Page 53 of Starfish and Coffee
“Good?”
Matt nodded, panting as Alex found his gland. “Oh yeah.”
“Want more?”
“Fuck, yes.” Matt arched into the thrust of Alex’s fingers, then grunted. “Shit, Lexie. Will you do it already?”
“Always so bossy,” Alex said with a breathless laugh, but he needed it as badly as Matt, so he wasn’t complaining. He pulled his fingers away and hooked one of Matt’s legs under his arm, opening him wide as he shifted his hips until his cock was brushing against Matt’s ass. “Now it’s my turn to worship you.”
Matt’s head was tossed back against the pillow, his black hair falling over eyes squeezed tight in anticipation. Alex’s heart nearly burst in his chest from how deeply he cared for this man.
He pushed into Matt, feeling overwhelmed on every level. When he was completely buried in Matt’s tight heat, Alex surged forward and kissed Matt with every ounce of emotion that’d been welling up in him.
“I love you.” Alex breathed into his mouth. “Love you so fucking much, Matty.”
“Love you too.” Matt cupped Alex’s face and stroked his hair as they shared the same breath. “Forever, Lex. We’re gonna make it work. I promise.”
Alex leaned down and buried his face in the curve of Matt’s neck as tears stung his eyes, and he realized what he’d told Holly months earlier was a total lie.
It counted.
* * * *
Maybe it was because of how they fell in love, but Matt never got tired of watching Alex cook. Even if the two of them still worked at Frank’s, the sight of Alex dominating a stove was unendingly sexy to him.
Almost as sexy as Alex in the ocean, but not quite.
The house was still in ruins after the party, but Alex had crawled out of bed an hour before Matt and cleaned the kitchen. All the glass doors to the back were open, letting in the sea breeze that was the perfect temperature this morning.
Classic rock played over the radio mounted on the wall by the refrigerator, and Alex stood there in nothing but a pair of boxer briefs cooking eggs and bacon. Not a stellar breakfast for Matt who had a long history of heart disease in his family, but today he was feeling invincible.
Bring on the fat and cholesterol. He’d work it off later.
“Running on the beach?” Matt dumped an armful of beer bottles into the large garbage can he’d dragged from the garage to help with the disaster. “Or the gym?”
“Running,” Alex said decisively. “God, I love spring on the island. Even if the water’s not warm yet, who gives a fuck? It’ll be in the seventies all day and not a cloud in the sky. I plan to camp out on the beach until the stars come up. Then I’m going to light a fire and sit there until I pass out in the sand. I love days off.”
“Sounds fun to me.”
“That’s why I love you.” Alex tossed a grin over his shoulder. “You’re gonna miss all this when you’re gone, which is more than I can say for my brother. He won’t even look back once he gets to New York. Traitor.”
Matt walked up to him and wrapped his arms around Alex. He rested his cheek on Alex’s shoulder and just held him. Skin to skin, the two of them stood there in their underwear as “Hotel California” echoed off the kitchen tiles.
“What happened to forever?” Matt asked as he squeezed Alex tighter.
Alex took his time to flip the strips of bacon, then craned his neck to look at Matt. “Is that your way of asking me to go with you to Atlanta?”
“Do you want to go to Atlanta?” Matt probed curiously, posing the same question to Alex that he had to Holly. “Is that something you really want for yourself?”
“I’d go for you,” Alex said without hesitation. “You’re better than the beach on a spring day, Matty.”
Matt laughed. “That’s saying something.”
“It is,” Alex agreed as he squeezed Matt’s hand on his stomach for one brief moment and then went back to cooking. “I love you.”
Atlanta was a life sentence of stress and unhappiness for Matt. Why on earth would he drag Alex down with him? He wanted to keep Alex on this island forever because he belonged here. He was a god in Mirabella, and that’s exactly how Matt liked him. Alex was so golden in his element he made Matt feel golden too.
Quitting his job and staying on the island was a no-brainer.
