STORY EXCERPT

Anson looked past the store window. It had grown dark out, and soon they would be closing for the night.

 “You ever feel like we’re just going through the motions?” Anson asked. “Like there is something more out there, just out of our reach?”

“My neighbor,” Rudy said. “Been after her for a month and she won’t give me the time of day. Now that’s out of reach.”

Anson sighed. That wasn’t what he was talking about.

“Perfect skin,” Rudy said with a smile.

“Hey.” Anson frowned. “Having perfect skin is a legitimate goal. There’s nothing worse than dry, flaky skin on anyone. Don’t get me started on men who don’t take care of their feet.”

“Okay, Mr. Gold Bond for Ultimate Skin.” Rudy tossed the small bottle of lotion that Anson kept under the counter at him. Anson caught it and put some lotion on his hands then put the bottle away when someone walked in.

“I’m heading to the back to do the paperwork,” Rudy said. “Holler if you need me.”

“We’re closing in fifteen minutes,” Anson said to the stranger. “No rush, though. Take your time.”

He’d just started straightening shelves, wiping away dust in a few spots, when the hairs on his nape stood on end. Anson turned back around and saw the stranger simply standing there watching him.

“Did you need help with anything?” Anson felt a sensation ripple down his spine. He was part Cajun, and if his paternal grandmother were still alive, she would have told him that sensation was from a ghost walking through him. Not that Anson believed in any of that.

Why on earth was he thinking about that right now? Why did the stranger spook him like that? There was something very off about this man.

He stood pretty tall, his dark hair a stylish mess all over his head. He had a nice body, and pretty… Okay. Anson must be seeing things, or it was the lighting, because from where he stood, the stranger’s eyes appeared red.

“Did you need help with anything?” Anson asked again.

The wheel was spinning, but clearly the hamster had died because this guy looked blankly at Anson.

Oh god! What if he was deaf? Anson hadn’t even considered that. Maybe the guy didn’t know what Anson was saying. He started around the counter. Maybe if he got closer and asked, the man would be able to read his lips.

If not, Anson always had paper and pen.

Just as he rounded the corner of the counter, the door opened again, and in walked Anson’s wettest dream. The kind of guy that made a gay man’s cock stand up and take notice.

Pure Adonis.

The newcomer’s gaze went right to the stranger, and then the stranger turned and looked at Adonis. Were they lovers? If they were, they must be fighting because the way they were staring at each other was murderous.

It would just be Anson’s luck to find the man of his dreams and discover the guy was taken.

Even so, he couldn’t take his eyes off the guy. Anson didn’t even know Adonis, and yet it felt as if he’d known him forever. That was weird.

“Did you gentlemen need anything?” Anson asked as he looked between the two.

A chill spread over Anson when Adonis faced him. He had the most piercing green eyes Anson had ever seen. “Privacy?”

Holy smokes. Adonis’s voice was a bit gravelly, yet breathy, kind of like what whiskey would sound like if it could speak. Smooth, yet burning.

Normally man buns turned him off, but the look fit Adonis. He was broad in the shoulders, with a wide chest that led down to a tapered waist. The guy had on jeans, shitkickers, and wore a white T-shirt that clung to his masculine body.

“You two could go outside if you want privacy.” Anson might be in hard lust, but he wasn’t leaving two strangers alone in his store. That was just asking to be robbed.

Adonis looked toward the other guy. “He’s right. Why don’t we take this outside?”

That was an odd way of phrasing that. It was as if Adonis wanted to physically fight his friend.

Red Eyes hissed. Anson jerked back a little, and his hand fluttered to his throat. It sounded kind of like a snake, a sound no person should make.

“Is your friend feeling okay?” There was definitely something off about this whole thing. Anson hated how his voice was a bit shaky. The last thing he wanted to do was show any kind of fear in front of those two.

“He’s just hungry,” Adonis said. “He gets cranky when he’s dying of thirst.”

Anson slowly moved back behind the counter. There was a gun stored under there. Not that Anson wanted to use it. He wasn’t even sure if he had it in him to shoot anyone.

But if it was his life or theirs, Anson was defending himself. He just wished he could let Rudy know what was going on. By now, his friend had earplugs in while listening to music. Rudy always listened to music when he was doing the paperwork.

If Anson reached for his cell phone that was lying next to the register, would either man stop him from calling the cops?

When they’d first opened the store, Rudy had wanted one of those panic buttons. Anson had thought it a waste of money, and now he was regretting arguing against it.

Red Eyes bolted toward the counter.

Anson reached for the gun.

ADULT EXCERPT

Since the couch was the only place to sit in the living room, Anson took the opposite side. “How long have you known how to do carpentry work?”

“Since I was a young boy.”

Anson tried to picture Renzo as a teenager. He just bet the guy had turned all kinds of heads even back then. Renzo just had an innate beauty about him. Not a feminine beauty but a raw, masculine one.

And now all Anson could think about was the kiss they’d shared.

Twice.

The best kisses ever, sensual, full of need and desire. Anson couldn’t recall if any of his past lovers had ever kissed him that way, as if he were the only source of oxygen and desperate for it.

Anson wanted to taste Renzo again.

This was ridiculous. Anson should have never invited Renzo into his home. He was supposed to befriend Renzo to find out what happened the other night, not get all hot and bothered by him.

He got up to walk out of the room, but Renzo had risen from the couch. He stopped Anson from leaving by grabbing his wrist.

Anson wanted to tell Renzo to let him go, but Renzo’s closeness, his dark, spice scent, and the possessive way he looked down at Anson made his thoughts scatter.

Renzo brushed his lips over the lobe of Anson’s ear. “Is that kiss still haunting your thoughts as it is mine?”

The lie was on the tip of Anson’s tongue. He could tell Renzo the kiss meant nothing to him and send the guy on his way. There was something else haunting him.

That dream. It had felt so real, especially when Anson had hunkered down behind the counter. Memories had come flooding back. Were they memories, or had his dream been so vivid that it had felt like something that had actually taken place?

Anson felt the warning in his head, a warning to stay away from Renzo, but his body wouldn’t listen. Anson wanted Renzo with a madness he’d never felt before. His cock was rock-hard, and all he could think about was getting laid. Being an idiot and throwing caution to the wind, he slid his hands up Renzo’s chest, his palms skimming over hard muscles.

Anson sucked in his breath, closing his eyes as he tilted his head up, licking at Renzo’s lips. He loved how Renzo groaned as he sucked Anson’s tongue into his mouth while his hands gripped Anson tighter.

As they kissed, Renzo touched Anson’s face with the back of his hand and drew it downward. A gentle stroke of the tongue. The feel of their bodies pressed together. Desire flaring until neither of them could breathe.

It was Anson who finally pulled away, his lips still tingling from their kiss. He dragged his gaze down Renzo’s body before grabbing the man’s hand and leading Renzo to his bedroom.

Anson could only pray he wasn’t making the biggest mistake of his life, but god how he wanted Renzo.

When he released Renzo’s hand, Anson striped out of his clothes. Renzo’s green eyes flared as he ripped his own shirt over his head.

Anson’s heart thundered, and all his blood shot south when Renzo finished undressing. Then Renzo crossed the room and slid his hand to cup the back of Anson’s head and inch forward slowly, as though giving Anson enough time to pull away if he wanted to.

The thought hadn’t even crossed his mind. It should have. Anson should be trying to come up with every logical reason why this shouldn’t happen.

Nothing came to mind.

Anson ran his hand over Renzo’s upper back and shivered uncontrollably when Renzo responded with gentle touches and soft caresses over his hips. He moved until he had Anson’s back against the wall, his lips feathering over Anson’s naked shoulder.

“You surprise me, Anson.” Renzo slid his hand over Anson’s chest. “I never expected you to give to me so freely. I want to be inside you so badly.” Renzo almost growled the words against Anson’s shoulder.

Anson was dizzy, trying to breathe as the sensations whipped through him. Renzo picked Anson up, and Anson had no choice but to wrap his legs around the guy’s lean waist. The desire in Renzo’s eyes was beautiful and mysterious, and Anson wanted him so badly it was physically painful.

Renzo’s lips were soft and warm brushing over his as Anson sucked in the man’s breath that skittered over his mouth. A moan escaped Anson as need and desperation wrapped around him. His body sang with it as he clutched the guy.

“Make love to me,” Anson begged.

Anson had no idea who he was anymore. Not only was he going against his rule not to date men larger than him, but he’d invited a stranger into his home and was now pleading with the guy to take him.

Renzo laid him on the bed then leaned back and ghosted his hands down Anson’s inner thighs. The touch made Anson shiver.

“So responsive.” Renzo smiled. “Do you want me to keep touching you?”

“Yes,” Anson hissed.

The feel of Renzo’s powerful form was intoxicating. Anson sucked on Renzo’s neck, nipped his jaw, and chased after his lover’s lips, and it was enough to make Anson feel drunk on lust.

“Lube?”

Anson could barely string his thoughts together. He threw his arm out, and Renzo smiled as he grabbed the lube from the nightstand drawer.

It was exciting and scary, and Anson wasn’t even sure why he was doing this. But one thing was sure… He was getting a piece of Renzo, a fantasy come to life.

Anson hissed when strong, slick fingers probed his hole. His desires renewed as he gripped Renzo’s shoulder’s, his body writhing as Renzo slipped a long, thick finger inside of him before he captured Anson’s lips.

“Perfect.” There was a dangerous growl to Renzo’s voice that sent a shiver through Anson. He could feel the stretched muscles and Renzo’s hard body. The man smelled richly masculine, wild, and delicious. Anson was falling under the man’s spell, deeper with every kiss, every thrust of Renzo’s finger.

“I need…” Anson gasped as Renzo inserted a second finger, stretching the two apart and moving them around in the most provocative way.

“I’ve got everything you need,” he said as he bit down gently on Anson’s shoulder.

Anson melted into Renzo’s strong chest, his body going lax as Renzo pulled him impossibly closer and traced the vein in Anson’s neck with his tongue. It was throbbing wildly at what Renzo was doing to him.

Renzo caught Anson’s earlobe between his teeth as he inserted a third finger, making Anson groan louder, filling the room with the sounds of his needs. Renzo’s chest rumbled deeply as he pulled his hand free and then adjusted Anson a little higher before he was lowered onto Renzo’s thick cock.