19. Leo

19

LEO

" B rent, why aren't you answering your phone?" I asked, in a sing-song tone, as I heard Brent's phone ringing away. "You're going to give me an anxiety attack if you don't answer your phone."

It'd been about an hour since the interview with Tommy, and I was pacing back and forth in the bar. Tommy had gone to a different room to get started on editing, and Jacob had disappeared to catch up with Bradley, which meant that I'd been all alone with my thoughts in the meantime. As it turned out, most of my thoughts were about how hard we'd all worked to clean off the airstrip and whether or not that'd given us a better shot at getting out of here in time.

Apparently, Brent didn't share the same concerns as I did, since it seemed like he'd thrown his phone into a random corner of his office and forgotten all about it.

"Brent, please answer your phone," I sang again, just before the ringing stopped and I got his voicemail for the umpteenth time.

I huffed as I ended the call with a click, now turning my attention to the bar. I pulled myself up by my hands, so I'd be able to sit on top of it, my thoughts seamlessly shifting from the airstrip to Jacob, a new anxiety taking over my mind.

Were we together? As in, actually together?

I'd never really operated in a relationship without a proper label before, but it wasn't like Jacob had asked me to be his boyfriend.

Although, he had said that I was his .

And that had to be something, right?

"What are you overthinking?" Jacob's voice suddenly interrupted my thoughts, as he stepped back into the bar.

"What?" I folded my arms against my chest. "Who said anything about overthinking?"

"I can see it all over your face, baby." Jacob smirked. "What were you thinking about just now?"

"Brent," I answered, telling half of the truth. "He isn't picking up or getting back to me, and I want to make sure that we'll still be able to fly out of here when it's time."

"Maybe he's just busy?"

"Or maybe he threw his phone into the ocean and ran away with a lover?" I suggested. "Maybe he decided that he wants to start a new life for himself in the woods, away from the stresses of this modern world."

"God. I love your imagination." Jacob chuckled before he pressed a soft kiss against my forehead. "No wonder you're so creative."

"I'm serious, Jacob," I whined. "What am I supposed to do if we don't have the airstrip shit figured out?—"

"I've got an idea."

"Does it involve going to Brent's house and making sure he's still alive?"

"Something like that, sure." Jacob grinned as he wrapped his arms around my waist, casually pulling me off the bar. "Do you trust me?"

"More than anything."

I was standing outside the lodge with the rest of the guys, Diego, Chris, Andrew, and Keith all lined up against the wall. We were all exchanging looks of confusion, as if none of us had any idea what was happening right now. A few moments later, Bradley and Jacob came out of the lodge, holding several shovels in their grip.

"Wait. Are we going to go shovel snow again?" I frowned. "I thought we already handled the snow at the airstrip."

"Not the airstrip, no. Right here," Jacob replied, handing me a shovel. "Bradley's been scoping this place out since we got here. It turns out, when it's not completely snowed in, they operate as a sports rental place, too."

"A sports rental place?"

"Snowboards. Snowmobiles. That sort of thing," he continued. "But the only problem is, everything's currently snowed in behind a huge shed. I think if we can get the snow from out in front of it, we should be able to access everything."

"Holy shit." Chris's eyes went wide. "Are you saying that we'll actually be able to have some fun in the fucking snow? Fucking finally?"

"What are we waiting for? Point us in the right direction and let's kill this!" Diego shouted as he pulled one of the shovels into his hands, soon raising it above his head. "Boys! Let's go!"

Bradley silently led the way, as we all walked over to the storage shed. Jacob had been right about a huge mound of snow blocking everyone's access to it, but the guys seemed absolutely determined to get inside of the shed ASAP. We all went to work, attacking the mound from different angles, some of us more eager than others.

Around half an hour later, the mound had pretty much disappeared, with smaller mounds of snow on either side of us from all the shoveling. Still silent, Bradley pulled open the shed, revealing a treasure trove of gear: snowboards, skis, and snowmobiles as far back into the shed as the eye could see.

"Hell yeah!" Andrew whistled. "Now, we're talking."

"Dibs on that snowboard!" Keith called out, as he ran over toward it. "Any of you brave enough to race me down one of the banks?"

"I don't know. I don't think it's very brave to take such an easy bet." Diego laughed and shook his head.

"You're on, Diego!" Keith flipped him off as he walked back out of the shed.

"Who cares about snowboards? They have skis here, guys!" Chris moved toward his gear of choice, his face beaming. "I'll meet you out on the bank, but I might be zooming past ya'."

"What do you think, Leo? What should we go for?" Jacob sidled up next to me as he looked into the shed.

"I'm sorry? What now?" I quirked an eyebrow over at him. "I assumed we were doing this for the athletes, you know, giving them something to kill time?"

"We are." He smirked. "But we're also doing this for us, to take your mind off of waiting around for Brent's call."

"It's just that I'm not really a…"

"Sports person?" Jacob smirked again. "Despite that being your entire livelihood?"

"When you say it out loud like that, you make it sound ridiculous," I murmured before I looked around the room. I pointed to a few pairs of what looked like oversized shoes, with heavy tracks underneath each sole. "What about those? What are those for?"

"Snowshoeing. Great choice."

"Snowshoeing?"

"Basically, hiking in the snow," Jacob explained. "We might be able to get some good views and it's something more easily accessible for a beginner, so you don't need to worry about the learning curve."

"Got it. Sounds good." I took a deep breath. "And you promise this isn't going to end up killing me somehow? I know you said it's accessible for a beginner, but what if I'm something a little less than that?—"

"Here you go. These should fit you just fine," Jacob said, already handing me a pair of snowshoes.

"Yep. Thanks." I tried and failed to keep my nerves out of my tone as I proceeded to put the snowshoes on my feet, my fingers slightly trembling.

It wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be.

And by that, I meant I'd somehow survived the trek in my snowshoes, so far. Jacob had been right beside me, guiding me as we made our way through the snow. Every so often, he'd stare over at me, his eyes filled with concern, like I was permanently at risk of busting my ass.

Although, he might've been right about that. Even though the trek had gone well so far, I couldn't pretend like I was comfortable in my snowshoes, just yet.

Because there was a very good chance that I was never going to be.

"Are you okay?" Jacob asked, his eyes locked on mine. "Are you having a good time?"

"I am, actually." I flashed him a warm smile before nodding up at Keith and Diego who were so far up ahead. "Maybe not as good of a time as they're having, though. They look like they're having the time of their lives."

"As long as you're having a good time, that's all I care about."

I suddenly felt warm, even though it was freezing cold outside. "Thank you. For making me do this. I don't usually like being pushed out of my comfort zone, but this was worth it."

"I wouldn't say it's worth it just yet." Jacob took a few more steps as he spoke. "Not until you see this view. Come here."

I hurried up beside him, my snowshoes crunching against the ground. When I finally reached his side, I realized that we were standing on a snowbank overlooking part of the city.

Whoa.

It was like staring down at a living snow globe, the city perfectly encapsulated on all sides by snow. There were cars on the mostly clear roads and bright lights twinkling from various homes and buildings, creating a glistening effect in the sun. A part of me wanted to reach out and shake the city, wanting to see more snowfall across rooftops and sidewalks, giving me a chance to appreciate its beauty in a new light.

"This is gorgeous," I murmured, leaning my head against Jacob's arm.

"Isn't it?" He smiled down at me. "I had a feeling you might like it."

"I can't believe the rest of the guys are missing this view."

"I don't think they'd appreciate it, anyway." Jacob lightly chuckled. "They seem pretty preoccupied with the rest of the gear."

"Including Bradley and his snowmobile obsession," I chuckled now, too. "Who knew your cousin had such a competitive streak? I feel like he and Chris have been going around these banks in circles trying to outrace each other?—"

My words were interrupted by my phone ringing in my pocket. It took me a minute to fish it out from behind the heavy fabric, but when I did, I saw that Brent's name was flashing across the screen.

"Shit!" I blurted out before answering the call. "Brent! Hey! How are you doing?"

"Hey, Leo! Sorry about not answering all your calls. It's just been a busy morning. I'm sure you can relate."

"Of course. Totally." I nodded as I spoke, the view of Roanoke still right in front of me. "Sorry for bothering you so much about it, anyway, but I wanted to see if you knew anything about the airstrip? Or if we'll be able to fly out of here soon?"

"Yep! I've got great news!" Brent replied. "It looks like you guys cleaning up the airstrip was enough to get the workers to at least come take a look at it. And they're saying, if all goes well and there's no more snow on the ground tonight, you should be able to leave in the morning. You're free and clear."

"Oh my God!" I couldn't help but pump my fist into the air in a mini-celebration. "That's amazing, Brent! Thank you so much!"

"Don't thank me. Thank yourself and the rest of the guys. You were the ones who made this whole thing happen," Brent said. "I'll call you back if anything changes. And let me know if you need anything in the interim. I've got to get going. I'm drowning in paperwork over here."

"Right. Got it. Talk later, but hopefully not," I joked, as I hung up the phone.

"Was that Brent?" Jacob asked. "What'd he say about the airstrip?"

"He said that everyone should be able to fly out tomorrow morning, barring there isn't some kind of environmental disaster, AKA more snow on the ground," I replied, feeling like a huge weight had been lifted off my chest.

And then, I looked over at Jacob.

There was an expression on his face that I couldn't quite read, one that seemed like it was tinged with sadness.

A moment later, his expression had shifted into a smile. "That's good news, then, right? Everyone gets to go home tomorrow."

"Everyone gets to go home tomorrow," I repeated, a familiar sadness now making its way through my body. I wanted to reach for his hand, yearning to hold it as we took in the snowy view of the city.

But instead, I kept my hands to myself, idly wondering if Jacob and I were having the exact same thought.

"Are you almost all packed up?"

Jacob was sitting on the end of my bed, watching as I finished rolling my clothes into my suitcase. I was almost done packing up everything in my room, just having cleared out the bathroom and the closet. Even though I'd only been here for a week, there was a heaviness to my every move, almost like I was moving out of the home I'd grown up in.

Almost like the lodge had somehow become like a second home.

"Yep. Almost done," I replied, before I faked a smile at him. There wasn't any part of me that felt like smiling, but I didn't need Jacob to know that right now. "You're probably pretty shocked that I could get all my stuff in this suitcase, huh?"

"Why would I be shocked about that?" Jacob smiled, too. "You're great at PR. I think that means you have to be pretty great at organizational skills, too."

"You know what?" I said, rising to my feet, my suitcase still on the floor beside me. "I don't think I can do this, Jacob."

"Do what, Leo?"

"Pretend like everything's okay. Pretend like I'm happy to be going home."

"I thought that was what you wanted, to get everyone on their flights back?—"

"I need to say something!" I cut him off, as I held a finger between us. "Just. Please. I need to say this one thing, and then, we can just let this go or move on or do whatever we need to do."

Jacob quietly nodded. "Okay. Say what you need to say, Leo?—"

"I love you."

"What?"

"I love you, Jacob Bronson," I confessed, my heart racing wildly in my chest with my every word. "Um, I don't want to be corny and say that I've been in love with you ever since the first moment I saw you, but I've definitely been in love with you ever since that moment we had in the bar, when it was like you were seeing me. The real me. I don't… I don't think anyone's ever seen me like that before. Ever."

"Leo—"

"And you don't have to say anything, Jacob. You don't have to say it back. I know how crazy this all sounds, I mean, we just fucking met and I'm already saying that I love you? That doesn't make any sense, except it makes perfect sense to me, which is why I'm just… blathering on about it. Fuck. Jacob. I love you. I'm in love with you. And I'm sorry for unloading all of that on you?—"

"I love you, too."

"What?" I could hardly believe what I was hearing, the room seeming fuzzy all of a sudden. "What did you just say?"

"I love you, too, Leo," Jacob repeated, as he stood up to meet me, now standing right in front of me. "And I don't care about being corny. I think I loved you from the very first moment I saw you, when you had this look on your face like you thought I was some kind of snowy invader coming to loot your wares."

"Coming to loot my wares." I couldn't help but laugh at Jacob's framing of the first time we met. "I mean, you're not too far off. Tommy and I were pretty sure you and Bradley were total brutes."

"You were only half wrong." Jacob smirked, before he bent to kiss me, our bodies seeming to melt against each other.

Just then, I broke off the kiss, my hand pressed against Jacob's chest. "Wait."

"Wait?"

"Isn't there something you want to ask me?" I playfully crept my fingers up Jacob's chest. "Something about making us official? Something about making me your boyfriend?"

"You want to be my boyfriend?"

"Was that the official way you're going to ask the question?"

"Hold on. I think I can do better." Jacob took a deep breath before staring down into my eyes. "Leo Sullivan?"

"Speaking."

"Will you be my boyfriend?" Jacob pressed his forehead against mine as he asked the question.

I pressed my forehead against his in return. "I'll be whatever you want me to be, Jacob Bronson."

"You're not a big social media person, right?" I asked, scrolling through my phone, lying next to Jacob in bed. "As in, I don't need to tag you in any updates about my relationship status?"

"You can tag me if you want." Jacob shrugged. "I probably won't be the first person to see it. I don't really check my social media pages too often."

"Of course, you don't. Because you don't obsess over what people think about you." I blew out a heavy breath. "I want to get on your level someday."

"Oh yeah?" Jacob grinned as he shifted closer to me on the bed. "You know, you can start on that right now."

"Really? How?"

"Like this," Jacob said, as he slowly pulled my phone out of my hands and put it down on the dresser beside us. "The first step is taking your mind off it. Or, I guess, letting me take your mind off it."

"And how did you plan on taking my mind off—Oh." I groaned as Jacob slid a hand underneath my shirt, his fingers finding one of my nipples and rolling it between his fingertips.

"You're so cute when you start to fall apart," he murmured, just before he pulled my shirt up toward my shoulders, giving him even more access to my chest. When he was done speaking, he brought his lips around my nipple, casually licking the sensitive nub as I shivered underneath him.

I whimpered and whined at Jacob's every touch, his mouth moving over to my other nipple while he brought his hand up to the one he just left, playing with both of them at the same time. I was completely coming to pieces underneath him, but I didn't feel an ounce of shame, not about the way he made me feel, not about how easily he could make me get hard for him, either.

Because I belonged to Jacob. And Jacob was mine.

"Jacob…" I moaned his name as he worked my chest. "Jacob…"

"Fuck. I love it when you say my name like that," Jacob groaned, before he fully pulled my shirt up over my head. He didn't waste any time doing the same with my pants and boxers, pulling them down past my knees and eventually letting them fall off the edge of the bed. Jacob then went back into position over me, his tongue sliding into my mouth, his hands holding down my wrists against the bed.

I writhed underneath him, excitement building in my veins. I knew that he was working up to something, playing into the power dynamic of me being naked and him being fully clothed. I never expected to be the kind of person who looked forward to being used , to having someone else do whatever they wanted with my body.

But when Jacob did it, it didn't feel like I was being used. It felt like I finally belonged, like I was completely safe in his arms, and he'd never do anything to hurt me, to make me feel unwanted or unloved.

"Fuck! Jacob…" I shuddered through another breath, as Jacob began to thrust his hips against mine, his body moving back and forth. I felt my cock hardening between us, my shaft rubbing against the fabric of his jeans, my precome leaking against his zipper. I wrapped my legs around his waist, pulling him even closer to me, shamelessly chasing after my own pleasure as I pressed my body against his.

"You're breaking the rules again, baby," Jacob softly warned. "You know what happens when you try to take control."

"I don't care about breaking the rules," I murmured, still rocking up against him. "I want you, Jacob. I want to come for you."

"You want to come for me?" There was a mischievous look on Jacob's face, as he picked up his pace, his hips moving even faster than before. "Then, I'm going to make you come for me, baby. All night long."

"Jacob… wait…" My mouth fell open in a moan, as I felt myself coming for him, my cock exploding against his pants, my come creating a wet spot between us. "Fuck…"

"That's one," Jacob said, sliding a hand between us, his palm wrapping around my still throbbing cock. He started to pump me up and down, his hand stroking me through the end of my orgasm, my shaft way too sensitive to his touch.

"Jacob… wait… I can't…"

"Yes, you can, baby. You can do this for me." Jacob's voice was low as he continued to stroke my cock, his grip only getting stronger and faster. "You said you wanted to come for me, didn't you, baby?"

"Fuck…" I felt like I was on fire, in the very best way, every nerve ending in my body coming alive with pleasure, all at the same time. Jacob was watching my expression and as he played with my cock, he swiped his thumb all across my wet slit. There was something about the intensity behind his gaze that made me fall apart for him all over again, my come landing on his palm as I trembled and shook, my body barely able to handle the pleasure of it all.

"That's two," Jacob calmly said before he shifted down my body.

"Jacob, what are you—Jacob!" My head fell back against the pillow, as Jacob took my cock into his mouth. "Jacob… I can't…"

I dug my fingers into the sheets, my mind threatening to leave my body if I subjected it to any more of Jacob's hands or mouth on me. My thighs were shaking as he took all of me between his lips, bobbing his head up and down as he expertly worked my shaft. I felt my eyes rolling toward the back of my head, my vision becoming blurry as Jacob ran his tongue across the length of me.

"Jacob… I'm… I'm going to…" My breaths were becoming shallower as my body continued to shake, the tip of my cock threatening to explode against Jacob's tongue. Before I could get out another word, Jacob started to move even faster against me, adding more pressure as he took me in his mouth. I helplessly whimpered as I came for him again, my world becoming dizzy and weak.

"That's three," Jacob said, moving back up on the bed, not stopping until we were face to face. "How are you feeling, baby?"

"Like I'm about to pass out? I think?" I tried to put words to my feelings. "Like you're overwhelming my brain by making me feel too good."

"Good. Focus on that feeling," Jacob instructed as he moved away from the bed. A few minutes later, and I felt him tying something to my wrists, keeping them close to each other as he placed them above my head. I then felt Jacob spreading my legs apart before something warm and wet was being rubbed across my waiting hole.

Lube.

Jacob was getting my entrance prepared for him, his finger sliding in and out of me. It felt good, the same way it always did, but it was almost like I was on the verge of having an out-of-body experience, Jacob's touch pushing me closer and closer to the edge. After he slipped a second finger inside me, stretching me out enough to take his cock, I could feel him lining up his shaft with my entrance.

And then, slowly but surely, he was inside of me. Jacob lifted my legs until they were resting on his shoulders, his chest coming down toward mine. When he was fully inside of me, he started to thrust against me, his cock filling me up to the brim. A bolt of pleasure moved through me, balling up at my spine, spreading out through my fingertips.

A few more thrusts and that was when it happened. It was like I was suddenly floating on water in the most peaceful ocean, like I was sitting on a beach as the perfect breeze came over me. I was here, but I wasn't, my pleasure centers being completely overloaded; Jacob's cock pressing against my prostate but my body only responding with cool waves and cooler breezes.

"Baby? You okay?" Jacob asked as he looked down at me, concern written all over his face. "How are you feeling?"

"I… um…" It was hard to find my words, even as warmth continued to spread through me. "It feels…"

"So good that your mind is drifting away from you?"

"Mmhmm." I nodded, still lost on some endless summer vacation, Jacob my only anchor to the moment. "It just feels so good, Jacob. Everything feels so good."

Jacob smiled down at me as he sped up his thrusts inside of me. "Good, baby. That's exactly what I wanted for you."

"What… um…" I groaned, now realizing that I was close to coming for Jacob again, my cock pressed against his waist. "What is… this…"

"Subspace, baby. You're out in subspace right now."

"What's… subspace…" My question came out quietly as my cock spilled between us. I watched as strands of it landed against Jacob's waist and my waist, too, creating a bond between us in its own way. Jacob looked down at our connection, too, a smile on his face as he thrust inside me a few more times before he went completely still, a telltale sign that he was coming.

"I love you…" My words trailed off as I floated off into outer space, no longer able to stay on this planet no matter how hard I tried. "I love you so much, Jacob…"

"I love you, too, baby. So fucking much."