Stellan laughed and gestured toward the glass of water in front of Blaine. “I’ll have what he’s having.”
I started to fill a glass for Stellan and had to chuckle when Blaine eyed the water with distaste. “That’s boring. I want to get so drunk I black out and can’t remember what day it is.”
“Considering you can’t remember the word ‘apologize’ I’m pretty sure you’re already there,” I told him before placing the water in front of Stellan. “I need to go help Mina. Do you plan on being here a while?”
Stellan nodded. “I’m not going anywhere.”
I gave him a quick smile before moving to the crowd that’d clustered around the bar. As I took their orders and mixed drinks, I couldn’t stop my gaze from straying down to the other end of the bar where Stellan was still seated beside Blaine as he sipped his water. Thankfully, Blaine was taking his cue from my knight in tattooed armor and sipping his own.
“So, you and Stellan, huh?” Mina asked when she reached for the bottle of scotch.
I shrugged. “It’s unexpected to me, too,” I told her as I mixed a vodka and soda.
Mina wasn’t the type to pry for more answers, so I wasn’t surprised when she didn’t ask any questions. Instead, she opted with, “Just roll with it. Sometimes the unexpected ones are just what we need.”
She walked away to check on a person tipping their glass in our direction, and I stole another glance Stellan. He was a walking, talking, tattooed distraction, and I welcomed it. And thanks to his little show of power, apparently, he was mine. Heat pooled in my belly at that word, and I had to pause to compose myself before waiting on the next customer.
The crowd was unusually large for a Monday night, which prevented me from getting down to Stellan’s end of the bar unless I was waiting on a customer. Every time I got near him, we’d share knowing looks and lingering stares. And when Mina finally told me to take my break, I nearly pole-vaulted over the bar to grab Stellan and drag him to the room in the back. He came willingly, and I shut the door firmly behind us and turned to face him.
Being in such close proximity to him after hours of stolen looks and fiery glances had me feeling a bit shy. Now that I had him alone, what did I do next? Ask him about that declaration, or not waste time and finally kiss those tantalizing lips I’d been dying to taste all night?
“I hope this—" I started to say, but my words were cut off with a frenzied, but all too brief, kiss.
“Do you know how badly I wanted to pull you across that bar and suck on that lip you were biting?” Stellan growled against my mouth.
“Then do it now,” I demanded breathlessly.
With a groan, Stellan covered my mouth again. I sagged into his body and let out a long whimper as he did exactly as I suggested and sucked my bottom lip into his mouth. As he licked at the flesh, my knees threatened to buckle. Stellan’s arms snaked around my waist, holding me tightly against him, before deepening the kiss.
He’d worn his hair down, just as I liked it, and I wasted no time plunging my hands into the long locks. I gripped the strands tightly, holding his head in place as we kissed as if it’d been weeks rather than hours since we’d seen each other last. Stellan’s taste was even better than I remembered, and his hands just as strong as they held me against him. And the bulge that pressed against my stomach told me he wanted me just as badly as I wanted him.
“Wait,” he gasped as he ripped his mouth from mine. “We need to slow down.”
“Really?” I asked and rolled my eyes in annoyance. “You want to have that conversation now?”
Stellan chuckled and ran his finger over my bottom lip. “No, not at all. I just meant we’re at your work and have limited time. What I want to do to you will require way more than a few minutes.”
I shivered at the promise his words conveyed. “Oh.”
“Exactly. And I don’t think it’ll be a good idea for you to go back out there with that huge hard-on I feel. So it’s probably for the best we stop and collect ourselves.”
“What can I say? You turn me on.”
Stellan grinded his hips against mine. “Ditto.”
I closed my eyes and groaned at the feeling of our cocks rubbing against each other, and it reminded me of how we came together the night before. My fingers were still buried in his hair, and I couldn’t help but pull his head back to mine. Sure, he said we needed to slow down, but what would one more kiss hurt?
The next few minutes were spent standing in the middle of the break room as we made out like teenagers. When we broke apart again, Stellan had to take a few steps back so we could have some much-needed space between us.
“What are you doing when you get off?” Stellan asked. At the arch of my eyebrow, he chuckled and added, “From here.”
“Nothing. Just going home and relaxing before falling asleep.”
“Will you be too tired for company?”
Usually I was hesitant for someone to see my crummy apartment. But he already knew where I lived and didn’t judge me for it, so I was okay with him coming over. Besides, if we were going to be together, I couldn’t keep something as insignificant as my temporary living situation from him.
“It depends on who the company is,” I teased when I answered him.
“Someone who’s tall and covered in tattoos?”
“Only if he’s mine,” I said, testing him to see if he’d backtrack after making that claim.
Maybe he had said it to be intimidating to Blaine. Maybe he spoke in the heat of the moment after hearing Blaine saying he’d punch me. Whatever the reason, I wanted nothing more than to be Stellan’s, and I hoped like hell he meant it. My words hung in the air, like a dialogue bubble you see in comics, and I held my breath waiting for him to respond.
His eyes sparked before darkening as he stalked closer to me. With a growl that was possessive and primal, he pulled me into his arms and gave me a quick kiss that was hard and bruising. It was as if that kiss was staking his claim, and I was definitely his for the taking.
“As far as I’m concerned you are, but we can discuss it…later.”
“I’m okay with that.”
“Which part?”
“Both.”
Stellan smiled at my answer, and we ended the conversation with more lips and probing tongues. But finally, my break was over, and I had to get back to work. Stellan promised he’d swing by once I arrived home, and I prayed for the next few hours to go by quickly.
“Have a nice break?” Mina asked when I returned to the bar.
“It was okay,” I hedged.
“Uh-huh. Ted finally poured your friend into a cab,” Mina said, changing the subject.
“Oh, that’s good. I almost feel bad for him.”
“And that’s why you’re a good egg, Foster. From your reaction and his few coherent words I heard, I can guess he treated you badly in school. Yet your heart is tender, and you still feel empathy toward him.”
I shrugged. “It was a long time ago. Life’s too short to hold a grudge.”
“Those are some wise words, my friend. Stellan’s a lucky man.”
“Maybe it’s me who’s the lucky one.”
Mina cocked her head to the side. “Different sides of the same coin. Either way, it’s a lucky one.”