Page 203 of Catch Me
Something touched my back lightly, then I smelled Travis’ soap as his hair brushed my face. He pressed his lips to my cheek before he leaned against the counter beside me.
“Sorry about the game.”
“I’ll live,” he said, pasting on an easy smile. There was tension in it, but it didn’t seem forced.
“You sure? I bet Kai has a portable defibrillator in his trunk. That seems like something he’d carry around for some reason.”
“You’ve already got my heart racing.”
My face felt warm, especially when I remembered that there were other people here. My eyes went to the place he’d once taken off his clothes so that I could draw him, right here in this kitchen.
“Wanna do something?” I asked. “Just me and you.”
“Like what?” He grabbed my hand, yanking me closer to him. “Up for a dance?”
I breathed a laugh. “No, not that. Do you trust me?”
“No.” I pursed my lips, but he smiled. “Anything you want, I’m there.”
“You really shouldn’t have said that.”
*****
It was stupid for me to be nervous about going on this run, but I was. There were two times that we’d done this, and each of them were significant to me.
The first time, Travis all but led me to my death. I was shocked when I’d seen him leap off the edge into the water, but I hadn’t slowed. I’d trusted him. When we swam together, it was one of the first times I’d looked at him for longer than a couple of seconds. Ireallylooked—not at his body but at his face, his eyes, his smile, the way his expressions shifted throughout a conversation. He told me that he liked touching the stone beneath the water, and even though I found it weird, I was fascinated as I listened to him share the way his mind worked.
The second time, I was a completely different person. I almost kissed him, and it was a terrible experience at first, but it led us to where we were now.
There was a lot of bullshit in-between, but that didn’t change the fact that our near kiss in the water set things in motion. If it hadn’t happened, we might not have ever found our way to each other. I would’ve gone home and life would go on.
I glanced at him, and he looked at me with a mischievous grin before he sped up. He was still faster than me, which wasn’t a surprise. I didn’t really care about winning this time, but I knew that he liked the competition, so I pushed myself as hard as I could.
The storm had moved east toward Atlanta, so I imagined it was violently raining there right now, whereas there was a light drizzle here. I was used to that, and I actually enjoyed it. The smell of the rain was like waking up at home.
My feet left the ground and my heart nearly stopped, just like it had the first time. The thrill of it rose in combination with the fear of falling. Once I hit the water, all that remained was exhilaration.
I drew in a long breath when I breached the surface. My lungs burned from the run and the few seconds I’d been unable to breathe. The water was cold, not at all ideal for swimming.
“You’re shivering,” Travis said in my ear as his arms came around me from behind.
“It’s freezing.”
“Want to get out?”
I snorted. “We just got here. You haven’t even done your tactile shit.”
Releasing me, he paddled backward toward the cliff. I followed, feeling a sense of déjà vu. It was surreal that I didn’t feel uncomfortable the way that I used to. Nervous, yeah, and there was still some shit in the back of my head that tried to make me revert to playing defense against being gay. I’d learned to manage that, though. Therapy helped, but without my friends, I wouldn’t have gotten here.
His back hit the stone, and I continued until we were chest to chest. The way his lips parted made my heart speed up. Leaning forward, I kissed him with agonizing slowness. I wanted more, but I was letting him make that move. For now, I was simply going to enjoy being with him, touching him, kissing him, laughing with him, and everything he offered me.
Taking his hand underneath the water, I threaded our fingers. When I held on to the side of his neck, it was easier to stay afloat without drifting away from him.
Suddenly, he lunged forward, yanking his hand from mine so that he could wrap his arms around my neck. I gripped his thighs and guided his legs behind me, then pressed him up against the rock again. I might’ve found it comical that I was holding a six-foot-two man if it didn’t turn me on so much.
My lips brushed his, and when he tried to close the distance, I moved back a little. I leaned in a second time and did the same thing. The frustrated sound he made brought a smile to my face.
“You’re being a dick,” he said.
