Chapter 5

Chapter Five

VANDER

It was hard not to get distracted by the way Everson was erotically licking his ice cream off its cone. His tongue did things that gave me naughty thoughts I really shouldn't be having. But damn if his unintentional show made me think he'd give amazing blow jobs if I was lucky enough to experience that.

Since I was too self-conscious to eat an ice cream cone for that very reason, I opted to have mine in a bowl. We sat on a bench, listening to the waves hitting the shore as we waited for the fireworks to start.

We sat in silence for a while, enjoying our respective treats. Eventually, I felt the need to apologize. "Sorry, I'm not great at small talk."

Everson waved away my concern. "Don't worry about it. There's nothing wrong with a companionable silence. And if you need someone to fill the silence, I'm great at that."

"I just don't want you to think I'm not interested in you." Taking a deep breath, I put myself out there in a way I usually avoided. "Tonight has been the most fun I've had in a long time."

"Same." His smile was breathtaking. "I'm grateful you agreed to go out with me tonight."

"I'm still amazed someone like you wants to go out with me at all."

He playfully bumped his shoulder against mine. "You say that like you aren't wonderful."

"I'm used to most people ignoring me because I'm quiet." In the past, I assumed that was for the best. But something about Everson made me grateful he had any interest in pursuing me.

"They don't know what they're missing." He resumed eating his ice cream. "I guess it's further proof you're meant to be mine."

I arched an eyebrow at his forward claim on me. "It sort of feels that way, doesn't it?"

He nodded. "Absolutely."

"So, I know you like people, but what about pets? You strike me as an all-animals type rather than cat versus dog person."

The warmth in his blue eyes was incredible. "You know me so well already. That's awesome. Do you have any pets?"

"I have an orange cat named Zell."

"Aww, that's so cute you named him after Squall's friend in Final Fantasy VIII ." He grinned at me. "Let me guess: he's a bit of a goober, but in that fun, lovable, gets stuck in a trash can and cries sort of way?"

"Clearly, you've known someone with an orange cat," I said with a chuckle. Orange cats were notorious for being silly, and mine was no exception.

"I had one growing up. He was always getting into trouble, but he was so damn cute you couldn't get mad at him."

"Yep, that sounds about right. Do you have any pets now?"

Everson shook his head. "Sadly, my apartment doesn't allow pets."

The words were out of my mouth before I could stop myself. "If you want to come over and see Zell, I live near the beach, not too far from here."

"Oooh, fancy." His teasing brought a blush to my cheeks. "I'd love that, if you wouldn't mind."

"He doesn't get many visitors, so I suspect he'd enjoy meeting you. He loves attention."

"In that case, why don't we go to your place after the fireworks are over?" Everson's boldness was a good thing when I was usually too shy to ask people for anything.

I didn't even need to think about the answer. "That would be great."

His smile was so bright and beautiful it lit me up inside. Before he could say anything further, the first firework exploded in the sky without warning.

Since the loud kabooms of the fireworks made it hard to hold a conversation, we enjoyed the show while finishing our ice cream. When the display reached its finale, Everson surprised me by leaning over to give me a tender kiss. It detonated the fireworks in my soul as I kissed him back with a pent-up need that had been building for a long time.

Everson opened for me, letting me explore his wet warmth as the sky continued to explode with light. I fell for him even harder when a soft moan escaped him as he kissed me back with passionate need.

As I indulged in the sweet taste of him, it felt like the perfect summer night of my dreams. I could hardly believe that Everson was interested in me, but his genuineness made me want to believe him. It was a surprising instinct when I didn't trust many people, but something told me my trust wasn't misplaced.

We were almost at my house when Everson gasped at the sight of my neighbor's place. "Wait, is that a castle ?"

I chuckled at his reaction. "It's as impressive as one. A really nice guy named Haverford inherited it from his grandmother. You'd like him."

"Wait, do you live in a castle? Are you the real prince and not me?"

"Sorry to disappoint you, but I live in a regular house." I turned into my driveway, allowing my home to come into view.

"I'm sorry, but that is not a regular house!" Everson exclaimed as he stared with awe. "This is like my dream mansion!"

"After living in Wintervale for so long, I wanted to be close to the beach." I pulled into my garage, secretly pleased with his reaction. As soon as I opened the door to my house, Zell was waiting there to give me the what for over leaving him alone. He meowed his lengthy complaints as he nuzzled against my legs. "Yes, I know, I know. I'm the worst for leaving you. But I brought company."

As soon as Everson entered and shut the door behind him, Zell was on him. He milled around his legs with plaintive cries for attention.

"Does he want picked up?" Everson asked.

"Yes, and carried like the big baby he is," I replied.

Everson obliged my needy cat by picking him up and cradling him in his arms. "Oh, look at you! You're so handsome, just like your daddy." He hugged my cat, who purred loudly at receiving attention.

I blushed at the indirect compliment but said nothing as I turned on the lights and led him into the living room. He sat with Zell, who made himself comfortable in Everson's lap. I was weirdly jealous but also happy that Zell liked him so much. He may not have been the smartest cat, but he had an innate sense of who was a good person who deserved his attention.

It was cute watching Everson fuss over my cat, who was eating up all the praise. "Sorry, I'm not trying to ignore you. I'm just so happy to be near a cat. It's been a long time, and I love them so much. And Zell is a sweetheart, isn't he? Yes, he is!"

Zell butted his head against Everson in a bid for more pets, which were immediately given to him. Watching Everson dote over my cat caused me to fall for him even more. I had a weak spot for men who were affectionate to cats. After too many disastrous dates with guys who hated cats, it was a refreshing change of pace.

"Wow, look at that view," Everson said with an impressed whistle at the beach that backed up to my house. "You really weren't kidding about your boss being generous."

"I also had help from making some smart investments in high school with my graduation money." My nest egg had grown large enough to help me buy my dream house on the ocean. "After spending most of my life freezing, I wanted to live here in the sunshine."

His understanding smile sent flutters through me. "I love it."

"We can go out onto the patio if you want, although Zell has to stay inside. He's too accident-prone to go out there."

"Sorry, buddy, but I'm going to have to go for a little bit." Everson gave Zell a kiss on the head before gently scooting my cat off his lap. He followed me outside, careful to make sure Zell stayed in the house. He looked around at my impressive patio, which overlooked an infinity pool and the ocean. " Wow . This is beautiful."

"Yeah, it is," I said, but I only had eyes for Everson. While he was a sunshine prince, he also looked as if he was made of magical moonlight under the full moon above us.

He grinned at me. "So, how inappropriate would it be to ask to go skinny-dipping in your pool?"

I certainly wouldn't refuse a chance to see Everson in all his naked glory. "It's fine. I don't mind."

Everson put on a show of stripping out of his clothes, stirring my desire. But I kept a tight leash on it as I walked over to the cabana to grab two towels before I took off my clothes and joined him in my heated pool.

"This is beyond magical." Everson sighed in pleasure before he swam over to me. "Thank you for bringing me here."

"You're welcome."

I held my breath as he stood in front of me. He reached out to run his hands up my chest, sending shivers through me despite the warm water. To my great surprise, he wrapped his arms around my neck, giving him the leverage to wrap his legs around my waist. The skin-to-skin contact overwhelmed me in the best of ways.

My hands naturally embraced him, pulling him closer. It surprised me to feel his arousal pressing against my stomach as he kissed me. It was unhurried and teasing, causing my cock to perk up with interest. I enjoyed caressing him as we continued making out, growing more aroused as he rocked his hardness against me. It made me ache for things we couldn't do in a pool, and yet I was in no hurry to get out—not as long as he was kissing me into submission.