“So, can anyone get in here now?” Jared asked as Adam input a code and the computer dinged pleasantly.
“Only people who have the code. That’s me, my mom—who’s in Paris—the housekeeper, and the police.”
“I feel very secure.”
Adam smiled and pushed his hair back from his face, showing off his tight biceps. Jared swallowed hard.
It was too early to go to bed, so Jared sent Hadley a text to let her know he was staying over at a friend’s and changed into another set of Adam’s pajamas. These were softer than the first, red flannel that felt comfortably worn.
They played two-player video games until Jared was yawning, then took it in turns to use the bathroom. Jared found his toothbrush from the last time in the glass next to the sink. Adam had kept it. It was strange to think why, so Jared didn’t. Didn’t think.
In bed, there were no pretenses. As soon as Adam flicked the lamp on his nightstand off, Jared was tugging at his T-shirt, and Adam pressed his knee between Jared’s thighs. It was a continuation of their kissing earlier, only now Adam claimed second base privileges and stripped Jared of his T-shirt.
“God, you look good,” Adam sighed as his flat palms roamed over Jared’s body, thumbs gently caressing puckered nipples.
Jared’s stomach clenched, and he wondered what the fuck was happening to him. He’d been here before, with other guys and one girl, so he knew how it worked. He knew how lust and desire functioned in his body, how those signals were delivered to his cock from his brain, and sometimes the other way round.
Adam seemed to rewrite all the rules. In a rational way, Jared knew Adam wasn’t the singular most handsome man on the planet. That was David Beckham; everyone knew that. Adam was slim and toned, and he had a line of hairs on his belly Jared thought was possibly the most gorgeous thing he’d ever seen. His hair was very, very soft just after he’d washed it. He had a long neck and the most delicate, lickable collarbone Jared had ever tasted.
“You sure you’re not going to let me steal third?” Adam murmured. His fingers were already everywhere, or so it felt, skimming over Jared’s nipples and belly and down, teasing the waistband of Jared’s pants.
“What are we doing here?” Jared said, pulling back and propping himself on an elbow. His heart was pounding hard in his chest and his skin felt flushed, buzzing. He could ride this feeling for hours, days, but there was something nagging at the back of his mind. Something that made him want to question it all.
Adam leaned back too and regarded Jared with an easy smile. “Do you always question stuff like this?”
“Do you always answer questions with more questions?”
Adam laughed. “Sometimes. We’re having fun, Jared. At least, I hope we are.”
“Yeah. I know, but….”
“Hm?”
“I don’t know.”
He couldn’t find the words to accuse Adam, not when he didn’t know what to accuse him of. The weird, nagging feeling wasn’t enough.
“If you want my opinion,” Adam said, grabbing Jared’s wrist and dragging him back down to the bed. “Stop thinking.”
Chapter 9
This was it. Jared knew it.
He’d held on for weeks already, but his willpower had been resolutely worn down over and over by the singularly most beautiful man in the Pacific Northwest, and Jared didn’t have the energy to fight it any more.
They were going to have sex. And if that meant Jared had to give himself up… well, he was okay with that. Adam was good at this—so fucking good—and for some strange reason, Jared trusted him.
Clothes had long since been kicked off and they were down to boxers, just two layers of fabric keeping them from being naked together. Jared was beyond hard; his dick was aching and straining, tenting the fabric as they rolled together.
As Jared kicked off his socks, Adam kissed his neck, hands roaming everywhere as they both furrowed their brows, licked deep into each other’s mouths, and ignored the constant buzzing of Adam’s phone. It was on silent and vibrated with a call.
“Shit,” Adam muttered as the buzzing started again. “Let me get rid of them. Whoever they are.”
Jared laughed breathlessly and nodded, rubbing the palm of his hand over his chest as Adam leaned away. He didn’t give a fuck about Clare anymore. She could go to hell.
“What the fuck do you want?” Adam demanded in a voice that, not so long ago, would have made Jared flinch. “What? Are you fucking serious?” A long pause, then, “Shit.”
“What’s going on?” Jared asked.
Adam refused to look over and visibly squared his shoulders before responding. “It’s Ryder,” he said. “She OD’d.”
The call had come from Mia. Adam said she sounded exhausted, her voice raw. She was at the hospital already and had taken the job of calling round and telling everyone since Dylan hadn’t arrived yet, and their parents were out of town.
Adam swung his legs over the edge of the bed and propped his elbows on his knees, resting his face in his hands for a moment. Jared leaned over and kissed his shoulder, just once, then climbed out of bed and started to pull his clothes on.
“Come on,” he said, when Adam made no attempt to move.
“Where are we going?”
“To the hospital. Is she alive?”
“Fucking hell. Yeah. She’s in a coma, though.”
“Then we should go.”
Adam nodded, and Jared was worried for a moment. He hadn’t seen Adam like this before. Then he got out of bed and started to pull on clothes haphazardly, the lights off until Jared reached over and turned the lamp on the nightstand on.
There were too many questions that were yet unanswered, and talking or speculating seemed cringingly awkward, so they said nothing. When they were both dressed, Jared took Adam’s hand and led him out of the house, nudging him to lock the door behind
