Page 26 of Saving Mr. Bell

“I didn’t want to hurt your feelings.”

“I’m not that fragile.” He lay his cards down to reveal a pair of jacks. In any other round, it would have been a great hand. He mistook my silence. “Time to get your gear off, Arlo. Let’s see what type of underwear you wear.”

I lay my cards down with painstaking slowness. “Afraid not.”

He sat back with a look of surprise at being bested. “Huh! I stand corrected.” He rose from the chair and hooked his thumbs in the waistband of the borrowed sweatpants. “Good job you’renot attracted to me or this could get awkward.” He gave them a little tug, the fabric lowering an inch. Not enough that I could see anything, but enough for the promise to be there. “I lied, by the way.”

“About what?” The words were a rasp, but I refused to clear my throat.

“About wearing underwear. You forgot I don’t have any on account of you snatching me from the middle of my night out.”

I stood so fast the table rocked and the cards slid onto the floor. “Time for a drink. Maybe some toast as well while we’ve still got fresh bread. Do you want some toast?” I headed for the next room with Rudolf’s laughter ringing in my ears.

“Arlo, come back,” he called after me once he’d stopped laughing. “I was joking. I am wearing underwear. I borrowed some of yours. Let’s finish the game.”

I put the kettle on, expelling a breath as I did so. “The game’s finished.”

“Why?”

“Because… I never wanted to play in the first place and I let you talk me into it.”

Silence. No crack about bingo being more my speed. No jibe about being too scared of losing. Nothing. I scratched at my bare chest while I waited for the kettle to boil. I hadn’t thought to grab my T-shirt during my hasty departure from the other room. There were plenty in the bedroom, even with Rudolf wearing them like they were going out of fashion. It was a good job the cabin came with a combination washer/drier, especially if we were sharing underwear.

I really should have considered Rudolf not having clothes when I’d hatched my crazy plan to rescue him. In my defense, I’d never envisioned us being snowed in. Without the weather causing mayhem, I could have asked him for a list of stuff he needed and driven to get it. Who was I trying to kid? Without theblizzard making the roads impassable, I would have been driving Rudolf back to Salzburg. He was only being so accepting of his fate because he recognized we were both stuck.

The kettle finished boiling, and I got two mugs out of the cupboard. I turned so my voice would carry in the right direction. “Rudolf, do you—?” I didn’t get any further because he was right there, employing a stealth the SAS would have been proud of. I only realized it was intentional as he pressed me back against the counter and his lips came down on mine.

I’d never given thought to how Rudolf Bell kissed. Why would I when I’d never expected to be on the receiving end? But if I had, I might have realized he’d go about it the same way as he did his music: teasing and tormenting, only with his tongue instead of his fingers. Both parts were equally talented. Desire throbbed through me as he kissed me so thoroughly that it felt like I’d never been kissed before. Our bodies pressed together from crotch to hip, and I felt an answering hardness meeting mine as the kiss continued.

When he pulled back, he was smiling. “You, Arlo Thomas, are a liar who lies.”

“What about?” I sounded like a man who no longer knew which way was up. Which was an accurate reflection of how I felt.

By shifting his hips slightly, Rudolf reminded me he might have stopped kissing me, but that our lower bodies were still glued together. “About not being attracted to me.”

I could hardly deny it when my cock told a different story. “I thought it was best.”

“Why?”

I shook my head, words eluding me for a few seconds. “Circumstances.”

“Ah, yes, circumstances.” Rudolf sounded amused by my answer. He backed off to lean against the counter diagonal towhere I was, arms crossed over his bare chest. “We’re both adults, Arlo. I’m not seventeen anymore. And as you keep pointing out, there’s only six years between us. Neither of us are virgins, so if something happens, you’re hardly corrupting me.”

“You’re more likely to corrupt me.”

He threw his head back and laughed. “Don’t believe everything you’ve read about me. A tabloid once had me attending orgies in Amsterdam.”

“Did you?”

“No!” He sounded outraged that I’d even asked. “I’ve never even had a threesome. I’m not going to claim that I’m shy when it comes to sex. I’m not. But absolutely all of my sexual interludes have only involved one other man.”

“How traditional of you.”

He shrugged. “I’m not saying there’s anything wrong with people who are up for that sort of thing. I’m just not. Maybe it’s a selfish thing and I prefer my partner to focus entirely on me.”

“Understandable.”

He levered himself away from the counter and crossed the room to stare out into the dark night. “Just so we’re clear, that was more than an honesty test. I’m attracted to you too. I was attracted to you when I was seventeen and I’m still attracted to you.” He turned back to face me, his lips curving into a smile. “And to think I thought there wouldn’t be anything to do in this cabin.”

---