Page 12 of Peacocks

In addition to making me feel cared for, this man made me feel noticed and seen. He always had, though I’d been too busy trying to puzzle out his motives to realize it until that moment.

To be honest, it was a little overwhelming.

If Jayreallysaw me, did he see all the same flaws Chad had seen? Did he realize he’d been displaying his feathers, so to speak, for a man given to “emotional evasion,” who was “indifferent” toward relationships? Did he recognize what a bad bet I was?

In that moment, with my heartbeat thudding in my temples and my belly tight with want, I reminded myself that nobody had said a word about relationships. I could see in his eyes that Jaybird Proud wanted me, and the man was too sexy to ignore.

Not to mention, I hadn’t gotten laid in a very, very long time.

“Here’s another evil deed for you, Lane. I used bottled Italian seasoning tonight because I ran out of fresh basil.”

“No!” I gasped, recoiling back in mock horror. “I’ve been defrauded of my authentic Italian Gentleman experience! I’ve been cheated. I demand my money back! Oh… wait.”

He smirked. “Not only that, but remember that time I needed you to spot me on the ladder because I was feeling wobbly?”

I remembered holding his hips from behind while he reached to replace a lightbulb in the floodlight on the corner of the garage. The feel of his body heat through his jeans and the sight of his stellar ass cheeks right in front of my face meant notonly did I remember, but I’d also imagined many, many other endings to that simple task.

Jay must have seen the heat in my eyes because his smile got wider. “I wasn’t wobbly. Well, if I was, it was because you were so damned close and looked hot as fuck in your doctor’s coat. I just wanted you closer.”

I leaned in to tease his lips with mine. “Youareevil. Imagine taking advantage of an unsuspecting neighbor in such a way. For shame, Jay. Forshame.”

This time, the kiss started off playful but soon intensified.

Jay was more aggressive than I’d known he could be, and it was hot as hell. Despite his adorable, insecure bumbling around me, when he put his hands on me, he was plenty confident. And because he was bigger and stronger than I was, his physical confidence made me harder than ever. I imagined him manhandling me in bed, moving me where he wanted me, and then pounding me into the nearest surface with all that brute strength.

Chad had been meticulous about keeping trim, to the point he sometimes seemed like a carefully curated collection of bones. But Jay? He was muscular and fit from working with his body all day, every day. He was not afraid of a carb, soft drinks, or dairy products. In fact, I’d once seen him make himself sick on cotton candy after buying a cotton candy machine to use at one of the town festivals. “Gotta test it out before giving any to the kids, Lane,” he’d said with a bright pink grin.

“Come upstairs with me,” I said now, pulling away after the peacock cried his displeasure once again.

Jay’s hands had made their way down to my ass, and now they cupped it possessively. “I don’t want to take my hands off you.”

I met his eyes. “Okay, but I was planning on getting naked upstairs.”

Jay grabbed my hand, shut off all but one low light in the garage, and yanked me up the stairs to my place. I had half a second to wonder where the sweet, sometimes reserved man I’d come to know had been hiding this take-charge side of himself… and then we were upstairs, and he was looking at me with unbridled heat in his eyes, and I decided I wasveryon board with Jaybird having hidden depths.

“Clothes off,” he grunted as soon as my apartment door was closed behind us.

“I didn’t even know you were gay until today,” I said, yanking off the hoodie and tee and tossing them both on the nearby love seat.

The look on his face was comical as he hopped around, toeing off his boots. “Lane,” he admonished. “How could you not know? I’ve undressed you with my eyes every day for six months.”

Knowing he’d been admiring my body for that long made my face flush. Suddenly, all those “neighborly” things he’d been doing for me took on a different meaning. I didn’t want to admit that I’d been too distracted by his sleeveless shirts and football knowledge to come to what should have been a very logical conclusion, though, so I blurted, “Why didn’t you say something?”

“Say what? ‘I won’t charge you rent, but I do want to fuck you’? Pretty sure that’s illegal, baby, even in Tennessee.”

I moved over to help him with the button and zipper on his jeans. “You could have found a middle ground. Maybe complimented me on my hair or something.”

Jay’s confusion was clear. “Lane. The first day I met you, I said you were hot as fuck.”

The memory of that day was hazy, mostly because we’d been pouring sweat from dragging my shit up the stairs on a day when the heat was sweltering. “I thought you saiditwas hot as fuck! The weather. Jesus.”

“Yeah, well, that too. And you don’t pack light, no offense.” He pulled off his T-shirt and dropped it on the floor, exposing his nipples to the cool air.

I ran my hands up his torso, the dark hair rough against my fingertips, until I could feel his hardening nipples. His stomach muscles contracted as he sucked in a breath. “I couldn’t believe you volunteered to help me unload the truck.”

Jay’s hands moved down to yank at the drawstring of my lounge pants. I wasn’t wearing any underwear, so when he tugged on the front, he got an eyeful down the front of them. “Can we stop talking now? My brain is making Disco Dave noises.”

He stepped closer and pushed my lounge pants down, eying my cock hungrily the entire time. As the pants fell to the ground, so did Jay.

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