CHAPTER TWENTY Dirk

I didn't blame the wine for how I was feeling about Blake. He looked absurdly cute in a too-large T-shirt of mine and an old pair of gray gym shorts. He'd been laughing nonstop at my silly jokes and making me feel good inside. After we uncorked the second bottle of cheap wine, we flirted and made any excuse to touch each other when near.

When I stood and poured him more wine I'd rest my hand on his shoulder. He'd laugh out loud at one of my jokes and reach across the table for my hand with a look that said enough already with the jokes . We both needed the contact badly. Maybe we recognized we desired something from the other. Me, isolated for months at a time, and him self-isolating out of grief. I wanted him and knew that I would make a move on him.

"More?" I asked, tipping the bottle of red toward his glass. "I promise I'll behave."

"That sounds boring," he quipped, giving me a look that confirmed we were actually connecting. "I don't care for behaved men all that much."

"Prove your point then," I teased, filling his glass to the absolute top.

"Are you daring to dare me, Cadet Dirk?" he snarked. "As the son of the beloved commissioner, I am your superior officer."

He watched as I topped my glass off and then took the final swig from the bottle. We weren't using wine glasses since I didn't have any, but instead we'd used good-sized drinking glasses. "Is that so?" I asked. "The son of the boss, huh? Sounds kinda exciting to have you locked up in my tower."

He lifted his nose and sneered. "I am the heir to the throne and those are the facts, so tell me, good man, what do you want me to prove to you?" he insisted. "Not that I should entertain the ideas of a subordinate," he added, taking a long drink of wine and dismissively waving a hand toward me.

"I dare you to play strip poker, sir."

He looked at his clothing, noting he only had four items on if you included socks as two separate pieces. I had two. Three if my watch counted. "Do my socks count?" he asked, grinning. I nodded and grinned back at him, noticing a stirring in my boxers. I wanted to fuck him so hard it hurt. "Your watch?" he added, doing mental math on whether he had an edge. I nodded again. "Deal!" he yipped, holding his hand out for me to shake.

"Five card poker, one draw only?" I asked.

"Perfect choice," he stated, rubbing his palms together like a witch with a clever potion. He didn't know that I didn't care how fast the game went. I sure as fuck didn't care who got undressed first.

He dealt first. "Give me two cards please," I said. He dealt me two and he took three. "Pair of aces," I revealed. He threw his cards down hard and frowned. I watched as he peeled a sock off and threw it toward me.

I dealt the next hand. Same exact draw. I took two and he drew three. "Three sixes," he crowed. "Read ‘em and weep, sucker." He was sexy as fuck when he acted like a total dude and taunted me. His competitiveness and the mouth on him was turning me on but I had bad news for him.

"Three nines, sucker!" I yelled, slamming my cards on the table and dancing around like I'd hit the lotto.

"What the fuck?" he hissed, taking another drink of red. "Screw it," he stated, yanking his tank top off, rolling it up and throwing it over his shoulder.

I'd expected the other sock and couldn't peel my eyes away. His slender neck was accentuated by smooth shoulders and barely there biceps on small arms. Slight but perfect pectorals that hosted light-brown nipples I wanted to bite. My eyes trailed down his bare and hairless chest until I was stunned to see an eight pack ripped enough to do laundry on. He was petite, smoother, fairer, and everything I craved in a sexual partner. I liked dominating my men and using their slight bodies for my sexual needs. Blake was built to spec, and I wanted him bad.

"Your deal, sexy," I said, making a point to let him watch as I studied his upper body carefully, biting my lip and not looking away as he shuffled the cards. "Make it count," I added.

We stared at each other with what I thought was yearning in both of our eyes. I knew I was lusting after him but he was playing it cool. "I intend to," he specified, in a husky voice I hadn't heard before then. "I don't like losing either, so add that to your count of what I don't like."

"You're down to a sock and shorts, buddy, so I'm not nervous."

He dealt and we both looked at our hands, giving nothing away. "How many?" he asked.

"Zero," I growled. His eyebrows lifted and he glanced at his sock to make sure he still had a chance. He drew four this time. "Four?" I questioned. "You are totally cooked this time, mister."

Blake waited for me to lay my cards down. "Full house, baby. Check them fives over kings," I bragged. I watched as he lifted his leg with the remaining sock on it and removed the Puma sport sock he'd borrowed. I hadn't missed the opportunity to marvel at his defined legs. They proved he'd been extreme hiking for sure, and the sight of him with one leg in the air made me want to throw him on the table and hold both his ankles to his ears.

We took inventory of each other's clothing items. He had the shorts that I knew he was going commando in because I'd seen him put them on after the shower, daring to check out his bubble butt when he did. I had the tank top, watch, and boxers. Three to one in my favor. What to do? What to do?

"Looks like I'm about to get my wish," I said.

"Not so fast, stud," he challenged. "Deal ‘em."

I dealt and quickly picked up my cards, noticing I didn't even have a pair. He waited and watched my expression before picking up his. "How many?" I asked, tapping the top card of the deck I held in my hand.

"All five," he said.

"No shit?" I asked. "This is going to be so nice when those shorts come off that cute ass of yours," I said, slipping about my assessment of his ass and not meaning to reveal so much of my inner dialogue.

"So…you like my ass, do ya?" he asked, laying his original hand on the table and waiting for me to deal the replacements. I kept my eyes fixed on his and nodded that I certainly did. "That's nice to hear, Cadet."

I dealt him five new cards. "And I'm taking four," I said, hoping for at least a pair. "What you got?" I asked.

He didn't look so confident after getting an entirely new hand, and my cock jumped the moment I thought of him losing the shorts and sitting across from me totally naked.

"A pair of jacks," he announced, turning his cards over for the reveal. I had nothing and waited a moment to show my hand. I also wanted to watch him nervously shift in his chair at the thought of losing. I displayed my cards. I didn't even have a pair. "Yes!" he yelled, jumping out of his chair. "Yes! Yes! Yes!" he cheered, pointing at me. "Not over yet, Cadet."

I stood, moved away from the table, and stared at him as he waited for me to pull my tank top off. He was in for a surprise if he'd counted on both of us remaining in our bottoms. My thumbs slid into the waist band of my boxers as his eyes saucered in anticipation. I slid them past my erect cock and they fell to the floor on their own.

"Looks like you win," I whispered, looking from his eyes to my engorged cock.