Page 79 of Syncopation
“I didn’t realizeI was so—” Ray waved a hand “—obvious.” He sipped his coffee to steady him.
“Same, actually. Usually I’m more opaque.”
Mish rose and got her own coffee, and one for Dom. “Both of you are so open when we’re onstage.” She settled back down onto the couch and lifted an eyebrow at Zavier. “I’m guessing you were a lot less expressive when playing in an orchestra.”
Zavier seemed to thinkabout that for a while. “It wasdifferent. There was passion, but it was more personal, more contained. Shorter bursts.”
Mish nodded. “Well, there you go.”
Ray eyed the tablet. “You have another tab open.”
“Ah. Yes. That one.” Zavier waved at the tablet. “Open it.”
Ray clicked on it and stared. “This is a fanfic site.” Then he read and his stomach dropped straight through the floorof the bus. It was a fanfic page for Twisted Wishes. Real person fanfic. And he was staring at the category list for Ray/Zav. The number of fics was impressive, given that Zavier had been in the band all of two and a half months. “Fuck.”
Part of him was really creeped out. He wasn’t a fictional character to play around with. Flesh and blood. Real feelings. But another part of him was a verycurious. “Have you read any of these?”
A pause while Zavier drank some coffee. Then he shrugged. “I skimmed a few. You’re not you and I’m not me and some of the acts—well. I think we’d need to be made of something a bit more bendable than bone.”
Dom snorted.
“Yeah, but they got any good ideas? Should we be taking notes?”
Zavier pinned Ray with a gaze that made the rest of the worlddrop away. “I have a much better set of notes for that, Ray.”
“TMI,” Dom practically squeaked.
And hell, Ray’s dick went all nice and hard for Zavier’s voice and the way it played along his nerves. Notes. Zavier hadnoteson how to fuck him. He shivered and gulped down another couple swallows of coffee. “Okay. But what do we do about all of it?”
Zavier waved a hand. “Own it.”
“You mean, tell people?” God, Carl would flip. On the other hand... Carl wouldflipand there was a certain delight inthat.
Mish cleared her throat. “Honey, the interesting thing is that by and large, the fans love the thought of you and Zav.”
“You wouldn’t actually have to say anything,” Dom said. “Just keep doing what you’re doing. I mean, it’s not like you guys stare goo-goo eyes ateach other. Or that you’re all over each other, touching and kissing.”
Zavier shook his head. “Not at all my thing.”
Because Zavier didn’t do relationships.
“Yeah, so if you stare at each other like you want to set each other on fire, that’s like...normal.” Dom blushed. “Well, for you two.”
Because it was all about the benefits of being friends. The heat and the sex and kneelingat Zavier’s feet. Man, Ray’s dick really was into that, too. And his pulse and his blood.
“Makes sense,” he murmured. He finished his coffee, then rose. “I should go shower. We gotta be close to the venue, and if I’m sitting here in sweatpants and nothing else, that’s just one more thing for Carl to dig into me about.”
He set the mug on the counter. “Thanks for the coffee, Zav.” And lastnight. And taking care of him. But he couldn’t say those, so he scooped up his toiletry bag and a set of clean clothes, and headed to the back of the bus.
Ray showered using cooler water than he generally did, and dressed quickly. He had a good deal of stubble, but there’d be time before the show to shave. Or maybe he wouldn’t.
When he stepped out of the bathroom, he wasn’t all that surprisedto find Zavier sitting in the little lounge, and the privacy curtain drawn shut. “Hey.”
Zavier smiled and cocked his finger, beckoning Ray to him.
With a start, Ray realized Zavier was sitting exactly where he had been last night. He crossed what little distance that divided them and knelt. No idea why, but it seemed the perfect thing to do. The effects of his cooler-than-normal showerevaporated as heat and need took over.
“Oh, very good.” Soft words. Zavier cupped Ray’s face and stroked his cheeks. “Close your eyes and breathe. Listen. Wait.”
