Page 9 of Cross Checks

I grinned.

Hank cleared his throat and shared his own confession. “I’ve never dated a guy either, but lately, I’ve been doing a lot of thinking and questioning…I mean, thinking mostly…about my orientation.”

The information relieved and excited me. I wanted to reach out and grip his hand as a form of reassurance, but I wasn’t sure what he would think I was trying to say. Instead, I stuck with words.

“That’s a big process.”

“Yeah, it is,” he agreed, and a small smile tugged at the corners of his lips. He took a long, deep breath. “Meeting you has kind of pushed all that to the front. Does that make sense?”

I nodded and felt our connection suddenly strengthen. “I get that. It’s the way it is for me, too. Not an easy thing to sort out, and when somebody…um, interesting…damn, should have a better word for that. Anyway, yeah, you’ve got me thinking, too.”

He exhaled, and I watched the tension in his shoulders loosen. “Wow, it’s amazing that we can talk about this. I haven’t really opened up about it with anybody before.”

The conversation felt like a turning point toward something, but I wasn’t sure exactly what. Our knees brushed again, and then we started talking about lighter stuff. Hank brought up sailing, and I mentioned trips that I’d taken.

A few minutes later, he suggested that we take a walk. The idea of having time alone with him away from the crowded bar made my pulse race. I readily agreed, and we wove through the pack that spilled out onto the sidewalk.

We wandered down a narrow alley along the side of Lou’s, and the noise from the bar faded. Hank turned to face me, and I thought I saw a question in his eyes.

Taking a chance, I reached for his hand and ran my thumb across his knuckles. He didn’t pull away.

Instead, he reached out with his free hand and cupped my chin. At that moment, under the dim light cast into the alleyway from the street, a world of possibilities seemed to open up.

Time suddenly slowed to a crawl. I felt a current of electricity between us as we stared at each other.

Without warning, Hank leaned in and pressed his lips to mine. It was a gentle, tentative kiss that gradually deepened as I responded. He unzipped my coat just far enough to slip a hand inside and kneaded my chest over the fabric of my shirt.

“Ah, fuck,” I whispered when I pulled back from the kiss. “That feels good. Shit, pardon my language.” I laughed and turned beet red.

Hank’s eyes met mine, and I kissed him again, pressing my body against his and trapping the hand between us. Our tongues danced together as he moaned into my mouth.

We eventually broke apart and leaned against the wall, both of us panting and smiling.

He brushed a thumb over my cheek. “Well, this was unexpected, sort of.”

“What do you mean?”

“Well…can I be candid? Please don’t think I’m being weird or creepy.”

I chuckled softly. “I won’t unless you are, but talk. You’ve got me curious as hell.”

“The first time I saw you was there in the locker room, curled up on the floor helpless, wearing only a towel. All sorts of thoughts hit me at once.”

He leaned in and gave me another quick kiss before I could respond.

“Yeah, what kind of thoughts? Horny ones?”

“There was that,” he laughed. “But I also wanted to protect you…against the fire and, honestly, against anything. There was something…a spark maybe, and God, you probably know already, but you’re so good-looking.”

“That’s the jock side,” I laughed. “It’s a little easier to look good when I'm always working out. It’s not like you’re hard on the eyes either.”

The rosiness of Hank’s cheeks caused by the cold deepened. He was blushing. “Oh, thank you. It feels good to have you say that, but it’s kind of weird to me to have a guy say something like that.”

“Even a guy that you’re a little crazy about?” I teased.

“Damn, is it that obvious?”

“Is my wild attraction to you apparent?”

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