Kane came up behind the bar. “Sunny D?”
 
 “The secret ingredient islove,” Max said, correcting us all. “...And a shishito pepper pickled in homemade pomegranate vinegar and Muscovado sugar.”
 
 All of us laughed, and I took another sip, catching the hint of slightly spicy pepper in the background.
 
 “What did he add this time?” Draven asked, coming in from the patio and popping off his black cowboy hat.
 
 “Just try it, babe,” Max said, pouring him a glass.
 
 “Not my favorite,” Draven said.
 
 Max lifted his eyebrows. “Do you even stillloveme?”
 
 “I will love you for the rest of my life, Max,” Draven said, “but this drink just isn’t for me. I don’t like the spice.”
 
 “Oh, we’re going to have afightabout this,” Max said, grinning at him.
 
 “Is the fight going to involve you choking me? Because sign me up. Sorry, Andrew and Gray. That’s probably TMI.”
 
 “No such thing as TMI,” Gray said. “I love it.”
 
 As the bar started to fill up with a couple more groups that walked in, Gray and I made our way to a pool table in one of the alcoves.
 
 “By the way,” I said as we got near the table, “you can do that to meanytime.”
 
 “You want my hand on your throat even more than I realized,” he said, looking me up and down.
 
 My cock responded, already perking up under my shorts.
 
 “You realize that when I’m in Dallas and you’re in Austin, I’m only going to want your assmorethan I do now,” I said.
 
 “More?”
 
 “I want you more every fucking day. If I have to spend a few days a week away from you, I’m going to be craving your cock like it’s a glass of water and I’m in the desert.”
 
 He bit his lower lip, coming in close to me.
 
 He stepped between my legs, pushing the front of his body up against mine.
 
 “Good. I like keeping youcravingme like that.”
 
 I brushed my thumb over his lower lip. “You need my cock as much as I need yours.”
 
 “I want your cock forever,” he said, his lashes moving down as he looked at my mouth.
 
 Fuck.
 
 It was the first time he’d mentioned anything about beingsuperlong-term with me. Both of us knew we wanted to live near each other, and that we wanted each other more than we wanted just about anything in life.
 
 But I hadn’t talked to him about anything like “forever” yet.
 
 And I absolutely loved the sound of it.
 
 “Well, I’d give you my cock forever,” I said.
 
 I leaned down and crushed my lips to his in a kiss. He slid his tongue out against mine, and feeling the press of his body up against mine was a drug of its own.
 
 When he pulled back and looked me in the eye, I could see it on his face, too.