Page 44 of Caught Stealing

And despite having just been wrung dry not two minutes ago, my cock throbs with an aching want at the sight.

What is wrong with me?

“You can come out and join us, you know,” he says nonchalantly, as if he didn’t just sample my cum like finger food.

I continue to gape at him, a mixture of irritation and disbelief taking over, rendering me incapable of responding.

He must take my silence as a rejection, though, because he shrugs and takes a step toward the door. “Or not.”

I watch as he crosses the room, and only when his hand is on the knob do words come barreling from my mouth without permission.

“I never asked for it.”

My words give him pause, and I don’t need to see his face to know he’s smiling. It’s clear as day in his voice when he responds.

“Your eyes did the talking your mouth wouldn’t.” He glances over his shoulder with a wink. “And don’t worry, Nixy. The first one’s always free.”

Fourteen

Holden

One of the things I’ve always struggled with is impulse control, and what happened yesterday afternoon in Phoenix’s bedroom is the perfect example.

Theo’s insight on the way down to Florida has severely messed with my head; uncontrollably and without end. The newfound knowledge and unanswered questions have festered, creating intrusive thoughts that keep ramming against the front of my skull like an enraged bull until they’ve become something I justhaveto act on, consequences be damned.

But lemme just say, the consequences of this? Well, no doubt they’ll be fucking huge. I’m just not surehowhuge yet.

“Ready to get going?”

The question breaks through my silent musings, and I glance up from where I’m laying across one of the pool loungers to find Kason looking down at me, shirtless and in board shorts sitting low on his hips.

It’s a sight that should make me all kinds of hot and bothered, and yet…nothing.

“I’ve been ready for an hour,” I tell him as I rise from the lounger. “What’s taking you guys so long?”

“Theo was arguing on the phone with his mom, and Luca was video chatting with his girlfriend to show her the house and the view of the gulf. Noah got annoyed with them taking so long, so he went to take a nap until we were ready to go,” he says, naming off a few of the guys. “I think Phoenix was packing the cooler for the beach. Not sure about the others.”

“Better late than never, I guess,” I mutter as we head over to the carport, where Phoenix is adding ice to the cooler and avoiding looking at me.

Fantastic.

It takes another ten minutes for the eight of us to gather our shit together—towels, chairs, cooler, the works—and as I stare at the pile we’re supposed to take down to the beach, I realize we might be worse than a group of girls packing for a weekend trip. Especially when we’re only going a few hundred yards from the house and could easily come back up for anything we need.

Luca and Harrison grab the cooler and head for the beach, leaving the smaller stuff for the other six of us to split. However, it’s only when I notice the boogie board tucked under Noah’s arm that I realize what I’m missing.

“I’ll meet you guys down there. Just gotta grab something.” I tell them before circling back to the pool to fish Francesco the Flamingo Floatie out of the water.

I grab the giant inflatable and haul it over my head before starting toward the beach again when I hear a voice call out from behind me.

“You’re actually bringing that thing with you?”

I glance over my shoulder to find Phoenix staring at me like I’ve lost my goddamn mind. Then again, I am holding a giant inflatable flamingo over my head—the float acting like a kite or an umbrella in the gulf breeze.

“Why wouldn’t I?” I ask slowly. “The entire point of a floatie is to use it to float.”

He opens his mouth to respond, but then closes it and shakes his head instead. But there’s no way in hell I’m letting him off the hook. If he wants to pass judgment or be a dick, he can say it to my face.

Lord knows he’s already keeping enough secrets.

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