes his way around the far side of the bar to where the bull awaits, and it’s unsurprising how easily he hoists his strong body over the back of it. He makes himself as comfortable as anyone can while sitting on a cheaply upholstered animal, and I allow myself a deep breath as I finally move closer. I take a second to unlock the control panel and grin when I know Jake can feel the hum of the bull beneath him.
“We’re not going too wild with this,” I warn. “Just put your hands up for a second.”
“Okay, hands are up,” Jake says, but then his eyes narrow. “Wait, we?”
The bull rumbles a little more, then it kicks into a slow roll, enough to make him reach down to steady himself before he raises his hand again. I rub my palms on the front of my jeansand then leave the controls behind so I can jump on, sitting so I’m facing Jake, my legs draped over his thighs.
“Yeah, we,” I answer, pulling on his arms until his hands land at my waist. “This okay?”
“It’s, well—yes. This is very okay. What about the cameras?”
Of course he knows we can be seen here, but I’ve been prepared for that question, and my reputation can only help us.
“It’s fine. You’re not gonna fuck me while we ride this thing. We won’t even kiss each other,” I promise. “V knows I’m a flirt and you’re hot, so this is just me being typically horny and using you for a good time. She’ll probably remind me that there are plenty of men who don’t lust after me, and that I should leave those men alone, especially when they’re as well-respected and off-limits as—”
“Don’t make me kiss you just to shut you up,” Jake interrupts.
It would be too easy to test him, so instead, I stop talking. The mechanical bull continues to roll, and when Jake’s hands tighten at my hips, I respond to his grip by reaching for the sweater I’ve admired for hours. I flatten my palm against his heart, the beat of it better than the music I could’ve turned off a while ago, but I don’t stay there for long. The fabric is stunning, but I’m drawn to more than that, the contrast of his skin calling for me to touch that, too. I lift a fingertip to trace just inside the collar, dragging from one shoulder to the other and back again, tempted to press against his heartbeat one more time just to see whether the rhythm has changed.
I don’t do it, stopped by the darkness bleeding into the familiarlight of Jake’s eyes, a small smile there and gone before I can fuck up the moment by commenting on it.
Then Jake’s mouth falls open, but I never hear whatever request he might have made, maybe because he doesn’t want to fuck this up either.
We remain silent while the bull bucks us gently, and my touch moves higher. I slide my hand into Jake’s hair, even if I shouldn't when V might see, and I pull his head back to expose his neck. I won’t break our rules, but I bury my face in the warmth I find, impossibly hungry and denying myself every taste. A second later, I shiver when I feel his fingers against my lower back, half my body still bare and my goosebumps there to tell him anything he needs to know.
My eyes are closed—I don’t know or care when that happened—and I can feel everything at once. His thighs are solid underneath mine, the heat the sum of so many sparks between us. His hair is soft, and the skin still teasing my lips is less so, but it’s my need to grab his sweater again that reminds me the cotton bandana around my neck should be on the floor with the rest of our clothes. Jake’s fingertips travel all the way up my spine and almost tickle me on the way back down, and when I moan more than I giggle, his hold on me tightens and at least one of us arches toward friction we can’t catch yet.
The bull rolls on.
I open my eyes as I pry myself away from his neck, gone only so I can grab Jake’s arms again and drape them over my shoulders, our embrace almost unbearably intimate as we continue to rocktogether.
We still don’t talk.
But that doesn’t mean we don’t make a dozen other noises, every gasp and groan and hum and sigh so quietly loud, and just enough to be heard over some sad country song.
We still don’t kiss either.
But our hands never stop searching for more, clawing and stroking and clinging and scratching like there’s something left to learn about how much we might want this.
And there’s a routine unfolding here, though neither of us would dare to take it to the wood dance floor favored by my ex. The bull carries us through a slow up and down, and each round is wholly predictable until one particular wave catches Jake when he’s already leaning. He lets it carry him all the way down, and with his back against the bull, he’s as relaxed as I’ve ever seen him, the beautiful lines on his face faded now. I think I’d fuck him right here if I could, but with my legs still on top of his, I only slip my hands under his sweater and pretend I’ve pinned him, like both of us aren’t fully aware he could throw me to the ground if he wanted to.
I think I’d fuck him there, too.
Jake doesn’t stay down for long though, the distance between us more than either of us wants in a place where proximity is all we can have. We’re wrapped up in each other again within seconds, our foreheads pressed together and my dick almost painfully hard. This close to each other, it’s clear that we’re both breathless with no reasonable excuse for it, and I smile where hecould trace it with his tongue.
He sighs. “I really, really don’t care about cameras right now.”
“Don’t kiss me, Jake.”
“Why not?”
If it’s possible, we pull each other even closer, my answer touching the corner of his mouth. “Because you don’t have to give up anything for me. You deserve better than this.”