tarotgal

Part 10

Lucas watched the door anxiously. Troy hadn’t texted to tell him he’d be coming to the weight training session, but he also hadn’t sent word that he wouldn’t be there. He told himself to stay calm, that this session was the important thing here—learning and experiencing and getting enough out of this to justify what he was paying for in the conference registration fee, hotel, and travel costs. But he still couldn’t help keeping an eye on that door just in case Troy showed up.

Every time someone who wasn’t Troy walked into the room, Lucas’ heart sank a little. He became surer and surer the man was not coming. He’d seemed better this morning, less sneezy, more rested. It wasn’t hard to imagine the man might have slept soundly, sandwiched between Lucas and David. He hoped he would get the chance to sleep that way with him again tonight.

As his thoughts began to wander in a cautiously optimistic way toward what might happen tonight, who appeared in the doorway but Troy himself? Troy was wearing the same shorts from his gym that he’d been wearing when they’d met, but he had on Lucas’ running club sweatshirt. He looked amazing, and Lucas couldn’t imagine how everyone in the room wasn’t watching him and lusting after him, too. Lucas’ hand shot up in the arm, waving like a little kid wanting desperately to be called on. He couldn’t help his excitement, and he tried to pull it back some. But he knew he was still grinning when Troy spotted him and headed over. It took about a minute for Troy to make his way across the large room filled with people and equipment, but Lucas hadn’t been able to get rid of his grin in that time.

“Hey,” Troy said, leaning casually against the bench and the barbell on it. “The medicine kicked in. It’s started to help clear me out a bit. Thought I’d join you after all.”

David must have been thrilled with Troy’s progress. His voice was still a little weak and there was still some congestion behind it. But he sounded so much better than the last time they’d talked. “It’s good to see you here. I wasn’t sure you’d come,” Lucas tried to hide his emotions, but he just exuded relief and pleasure in every word he spoke.

“Actually, I haven’t yet. But I think that’s in store for tonight, if all goes well.”

Lucas felt his cheeks go red. Even when he and David had dated, they hadn’t flirted like this. This felt new but not entirely unwelcome. He hoped Troy hadn’t noticed his reaction, though.

No such luck, apparently. Troy’s dimple-filled smile broadened, and he cocked his head to the side. “Have you ever been told how cute you look when you blush, mate?”

Lucas hid his face momentarily by pulling the bottom of his shirt up and wiping the hem across his brow, as if to wipe away sweat. But the workout hadn’t stared yet and it was obvious he was doing a shitty job of reining in his emotions.

Luckily, he was saved by one of the instructors asking everyone to pair off and find a weight bench. Lucas had both a bench and a partner already picked out. And the idea of getting to show off again for Troy filled him with an irrepressible amount of excitement.

They started off with a few stretches and warm up-exercises so their muscles weren’t going into this cold. This wasn’t too physical for Troy, so he joined in, and Lucas couldn’t help but love how they moved in synch, doing one small movement, disengaging, and then doing another. He’d done plenty of classes over the years, but there was something uniquely thrilling about doing one with someone he had just slept in bed with, someone he wanted to be more intimate with. It was like their bodies shared a closeness he couldn’t quite put his finger on, and the routine was accentuating it.

They did some jumping jacks as well, which Lucas jumped outright and Troy only step-touched his way through to keep from lapsing into coughs. After shaking their arms to loosen them up, it was finally time to get to the bench press portion of the class.

“All right, everybody. Decide who’s going first and let’s have that person take a seat.”

Lucas sat on the bench and laid his hand on the bar, scooting his hand over almost imperceptively until his hand was right next to Troy’s, their pinky fingers touching. Lucas wanted to touch more than that, but he didn’t dare in such a public place. During their first meeting in Club Fun, Troy had given him some attitude when he’d thought Lucas might have a problem with his being gay. Sadly, that mindset was all too common in the sports and fitness industry still, though significantly more improved than it had once been. Lucas still knew this wasn’t the time or the place for affection. He was just happy to see the man and be able to share this with him.

“Are we all paired up? Fantastic. Now, introduce yourself to your partner!” the instructor was saying into the small microphone in his wireless headset. It allowed him to walk back and forth on the stage with both hands free.

“Hi, I’m Lucas,” Lucas said, sticking his hand out for Troy to shake, hoping he might get a smile out of the man for that joke.

“Hi, I’m yours,” Troy replied smoothly, ignoring the offered hand and choosing, instead, to gaze at him with ‘fuck me’ eyes. Lucas’ whole body grew warmer.

The instructor continued. ”Today, you’ll be going at whatever pace you feel comfortable, and your spotter is there just to make sure you don’t get yourself into trouble. You’ve got to be able to trust the person who’ll be spotting you.”

“So… do you trust me?” Troy asked, smiling so widely it was nearly impossible for Lucas not to spring up and kiss each one of those dimples. He rubbed a couple fingers along the side of his nose, sniffling lightly.

Lucas tried to think of something flirty to say back, something with some sexual innuendo—intended this time—something cool that would raise what Troy already thought of him to the next level. He trusted the man enough to sleep with him. He trusted the man to be alone with his husband. He trusted the man far more than required just to watch and make sure he didn’t drop a barbell on his neck. But Lucas didn’t know how to say that in a clever enough way. All Lucas could do was reply with a weak, almost-squeaking “Of course I do.”

Troy started to reply, but his eyes narrowed and his breath caught. He pulled a tissue out of the front pocket of the hoodie—Lucas’ hoodie—and held it to his face with both hands cupped over his nose and mouth to muffle the sound. “hhttIHshphh! Hehh-EHchphhhhh!”

When he was done sneezing and muttering a soft “’scuse me,” he slid his hand over Lucas’ as if by accident, though Lucas was certain it was anything but.

The touch was light and lasted only a brief, fluttery moment, but it was enough to make Lucas’ insides heat up hotter and his body tingle with desire. “There’s that blush again. I knew it was still there.” He squatted down and leaned forward, his mouth close to Lucas’ ear so that no one could possibly overhear. “Can’t wait to find out if it’s just your cheeks and neck that go red or if it’s all over that hot body of yours.”

“Shut up,” Lucas breathed, closing his eyes, trying to control his involuntary reactions. This was not the time or place for an erection. “You’re making this hard.”

“Good,” Troy chuckled. He nipped Lucas’ earlobe, the movement so tiny and quick no one else would have recognized it for what it had been. “That was kinda my plan.”

Lucas realized he was breathing heavily, and the workout hadn’t even started yet. Opening his eyes, he sat up—avoiding the barbell—and grabbed his water bottle. The cool water helped calm him. This was what he’d asked for, what he’d hoped for. Now that he had it, he was determined not to fuck it up. But he was certain nothing he could do or say could rival Troy right now. So suave, so sure of himself even though he was still sick and still tired. Troy was magical. This whole trip had been magical.

Putting his hand back on the barbell, he was surprised when Troy did the same. They scooted their hands closer until they were once again touching. “I’ve got one request to make... for now, at least.”

Troy smiled slyly and rubbed his free hand at his nose again. “Now you’re catching on. What is it?”

It wasn’t anything so clever or seductive, but it was still what needed to be said. So Lucas took a deep breath and came out with it. “I want you to let me know if you’re going to sneeze.” Troy’s eyebrows rose. Lucas continued, “Apart from the fact that David would kill me if he knew I didn’t make sure you were taken care of if you need it, I want to make sure not to be lifting when you can’t spot me.”

For a second, Troy looked uncomfortable, like he wanted to say something but was debating if he should or not. Lucas thought maybe he might have to sneeze again right now, which would be interesting timing. But, as it turned out, he didn’t sneeze this time. “I won’t let you down,” he said, all the playfulness in his voice having given way to something deadly serious.

“Thanks, man.”

Realizing he’d missed a good bit of whatever the instructor was saying now, Lucas looked around to see that one person in each pairing was already lying back on the bench, gripping the bar above. So he got into place quickly and tried to focus. The instructor was talking about having a good grip, which Lucas knew all about already. But there were also some simple tips in how to check to make sure you had a proper grip. Lucas tried to remember the wording, because these were the sorts of things Lucas liked to tell his paying clients at the gym.

“heh… Luc-ehh-Lucas?”

Lucas arched his back, looking upside-down at Troy struggling with a sneeze. “S’okay,” he whispered. “I appreciate the warning, but I haven’t lifted it off the rack yet. Go ahead and sneeze.”

“hepIHDDschhuhh!” He sneezed into his sleeve.

“Bless you.”

“Cheers. Sorry. This cold…”

“Like I said, it’s okay. You’ll tell me if you start feeling crappy and need to head back upstairs, right?”

Troy nodded, sniffing.

“Promise?”

Troy nodded again, sniffing some more.

Lucas didn’t feel entirely as convinced as he would have liked, but Troy was an adult. He could make his own choices. And he’d already proved that if he needed help, he would ask for it. Hell, he was capable of asking for whatever he needed.

He held up a finger, eyes narrowing and then closing tight. He buried his nose in the crook of his arm to muffle a mighty “HURRshmmph! Ah… sniff!” He lifted his head, blinking. “Bless me. That’s better. Sniff! Not so sneezy now. Sniff! Show me what you’ve got.”

Though his attention was still divided, Lucas did his best to concentrate on the bench press. He checked and readjusted and double-checked his grip. Then he safely straightened his arms to make sure everything was balanced and weighted properly before lowering and pressing up. It felt good to put his energy into this. Pressing up, controlling down, pressing up again. The more strength he put into each, the better his body felt. The instructor was having them start as low as they wanted with just two reps of five to start with. He and his associates were milling about, commenting on techniques and adjusting form when needed. As there were probably a half dozen of them and about a hundred pairs, Lucas looked to Troy for more immediate feedback.

“That was brilliant, mate. You’ve got great form. That was so smooth.”

“Yeah, well… it’s easy to do without much weight on the bar.”

Troy shook his head. “No. It’s easy because you work these muscles and know how to use them properly.” He coughed into his shoulder a couple times. “You wouldn’t believe how many guys I see at the gym who should be able to press two hundred easily but can’t get past one-fifty because they rush through it too fast or their form is rubbish.”

“Weight training isn’t about speed. It’s about patience and perseverance,” Lucas agreed.

Licking his lips, Troy nodded. “I can think of something else both those are good for. And now that I can finally breathe more like a normal human being again, I can’t wait for that something else.”

“Shut up,” said Lucas again, this time a little more playfully.

“Good work, everybody. Now let’s try a concentric pause bench press. After that, we’ll switch.”

Lucas hated the way his elbows didn’t seem to know what they wanted to do at every moment of a concentric pause bench press, but he did his best to follow along. Both the best part and worst part of it was how Troy touched him to make subtle corrections in his form.

Every bit of him sung with arousal by the time the instructor finally called for them to switch. As Troy didn’t feel up to it, the two of them snuck out of the rest of the class. Now that he didn’t have the physical exertion of the workout to channel his energy through, Lucas was all nerve endings and lust. He wanted badly to take Troy’s hand, to lead him to a dark corner somewhere, to run his hand through that golden hair, to kiss him hard, to grind against him until he came in his gym shorts. The exhibit hall was enormous and packed full of people, but surely he could find a place for them to hide away.

“We’ve got some time before David will expect me back and before this cold medicine starts to wear off. Do you want to check out the exhibits for a little while? I barely had time to explore it the other day.”

Lucas took a deep breath and tried to control his desires, tried to calm himself.

“Lucas, are you all right?”

Biting his lower lip and closing his eyes, he forced his head up and down in a rough approximation of a ‘yes.’

Troy took his hand and Lucas very nearly jumped out of his skin. He pulled his hand free at once before his body could respond by trying to carry out his impossible plan. His breath raced. His body tingled right down to the end of his dick. “Are you sure you’re okay?”

He nodded again. “You got me all worked up is all.” Thank God for his gym bag. It hung over his shoulder at just the right height so he could swing it in front of him and hold it against his crotch to hide his erection. It was big enough that no one would think twice. No one would know… apart from Troy. “Sure,” he said, his breath a little slower now. “Let’s look at some more of the vendors.” Like he’d told Troy only that morning, they couldn’t say no to him.

They walked around, commenting to each other about various things that were on display and products for sale. It was the sort of thing that Lucas would never have been able to do with David, because David would have been bored out of his mind. Apart from supporting Lucas in whatever he wanted to do with his career, David had no real interest in sports and fitness. He could read the driest of medical papers with rapt attention but sit him in front of a professional baseball game and he was asleep in minutes. So to have someone like Troy he could really talk in depth with was such an unexpected treat.

They snaked down one aisle and then another, popping into a few vendors here and there to find out more about an item or get a closer look at something they both desperately wanted and could never afford. Troy’s cold was mostly cooperative. Sure, he had the occasional sneeze and more than occasional sniffle, but they struck briefly and Troy carried right on as if nothing were bothering him. And, perhaps, nothing was.

“Look at this…” Troy said, leading the way toward a booth that claimed to sell odor-eating sprays for the inside of your gym bag. The concept seemed to be similar to a lot of general air freshening products but formulated to work in small, enclosed spaces and specifically against the sort of musty stench that clung to workout clothes you sweated in. It had potential, if it did in fact work. However, it also had a strong aroma of its own. Several of the versions smelled fruity while others were floral in nature. Combined, they were a strong, overwhelming scent Lucas had not been expecting.

Whether it was the combination of scents or just the strength of them, Lucas didn’t know. All he knew was that he was suddenly finding it very difficult to breathe. It wasn’t in a fun kind of breathless either, like the kind he got when he imagined Troy lying ass-up in their hotel room bed. No, this was the kind of breathless where Lucas was fairly certain his airways were closing up and he was never going to take another normal breath. His chest felt tight, like something solid weighing it down and squeezing all the air out of him so he couldn’t get another breath in.

He knew what this was. He knew that getting breaths out was actually the hard part, but that didn’t stop him from feeling like he couldn’t breathe in, and that didn’t stop him from panicking. His heart racing, his breaths coming in wheezes, he immediately backed away, trying to get out of range of the strong scent as quickly as possible. He backed into someone and didn’t have the breath to apologize. He didn’t have the breath for anything. He was going to die here and now, struggling to breathe in the middle of a health and fitness conference exhibit hall. Oh, the irony!

“What do you reckon? Think they’ll work for… lockers… Lucas?” Turning and finding Lucas not right beside him, Troy looked around for him, perplexed.

Lucas held a finger up in a ‘give me a second’ gesture, like the one Troy had used earlier. Then he turned and fled. He didn’t want Troy to watch him pass out and die from lack of oxygen. And, even worse than that, he didn’t want Troy to see him use his inhaler. Troy saw him as the strong one, the one whose embrace he’d wanted all night long to comfort him. Troy saw him as a fellow health nut and fitness trainer, whose body was fit and well-maintained. He couldn’t allow Troy to see him having an asthma attack.

Wheezing as he pulled desperately for air and feeling lightheaded, his eyes streaming with tears of shame, Lucas bumped into people as he made his way as far from Troy as he could. He fumbled around in his duffle bag the whole time, searching for the inhaler. It absolutely had to be in there somewhere. He always kept it in the same front pocket, but he couldn’t seem to find it, and that only made his panic grow. He checked another pocket—nothing.

Just as he emerged from the exhibit hall, he tried the front pocket again and his tingling hand finally wrapped around the familiar plastic. He pulled it from the bag and started shaking it. His whole body was trembling now. He couldn’t breathe. His chest was collapsing. He couldn’t breathe. He was tingling. He couldn’t breathe. But he could stick the inhaler in his mouth. Beyond all logic, he managed to take one final, whistling breath as he pushed the top of the inhaler down and the medication rushed in. He let his long, struggling breath pull the spray in as far as it could, helping to relax his inflamed airways. He held what might just be his last breath on Earth in as long as he could, counting to ten, then to twenty.

“Lucas?”

Lucas let out the breath and shrieked as well as he could. Troy stood beside him, worry on his face, his hand reaching out for Lucas’ arm. Lucas tried to pull away, but his whole body was trembling uncontrollably.

“Fuck, mate. Sit down. Here.” He guided Lucas over to a vacant bench against the wall outside the exhibit hall, and Lucas didn’t have the strength or wherewithal to resist. Troy studied him, raised a hand to wipe the tears from Lucas’ cheek then he pulled back. He seemed scared to do anything in case it hurt Lucas, which is exactly what Lucas had tried to avoid by running. “Should I call David?”

Lucas shook his head. “I’ll be… fine…” he wheezed. He checked his Fitbit. Not enough time had passed. He tried to count the seconds out, but he seemed unable to both count and breathe at the same time. It was getting worse. This was a bad one. More tears filled his eyes, but that couldn’t be helped now. He closed them, forcing the tears to run out. Then he put the inhaler in his mouth again. Hoping it had been at least half a minute by now, he took another puff. The time, it seemed a little easier to breathe the medicine in. Lucas could feel it at work inside him.

“Screw it, I’m calling David.”

Lucas’ eyes flew open, but he had to hold his breath and keep the medicine in for it to work. He shook his head, but the damage was already done.

“Come down. It’s an emergency. I think it’s his asthma?” There was a pause. “Yes, he’s got an inhaler.” Another pause. “We’re right outside the exhibit hall on floor 2.”

Lucas exhaled. The tightening in his chest faded. He took a slow, careful breath in and out again. It seemed like he could breathe again, but he wasn’t pushing his luck. Breathing was too important, and it took all his energy to make sure he could do it properly again. In. Out. In. Out. He couldn’t look Troy in the eyes, not after what had just happened, so he looked down at his lap.

It seemed like no time at all had passed, but suddenly he heard, “Baby, are you okay? What happened?”

Lucas shook his head, still not looking up even with David’s comforting voice coming closer. David would find out soon enough. He’d realize that Lucas had ruined this for the both of them. Troy couldn’t possibly want him now, not after seeing him gasping and crying.

As if to confirm this, Troy got up from the bench and moved away. He didn’t even want to be near him anymore. David took his place on the bench. David was going to do what David did best, which was baby him and show Troy how weak Lucas really was. All those bench press reps and all that mildly successful flirting had been for nothing. This was all ruined.

“How bad was it this time?”

He felt David’s hand on his upper arm, squeezing, but he couldn’t answer. It was as bad as it could be. He shook his head, choking back a sob. Weeping was one thing, but bawling was another entirely. Lucas blinked rapidly, trying to hold back the urge to burst into tears and admit how he’d fucked this whole thing up, just as he’d feared.

“Baby, I’ve got my phone out. If you don’t tell me how bad it was, I’m calling an ambulance, and you can tell the paramedics instead. I’m just one button away from calling.”

His heart pounding, Lucas shook his head. “No! Don’t. I’m…” Well, he definitely wasn’t fine; he couldn’t lie to his husband and say he was fine. He was rattled and mortified. But if would be worse if David called an ambulance; and Lucas knew that was a very real possibility. “It was…” He looked up finally and saw David’s worried expression. Standing a few feet back from the bench, right behind David, was Troy. Lucas swallowed, not sure how to admit what he truly felt. He already felt weak and embarrassed, now he had to explain out loud in front of them both that he felt weak and embarrassed?

“Niagara Falls bad or San Antonio thunderstorm bad?”

Lucas gave a start. He hadn’t expected that question. He hadn’t expected David to use a code only the two of them would understand. He’d fucking passed out during an asthma attack at Niagara Falls, and he’d had to be rushed to the hospital in San Antonio. Both times he’d felt certain that was the worst. And this… well, it wasn’t that bad now, apart from the mortification of it all and the disappointment about losing Troy. So he tried to put it in a way David would understand. He thought for a second before trying to name his most embarrassing asthma attack before today. “More like… Mr. Pietree’s lawn bad.”

“Oh.” David softened at once with understanding. “Oh, baby.” Immediately, he pulled Lucas to him, letting Lucas gratefully hide his face against David’s chest. David wrapped his arms around, holding tight, patting his back, hunching over to hide Lucas’ face entirely from sight, resting his cheek on top of Lucas’ head.

Lucas knew he was still on the second floor lobby where a busy conference was going on. But he felt hidden and safe in his husband’s arms. Most importantly, he felt comforted, though he knew deep down he had no right to be. Still, as he nuzzled his face into the fabric of what had to be David’s softest t-shirt, he felt the embarrassment and shame start to ebb. He focused on David’s heartbeat and David’s breathing, the steady thump and slow in and out of easy breaths just as much a reassurance as the embrace. He tried to will his body to calm down, to match David beat for beat, breath for breath. Panic wasn’t easy for him to shake off, but he wouldn’t have even been able to try if not for David. And breathing warm, moist breaths against the soft cotton made each breath easier to take and release.

He heard Troy’s voice, and he tensed up again as another wave of embarrassment washed over him. “Should I… get some water or something?” He sounded small, uncertain, more like he’d sounded last night when he’d been in distress than he had today when he’d been feeling better.

David shifted just a little to lift his head. “No, that’s not necessary. But if you want to help, sit down and put a hand on his back.”

Lucas tensed up more and tried to keep from shaking. Troy’s pity was exactly what he didn’t want. But he couldn’t speak the words to tell Troy to keep his distance. He kept his face buried in his husband’s chest, bracing himself to endure this.

The bench creaked as it bore the weight of a third man, and Lucas felt Troy’s thigh press against his rear. Then there was a large, heavy hand upon the curve of his back. “Here?” Troy asked.

“Perfect,” David replied.

Lucas bit back a whimper. The touch didn’t feel the way Lucas had thought it would. It wasn’t about pity at all. It moved up and down a little, never breaking contact, never easing up on the pressure applied. It was filled with reassurance. “Everything’s all right,” Troy murmured. “And I’m not going anywhere.”

Even more emotions overwhelmed Lucas. He didn’t understand why, but Troy hadn’t abandoned him just because he’d had a stupid freak-out moment and embarrassed himself. He had two men who cared for him, who were willing to wait for him to recover. He was oblivious to whatever odd looks any passers-by might be giving them. All he knew was David’s warm chest in front, Troy’s strong hand behind, and his own careful, increasingly normal breathing.

“hehhh…” Troy’s hand slipped a little. And David leaned to the side slightly. Placing a kiss on the top of Lucas’ head, David reclaimed one of his hands and arms for use. “hehh-EHHshmphhh!” By the way David was leaning and moving, Lucas could tell David had been trying to get a tissue out of his pocket for Troy to sneeze into. And from the sound of the sneeze, Lucas could tell he had succeeded.

“God bless you, baby.”

Troy sniffed and moved a little more, perhaps wiping his nose or nodding his appreciation or even both. But his hand stayed on Lucas’ back, as if he had no intention of moving it until Lucas decided he was ready to do without it. Lucas wasn’t exactly sure when that might be, though. It was so much easier hidden away like this.

Troy’s hand moved up and down again. “Take your time, mate. Remember: patience and persistence.”

Right. That was what it took to bench press correctly. That was what it sometimes took to breathe. And that was even what it took to get to know a stranger and invite him into your bed with you and your husband for what everyone hoped would be mind-blowing sex. Patience and persistence were Lucas’ two new favorite words.

It was still a short while before Lucas risked taking in a deep but carefully controlled breath and letting it out. He didn’t cough. He didn’t lapse into another attack. His breathing was normal again, as if nothing at all had happened. As if the panic and shame he’d felt so intensely were nothing he needed to worry about. Lucas pulled his face back and lifted his head, blinking at the florescent hotel lobby lights. “Thanks. Sorry I worried you,” he told them both, looking first at David smiling right in front of him then over his shoulder at Troy behind him.

“Let’s go back upstairs,” David proposed. He paused to kiss Lucas, another reassurance Lucas didn’t need until he was feeling it, strong and wet and sure. He was smiling by the time the kiss ended, even though it had lasted only a few seconds. “You need a shower after your workout. And I think we could all use some tea. Wouldn’t it still be considered tea time, Troy?”

Troy smiled and checked the time on his cell phone for confirmation. “Absolutely. Sounds brilliant to me.”

Lucas got up first, knowing the other two were taking their cues from him. David wouldn’t let go of his hand, wanting to stay connected. Lucas brought David’s hand to his lips and kissed the back of it. “Just so you know,” he said softly to Troy. “This was pretty close to his ten.”

The three didn’t say much more to each other as they took the elevator to the twenty-third floor. Troy sneezed and David blessed him. Lucas held the elevator’s Door Open button while the others walked past and thanked him. David mentioned having his key card out already as Lucas made a move to go for his. They were unusually quiet but strangely comfortable. It was as if they’d all felt something while sharing that bench that they hadn’t felt before, not even when they’d been snuggled up in bed together that morning. None of them wanted to speak of it and give it the wrong name, in case that might break the feelings it had created in them. But each of them kept exchanging knowing looks with the other two, finding excuses to touch and be close.

Lucas stood under the showerhead, letting the warm water soothe his muscles and calm his body further. By the time he was finished with the shower, he felt sure of himself and comfortable once again. In fact, he felt so relaxed and almost boneless he was ready to crawl into his beloved husband’s embrace and stay there for as long as he would be allowed. He toweled off and pulled on jeans and a t-shirt.

But from the moment he emerged from the bathroom and saw Troy on their bed, rubbing at his nose and David at the hotel room coffee pot boiling water for tea, Lucas had a feeling that the three of them would be inseparable from then on until they consummated whatever had been building among them. They were going to make love tonight. There was no question about that. And Lucas wasn’t going to leave their sides until it happened.