19. Zack

Istared after Landon as he walked away from us, his footsteps dragging. With how many hours he'd spent in the outdoors today which he'd claimed to never do, I wasn't surprised he retired early.

But he'd had that nap in the afternoon, so I'd been sure he'd be ready to fool around again tonight. Although I shouldn't have kissed him—that was one sure way to rip clear through the foil around my heart—I'd given in.

That intimate moment had wrecked me almost as much as fucking into his body the night before. We'd shared breath, our hearts beating in time as we frotted together while Callum filled his needy hole.

Even though Callum's mouth hadn't been involved in the equation, I'd felt his presence as real as Landon's dick rubbing against mine.

I glanced at the man beside me to find his eyes remained on Landon, his brow slightly furrowed.

"Everything okay?" While I'd gotten the sense Landon wasn't pleased by the truth bomb I'd dropped about us going our separate ways, what else could I have said? Reality existed regardless of his fantasies.

"Yeah." Callum sighed and turned toward the fire once Landon disappeared from sight.

I shifted closer to him, suddenly feeling chilled even though the temperature hadn't dropped. Our shoulders brushed, and whatever unease I'd experienced over Landon's slight off-ness in leaving settled. Part of me wanted to rest my head on Callum and close my eyes while breathing in the scent of the campfire and ocean beyond.

A few tropical animals chatted in the growing darkness, joining in the peaceful snapping of embers, waves on the shore, and the restaurant's band still playing live music in the far distance.

We shared a peaceful existence in the silence between us, and although I was ready to get busy loving on Callum's body, I enjoyed the quietness of our spirits simply resting together beside the fire.

I'd never had that sense of comfort with anyone. Not since I'd been a teenager snuggling with my best friend on his parent's couch.

"Landon realized this fantasy truly expires in three days," Callum stated quietly.

I almost said it didn't have to, but I'd been burned and knew better than to set my sights on lofty dreams that included trusting people with my heart. What we had been enjoying was wild and hot as fuck, but three guys together wasn't sustainable. Wasn't more than anything but a good time.

And right now?

Callum was too delicious smelling and gorgeous to let go without a taste. While what I shared with Callum was not as intimate a mental and heart connection as that with Landon due to our past, the physical draw couldn't be ignored.

The potential, though…

I stared at Callum's profile as he watched the fire flickering. Shadows and flashes of light danced over his skin, and I wanted nothing more than to strip him bare. Kiss him until we were both breathless with the need to lose ourselves in each other.

This man was just as deadly as Landon, but I wasn't about to deny myself partaking while I had the chance.

"The forms you filled out said you're vers," I stated quietly, watching him closely.

A frown flitted briefly over his brow before the corner of his mouth closest to me kicked up slightly. "I am."

I leaned a little closer, running my fingertips along his forearm. "How can I please you tonight, Callum? Hmm? Want my ass or mouth? My dick?"

Callum shivered but didn't answer right away. Was he conflicted about taking advantage of the escort he'd hired out of loyalty to his…whatever Landon now was to him?

"This is sex, plain and simple," I reminded him, set on having him one way or another. "I aim to please the man who paid for the use of my body. So, tell me, Callum, and it's yours."

He swallowed hard, glancing down at his hands resting atop his thighs. "It's never about what I want."

"It is tonight," I pushed. "Unless…"

He glanced at me, searching my face.

"Are the two of you officially dating and set boundaries that would require exclusivity unless the other is present?"

"We haven't discussed anything."

Exactly as I'd assumed, considering Landon's parting words to him.

"Then explain what you need from me," I pleaded. "I wasn't lying when I said I would give you anything—I want to, Callum, and not just because of the exchange of money."

A shudder rippled through him at my blatant honesty, and he closed his eyes, head tipping back slightly as though hoping the moon would absolve him of whatever guilt I sensed he might be experiencing.

"Take care of me," he whispered, the words barely reaching my ears. "No one has ever made me feel safe enough to let go and just be in the moment, but somehow I can with you."

Fuck, did I get that. Empathy kicked in along with a swell of desire, doubling my need to do exactly as he'd asked of me even if it shook the foundation of my flimsy walls.

I pushed to my feet, body starting to vibrate with anticipation. "My room or yours?"

A heavy exhale left his shoulders sagged. "I'm sharing the suite with Landon."

I didn't need the reminder. Had kind of been hoping maybe Landon would wake up enough for that front row seat I knew he lusted for of Callum's and my first time together.

But after hearing how Callum wanted to connect with me?

"We're going to my room." I held out a hand, and Callum lifted his focus from my palm to my face.

"Do you think he'll be upset if we do this?" he asked. "He's loved you for so long—still does—and I have no wish to hurt him."

Call me a selfish bitch, but freedom remained for all parties until otherwise agreed upon, and I wasn't going to waste a minute in paradise. "Same but. Did he or did he not tell you a few minutes ago to get your money's worth out of me?"

"He did."

"Then?" I wiggled my fingers.

Callum slid his palm along mine, our fingers twining, energy zapping straight up my arm to my chest where my heartbeat fluttered.

We didn't speak on the way to my room, nor did Callum hesitate in front of his and Landon's door. I rounded the hallway's corner, Callum in tow, his footsteps just as eager as mine.

I shut us away in semi-darkness, leaving the curtains wide open so the moonlight could pour in and create a pale, magical glow around us.

"Come here," I murmured, drawing him into my arms rather than ravaging him. He wanted to be taken care of, and that meant tenderness.

This time around.

Callum willingly buried his face in my neck, and I tucked him in close to me, soothing my hands down his back to cradle his ass.

We were both hard, our groins pressed tightly together, but we didn't grind or start tearing off clothing. A hug of silence offered us both comfort in that moment, and I could feel his strength even though he wanted me to be his rock in that moment.

"Will you shower with me? Let me wash and prep you?" I asked, pulling away so I could see his face.

A slight haze of wetness covered his eyes, making them appear more a grayish blue than sea-like in the moon's light.

"Yes," he whispered, his tone almost broken.

I pressed a chaste kiss to his lips before leading him into the bathroom.

Callum stood still while I undressed him, the shower warming behind me. I lingered after baring his body, gently touching and caressing his skin with open-mouthed kisses. Regardless of an instinctive desire, I didn't mark him to show ownership. This wasn't anything personal. Simply a transaction.

I quickly shucked off my clothes while the lies echoed in my head and ushered him beneath the spray.

Steam rose around us, creating a dreamy fog bubble where the outside world couldn't touch us. Quietness lay over us like a weighted blanket, offering comfort and a sense of safety I wished I could believe in as much as he did.

Would it kill me to be vulnerable for once in my adult life? To test steps toward maybe trusting someone someday?

I didn't know much about Callum, but something inside me urged me to speak.

My mouth opened before I overthought what I was about to spill. "I've always felt the need to nurture because I grew up in foster care and never experienced the love of a mother and father." I ran soapy hands over his shoulders and back, proud of myself for voicing my self-reflection for the first time ever to a mere stranger.

Callum turned, smoothing dripping hair off my forehead. "Thank you for sharing that part of you with me."

My gaze dropped to his chest, and I mapped out his pecs with what remained of the soap. "That's why once Landon had weaseled his way beneath my skin and straight into my heart when we were kids, I did everything in my power to make sure he knew he was loved. Appreciated and wanted."

I was pretty sure with how close he and Landon were, Callum had learned his best friend had received none of those things from the two who should have put him first.

The spray beat down on us as I retrieved more shower gel and dropped to my knees.

Callum's semi hung directly in front of my face, but I didn't linger in fondling or attempting to arouse him. Keeping my touch more along the lines of worship, I gave him all my physical attention from navel to toes, turning him by the hip to clean his backside.

My own dick stood at full mast, not yet leaking but ready to claim the pucker I ran a slick finger over.

A sigh left Callum as he leaned forward, forearms against the shower wall, offering his ass to me on a goddamn platter.

I slipped my soapy finger inside him, gently working him.

He shuddered and whimpered when I eased from his hole to retrieve the removable shower head.

"Okay?" I murmured, rinsing off his shoulders, watching the water and suds sluice past muscle and through his crack.

"Yes."

I spent a few minutes cleaning him out, and he sagged against the tile in complete submission to my tenderness. The walls he hid the vulnerable parts of himself behind had crumbled to dust beneath my touch.

Leaning in, I kissed his shoulder, wishing I could be as open with him. "Thank you for trusting me take care of you."

"No one…" He swallowed audibly as though his throat had swelled. "I need you, Zack—please."

I replaced the shower head and pressed against his back, running my hands down his chest, past tensed abs, finding his cock fully engorged, the slit slippery with pre-cum.

He hissed as I pulled down on his tight sac while thumbing over his glans.

"Zack…" His pleading tone made my dick buck where it rested against his crack.

"How long has it been, Callum?" I asked against his ear while slowly jacking him with just enough friction to drive him out of his mind.

"Too many years to count."

"Hmm." I once more went to my knees, going straight for the ass I hadn't gotten nearly enough of a taste of our first night together. I nosed up through his wet cheeks, and he widened his stance with a groan.

"Yes." He choked on the word, and I spread him open, taking a moment to admire the blond hairs around his pucker.

That devotion I'd been hellbent on showing stuttered to a halt at the thought of breaching his body with my dick, and I swallowed hard.

Growling, I buried my nose against him, only able to draw a hint of his musk in thanks to the thorough cleaning I'd given him. Still, he smelled delicious, like herbal soap and earth.

I licked and probed without pushing past his ring, tugging his dick downward so I could tongue his length, sac, and taint. Suckling on his swollen head earned me a few curses, and moaning, I lapped clear up to his hole, finally dipping my tip inside him.

"Oh Jesus—Zack." Callum pressed back against my face, and I licked inside his hole as far as I could reach. "Fuck yes. God, I could come from your tongue alone."

Not happening. My need had taken control.

A few more slurping kisses, and I stood, grabbing the lube I always kept on hand in the shower. I hadn't expected to slicken up someone other than myself, but wasn't about to complain about using my personal stock on a client.

The term for him didn't echo gently in my head, but I shoved against the uncomfortable feeling and set my focus on readying him for my dick. He had asked for it after all.

I gave him one finger while kissing along his shoulders but quickly added a second.

He grunted as I worked them both in deep and jolted when I rubbed over his prostate.

"Goddamn." He gasped the curse, shuddering as I stroked his sweet spot again.

"Close?" I asked against his ear, earning a half-manic nod. "Want to come like this or on my cock, sweetheart?"

"Oh God." Callum tipped his head back, and I licked up his neck while slipping a third finger past his ring. "I need you inside me, right fucking now."

"Condoms are on the bedside table."

"Shit." He growled, pushing against my fingers buried in his hole.

I bit my tongue to keep from asking him if he trusted me. Going without sheathing up wasn't an option with my job, no matter how badly I might want it.

"Come on," I whispered against his ear before kissing his lobe.

The time for slow and comforting gave way to our rekindled lust.

I took care in drying him off but got him quickly onto my bed.

Callum crawled onto the mattress on his hands and knees, but I swatted his flank while retrieving a condom from beside the bedside lamp.

"On your back, sweetheart."

He rolled and watched me with passion-hazed eyes while I tossed the condom and bottle of lube beside him. "Zack."

I climbed atop him, straddling his thighs. "Hmm?"

His soft caress of knuckles along my cheek sent a strange shudder down through clear to my soul. "I need you inside me."