“Um…” He lowered his chin, and his breath whispered across my lips. “Not really? I mean, kink isn’t really my thing.”
“Same.”
He wrapped his arm around me. “What about you?”
I moistened my lips. “I don’t bottom.” That wasn’t true, but I never told clients that I only bottomed for men I was dating. That just invited clients to try to insinuate themselves into my life enough to qualify as a boyfriend long enough to top me. As far as clients were concerned, I was a top. End of story.
Ethan just nodded. “Right, your profile said you’re a top.”
“And you’re good with that?”
He grinned, eyes flicking to my mouth. “I booked you after I read your profile, didn’t I?”
“Mmm, yeah, you did.” I pushed myself up on the balls of my feet, just letting our lips brush. “And I love kissing on the mouth.”
“Thank God for that,” he whispered, and then he kissed me, and…
Holy fuck.
Clients didn’t kiss me like this. Hell, boyfriends didn’t kiss me like this. The teddy bear impression was more on the money than I’d realized—he gently wrapped me up in his arms, and his lips were soft and tender against mine. I didn’t read anything into it—this was probably just the way he liked to kiss—but oh God, I loved it.
Draping my arms around his neck, I indulged in a low moan as I opened to his politely probing tongue, and as he deepened the kiss, I actually got that weak-in-the-knees feeling that I never had while I was getting paid. Why didn’t more men kiss like this?
He broke the kiss and touched his forehead to mine. “Fuck. I haven’t done that in way too long.”
Neither have I, but I didn’t say that out loud. Instead, I went with, “Feel free to do it again if you want to.”
A soft breath of laughter warmed my lips an instant before he did do it again, and I held on as he kissed me the way people didn’t usually, at least in my experience, kiss prostitutes. Experimentally, I kissed him harder, and he responded with a quiet groan.
His hips moved slightly, his thick cock brushing against me, and he shivered. Without breaking the kiss, I slid a hand between us, and Ethan’s whole body tensed as I cupped him through his pants. He rocked into my hand, thrusting against my palm, and I rubbed back. Whatever shyness he’d had a moment ago was gone now, or at least fading. He wanted this. No doubt about that.
With a gasp, he lifted his head and looked in my eyes. He was breathing hard. So was I.
“Is it too soon to suggest going into the bedroom?” he panted.
Grinning, I shook my head. “Not at all.”
“Thank God.”
Then he took me by the hand and led me down the hall.
Chapter 3
Ethan
I’d faced off with some of the greatest hockey players currently on the ice. I’d had my entire team relying on me to shoot a buzzer beater and win us the game. I’d spent time in the penalty box for fighting with men twice my size.
And I still didn’t think anything had ever intimidated me more than Luca stretching out on my bed.
He was gorgeous. Seriously, his pictures hadn’t done him any justice at all. In person, he was just… Wow. His movements were catlike and elegant, and I could already envision him naked in the throes of an orgasm. In my mind, he was already there, moving in slow motion and throwing his head back and letting go.
But he wasn’t there yet. Right now, he was still fully dressed, though he’d taken off his jacket and shoes. Lying on his side, head propped up on one arm and his other hand resting on his hip, he watched me with a subtle smile and a wicked glint in his eyes. “You going to join me?”
“I…” Well, fuck. I hadn’t paid for him to show up so I could just stare at him. Hoping I didn’t look as nervous as I was, I lay on the bed too, facing him on my side.
He slid a little closer and put his hand on my waist. “Breathe. I don’t bite.”
I laughed, and yeah, those nerves were showing. Cautiously, I mirrored him, resting a hand on his side. With another nervous laugh, I shook my head. “Christ, you would think I’m a virgin or something.”
“Are you?” he asked matter-of-factly.
“What? No! No, I’m not.”
“It’s okay if you are.” He half-shrugged. “You wouldn’t be the first.”
“I…” Oh. Huh. It had never occurred to me that some of his clientele might be guys who were doing this for the first time. And he sounded genuinely unfazed by it. As if it were a perfectly normal thing for him to encounter, and that if I had been a virgin, it was nothing to be embarrassed about. Even though I wasn’t a virgin, something about that put me at ease. I couldn’t explain it, but I sure as hell ran with anything that made me less nervous. “I’m not, for the record. This is just my first time, uh…”
“Paying for it?”
I nodded. “Yeah, this is seriously new.”
Luca studied me, those dark eyes as mesmerizing as they were intimidating. “What made you go this route?”
I moistened my lips and dropped my gaze, watching my fingers trace a crease in his shirt. “The discretion, mostly.”
“Really?”
“Mmhmm. There’s not that many gay hockey players, so people always want the juicy details of everything we do. Hooking up is fun, but it’s hard to relax when I’m worried this guy might go start a rumor that I suck in bed or… I mean, I really just want to keep my private life private, you know?” I met his eyes again. “And it's not just my privacy. If I ever start dating someone again, they’re going to be scrutinized and pestered just like all the other partners and spouses. I don’t want some hookup to be seen with me and start getting hounded by cameras and hammered with questions.”
Luca wrinkled his nose. “Eww. Yeah. That doesn’t sound fun for anyone involved.”
“It’s not. So I figured since this is discreet and behind closed doors…” I shrugged tightly. “You should be able to avoid the scrutiny, and I don’t have to worry about you telling anyone.”
“Definitely not,” he said quickly. “The company would have my head.”
“So I gathered. That was why I decided to go with it. And one of my friends recommended the site.”
Luca stiffened, his expression darkening. “Oh.”
I tilted my head. “What? That’s a good thing, isn’t it? Word of mouth?”
“Yeah, of course. It’s…” He paused, then shook himself, and he laughed, sounding vaguely uncomfortable. “I’m just surprised that… I mean, some of the guys that come to us don’t want anyone to know. That they’re gay or that they hire us.”
“Nah, my buddy and I talk. It’s all good. He hasn’t told me about any specific guys, he just said he liked the app and that everyone was discreet.”
He relaxed a little, but his easy demeanor didn’t quite return.
I watched him. “Did I say something wrong?”
“No. No. You’re good.” He shook himself again, and a smile came back, though it seemed more well-practiced than genuine. He must have seen the concern in my eyes, because he dropped the façade with a sigh. “Look, to be perfectly candid, pro athletes are pretty common in this line of work, and usually for the same reasons you came to me—discretion. I don’t want to accidentally tip my hand and find out we both know the same person. I know privacy is a big thing for you guys.”