Page 36 of Hot Streak

“Oh, please, you can’t say that and not tell me more. This is me.”

“His name’s Jackson, and he’s my catcher. He’s an asshole, and he’s hot. That’s the story,” Connor said testily. “Oh, and last night, Charlie told me he’s gay. Kind of an open secret sort of thing. Like Deke.”

“And that threw you.” Tristan stated it, didn’t even bother to ask.

“Well, yeah, ’cause I didn’t even know what was happening. I just knew there was like this . . .prickling at the back of my neck, a weird feeling in my stomach, whenever he was around. I didn’t know what I wanted to do with him.”

“Punch him or get on your knees and suck his dick?” Tristan asked sagely.

“Uh, uh, I don’t know,” Connor said in a strangled voice. God, he hadn’t even gotten that far in his sexual awakening. Suck his dick? Did he want to do that? Did he even want to see his dick? And not just in a dream?

“Oh please, you’re not some kind of nervous nellie. You know your way around a hookup. And God knows, you’ve heard me and Wade talk about it enough,” Tristan said.

“True.” Connor had even seen more than he probably wanted to, one night when the three of them had shared an Uber back from a party and Wade and Tristan had gotten hot and heavy in the backseat.

And okay, Connor had been a little curious.

Both of them were undeniably attractive and it wasn’t like he’d ever done anything with a guy before—but their enthusiasm had tickled the back of his mind a little.

That had been less than six months ago.

Had that glimpse of them aroused something in him, that needed the right guy to light it up?

Connor didn’t know.

“I’m just saying,” Tristan said, “don’t overthink this. It’s just sex, Connor.”

Connor swallowed hard. “Just sex,” he parroted.

“I won’t even ask if he’s attracted to you because well, we both know someone would have to be dead to not look your way.”

“Thanks,” Connor said.

He could practically see Tristan wave his retort away. “There’s no point in false modesty, Clark. You’re hot, and you know it.”

“But weren’t you the one who told me that just because you’re attracted to men doesn’t mean you want to climb on everyone you see?”

“I did, and that’s one hundred percent accurate,” Tristan said.

“And so maybe he isn’t attracted to me?” There was part of Connor that he discovered shockingly wanted this to be true. It would make everything a hell of a lot simpler. If Jackson wasn’t interested, nothing would ever have to happen.

“He’s attracted to you.” Tristan said it very matter-of-factly, like he’d never been surer of anything in his life.

“You don’t know that. You don’t even know him.”

“I do know that the feeling you’re talking about isn’t one-sided. You know it, too, so you won’t be taking the easy way out here.”

“You aren’t going to lecture me about how it’s a bad idea to fuck a teammate?” Connor asked archly, and Tristan just laughed.

“Yeah, you did,” Connor continued. “But it could still go wrong. Lots of ways it could fall apart, get messy or ugly.”

“Undoubtedly,” Tristan agreed. “You could just leave it alone. You think you can do that?”

Connor didn’t know. Why else had he called Tristan?

“I don’t know. And worse, we’re bunking together on the road.”

“You leave on your first road trip together yet?”

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