Take What You Want (23 page)

“
Groupie
status can not be achieved until …” Alex started to say.

“
Until
I fuck you?” Chase asked.

Alex's pupils dilated and
his cock flexed inside his swim-shorts. “I was going to say, a
blow job would give you groupie status, but fucking me works even
better.”

Alex's mouth covered Chase's
and their tongues met in the middle. A rush of heat swept through
Chase and the ache returned to his groin. He was seconds away from
succumbing to the power of this kiss, when he heard footsteps coming
across the patio bricks.

“
Jesus,
Alex!” Jared said. “Do we really need to see that shit?”

Alex reluctantly stepped
away from Chase and wiped at his lips. “Why? Is it making you
horny?”

“
Him?
No. But me? Yes,” Wheland said, grabbing at his groin and
dropping down into a chair at the patio table. “You two look
good together. Feel free to continue.”

Alex laughed and looked at
Chase. “See, I told you he jumps the fence now and then.”

Alex passed out bottles of
beer and shot glasses filled with the tequila. “Here's to
life,” he said. He saluted his friends, then tossed the liquid
into his throat and followed it by a long swallow of his beer.

“
Life
is
good,” Wheland said. “I can't remember the last time
I've felt this relaxed.”

“
It's
the salt in the air you're breathing,” Alex said. “I
haven't been this energized in years.”

“
Your
dick being hard has
nothing
to do with the salt in the air, my friend,” Cooper said to
Alex.

Everyone laughed, except for
Chase. His face flushed in embarrassment. He slid lower in his
chair, then saw Wheland turn to him.

“
Chase.
Have you lived here long?” Wheland asked him.

“
Long
enough,” Chase said.

“
How
can I get me one of these properties?” Wheland asked.

“
Are
you in the market to buy?” Chase asked.

“
Sure.
Why not?” Wheland asked. “Is this place for sale?”

Alex
sat up in his seat. “If anyone buys this house, it'll be me,”
he said.

Chase's head snapped across
the table to Alex. “You'd buy this house?” Chase asked
him.

“
The
thought has crossed my mind,” Alex said.

“
So,
it is for sale?” Wheland asked.

“
If
the offer were good enough, I'm sure the owner would consider
selling,” Chase said, without removing his eyes from Alex.

Would
Alex really buy a house on the island and live in it, Chase wondered?
And, what if he did? What would that mean for him and Alex? Would
they continue with a relationship? Is that what they were headed
toward? His head began to spin with an overload of 'what-if'
scenarios and every one of them made him nervous. This
thing
with Alex was getting out of control, or so it felt, and he was
worried what it would mean for Danni. If Alex did move here full
time, would he be forced to chose between the two of them? Fuck! He
couldn't do that; couldn't even bear the thought of not having Danni
in his life. The warmth drained from Chase's body and he suddenly
felt light-headed and chilled. He stood up from his chair and rubbed
at his forehead.

“
I
should probably get going,” Chase said softly.

“
So
soon?” Wheland asked. “The night is young and this is
our last night here. I wanted to ask you some more questions about
island life.”

Alex stood up and moved
around the table to Chase. He touched his forearm and dipped his
head to catch Chase's eyes.

“
What's
going on?” Alex asked softly, but Chase didn't answer. All he
managed was a shake of his head. Alex's fingers curled around
Chase's wrist and tugged him away from his friends at the table. He
walked with Chase until the voices at the table became more distant
and he knew they had some privacy, then he stopped and spun Chase to
face him.

“
What
just happened back there?” Alex asked. “One minute you
were smiling and the next, this funny look washed over your face;
like something scared the shit out of you.”

“
Nothing
happened,” Chase said.

“
You
went someplace inside your head,” Alex said. “And, by
the look on your face I'd say you didn't like where you were.”

“
I'm
fine,” Chase said. “Everything is fine.”

Alex studied Chase's face.
Something definitely wasn't right. He thought back to what they'd
been talking about before Chase freaked and then it hit him. “Does
the idea of me living here bother you, Chase?”

“
Not
in the sense you're thinking,” Chase said, and shook his head.
He didn't want to talk about this now, not with all of Alex's friends
sitting so close by.

“
What
sense
would that be, then?”

Chase glanced back at the
guys over at the table. They were all laughing and tossing back more
shorts of tequila.

“
Can
we maybe talk about this later?” Chase asked.

Alex touched Chase on the
shoulder and squeezed. “Will you stay for a while?”

Chase blinked, then looked
at his feet and nodded. “Yeah, I'll stay.”

Alex beamed. “Good,”
he said. “Let's join the party.”

Soon as Chase sat back down,
Wheland slapped a business card on the table in front of Chase.
“Glad you decided to stay,” he said. “I wanted to
give you my card, so you'll let me know if this place goes up for
sale, or something else just like it.”

Alex leaned forward in his
seat. “This place is mine,” Alex said to Wheland with a
loose grin.

Wheland faced Chase again.
“Like I said, let me know what's available.”

Chase
took the card and looked at it. “I have a real estate license
so I'd be happy to help you out.”

“
But,
not with
this
place,” Alex added.

“
Shit,
Metcalf! You're a little too possessive,” Wheland said. “Not
an attractive quality for you, dude.”

“
I'm
emotionally invested in this place now,” Alex said with a grin.

“
We
can all see that,” Wheland said, “But, I can assure you,
I have no intention of stealing this house or anything else from
you.”

It was obvious to everyone
at the table what Alex and Wheland were really talking about and
Chase sure as hell sure felt the heat from their comments. He poured
himself a shot of tequila and quickly tossed it into the back of his
throat. This was going to be a long night, Chase thought, refilling
his shot glass. He hoped the liquor did something to dull the things
Alex was making him feel.

It
was mid-morning when Alex reluctantly left Chase sleeping face down
on the double-wide chaise lounge chair out by the pool. He'd made
several attempts to wake Chase – and keep him awake, but the
over-indulgence of tequila the previous night still had its grip on
Chase and he'd fallen right back to sleep.

Alex pressed a kiss to the
back of Chase's shoulder and rolled off the chair to help his friends
get their bags ready for the airport. Wheland had a private jet
waiting to fly them back to L.A. at noon. It'd be a small miracle if
they all made it to the tarmac at the designated time, without the
pilots having to wait for them.

“
Is
he gonna be okay?” Wheland asked, as they paraded by him
carrying their bags on their way to Alex's SUV.

“
I'm
sure he's fine,” Alex said. “But, he's going to feel
like shit when he does wake up.”

“
Be
sure to tell him we said good-bye,” Wheland said.

Alex nodded and began
loading instruments and bags into the back of his vehicle.

“
Be
careful with him,” Wheland said. “He's different than
your others.”

Alex looked at Wheland,
frustration furrowed his brow. “Don't you think I already
realize that?” Alex asked. “It's why I'm so drawn to him
and why I can't seem to stay away.”

“
Don't
hurt him.”

“
I'm
far more worried he'll destroy me,” Alex said, tossing the last
bag into the back of the Land Rover. “I'm already in deep.”

“
I
can tell,” Wheland said. “But, he is with you, too, so
be careful.”

“
Yes,
Dad, I will.”

“
Smart
ass.”

-0-

Chase was still laying in
the same face-down position, when Alex returned from the airport.
His body was positioned almost diagonally corner to corner on the
large cushion; a very slight incline lifted the back piece, putting
Chase's body in somewhat of an arch. His head rested at the edge of
the cushion, bordering on sliding off the side, and one arm dangled
onto the patio with the fingers touching the stone.

Alex
walked toward Chase. The closer he got, the louder the purr of
Chase's breathing became. It wasn't quite a snore, more like a
humming sound, and it made Alex smile. How could something as
insignificant as this particular noise be sexy? Alex stopped beside
the lounge chair. He watched the broad expanse of Chase's back rise
and fall with each new intake of air. Skin so beautifully tanned and
ripples of muscle bulging beneath, Alex ached to touch. His eyes
skimmed the length of Chase's back, narrow hips, and the swell of
Chase's perfect ass concealed by the swim-shorts he wore.

Alex dropped to his knees
beside Chase and ran his fingertips over the tiny bumps of Chase's
spine, then pushed his hand under the elastic waistband of Chase's
shorts to squeeze the tight muscle of his ass cheek. Chase moaned in
his sleep.

Alex leaned forward and
pressed a soft kiss to Chase's ear. “Wake up, baby,” he
whispered.

“
Go
away,” Chase slurred. “Let me die in peace.”

Alex's fingers dipped
deeper, running along Chase's crease, then lower to the warmth
between Chase's spread thighs. Alex curled his long fingers around
Chase's ball sac and lightly squeezed. Another moan rolled from
Chase's throat.

“
Sure
doesn't sound like you're dying,” Alex said. His tongue
stretched to tease the shell of Chase's ear, then pulled his lobe
into his mouth to suck.

Chase cursed and turned onto
his back, quickly covering his eyes from the glare of the sun. Alex
stood up and walked around the edge of the lounge chair and climbed
onto it to lay beside Chase. He curled himself to Chase's side,
loving the heat of him; the scent of his skin. He rested on one
elbow and set his hand in the center of Chase's chest.

“
Fuck!
What time is it?” Chase asked in a garbled voice.

“
I'm
not sure. Maybe twelve-thirty, one o'clock,” Alex said. He
fanned his fingers on Chase's breast bone, feeling the soft chest
hair beneath the pads of his fingers. He listened to Chase's
breathing slip back into a sleeping pattern. “Try and stay
awake,” Alex said.

“
My
head hurts too much,” Chase sighed.

“
You
drank a lot of tequila last night,” Alex said.